Simple Genius Ideas That We Want To See Everywhere ASAP
The future is now, and people are coming up with cool, easy ways to help people work smarter, not harder. Simple changes in product design, color-coding, and good signs go a long way to make life a lot easier and more accessible to a whole range of diverse people.
Here are some cool ideas that need to be implemented worldwide, like, yesterday.
Stalls For Shoppers To Put Their Dogs In
These dog stalls outside of a supermarket in Copenhagen let dog owners lock up their furry pals in a warm, sheltered place while they quickly run around the store to do their shopping.
Color-Coded Shopping Baskets For Store Assistance
This benefits everyone, because this way people who want to have a solo shopping experience don't feel bothered or annoyed and retail associates get to focus their attention on people who actually want it.
This Sign In The Washroom Of A Doctor's Office
This is a discreet way for people experiencing abuse/domestic violence/human trafficking to alert someone to their situation and seek help without alerting the person responsible who might be there with them.
Maps Of Product Locations On Grocery Carts
Have you ever gone to a new grocery store and been frustrated by how hard it is to find the things you need? This supermarket in Sweden provides store maps on carts for a more seamless experience.
Fire Evacuation Information At Floor Level For When There's Smoke
In the case of a fire, this hotel put its fire evacuation information near the floor so that people can read it while they are low to the ground to avoid smoke inhalation.
Tactile Rubik's Cubes For Blind People
This Rubik's Cube adds different textures for each color so that the visually impaired can try out the puzzle. This is a simple way to make a classic challenge accessible, and we're here for it!
Color-Coded Lights For Occupied vs. Vacant Bathroom Stalls
Bathrooms at the Atlanta airport use these color-coded lights so that people don't have to respond to someone trying to open the stall door with an awkward, panicked "Someone is in here!"
Labels For Ceiling Fan Pull Cords
Not only is this genius, because who hasn't spent way too much time trying to figure out which cord controls what, but also these mini fan and light bulb labels are super cute.
Hall-Runners, Beware
I can't decide if this school is genius or evil. This floor is perfectly flat but obviously the design on it makes you think otherwise. It's supposed to ward off kids running in the hall and honestly, it works.
This Grocery Store Sells Overripe Bananas In Bags With A Banana Bread Recipe
Overripe fruits and veggies are often thrown out at grocery stores, leading to 43 billion pounds of produce waste annually in American supermarkets. Nifty ways to make use of "expired" foods help reduce food waste.
Bike Stand With A Built-In Air Pump
Kill two birds with one stone by locking your bike up securely and also making sure your tire pressure is good. This stand was photographed in Utrecht, Netherlands, where almost 40% of people cycle as their main source of transportation.
A CVS Vending Machine
Quickly need some Advil? Have an emergency that requires a feminine hygiene product? Want to quickly wash the garlic taste out of your mouth before that big date? This machine has so many good uses.
Labels That Explain The Function Of Each Ingredient
Unless you have a strong background in chemistry, a lot of product ingredients can seem like gibberish. Having the purpose of the ingredients explained can help them seem less frightening and more understandable.
Story Dispenser To Help Wait Times Feel Shorter
This machine at the Philadelphia airport dispenses short stories for travelers who are looking for something to do while waiting for their flight. The machine prints the story out like a receipt. Happy reading!
Soft Barriers Between Spots In The Parking Garage
The padded barriers prevent cars from scratching each other when parking and opening doors. I would love these everywhere so that TENANT 83 would STOP leaving RED MARKS on my car at my apartment building.
Drink Cans with Braille Labels On Top
Braille beer can labels: because people with visual impairment also deserve to know what kind of IPA they're drinking when they crack a cold one after a long day at work.
A Crosswalk Sensor That Allows Elderly And Disabled People To Extend Crossing Time
This crosswalk in Singapore has a sensor built in so that people with disabilities and elderly citizens can tap their identification cards to get a little more time to cross.
Pizza Box That Folds Into A Container For Leftovers
Don't trust your friend to return Tupperware if you lend it to them? The bottom of this pizza box folds into a smaller box for left-over slices. Whether you keep them or give them away is up to you.
