CREAX Directed Variation newsletter

Dear CREAX newsreader,

Here is the November newsletter with the best innovation examples of this month. Our DIVA software has been available for a month now and the responses have been great.
The highlights of this issue are:

Air shower - air filled water bubbles	Glowing power cable - more power used = more glow
Pronto condom - easy to open and apply packaging	Nanotech water desalination membrane - semi-permeable membrane for easier water purification
Batteries activated by water	Company news

Innovation Highlights

	Air shower - air filled water bubbles
	Scientists have developed a simple air shower device which, when fitted into existing showerheads, fills the water droplets with a tiny bubble of air. The result is the shower feels just as wet and just as strong as before, but now uses much less water. The device increases the volume of the shower stream while reducing the amount of water used by about 30 per cent. The Aerated Showerhead creates the sensation of having a full and steady stream of water even though the water is now more like a wet shell around a bubble of air. http://www.technologynewsdaily.com/ filed under: technologies, household Property spectrum: Porosity Solid objects often take the jump to the porosity trend. Hollowness is gained by incorporting hollow cavities in the object. The advantage of adding bubbles to a water droplet is that less water is used and the shower stream volume is increased.
	Glowing power cable - more power used = more glow
	When the cable isn't delivering any power it looks like just any other power cable, but when it's in use it glows and pulses. The more power you use, the more it glows. Inventions like this are very important to be able to halt the global warming and spread awareness about the problem. http://www.gizmodo.com/ filed under: electronics, lighting Property spectrum: Feedback Systems and subsystems tend to evolve from requiring external input to becoming self-controlling through the use of feedback mechanisms. This cable glows even more when more electricity is flowing through, giving feedback to the user over the usage.
	Pronto condom - easy to open and apply packaging
	This new condom, already available on the South African market, is applied without having to first remove it from the wrapper. The wrapper is simply snapped open in the middle, and the two sides gripped to roll the condom directly over the penis, pulled off and discarded. The wrapper contains tiny, soft plastic hooks that unroll the condom from the inside as the wrapper is pulled downward. "The Pronto condom can only be applied one way," said Mulder. "The packaging is clearly marked and there are dents where it must be gripped to roll it down." See video demo here http://www.prontocondoms.co.za/ filed under: packaging, personal care, safety Property spectrum: Decreasing human involvement This property describes a system’s decreasing reliance and burden on humans as it evolves. Systems tend to become increasingly automated. This condom has the advantage of being easier to put on.
	Nanotech water desalination membrane - semi-permeable membrane for easier water purification
	Reverse osmosis desalination uses extremely high pressure to force saline or polluted waters through the pores of a semi-permeable membrane. Water molecules under pressure pass through these pores, but salt ions and other impurities cannot, resulting in highly purified water. The new membrane uses a uniquely cross-linked matrix of polymers and engineered nanoparticles designed to draw in water ions but repel nearly all contaminants. These new membranes are structured at the nanoscale to create molecular tunnels through which water flows more easily than contaminants. Unlike the current class of commercial RO membranes, which simply filter water through a dense polymer film, the membrane contains specially synthesized nanoparticles dispersed throughout the polymer -- known as a nanocomposite material. With these improvements, less energy is needed to pump water through the membranes. Because they repel particles that might ordinarily stick to the surface, the new membranes foul more slowly than conventional ones. The result is a water purification process that is just as effective as current methods but more energy efficient and potentially much less expensive. http://www.physorg.com/ filed under: environment, nanotechnology, materials Property spectrum: Porosity Solid bodies trend toward increased porosity. Porosity is achieved through the incorporation of hollow spaces or pores. Porosity allows for reduced weight, improved surface area, and the inclusion of active elements.
	Batteries activated by water
	This month we selected the submission of Manuel Vandevoorde from Atlas Copco. A Japanese inventor unveils what he calls the "next generation of eco-friendly energy sources" - batteries activated by water. Susumu Suzuki, the president of Tokyo-based building material maker TSC (Total System Conductor), has invented water-activated batteries, which have an electric current as powerful as that of a standard manganese dioxide battery. Suzuki says these batteries would be cheap to produce and can be recycled several times, making them an essential tool for the future. http://today.reuters.com/ filed under: energy, environment, technologies Property spectrum: Smart materials Materials increasingly evolve from passive to full adaptive materials. E.g. shape memory alloys and thermo chromic materials. The advantage of these batteries is that all they need to function is a drop of water.

Please do not hesitate to send us a great innovation you have spotted. We might include it in our next month issue.

CREAX company news

CREAX seminar
If you enjoy CREAX newsletters, you will enjoy our hands-on Systematic Innovation seminar. Our next 2day seminar is scheduled for the 21st & 22nd of February 2007.

CREAX also offers exclusive company specific corporate seminars. Participants learn how to apply the Systematic Innovation Methodology in their day-to-day job in an interactive way. (more info)


Over the last years, over 500 people subscribed and participated with enthusiasm to the Systematic Innovation Methodology seminars. CREAX trains people both during company-specific in-house seminars, and open training seminars:


DIVA innovative software
The initial reactions to DIVA have been VERY positive. Thank you for your interest and your comments. Members that are currently registered will be able to preview DIVA for a few more weeks. If you are interested in DIVA, you can still request a login, but be quick as registration will only be availabe for a few more weeks. After that we are closing the preview and preparing for official launch Januari 2007.

CREAX product box
A picture tells more than a thousand words. Actually seeing, feeling and tasting a recent innovation tells more than a thousand pictures.

On a regular basis, innovations are collected by CREAX and sent to your company (an average of 10/month). Each of these new products can be demonstrated inside a special innovation museum or on an innovation table, where company employees regularly pass. The goal of visualizing innovations and innovative products is to stimulate the creative mindset of the company and its employees. By visualizing these cross sector products, employees can actually experience innovation.

For more information, please send a mail to Nele Dekeyser

CREAX in the press
CREAX, as innovation expert, has recently been asked by several media representatives to give their opinion on and to provide their unique blend of insight into global economic trends, new product outlines, workplace atmosphere and innovation culture issues.

CREAX Future
In order to facilitate the learning experience, CREAX invested in a multimedia company that will produce training videos as an educational reinforcement for companies. First releases are planned in July 2007.

Upcoming events
CREAX has a somewhat quieter month ahead, with participation in the following event:

07-08/12 - 3rd Conference on New products development trends
Moscow - Russia

Miscellaneous

• Tell a friend about this newsletter.


• You missed one of the previous CREAX newsletters? Get an overview of all our issues.
  
• Please send all suggestions & remarks to us at newsletter@creax.com.
  
• Subscribe for free to this newsletter.
  
• If you don't want to receive this newsletter any longer, unsubscribe here.