I have assembled a fair amount of furniture and I always worry that I am not setting bolts and screws at the right tension. Too little tension leaves the piece of furniture wobbly and possibly weakened over time. Too much tension and wood (especially particle board) can splinter and unseat a bolt. Too much tension and you also could strip the bolt.

The problem with tightening a bolt is simply feedback. The only feedback received is the feeling of tension in the hand and perhaps some visual indication of how deep a bolt is seated. If a bolt does not fit, or the material being bolted has a lot of friction, it is easy to think a bolt is set correctly when it is not. I find this frustrating in the digital age where I am used to seeing progress bars, slider widgets and system feedback that help guide me and keep my settings within allowed tolerances.

Smart Bolts have a clever design that provides visual feedback for when the bolt meets the suggested tension. When the bolt is tightened enough, a little red dot on the end of the bolt changes to black. Other benefits of the Smart Bolt design is that there is no special equipment required for testing tension and that the bolt's tension can be identified at a distance.

[via Boing Boing]

Labels: feedback, safety