Restaurant Menu That Shows You Exactly What Each Pizza Looks Like
This Italian restaurant in Prague, Czech Republic uses a circular menu so you can know exactly what each meal item looks like. Goodbye guessing about the food and getting something unexpected!
A Walking Cane That Converts Into A Sitting Stool
This cane is great for anybody who has mobility issues and might need to take a seat to rest, or works as an easy solution any time that seating isn't readily available.
A Mirror That Shows The Teacher's Countertop
All home economics classrooms need this upgrade so that students can see exactly what their teacher is doing during cooking and baking classes. Maybe if I had this in school, my chocolate cake wouldn't have been so dry.
A Flashlight That Doubles As A Bat
This item is for when it's dark and you feel unsafe, like if your car breaks down on the side of a creepy road. I'm just saying, fewer people would die in horror movies if they had these.
Soap Gun For Kids To Shoot At The Carwash
This carwash has a soap gun that kids can shoot at the car as it moves through. Cleaning and running errands has never been so fun for your children (or yourself; you deserve to play a bit)!
Urinals That Use Hand-washing Water To Flush
This design helps prevent water waste by using the water needed to wash your hands to flush the toilet. Also, it allows for more compact bathrooms and you don't have to move around the room as much.
Library Checkout Receipt Shows How Much Money You Save By Borrowing Books
I don't care what people say — libraries are important and will always be useful. This library shows the value they provide by letting people know how much they save by borrowing instead of buying.
Airless Bicycle Tires
These tires on rideshare bicycles in China use a perforated design rather than inflatable tires to avoid problems with users getting flats and having to do regular tire pumping maintenance.
Alternating Buttons To Avoid Shirt Gaps
Just about every woman who has worn a button up shirt has had to deal with the "chest gap"; the alternating button pattern on this shirt holds the sides tightly together to avoid gaping.
A Mouthwash Dispenser In The Bathroom
At a first date dinner and hoping that you might get kissed at the end of the night, but you ate the tuna fillet? No problem: this restaurant has your back (as all restaurants should).
Finally, A Cast You Can Shower With!
This 3D printed cast is the future of comfortably showering with a broken limb. Anyone who has had a cast knows how annoying it is to have to wrap saran wrap around your cast every single time you want to wash your hair.
Over-sink Dish Rack That Doubles As Storage
This highly organized dish rack is perfect if you're lazy and hate having to move the dried dishes from the rack to the cupboard. All you have to do is wash and stack.
Hexagonal Graph Paper For Organic Chemistry
I distinctly remember how annoying it was to draw hundreds of hexagons for chemistry class. This graphing paper not only makes the drawing process easier, but it also makes the molecular drawings more accurate.
A Toilet That Flushes By Foot
This toilet in a bathroom in Mexico has a foot lever to flush the toilet. As someone who has nearly pulled a muscle trying to flush a normal toilet with my foot, I would love to see these everywhere.
I Wish I Had These At Some Hotels I Stayed At
This hotel in China provides its guests with cards for them to give taxi drivers to show where they want to go back to, which is especially useful if you don't speak the local lanugage.
I Want 10 Of These
This power bar has outlets that rotate so that wider plugs don't block the other sockets from being used and allowing users the get the most out of the device.
Sorted By Step, Not Type
Anyone who has tried to assemble furniture knows the hassle of trying to figure out which pieces you need to use at each point or even just avoid losing them. Organization by step makes things so much easier.
Look Ma, No Hands!
These elevator buttons located near the ground add the option for people to kick them. This is a great solution for people whose hands are full or germaphobes who prefer to keep their hands clean.
We Love Recycling!
In a world where people are looking to make more environmentally conscious purchases, repurposing plastic bottles into clothing is a great way to responsibly recycle. It's extra cool that this store shows how the process works.
Eat Up, Nemo!
The golf balls at this oceanside mini putt course are biodegradable and contain fish food so that, when your ball falls down the 18th hole on the course, it drops into the ocean for a lucky fish to snack on.
Big Mario Kart Energy
The fact that I've never seen this done before is shocking since the opportunity is right there. I want all "caution, slippery floor" signs to be shaped like banana peels.
My Wife Needs These!
Some people just aren't that good at parking—there's no way around it—but these lines that extend up the wall make it easier for drivers to check if they're actually inside the lines.
