Renovating and redecorating your home can be a stressful, frustrating process, but technology is out to make it that little bit easier. Plott, a startup based in New Jersey, wants to make measuring and mapping a space a simpler process with its smart Cubit tape measure and associated app that allows changes to be visualized before a hammer is raised.
Measuring up at just 1.5 x 3.875 x 3.625 in (3.8 x 9.84 x 9.2 cm) the Cubit is nice and small, but it's packing some serious smarts. It has two laser sensors inside that are designed to measure the height and width of spaces up to 100 ft (30.5 m) in each direction. Of course, not everything that needs measuring has a perfect straight edge, so there's also a "dimensioning wheel" on the base to measure odd-shaped items.
It's powered by a battery good for 3,000 readings on a single charge, and topping up is a matter of plugging in with a microUSB cable. The company says its lasers are accurate to 1/8 of an inch (3.2 mm) for every 30 ft (9 m), and the wheel is correct down to 0.02 percent in lab testing. In other words, it shouldn't screw you over if you rely on it for accurate measurements around the house.
Measurements are displayed on an LCD screen, but more information is available using the Bluetooth-connected app. It can be used to record, compare and store your measurements, and it also offers a clever augmented reality view of the room in which you're working. According to Plott, that makes it easier to work out where to hang paintings, for example, because users are able to accurately visualize what it will look like before they put nails or hooks in the wall.
Users simply take a photo of the space they're redesigning in the app, connect to the Cubit for accurate measurements of the space, and then add images and measurements for any objects they want to add. Once you've used to app to visualize where you want to hang your item, the Cubit can act as a guide, directing the user to the hanging point selected in the app.
"Webelieve measurements andcalculationsforDIYhomedesignorrenovationprojectshinderthecreativityand enjoymentintheprocess,andCubitaimstoremovethesestresses," says David Xing, CEO and founder of Plott. "WithCubit, peoplecanfocusonhowtheywanttheirdesigntolookandourmixedrealityplatformand appdelivers thedesignandplanintorealitywithrealdimensionsandcontext."
At the moment, the Cubit is available for preorder on IndieGogo, where Plott has raised around 14 percent of its US$30,000 goal with a month remaining. Pledging $49 is enough to secure early birds a Cubit, while a double pack is worth $90. Should it reach its funding goals, Plott is planning to start deliveries in November. Retail prices will start from $99.
Cubit looks pretty simple to use in Plott's pitch video below.
Source: Plott