What do you need designed?
Looking for problems to solve or products to improve for my product design Engineering course at uni.
Thanks, John
Left handed toilet roll would be nice.
Wet bags. Seems you can buy dry bags all over the place, but never seen any wet bags.
After my weekend of fun, a tool that can reach and uncrew the c***ing diesel filter drain plug on a f***ing Peugeot 205.
It could be worse, anyone who can change a clio diesel filter without getting drenched in it has at least 2 more hands than me
French cars, what else do you expect from the nation that brought us the sani-flo toilet?
modular rucksack with choice of back panel yoke material (ie synthetic or canvas), must be separately washable item. Modular lightweight comfortable and stable outdoor carrying system with yoke, belt etc not looking overtly militaristic/sas aspirant
Load carrying without unnecessary sweat and smell!
> modular rucksack with choice of back panel yoke material (ie synthetic or canvas), must be separately washable item. Modular lightweight comfortable and stable outdoor carrying system with yoke, belt etc not looking overtly militaristic/sas aspirant
> Load carrying without unnecessary sweat and smell!
Uberniche.
Judging from the number wedged around crags around the world how about a cam removal device (or a cam that can't get stuck!). And yes I know about all the tricks to remove them, never left one yet...
A flushing handle for my toilet trowel.
What happened to the Volvo? How do you fit in a Cleo?
- It's about time we got some kind of adaptor that would allow the majority of axes to be securely slotted onto a shovel blade. Handles are a huge waste of weight budget.
- Some double boots with a minimalist, soled inner you can wear on a greater range approach, and an outer boot with integrated (steel) crampon spikes.
- Zip-off trousers with integrated heavy-duty snow gaiters
- A better mode of protection for steep snow slopes of variable density
- If you really want to change the world, design an effective ropeless protection system that weighs less than 2 kg per person (that'll be light enough to get us going). Sounds about right for a summer project. Is it really going to be ropes, ropes, ropes, from the cradle of alpinism to its grave? That can't be right.
> - It's about time we got some kind of adaptor that would allow the majority of axes to be securely slotted onto a shovel blade. Handles are a huge waste of weight budget.
Or a way the shovel blade could be secured to the ice axe in general, for use; doesn't need to slide on necessarily.
> - A better mode of protection for steep snow slopes of variable density
If you make this, you can have my money.
> - If you really want to change the world, design an effective ropeless protection system that weighs less than 2 kg per person (that'll be light enough to get us going). Sounds about right for a summer project. Is it really going to be ropes, ropes, ropes, from the cradle of alpinism to its grave? That can't be right.
Ambitious, but there was a time before dynamic ropes were a thing and they would have seemed ambitious then.
> French cars, what else do you expect from the nation that brought us the sani-flo toilet?
I didn't know they were responsible for such crap designs.
Something that does what Compeed does for walker's toes for climber's fingertips.
You take off the backing covering the sticky surface and roll the plaster round a fingertip when the skin is starting to get thin. It is thin, ideally transparent and bonds firmly to itself and to skin so once it is wrapped all the way round you can pull hard on a hold without it coming off. It will stay on for a couple of days while new skin grows under it. The outside surface of the plaster over the finger pad is tougher than real skin and roughened up with ridges designed to make it grip rock better than skin.
The collapsible ice axe.
How about a climbing chalk substitute which doesn't need re applying every one or two moves?
Custom moulded climbing shoes for a perfect fit?
A bouldering pad that follows you around like a robo-hoover?
A little comfy belaying bench for hanging belays that can roll up into a tiny size to hang off the back of your harness when not in use?
I'll take 33% on anything you make. Thanks.
Ice axe attachments for rucksacks that work as well as the old ones did with straight axes. Don't let the axes flop around, rattle or fall out and from which the axe can be removed reasonably easily while wearing the ice axe. Won't catch when scrambling down something with or without an axe in place and don't have bits that are vulnerable to getting broken or lost. Ideally, hold walking poles instead.
Crampons that extend and retract into sole of boot
Carbon fibre? carabiners
How about a baffle system for down products (clothing, sleeping bays etc.) which is easy to make and thermally efficient. i'd much prefer to use down rather than synthetic insulation for various applications but it always seems too much faff to create the baffles.
Let's keep it simple.
How about zippers that don't get stuck?
B
A bouldering mat drone. It hovers a couple of inches off the ground and follows you as you climb. Good for problems that have a bit of traversing.
A portable climbing trainer - something that packs away and can be transported. Resistance training for hands/arms and feet/legs - potentially including variable sized grips to target finger/hand strength.
A laser measuring device (possibly mounted on a very quiet, tiny drone) that can be pointed at potential placements that 3D images the placement and tells you the best bit of gear to take up. No more massive racks just in case.
One of those bolt firing guns from the film Cliffhanger...
A quick google reveals a myriad of those.
https://www.goinginstyle.com/products/hydrapak-stash-1-liter-collapsible-wa...
True. Albeit tge requester specified 2 liters and mentiones 1.5 liters.
How about a true backpack to rule ’em all.
