A Melbourne company has invented Typified Weather Poster – a piece of art that is also a weather poster.
Typified Weather Poster is a Kickstarter project. This means if it does not gain pre-sales commitments it does not go ahead. Currently, the prototype stage is complete, and fulfilment is in July.
It is an interesting concept using smart ink; a small Wi-Fi internet connected IoT device; picture frame and USB power.
Inventor Oli Woods says,
Because the Typified Weather Poster is a printed poster without any light emitting elements, you don’t have the nagging sensation to look at it like you would a phone or TV screen. It is equal parts Art and Technology. It has rich colours and tiny imperfections from the screen-printing process as well as exclusivity as each design is limited to a run of 500. This sits in stark contrast to screens produced in the millions of units.”
Smart Ink changes tone when an electrical current passes through it. The poster shows the weather at 8 am, 12 pm, 4 pm and 8 pm. The different weather types fall under one of three symbols; rainy, cloudy or sunny. The criteria on how you would dress/act according to the weather, e.g. you would probably act similarly to ‘thunderstorm’ and ‘rain’, likewise with ‘sunny’ and ‘partly sunny’.
The price includes free weather updates for two years and then an annual subscription of US$7.50 to keep accessing weather services. Weather is global and based on where you place the poster.
GadgetGuy’s take – Typified Weather Poster is an interesting use of e-ink.
This is the start of something, and its inventors probably don’t know what that is just yet. However, I imagine more single-use posters perhaps for signage or directions.
The concept of smart weather without having to ask Google or look at your smartphone is good. It is nice to be patriotic and support an Australian idea.
However, it is really a single purpose item and should be seen as such – a clever piece of art.
The Kickstarter campaign finishes 2 March with posters from $189.
