h a l f b a k e r yThe best idea since raw toast.
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An online mechanic helps you fix your car using a webcam/microphone. The cost wouldn't have to be that high, because the mechanic doesn't need garage space or tools (assuming you have enough tools to do the job).
It would go something like this...
Customer: My tire is flat.
Mechanic: Place
jack under car.
Customer: I put the jack here?
Mechanic: no, move it 2" to the rear. Show me the contact point with the camera.
Customer: here?
Mechanic: yes. now lift car off ground...
etc. etc.
Ammendments:
A servo-motor controlled laser pointer (possibly helmet mounted) is controlled by the mechanic. He can thus move the red-dot to points of interest within his field of view. Credit leinypoo13
The customer can aquire an adapter that they can use to send the car's diagnostic information to mechanic.
Doctor performs amputation after receiving instructions via text message.
http://news.bbc.co..../health/7761994.stm
[zen_tom, Mar 10 2009]
This might help
Distance_20Training_20Hat
[leinypoo13, Mar 12 2009]
For auto mechanics but could be any tech field.
Remotely_20Operated_20Auto_20Mechanics
[whatrock, Aug 16 2024]
[link]
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I could use this service right now... |
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It had better be well-paid - I imagine this being a little like tech support, and those people are *saints*. |
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Are people making video calls yet? Most webcams are fairly stationary, and the integration of cellphone video into calls isn't that good (i.e., you can't just "insert" a still or clip into
an existing voice phone call - right?) Once those protocol issues are resolved, this could be a model for a whole bunch of such services - anything requiring instruction, really. Cooking, golf, brain surgery... |
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A webcam is only limited by the amount of cord that you have (unless it's cordless). Same with microphone. A person who had a computer near enough to car could use video. |
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There was a news story a few months back about a British Doctor on placement in Africa somewhere who performed a successful operation after receiving instructions from a specialist via txt msg. |
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Yes, it was the amputation of a patient's gangrenous arm up to and including the scapula (shoulder-bone). [edit: ah, just noticed you've already linked to it] |
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If the proper adapter were purchased, a person could send engine computer information over the internet for diagnosis by the mechanic. |
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When I get fired for looking at Halfbakery rather than working I will apply for this job. Call 0-800 TO-THICK-TO-DO-IT-MYSELF. |
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As a side job creation scheme the Dial-a-Mechanic would recommend that you need a Extracto-Flange-Rangler to do the job properly, and then direct you to his own website selling such items. |
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I do something similar for various family members scattered across the country, using e-mail, phone, and digital camera. I tell them what to take pictures of, then they send me the .jpg, I mark it up, send it back, and they go to work, calling and e-mailing as needed. Its really kind of fun, but it takes a lot longer than if I had done it myself, so it's a family-only service. --Karl |
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I half-baked a version of this [link]. I put a servo-webcam on a helmet, but I disconnected the servo from the camera and attached a laser pointer to it. Using Vsee, a free video conferencing site, my dad could point at things from1000 mls away and help me remodel my kitchen . |
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[leinypoo] Oh that's good. That's real good. I'm incorperating your idea... as long as you don't mind. |
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So, what you really need is a hat (Distance Training Hat) or something which lets you wear your smartphone. The smartphone screen is facing your forehead. The aft-facing cameras are higher-resolution so that's what the mechanic gets to use to look at stuff. You wear a headset so you can hear and talk to the mechanic. Maybe connect the servo-controlled laser pointer to USB / Thunderbolt and mount that as well. Just need the right smartphone app and the right service for the mechanic, maybe the laser pointer. |
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For car diagnostic stuff, you'd need a Bluetooth-based OBD gizmo and the right app. Those exist, but they'd need a way to talk to this app so the remote mechanic could see the info. |
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I can imagine all manner of services where you're doing the work yourself and just need guidance from someone more-experienced with same, using this kind of app. Need to replace a messed up breaker in your electrical box? Probably want a knowledgeable electrician to help you with that. I can get the parts and I'm handy with tools but I'm wary of sticking a conductive tool (screwdriver) into something with 240 VAC in it. Gimme someone who can "sit on my shoulder," see what I'm doing, walk me through it and keep me from electrocuting myself and I may not need them to make a house call. I'm amenable to paying them for their assistance. |
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I've a friend who spent decades as a motor home and boat mechanic. |
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He's too old to work any more, but his name and contact info are all over the county. When people call him with problems, he tells them what to try and to call him back after they do so. |
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Sometimes a few calls result in them troubleshooting and fixing it themselves. If not, he refers them to a former colleague. |
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// Gimme someone who can "sit on my shoulder," see what I'm doing, walk me through it // |
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