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Pager Patch

Unobtrusive, unpretentious, and you won't accidentally leave it at home.
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A pager (beeper, whatever you call it) in the form of a thin adhesive patch. The pager would have the bare minimum of electronics necessary: all it would do is receive a signal when you are paged and then send current between two electical contacts on its surface.

The patch would be worn on the skin, under a shirtsleeve or wherever. When someone pages you, they dial as normal and then get to leave a message for you in a voicemail box. When they are finished, the system sends a signal to your pager, which applies current to your skin -- just enough to get your attention. This tells you to call the system and retrieve your message.

A disadvantage of this would be that you wouldn't instantly know who was calling you. However, I believe that is outweighed by the unobtrusiveness and convenience of the design.

PotatoStew, Jun 13 2001

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       Yes! I want people to be able to administer electric shocks to me from miles away!
bookworm, Jun 13 2001
  

       They're only mild electric shocks... it would probably feel no worse than the vibrate mode on a regular pager. Unless you're into that sort of thing. Then maybe the intensity of the shock could be set by the owner.
PotatoStew, Jun 13 2001
  

       The electronics are probably feasible (though making it flexible may be tricky), but what about the batteries?
egnor, Jun 13 2001
  

       I was thinking wristwatch batteries. They're not super thin, but they would add minimal bulk and probably still make the patch useable.
PotatoStew, Jun 13 2001
  

       Piezo elements charging a capacitor?
angel, Jun 13 2001
  
      
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