The Backpack of Tomorrow

References DeepAI 3D Image Generator, https://deepai.org/machine-learning-model/3d-objects-generator

The most important thing that I bring to school every day besides my brain is my backpack. Backpacks have been used by kids for a long time, way before smart technology was here. My school has strict rules where smart phones and watches are not allowed. Many kids don’t have smart phones because of their age or their parents' rules. I think it would be a great idea to make a backpack ‘smart’ by adding features like phones and tablets have without the distractions. Adding smart technology to a backpack could help with three main things: 1. helping kids be better organized and responsible, 2. being better for the environment, 3. improving safety and health of kids. To make a smart backpack, we’d need ideas from different types of engineering, material science for advanced materials, electronic engineering for signals and power, and software engineering for making secure and encrypted apps and networks.

I have ADHD which can make me get distracted easily and daydream a lot. This can help me be creative, but it also means I forget things a lot. I think a smart backpack with special sensors could help me and other kids with keeping track of all of our things. It would have small proximity sensors with stickers on the back so that you can stick them on your water bottle, lunchbox, binder, or pencil case. The backpack would come with a special tag with lights related to each sticker sensor and those lights would change colors to tell you if your items are inside the backpack. For example if you have a sensor on your lunchbox and it’s inside the backpack, the light will turn green. If it’s missing then the light will turn red. This way I could quickly check if I have everything without digging through all the things in my backpack. These sensors would use Bluetooth which is a type of wireless technology and would be encrypted to keep your location safe.

It is also important to think about the environment. At my school a lot of kids get a new backpack every year even if their old one is still okay. If backpacks were made with special materials like electrochromic fabric, which changes colors, you could change the look of your backpack every year instead of buying a new one. Plus the backpack could be made from recycled plastics which would be better for the environment. Another cool idea is adding a solar charger to the backpack. The backpack could charge itself using sunlight and you could use the solar power to charge your phone or tablet when you’re outside, like while waiting for the bus or at tennis practice. These technologies and materials can have smart features that are useful but do not have to connected to the internet or use your personal information to work.

Many kids at school carry heavy backpacks because we need to bring so many things to class. A smart backpack could help by having sensors to check how much your backpack weighs and if there are too many heavy things on only one side. It could also have posture sensors that check if your posture is good or if your shoulders are hunched and the backpack could beep to remind you to straighten up. I also ride the bus and my bus stop is the first stop for the bus driver so I have to wait outside early in the morning. If the backpack had light sensors it could turn on a small light to help you see in the dark when you are walking and waiting for the bus. This would also help cars see you when crossing the street. Smart sensors in the backpack like ones in fitness trackers can track your location and count your steps all day and send them to an app using a safe connection. The app would have a secure login and password for everyone's account so only you can see it to keep your personal information safe. Some apps can use extra security like dual authentication which is an extra key to login to an app.

In conclusion a smart backpack would be a really cool way for kids to stay organized and safe and even protect our environment. Technology is getting better and smaller and there are a lot of ways we can use it in our belongings. Some technology can work without the internet and some technology has touse the internet. It is important to know how smart items get and send your information on the internet. It is important for engineers and computer scientists to build smart devices that keep people's information safe. Engineering is how people turn cool ideas into real life things that can help us work better and safer!