Aug 26, 2015 | By Alec
3D printing and 3D printed solutions is slowly invading and improving all the rooms in our homes, so why not the bedroom too? If you’re one of those people who checks their smartphone every time you wake up and fil the room with bright light, a perfect 3D printing solution for you has just been unveiled. Invented by German Yvonne Joh, the DreamMe is a low-cost 3D printed projection unit you place on top of your smartphone to project visible, but not disturbing info on your bedroom ceiling.
Yvonne Joh hails from Dusseldorf in Germany, and works in a small retail store by day, but is a hobbyist inventor by night. She’s also quite a light sleeper, and often checks her smartphone when she wakes up at night – starting with just the time, before moving on to Twitter, the news, some emails. Sound familiar? The problem is that this wakes up her husband, so she began thinking about a way to interact with your smartphone at night without shining bright lights through the room.
And that is essentially how the DreamMe was invented; it’s basically a 3D printed projection unit filled with some lenses that projects information from a special DreamMe app. ‘With the DreamMe hardware and app you keep up to date with time and other information, right on the ceiling of your sleeping room. DreamMe hardware does not require batteries or cumbersome coupling to your smartphone or tablet, as the hardware uses a special optical system to show the information from your smartphone right on the ceiling of your darkened room,’ she explains.
It is thus very simple to use. Simply start the app, set the DreamMe on top of your smartphone or tablet, and the app does the rest. ‘The app ensures the appropriate placement and allows to choose different categories of information to be displayed. The user decides himself whether DreamMe is solely used as "projection alarm clock", or indicates your new mail messages and the weather report,’ Yvonne explains.
What’s more, aside from the clock or the weather report, there a host of different projection options to select:
- Display the local time and date
- Display the local weather (temperature and cloudiness)
- Display your own message
- "Sheep counting" will help you to fall asleep
- Alarm clock and auto on / off
- Display time in additional time zones (pro upgrade)
- Display weather in other cities (pro upgrade)
- Show number of unread mails (pro upgrade)
- Show the latest Twitter tweet (pro upgrade)
What’s more, the app itself is capable of adjusting brightness and contrast for the various options, as well as dealing with the optical system to ensure visible information on a darkened ceiling. The DreamMe app is also freely available for iOS and Android.
So how does it work? Well, the DreamMe consists of two identical parts that can be screwed closer to each other, or the other way around, to adjust sharpness. The optics are stored in the top part, and are designed by a prominent German manufacturer. ‘The base is available in two colors, black and white. In active use the colored focus ring separates the upper and lower parts with a subtle light band. The selected material not only is non-slip and extremely lightweight but also offers comfortable haptics preventing scratches,’ she adds.
The DreamMe is, in short, a very clever and low-cost nighttime solution – the only costly part is the lens itself. However, the 3D printed case obviously went through a series of prototypes before coming to this final, sleek and fun design ‘It not only fits perfectly to your nightstand, it establishes a perfect symbiosis with your smartphone - real bros & sis. Compact size and low weight make it a perfect companion on your next trip. It follows you through the night to keep you up to date,’ Yvonne says.
If you’re interested, here’s some good news: just about everything about the DreamMe has already been completed, so you’ll only be paying for production. This means shipping will begin as early as December 2015, and will include either a black or white body, and lens and focus ring. The app is also available for free. And all that for just for a pledge of just €18 – doesn’t sound bad, right? For more, check out Yvonne’s Kickstarter campaign here.
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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Does it project You tube in a reasonable fashion? People don't have to try and watch on a tiny 5" screen.
Phone-Banner wrote at 8/27/2015 9:55:20 AM:
Keep your Phone out of your bedroom! It's not just about the radio waves, sleep is there for your body and mind to relax, regenerate and heal. You should not be tempted at all to look at or operate that stupid smart phone and interrupt your sleep. Especially if you can't keep it tucked away during the entire day anyway.
Yvonne wrote at 8/26/2015 7:46:10 PM:
Thank you very much - we working for nearly one year for this projcet - DreamMe - stay tuned @ night Cheers Yvonne
heretoday wrote at 8/26/2015 12:34:43 PM:
This seems like a really weak kickstarter. Projection boxes aren't a new thing, and there isn't even a picture of the device in operation. Isn't there a working prototype and images?