Designing an Item Finder for High School Student - Advise Needed

[Harmony]

I am a high school student who always lose things. Thus it will be really helpful if I can create an item finder of my own.

Such item finder isn't available in my country(or, too unpopular to the consumers), which is why I want to create one for my personal use.

I do not demand a sophisticated design. Detection area within 1m radius is quite sufficient for my personal use. I am thinking of using it to detect small item such as stationaries. Any advise on how to start?

 

[Danger]

I can't think of anything that will detect non-metallic passive objects. The only thing that comes to mind is the disposable security tags that stores use to curtail shoplifting. You'd have to intall them on all of your things, and get a portable scanner.
My serious recommendation is to develop an organizational system of some sort and force yourself to adhere to it.

 

[Harmony]

Yeah, I am thinking of the security tag. But the probelm I face is that I don't know how to make such scanner.

It will be great if I can develop a organizational system of some sort------but I don't have any basic knowledge in engineering.

 

[Danger]

It's not engineering in the sense that most people think of the term, although the thought process is similar. Basically, just have a place for everything and make sure you put it back there as soon as you're through using it. I have the same problem as you, aggravated by ADD. My solution is as I described. To help out, I'll give you specifics of what works for me.

1) Left front pants pocket: pens, pencils, erasers, spare leads, Kleenex, comb, eyeglass cleaning tool, decongestant spray, collectable coins as found, Listerine Pocket Pack, folding mini screwdriver kit, spare mag for .45

2) Right front pants pocket: folding boxcutter, cash (w/ money clip), various receipts as collected, another Kleenex, Nocorette Inhaler pack, misc. notes

3) Coin pocket: coins ( ), beer can pull tabs as collected

4) Left back pants pocket: wallet (your don't even want to know what's in that, but it weighs about a pound and a half)

5) Right back pants pocket: lock pick set

6) Shirt pocket: smokes, lighter, smoke snuffer

7) Belt: cell phone, .45 ACP, Leatherman tool, keys (on wallet chain clip)

8) Left sweater pocket: bottle of various medications, tear gel, eyeglass cleaner spray, various medications that won't fit in bottle, camera & USB cable, another Kleenex

9) Right sweater pocket: spare smokes, spare camera batteries, electronic organizer, cell phone charger, 2 notebooks, darts set, another Kleenex

Well, no .45 for now due to legal issues, but I'll be eligible to get a new one in a couple of months.

Anyhow, a similar, but much more complex, system applied to my house. Unfortunately, now that I'm living with W she randomly selects new places for my stuff on a weekly basis. I only have about 1 or 2% of my stuff here as opposed to stored at my mother's place, and I can't find it half the time.

 

[3trQN]

I have a great system, when i finish using something, i leave it just there.

Things pile up, but they are in order. Those things i used recently are on top, those least are on the bottom. I just think back when i last used it, estimate a depth and a location based on its function...:P

Im not a very tidy person, Thermodynamics allways wins!

 

[Danger]

That was pretty much my system back at the house, 3. It works great as long as no one else messes with it, although the occassional avalanche has reorganized things.

 

[NoTime]

So I'm not the only one with the sedimentary approach.
Archeology and prospecting for oil are occasional passtimes

 

[Danger]

I'll tell you how bad it was with me. Most people that I relate this to think that it's a joke, but I swear that it's true. I used to have this little draughting board (about 24 x 16 inches, with built-in parallel rule) that I used before I could afford a real draughting machine.
It was once lost for almost 3 1/2 years. I finally found it... on the dining room table. I'd just never dug down far enough when looking for it.

 

[NoTime]

I'll tell you how bad it was with me. Most people that I relate this to think that it's a joke, but I swear that it's true. I used to have this little draughting board (about 24 x 16 inches, with built-in parallel rule) that I used before I could afford a real draughting machine.
It was once lost for almost 3 1/2 years. I finally found it... on the dining room table. I'd just never dug down far enough when looking for it.

You win!

And yes, I believe you.

 

[Danger]

It gets even worse with books. I have somewhere in excess of 2,000, with shelving for half of that. The rest are in cardboard boxes or just piled up all over the house. A few months ago, I bought the newest sequel to 'Ringworld' ("Ringworld's Children" or "The Ringworld Throne"; I'm not sure which one I already had). I can't read it until I re-read the first ones, and I can't find the one that comes before it.

 

[NoTime]

Niven has a new Ringworld book?
I'll have to look that up.

 

[Danger]

Oh, yeah!