Needs to be about 40 to 60 liters expanded (80m rope, few pairs of shoes, harness, grub & water, and a big rack of QDs. Or one 60m half rope, big rack of gear & screws, crampons, harness, belay jacket, waterproof, and a dozen pairs of gloves). Yet cinch down to about 20 liters or less. Oh, and add a detaching rope tarp. And it needs to be light and robust.
Basically it’s a rucksack that works as a (euro sport) craggin’ sack. As well as gets everything (inside) to the start of a scottish winter route (or alpine/Norway rock route, long but still doable in one go), then packs down to the size of a leader pack (belay jacket, spare gloves and some grub & drink). Or anything in between.
Oh, and fit carry on limitations when ’big’ or ’nearly at ITS largest’.
Would save a lot of room in my household.
Mouldable protection:
I device that could inserted into any recess in the rock, and 'inflated' to provide an anchor/ runner
Considering all the threads on here about climbers and campers littering the crags with human shit, how about something to solve the problem. Something that can clip around the waist. Catch the offending turd and package it up in a sealed, flushable bag when you get home. I know there are bags that can achieve the same thing but climbers and campers like to buy gadgets. Make it out of titanium and charge £100 for it and they will buy it.
Too late, I've already patented the "dough nut", which hardens using some sort of shape memory alloy or something.
The perfect girlfriend
I'd like a product that gives you all the information that you need on all the routes in an area:
- Must be small enough to easily fit in a pocket whilst climbing
- Not rely on batteries
- Must be able to survive a fall from the top of the crag.
Something that blocks people who can't be arsed to do their own legwork from posting
> In reply to John Aisthorpe
> - A better mode of protection for steep snow slopes of variable density
The real issue there is that the medium you're attempting to put protection into is the fallible element
> How about a true backpack to rule ’em all.
> Needs to be about 40 to 60 liters expanded (80m rope, few pairs of shoes, harness, grub & water, and a big rack of QDs. Or one 60m half rope, big rack of gear & screws, crampons, harness, belay jacket, waterproof, and a dozen pairs of gloves). Yet cinch down to about 20 liters or less. Oh, and add a detaching rope tarp. And it needs to be light and robust.
Given the carry on limit is 55 L, it will take more than an engineering student to get a 60L bag to fit in it.
I did write that fit in limits either fully expanded or nearly so.
Btw, it’s rather Odd that my purpose made light bag happens to be 60 + 10 liters. And Yes, it is ’legal’.
At 60L?? I presume you must used it compressed down to get in hand luggage?
A rucksack which has an attachment to carry a scooter/bike/whatever mad contraption my children decide to take to the park but are too tired to pilot home.
> How about a true backpack to rule ’em all.
I think my post (#10) in this rucksack thread pretty much hits every one of your points:
https://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/gear/best_rucksack_for_climbing_and_campi...
A dry treated rope at half the weight and cost would be great, ideally non tangling or self coiling.
A sling with curtain wire in the weave to make it hold any shape you bend it to. Helpful for difficult threads. Mustn't rust or fatigue, or be much heavier than a normal sling.
Clip-on crampon. Like the cycling shoes system, but instead of a pedal, a crampon plate.
Problem with that idea is that in cycling the pedal stroke applies the force directly throughout the cleat but in winter climbing the force would be applied at a distance from the cleat applying considerable leverage .
Head up display e-guidebook which projects the route information on the rock in front of you.
Well...
A simple e-ink guidebook would already be highly useful... b&w (shades or grey) instead of color though.
A Kindle (and the likes) are a lot smaller than majority of available guidebooks. And you can fit prolly a few hundret in. Battery lasts a few weeks (unlike tablets or mobiles).
Also if done properly (forget rigid page layouts), updates could be easily done (if publisher so wishes).
I already use my iPhone for certain e-guides, either online using the browser, or offline when an app is available. But the phone lacks head up display. Actually, HUD for phones would be useful for a number of other things than just e-guidebooks.
Sent you a detailed PM; let me know if you don't get it.
>Multipitch and alpine... paper still triumphs (plus photos of the topo in the camera and phone).
Yes still, but it would be nice with all that information on the inside of your sunglasses. It would be cheating though
Yes but it wouldn't be a cycling cleat, it would be the same idea but with 4 inset points each at each extremity of the sole so no leverage problems. The main issue I see is ice build up making the clipping difficult, but that is part of the design brief
>>Something that does what Compeed does for walker's toes for climber's fingertips.
What, stick your hand and your glove together in one horrible, unremovable glob?
> >>Something that does what Compeed does for walker's toes for climber's fingertips.
> What, stick your hand and your glove together in one horrible, unremovable glob?
I was talking about a thin tape with a high friction surface on the outside and a sticky surface on the inside you could apply to your fingertips when the skin is getting thin so you don't have to stop climbing in the same way as Compeed lets walkers who are starting to develop blisters avoid stopping walking. The people who need it (i.e. boulderers and sport climbers) aren't wearing gloves.
Considering that I just seen a UKC post saying a Silent Partner just sold for £1000 it's pretty clear to me what you need to ...