Waking up to Clocky

INNOVATION: A young Indian scientist in the US has designed an alarm clock that runs off once you press the snooze button.

It may take a while before Indians can start running after their alarm clocks, but in the US an increasing number of people are waking up to Clocky, an alarm clock that rolls off the bedside table as soon as one hits the snooze button.

Gauri Nanda, an ex-student of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) media lab started designing products a few years ago and Clocky, one of her award-winning products (it won the funny 'Ig Nobel' prize and was also recognised in the 2006 New York Times Year In Ideas magazine) has been a runaway success.

"Clocky was, quite simply, the most obvious way I could think to get out of bed. As a student, I would hit the snooze bar repeatedly, never realising how late it was getting. I had friends who told me that they would put the alarm clock on the other side of the room, but because they knew where it was, they would just sleepwalk to it, turn it off and go right back to bed."

That got her thinking and soon Nanda realised that the tradition alarm clock needed to be improved, both in functionality and in personality.

That's when this 27-year-old scientist began designing Clocky. The original proof of the concept took her just a couple of weeks, but to get Clocky ready for commercial sale, she began working with a team of engineers and manufacturers on the design that took up nearly a year.

Launched in 2006, Clocky, after rolling off the bedside table, travels around the room and its carpet-covered surface bumps into objects that come into its path, until it finds a resting place.

"When the alarm sounds again, the person obviously has to search for the clock," says Nanda. What's more, an internal processor helps it find a new hiding spot every day.

She adds, "In addition to doing the job of an alarm clock better, Clocky is also an attempt to humanise technology and make it more personable."

Looking at the positive response to her product, Nanda (who, as a student of MIT media lab focused on intersection of design and technology) already has a couple of more versions of Clocky in R&D.

"Future versions of the clock will employ more sophisticated technology with exciting new features. We envision an entire Clocky product line," she adds.

Her company, Nanda, makes innovative products and also has a unique Lapsac product. "These are bags which, unlike the common black laptop case, are more stylish and comfortable for carrying a heavy computer." She admits that her company has other products in the pipeline but it's too early to talk about them.

And while she wants Clocky to travel to other countries, Nanda says she will first have to do product testing before it can be sold in those markets.