Just in time for the holidays: Kegbot
Someone with way too much time on their hands has invented a handy little device that can measure how the beer stash is holding up, the blood alcohol level of drinkers, and some other interesting data, according to The Inquirer.
- Wakerly has built a microcontroller that directs a valve and a flow meter, and spliced both into the tap line of an everyday keg fridge. Then he wrote custom software for an attached Linux computer that can look up drinkers in a database and post their pour total to the Web.
According to Kegbot, each approved drinker gets a digital ID button with a unique 64-bit code. You need this to pour a drink.
A microcontroller reads the code and sends it to the Linux computer, which matches it to your entry in the database and checks any restrictions on your drinking.
While this could be a good way to rein in those who tend to overindulge at the office holiday party, it’s all a little too Big Brother for me. What will they think of next?
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