This cloud-connected fidget spinner takes uselessness to a whole new level
Fidget spinners -- yeah, they're still a thing. So why not capitalize on the phase if you can?
Ben Parnas, an electrical engineer at Formlabs, and his buddy Greg Daneault, an associate software engineer at Carbon Black, did just that. The two created a fidget spinner that may be even more useless than the real thing for the Boston Stupid Hackathon. The tagline of the event (also known as Stupid Shit No One Needs And Terrible Ideas Hackathon) was "Come make something we'll all regret."
The two buddies wanted to take an object that is a useless part of everyone's lives and make it even easier to use. The connected a fidget spinner to a robot that spins it automatically. That robot is connected to the cloud, so you can activate it via smartphone. Not by tapping or swiping, mind you, but by actually spinning your phone.
It’s a satirical piece on the current ideology that anything can be improved by connecting it to 'the cloud.'
"I would say it’s a satirical piece on the current ideology that anything can be improved by connecting it to 'the cloud'," said Parnas.
They call their creation the Spidget Finner. Anyone looking for hidden meaning in the deliberate misspelling of "fidget spinner" might want to look elsewhere.
"We were looking to go with a name that rolls off the tongue well, and has no meaning whatsoever. It was a perfect match!" said Parnas.
While the device is something that would take most of us some real brain power to put together, it was a breeze for the pair of engineers. The tag team came up with the idea in about half an hour, and put the whole thing together in working order in eight hours after 3D-printing some parts.
Parnas said he and Daneault just put the Spidget Finner together as a silly weekend project, not as a way to make money. But they're happy to share the code and parts used with anyone who needs the device in their own home.
So if you're in the market for yet another fidget spinning accessory in your life, comment on Parnas' YouTube video and you just might end up the lucky owner of a new instructions manual.
Topics iPhone Innovations
Molly is a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While there, she studied life sciences communication and conservation biology. Molly has worked in multiple communications positions at UW and recently acted as a science intern at Business Insider in NYC. She is a lover of all things science and tech related, and is always ready to take on a new challenge. When Molly isn't writing, she fills her time training for IRONMAN events, acting as the unofficial #1 Wisconsin athletics fan, and trying as many new foods as her budget will allow.
