My Million Dollar invention, Finding your car in a parking lot | Eastern North Carolina Now

   (I have been blessed and / or cursed with an overactive mind. Boredom comes easily to me. The fact that as a salesman I spent quite a bit of 'windshield time' did not help matters. The old saying "An idle mind is the devil's workshop" may hold especially true for me. Ideas come and go at the speed of thought and some stick around while others disappear as quickly as they came. Since retiring, I have turned my interest into the sedentary art of pontification on the keyboard. If you think these articles are inane and useless, you should see the ones that don't make the cut in the hallucinations of my mind. I think TMac posted a poem about that in one of the comment sections. Bobby Tony)

    I used to fly out of Hartsfield Airport in Atlanta. Sometime in the 1970's, I started forgetting where I parked my car. The old Hartsfield Airport had parking in the front of the terminal. It was divided into four sections. See the picture on the below for the general layout. Most of my trips were of short duration so I parked in the front in one of the four lots. I spend a good bit of time wandering around the lots looking for my car after returning from a trip.

    Since I always carried 3 x 5 cards in my pocket (a habit I still have) I would write down the lot and aisle on a card. I quite often misplaced the card. I have had the same problem with parking at Hospitals, shopping malls. Somewhere in my DNA, there is a gene that says 'Don't bother to remember the small stuff.' Albert Einstein said "do not ever memorize something that you can look up". That has been my excuse ever since I read that quote.

    After encountering a few other sales people who apparently have the same gene, I got the idea to invent a device that would locate my car. I'll admit now that I did not think this through and there was not an internet to research such matters.

    I thought that it would be great if you could have a small canister filled with Helium attached to a string and balloon. You could attach it to your car antenna when you parked. When you came back all you had to do was activate the device with a garage type remote, the balloon would fill, the balloon would rise, and you could clearly locate your car. I even went so far as to imagine different colors of balloons so you could distinguish your balloon (i.e. car) from others when this device became so popular. I know what you're thinking, if he can't remember where he parked his car, how in the heck will he remember the color of the balloon? Here is a crude recreation of the idea since my original sketch was discarded by a narrow minded relative.

    At least two things killed my invention idea. In 1978, my company car was a Chevrolet Monte Carlo and it had its antenna embedded in the windshield. That was not the deal killer. The second was the redesign of the Airport. The plans called for a North and a South terminal and multi-layer parking.. That would take a much longer string and probably interrupt air traffic control. It also required that I remember if I parked in the North or South Terminal. There was also a distance problem with the remote. If you were too far away it would not activate the helium release mechanism.

I wonder where I parked my car?
    The idea never left the drawing board, but I do have the notes of my concept, which I keep in my "Could have been a contender Folder." As Sundance told Butch, "You just keep thinking Butch, that's what you're good at."

    I do not travel anymore and have no need to park at the airport but I do occasionally park at the mall. I still have the same problem with memory though. I often forget where I parked the car. I usually take a picture of the aisle sign or the cute color, animal or flower coded floor sign if I am in an enclosed parking deck.

    I recently needed to buy a new charger for my iPhone and I found  a gadget that not only charges my phone but also promises to do it twice as fast as a normal charger. It also has a locator built in. When you park your car, it will note the location in your iPhone and when you come out of the store, you can open the application and it will point you to your car. Amazon link for nonda ZUS Smart USB Car Charge

    It is the nonda ZUS Smart USB Car Charger & Car Finder.

• Best USB car charger: max 4.8A output, fully charges 2 ipads in 3.75 hours
• Smart car finder: download the free iOS/android app to locate your car in crowded parking lots
• German design: sophisticated European design that breathes class
• Top quality: US military MIL-STD-810G grade, German Bayer PC + titanium
• 2X lifespan: lasts twice as long as a normal USB car charger

    I always wanted a charger that met military MIL-STD-810G and was designed in Germany and made with titanium plating. I bought and tested it; it does charge faster than normal chargers, and it works in locating your car. There is still may be a problem of multi-floor deck  parking as the GPS signal is lost in enclosed areas, but I have not tested that yet. It will remind you to take a picture of your location if the GPS signal is lost. It cost about $40 and will charge two USB devices at once. Of course if you are not driving a 1978 Chevy Monte Carlo but a Ferrari then they have a 24K Gold plated version for about $500.00. I never got as far as how to gold plate a balloon. The only problem I can see with this new gadget is that it requires a 'cigarette lighter' socket. What are we going to do when they remove the socket and replace it with a charging port. I don't know if the newer cars have a ashtrays or not, but this darn technology revolution is getting on my nerves. Of course, all this will be a mute subject when we get those autonomous cars. Like James Bond did, all we will have to do is walk out the door and the car will come to us. By that time, I am sure I will not be driving anyway. I love it when a plan comes together.

   
    ZUS - The Smart Car Charger

Approved for posting by the Unofficial Gadget Man, Bobby Tony
Grandpa Diaries Chapter 48