Technically you would have a small device which could be worn on a belt or placed in a pocket, equipped with an in ear earphone. Each station on your trains route would be given a unique identity code, and these codes would be transmitted from little transmitters which would be located just before each station. You would tell your little device which station you wanted to go to, and when the device picked up the signal from the relevant transmitter it would make a noise in your ear (through the earpiece) which would wake you in time to get off your train.
You could have plug in modules which would store station ID's for different areas of your countries and / or the world, so you take it abroad. Using plug in modules would help keep the size of the device down. An executive version would be available for people who travelled all over their country, and would have ID's for all stations. This would have to be slightly larger though..
Could also be used on the tube, on buses etc....-- MrTheRich, Jun 30 2000 More general location alarm http://www.halfbake...gps_20alarm_20watch [Lemon, Jun 30 2000, last modified Oct 04 2004] Sleeper Screen http://www.chindogu...chindogu/chin7.htmlRepost of jutta's links which appear to have changed [blahginger, Jun 30 2000, last modified Oct 04 2004] Commuter Helmut http://www.chindogu...chindogu/chin4.html [blahginger, Jun 30 2000, last modified Oct 04 2004] Low-tech solution: "Wake me up at ..." http://www.wakemeupat.com/Set of 9 bumper stickers: 5 quid, plus s/h. [jutta, Jan 10 2006] Sleeping commuter inventions seem to be the electronic personalized bumper stickers of Japan.-- jutta, Jun 30 2000 Now if you integrate this functionality (for the tube, etc.) with a GPS navigation system, it would be able to get you from point A to point B even when your GPS receiver can't see the GPS satellites.-- beauxeault, Jun 30 2000 I think I don't need this thing in Singapore; the TV mobile will keep us awake!!!-- mailer_daemon, May 19 2001 this is a very good idea for those who want to catch some sleep on the train, or who inadvertantly fall asleep after a few too many drinks. however, i can't see the train companies spending money on such niceties. I'm sure you could develop some GPS device but this would be no use on the tube.-- karun, Nov 15 2002 Why can't this be built into the seat ? Just have a dial in the armrest that you set for "3 stops" or "5 stops" from your boarding station, and you get a quiet alarm when you get there ... or the seat tips up, or something. Every time the train goes through a station, a simple mechanical counter ticks down by one position.-- 8th of 7, Nov 15 2002 For commercial trips, place the ticket stub (with a barcode) into the device so it knows your destination.-- phoenix, Nov 15 2002 But that doesn't work if you have a weekly pass or similar....-- 8th of 7, Nov 15 2002 Even though public transportation isnt exactly on time to the exact minute and second I am sure that if you ride the train or bus on a particular route long enough, you have some idea as to when you will be arriving at your destination. Therefore, use the alarm function on your cell phone or carry a travel alarm clock.-- Jscotty, Jan 11 2006 On trains (this wouldn't work well on buses) you could use an accelerometer whch counts the number of times the train stops. When the train has stopped the required number of times, the alarm wakes you up. (If the train stops at a red signal between stops for any reason, you get woken up early).-- andrewm, Feb 03 2007 random, halfbakery