Spitball Army

The New York Times Magazine‘s Idea Issue yesterday featured a list of some interesting patents registered during 2007, with the best guesses (by Jason Munn and Alexandra Horowitz) as to what inspired them.  Some of these nearly had me on the floor with laughter…and disbelief (situation first > patented idea second):

• Damaged butter knives > Butter-stick slicer
• Hula Hoop too light > Hula Hoop with weights
• Hat has only one advertising message > Hat with interchangeable advertising media
• Must spit manually > Saliva ejector
• Coffee maker does not fit into pants pocket > Folding coffee maker
• Miss TV show while grabbing a snack > Refrigerator with television
• Unsure how far pets have walked > Pedometer for pets
• Immovable eyeglass case > Portable eyeglass case
• Diaper bag not a fun place > Baby-seat-cover diaper bag/activity center
• Breakfast is not much of a gamble > Slot-machine-shaped toaster
• Painful jump-roping > Skipping ropes with more comfortable & effective skipping position
• Odorless cellphones > Communication device having a scent release feature & method thereof

Again, here is the link to the entire article from the Times’ website – it is in pdf format, and just about as hard to read online as it was on paper, but the effort will most certainly be rewarded.