Ottobox

     Ottobox is a smart home automation device that its makers claim could reduce your electricity bills by up to 50 percent. It does this by monitoring the appliances plugged into your wall sockets, and turning them off when they're not in use. The thinking is that all the energy wasted by appliances sitting in standby mode can soon add up to a hefty amount.
     The device is a plug-and-play unit that sits between the wall socket and the appliances. The device reportedly contains patent-pending technology that "completely stops the flow of electricity" to the appliances. It also learns – over the course of two weeks – when appliances are likely to be used, and turns them off at all other times.
     Each Ottobox contains one plug socket and two USB ports, allowing you to charge multiple mobile devices at any one time. It also contains Bluetooth 4.0, allowing Ottobox to track your movements; Wi-Fi, allowing you to control Ottobox from anywhere within your home; and an ARM microprocessor that powers the whole thing.

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The Shoe that Grows

     For children living in poverty, footwear is one of many problems. Almost as soon as a child has received shoes to wear, they're likely to have grown out of them and have to make do with them being too small. The Shoe That Grows changes this. It allows children to adjust its size as their feet grow. Shoes are hugely important for protecting our feet, especially in places where healthcare provision is limited. 

     Unfortunately, shoes are not always readily available for those living in poverty, let alone shoes that are the right size. Kenton Lee, founder of poverty charity Because International, Lee says he saw young children wearing shoes that were way too small for them, with their their toes poking out of the ends. The experience led to the development of The Shoe That Grows. The shoe has a flexible compressed rubber sole and adjustable leather straps that fit over the top of the foot and around the rear of the heal.

     The size of the shoe can be adjusted in three places. The shoe is available in two sizes, small and large, that are said to last five years each, from kindergarten to fourth grade and from fifth grade to ninth grade respectively. Because International says the shoe is designed to be robust, easy to clean and easy to use. It is also light and able to be compressed for transportation, meaning lots of pairs can be delivered at the same time.

GermFalcon Robot

     Airliner cabins are packed full of people from all over the world, who spend hours doing things like coughing, sneezing and touching surfaces with their hands. It was with this in mind that Arthur Kreitenberg and his son Mo created the GermFalcon. It's a robot that kills germs on planes, using ultraviolet light. It's intended for use between flights, while the aircraft is parked and empty.
     The wheeled robot has the same footprint as an onboard drinks cart, so it's able to autonomously move down the aisle unimpeded – with the help of a proximity sensor. As it does so, it spreads its two "wings" over the seats on either side. Those wings contain UV-C lamps, which are the same type used for disinfection in places like hospitals and water treatment plants. It also has UV-C lamps on its top and sides.
     According to the Kreitenbergs, in tests conducted on airliner seating areas, exposure to those lights killed 99.99 percent of microbes within 10 minutes. Along with seats, the GermFlacon can also be set to modes that allow it to clean lavatories and the galley area. It's additionally equipped with fans and HEPA filters, to draw in and trap airborne particles.

Lumo Interactive Projector

     Lumo was developed by technologists Meghan Athavale and Curtis Wachs who began creating interactive environments for commercial settings. Seeing a demand for a cheaper and more user-friendly version of their product for interactive gaming at home, they're launching an Indiegogo campaign to fund the continued development of Lumo. Lumo pairs a pico projector with movement detection to create games that are projected onto a floor and change as players move within the game. The existing game catalog of 100 titles delves into kids' favorites such as a fishing game and an alphabet learning aid, and also comes with 10 templates for kids to rejigger the game with custom art.

     Though Lumo's designers previously created their own commercial system, the technology was too expensive at the time for home use. As the price of hardware and imaging technology came down, and bright, long-life projection technology improved, it allowed Athavale and Wachs to dream up how their technology might make it into the home. Though the included game library seems strictly juvenile, developers have access to an SDK to create new games. Existing games can be used with the projector by adding a mobile controller such as the iMpulse. With its HDMI interface, Lumo can also double as a movie projector and mounts on either the wall or ceiling. Removing the Lumo ball from its brackets at bedtime and placing on a nightstand turns it into a dream projector.