The ionKids™ system is a portable child-monitoring system consisting of a PDA-like Base Unit and a wireless Wristag. The Base Unit communicates with up to four Wristags and relays their location and distance to a parent via the Base Unit�s screen. The system allows parents to monitor their children, alerts them if a child strays too far, and allows the parent to easily and quickly locate a stray child.

ionKids™ draws its innovation from approaching the problem from a system viewpoint instead of an individual product viewpoint. A conscious effort was made to design each of the system�s components in parallel. Therefore, each component flows into the next in its physical form, communication, and aesthetic. The system draws from each of its components a significant amount of innovation. Its first innovation was to create a form aesthetic which was deemed trustworthy for a consumer. The Base Unit exhibits the familiar form lines of a PDA or a Cell Phone. By utilizing this aesthetic, the device appears friendly, approachable, and �known�. This form language allowed the user to apply existing mental usage models to the design�s function. This was crucial as this was a new device in a new category; therefore, its form language had to be immediately comfortable to a user. The Base Unit, which acts like a compass, benefited from the clamshell shape as it yielded the user an ideal ergonomic (and electromagnetic) position for �finding� a child. Similarly, the Wristag follows the same design methodology. By incorporating the electronics into a watchband like form, users automatically understand its desired body location. The use of a band also allows a secure clasp to be utilized, thereby reducing tampering.