Inventions that never caught on. There have been some weird inventions throughout history. Some of these were actually released to the public and some were just too insane to build. There seems to be no limits to the human imagination.
The Baby Soother
In 1971 Thomas V. Zelenka of California attached a rod with a hand to the side of a baby’s crib and used a motor that would allow the hand to pat the baby’s bottom. This in theory would make the baby go to sleep. Somehow the public never responded to this invention.
The Portable Fire Escape
In 1879, Benjamin B. Oppenheimer of Trenton, Tennessee attached a small parachute to his head and wore heavily cushioned shoes to show people that if a building caught fire, you could jump out the window and land safely. People decided that they did not want to walk around with a parachute attached to their head.
Voice Activated Sewing Machine
Thomas Edison invented a voice activated sewing machine in an attempt to alleviate the constant pedaling that was required of sewing machines in those days. The idea was years ahead of its time and the same theory holds true today in many ways. Unfortunately the crude machine would only work if it constantly heard the sound of your voice. Talking to the machine nonstop proved to be a bigger chore than pedaling.
Glasses For Chickens
In 1903, Andrew Jackson Jr, patented eyeglasses designed for chickens. These were not intended to improve the vision of chickens. The glasses were designed to protect chickens from being poked in the eyes by other chickens.
The Electricity Cable
Albert Gallatin of Chicago, Illinois came up with a plan in 1903 to shoot a 150 mile long cable into space. The cable would be attached to a generator that was securely anchored on the ground. The cable would stay afloat because of the “ether” thought to surround the earth. The cable would then attract electricity which could be used on earth. Needless to say, this was never attempted.
Source: scienceray
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