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There might be a startup opportunity here. If these devices have a real economic use -- spotting heat leaks -- and the only available alternative is orders of

by csense 14y ago

There might be a startup opportunity here. If these devices have a real economic use -- spotting heat leaks -- and the only available alternative is orders of magnitude more expensive. I don't do hardware (although this project looks simple), but it would be interesting to own one of these and a lot of people like me might be willing to part with a few bucks for the privilege of owning one (especially if it helps spot leaks that are adding to the heating bill).

k3n 14y ago
Not sure how much profit it'd be able to squeeze out of the IR thermometer[1] market, which are already in fairly common use (the building maintenance people at work use them) and it looks like you can get one for as little as $25. 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_thermometer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_thermometer
veemjeem 14y ago
It's basically an IR thermometer that outputs a color instead of a number reading. Those "gadgets" are already pretty cheap, so not sure if replacing the expensive passive display with a 15 cent rgb led would make anyone profit. I use this one for checking the oil on my pan to see if it's hot enough for my ribeye steak: http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Non-Contact-Laser-Thermometer-Display/dp/B008QUJILI http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Non-Contact-Laser-Thermometer-... If they used an rgb led instead of the read-out, you might be able to buy one for $5.
abcd_f 14y ago
It's an opportunity similar to opening a steak house, because you managed to fry a really good steak.
DanBC 14y ago
Making something cheap, easy, and robust enough for building contractors to use might be handy. Many people are having insulation installed (in the UK, at least) and having a simple method to show the effectiveness would be good. It could even be put in the sales pitch. "Here's the heat pouring out of your home. See your neighbours? That money is staying in their home."

by csense 14y ago

k3n 14y ago

Not sure how much profit it'd be able to squeeze out of the IR thermometer[1] market, which are already in fairly common use (the building maintenance people at work use them) and it looks like you can get one for as little as $25. 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_thermometer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_thermometer

veemjeem 14y ago

It's basically an IR thermometer that outputs a color instead of a number reading. Those "gadgets" are already pretty cheap, so not sure if replacing the expensive passive display with a 15 cent rgb led would make anyone profit. I use this one for checking the oil on my pan to see if it's hot enough for my ribeye steak: http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Non-Contact-Laser-Thermometer-Display/dp/B008QUJILI http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Non-Contact-Laser-Thermometer-... If they used an rgb led instead of the read-out, you might be able to buy one for $5.

abcd_f 14y ago

It's an opportunity similar to opening a steak house, because you managed to fry a really good steak.

DanBC 14y ago

Making something cheap, easy, and robust enough for building contractors to use might be handy. Many people are having insulation installed (in the UK, at least) and having a simple method to show the effectiveness would be good. It could even be put in the sales pitch. "Here's the heat pouring out of your home. See your neighbours? That money is staying in their home."