A young father horrified by the number of babies left alone in hot cars has invented a device to alert parents if they forget to take their child with them.
Matthew Sheets, 26, has designed a weight-activated seat sensor which notifies a parent's mobile phone when their child is still in their baby seat.
The alert appears on their phone once they step outside of a 20ft (6 metres) radius from the baby seat if they've forgotten to take their child out of its seat.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2728013/Could-device-prevent-hot-car-deaths-Starfish-senses-child-left-vehicle-alerts-parent-s-phone.html#ixzz3AwzXqxkZ
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The small Starfish sensor is 1.5 inches (3.8cm) round and as thick as a few coins. It will cost £36 ($60)
What's more, if they haven't noticed the notification on their phone, the device - called Starfish - will then tell their emergency contacts within five minutes.
The small sensor - just 1.5 inches (3.8cm) round and as thick as a few coins, will cost £36 ($60) when its Kickstarter crowd funding campaign ends in September.
Mr Sheets, founder of Studio Whale who made the device, became a father to Henry for the first time just over four months ago.
He said: 'On average, one child dies in a hot car every nine days in the United States. With Starfish, we aim to make that number zero.
The Starfish gadget was created by Matthew Sheets, 26, who is a father of a four-month-year-old (pictured)
When activated, Starfish creates a 'geo-fence' around itself and sends a notification to the parent's phone
'As a new father, hearing the news of yet another infant losing his life in a hot car horrified me.
'I asked myself, 'How? Why? What can be done?'
'The search for answers prompted me to start developing a device that could easily prevent these tragedies from happening. That device is Starfish.'
Mr Sheets, who lives in Birmingham in Alabama, with wife Jessica, 25, called it Starfish because of the way it will stick inside a child's seat.
He expects to be able to ship the product in December, which will work on both Apple and Android smartphones via bluetooth.
He added: 'When you place your child on the Starfish device, it automatically pairs with your smartphone, sending you a notification that your child is in his or her seat.
'When activated, Starfish then creates a 'geo-fence' radius around itself.
'If you leave the "geo-fenced" area, around 20ft (6 metres), Starfish will automatically notify you that your child may be in danger.
'For me, this technology is all about saving lives. Starfish is a simple way to prevent these tragedies from happening.
'With enough support, we will enter production by October, and have plans to ship units by November and first runs by December.'
The device, which sticks to a child's seat (left), automatically pairs to the parents iPhone or Android phone
Matthew Sheets, founder of Studio Whale, became a father to Henry for the first time just over four months ago. 'As a new father, hearing the news of yet another infant losing his life in a hot car horrified me, he said. 'I asked myself, 'How? Why? What can be done?'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2728013/Could-device-prevent-hot-car-deaths-Starfish-senses-child-left-vehicle-alerts-parent-s-phone.html#ixzz3AwzXqxkZ
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