Humor

Turning the Blender Defender into a product

Plasma2002 Leave a comment

One of, if not THE most popular installation I have done would have to be the Blender Defender. If you have not heard of it yet, please take a second to click and check it out. To sum it up, it keeps the cat off the counters by turning on the blender when it detects motion, and

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While many people still enjoy reading about the project, and seeing the videos, I still randomly get a user ask me if they can “buy it”. The problem is that the Blender Defender is not really a set-it-and-forget-it type of installation. Nor is it one piece of hardware that is easily set up by the average owner of a counter climbing cat.

I’ve been toying with the idea of how I could manage to make the Blender Defender into an actual product in the past, but it has always just been thrown around with all my other ideas, never really coming to the front of the line.

Now, after some encouragement from others, I have finally decided revisit the idea, and obtain some parts from Newark.

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Over the course of these posts, I will be documenting my processes of making a product out of a concept. A video recording, motion detecting cat deterring device may not be something you find on the shelves at your local store anytime soon, but the exercise in building this is going to be a fun one.

Now, on to the concepts.

 

Requirements.

These are the basic requirements of what I need to see with the Blender Defender.

  • Portable
  • Easy to use
  • Plug and Play
  • Safe
  • Records Video
  • Detects Motion
  • Controls an Appliance

 

Portable

I need to be able to put one single thing into somebody’s hands. That will be the Blender Defender.

Easy to use

The target demographic here is not technologically savvy users; it is cat owners who like to laugh. I need to package this in a way that any user can figure out. The instructions of use should be easy to understand, and it should be difficult to break. (Technologically speaking, not physically)

Plug and Play

Once you plug in the Blender Defender, it should start working. Simple as that.  Sure, you CAN change settings or other things, but you shouldn’t need to.

Safe

This is going to be controlling kitchen appliances, and will be switching mains voltage. It’s easy to do, but if done wrong can be fatal. Safety will definitely need to be taken into account here. Also, while on the subject of mains voltage, this one thing could be the main thing keeping me from making this a marketable product, as there are laws and regulations that I will need to look into. Certifications can be expensive.

Records Video, Detects Motion, and Controls an Appliance

These are the absolute neccessities of a true Blender Defender. Motion controlling relay switches exist right now, and sure, they would work for controlling a blender, but you don’t get the videos for later viewing. Motion detecting cameras exist, but you don’t get relay controlling, which defeats the purpose yet again.

 

 

Stay tuned to the next few posts, where I will be going over the expected challenges, design concepts, and build progress.

Shutter Shades of Disapproval

Plasma2002 10 Comments

A spinoff of my original Glasses of Disapproval, the new Shutter Shades of Disapproval are the latest thing to come off the laser production line, ready for sale.

I’ve been playing with the design of the arms of the glasses. The original glasses had basic arms that you would just stick through holes, built into the frame. Sure, it worked, but it seemed to me like there was plenty of room for improvement.
The new glasses are designed to have the arms “grab” onto the glasses, with a slight ‘snap’ to it. Something that every engineer already knows: everything is a spring 🙂

I may still refine the final clip, but I feel this is much better, and will even help prevent the arms from breaking, say if accidentally sat upon. Now the arms will just pop off the frames, instead of shattering everything.

If you want a pair of Shutter Shades of Disapproval for yourself or a friend, you can buy them directly from The Plasmatorium

Not Sure If Glasses

Plasma2002 28 Comments

Following the Look of Disapproval Glasses, I tried my hand at portraying another famous meme in a set of glasses; Fry’s Not Sure If.

It was difficult trying to get the exact same look from a cartoon into glasses, but I think I pulled it off pretty well. The only problem is that when worn, it looks horrible. I think that the only way these glasses would work is if they had a white background, or other way to hide your actual eyes.

I may just be over-thinking it though.

Spray Away

Plasma2002 45 Comments

Everyone knows that driver. They are the one who will get 2 feet away from your bumper and just not care. What can you do about it? Tap on your brakes? Well, aside from being dangerous, its also illegal. So I came up with a better solution to the problem and an easier way to get your message across. Soak them.

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Details

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Lets get one thing out of the way: yes, I am very well aware that my car is disgustingly filthy. There. Now… about the setup. This really is one of the simpler setups. All it consists of is a windshield wiper water pump, some tubing, a 2-liter soda bottle, and a garden sprinkler sprayer.

The wiper pump is wired into an extension cord that goes up to the front of the car where I can plug it into the 12-volt cigarette lighter port in my dash, giving instant use whenever I need to use it. The pump has one inlet and one outlet. A hose comes from the 2-liter bottle in the rear of the car, to the pump, then out to the sprayer on the outside of it car.

The nozel on the outside is pointed straight up, since I knew that it would be getting its use while driving. When going fast enough, the wind will blow any and all water directly behind me and onto whoever is deciding to follow me. I thought it would be great to put some kind of paint thinner in the system, so the other driver would get a more permanent message, but my better judgement told me not to. Oh well, water works too.

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Blender Defender

Plasma2002 875 Comments

Have a cat that won’t stay off your counters? I do. I finally got fed up with it enough to do something about it: scare the crap out of him with a motion-detecting blender (while recording the results for my own amusement, of course).


Confused at what you’re looking at? This is a repeating shot of security camera footage of my cat jumping on the counter – in search of a plant to munch on – and initiating my Blender Defender. Take a look at the following comic to get a better understanding 🙂

 blender_defender_comic

Videos

Sorry, but you’re going to have to pretend you can hear an extremely loud blender while you watch these clips

 

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