StuffApp™

StuffApp™ would be a software product to help people save time and money and live more efficiently by helping them manage their personal possessions. StuffApp™ aims to help customers add items to their stuff, organize their stuff, find stuff when it would be useful, and get rid of stuff when it is no longer worth keeping.

Getting Stuff: When a user obtains a personal inventory item, they could snap a photo of it with the mobile app. They could enter some basic information (owner, title, brief description, location, approximate cash value).

Perhaps the app could use image recognition knowledge systems to attempt to automatically start identifying or classifying the item based on the image. The mobile app could also use location features to automatically start adding location information. Additionally, when a user makes a purchase, perhaps the app could integrate with other systems to automatically add stuff to the inventory based on the purchases.

Organizing Stuff: Perhaps StuffApp™ could print labels with QR Codes, which could be applied to each item or collection (for items for to which it is feasible to apply such labels). More advanced processes could perhaps include using RFIDs or some other similar tracking devices, which would provide the advantage of always knowing what was where, but that might be overkill for most applications.

Collections: Individual items could be added to collections: for example, tools to tool kits, toys to toy sets, kitchen utensils to kitchen sets, or clothing items to wardrobes. Items could be stored in containers, and the app could help track which items were in which container. This could save opening and looking through a bunch of them to find something.

Organizing by Location: An important feature of the app could include keeping track of what was where. The user could update the location information in the app when something was moved. This could help users find some things they have misplaced, as long as the location information was up to date. For example, a user might have a set of different sized measuring cups, and track in the app that they kept the the set in the top drawer on the left of the sink. If they lost the 1/2 cup measure, and found it later on top of the fridge, they could quickly put that measuring cup back where it belonged.

When the user wanted to rearrange or move things, whether from one cabinet to another, or to an entirely different house, the app could facilitate the process. They could first use the app to setup a moving plan. They could plan where to put each thing, and the app could generate a checklist for moving each thing from where it was originally, to the new place.

The user could also enter the approximate size, shape, and weight of each item. For common items, the app might lookup and pre-fill such information.

Fighting Clutter: The app could help the user organize a little bit at a time. When they were at a certain location, it could prompt them to spend a few minutes each time: adding items to the app, putting something away in the right place, or getting rid of something they don't need. (For example, "It looks like you are in your shed. You haven't used your rusty shovel with the broken handle for a while. Perhaps this would be a good time to get rid of it.) The app could help users gradually improve their situation through spending a few minutes every day.

Finding Stuff: The app could help the user answer such questions as:

• I'm thinking about buying an espresso maker. I think I might already have one, but I'm not sure. And, if I do, I don't know which box it is in, in my basement. If I already have one, I sure don't want to spend the money and end up with an extra one I don't need
• Whatever happened to that 21" color television? I think I might have given to my friend Joe, but I don't remember
• Who's size 28 blue-jeans are these? There are a couple of people in the house to whom they could belong, but I don't know who had a pair exactly like these
• I don't remember whether I left my book on organization in the basement, in the garage, or at work

Getting Rid of Stuff: The app could help the user get rid of stuff that they didn't really need and maybe hadn't used in a while. It could intelligently suggest based on the frequency of use, size, weight, and value or market demand, whether and how the user could get rid of it. There could be three main options, "cash" (liquidate), "gift" (donate), or "trash" (dispose).

• Cash: The app could detect demand on the market and facilitate liquidating the item.
• It could offer options including local pickup, managed shipping, or manual shipping. Some things would be more efficient to liquidate through local pickup, while other things would be more lucrative to ship
• Perhaps the app could use knowledge systems to intelligently consider size, weight, and ID or class of item, and suggest what type of shipping to use, and perhaps facilitate purchasing and printing shipping labels and materials
• Perhaps the app could integrate with one or more services that facilitate selling used goods online, or perhaps the app could cut out the middleman and offer its own such service
• Gift: The item could be given away to somebody else who wanted it more, could use it more, or perhaps donated to a thrift store or charity. Perhaps the app could integrate with systems to facilitate donation to certain charities. Perhaps the app could coordinate between lists of things some people didn't value or use very much, and other users' lists of things they wanted
• Trash: If the item was no longer any use to the owner and there was no significant demand for it on the market, it could be disposed of (junk yard, recycling, etc.)

More Possibilities:

• Sharing: Perhaps StuffApp™ could also help customers share stuff with each other. (If I need a wrench, maybe I can borrow one from Al, next door?)
• House Moving: Perhaps the app could suggest what things to pack in what containers, and facilitate contacting a moving service which could use the app to implement the predetermined plan for moving the person's possessions to a different house
• Burglary: If a user's possessions were burglarized, perhaps the app could help them determine what was missing (and the approximate value of each item)
• Virtually New Again: Perhaps the app could lookup stuff that hadn't been used for a while, and remind the user they had it so they could enjoy using it. Often we forget we have things especially when they're stored away somewhere, and we would enjoy using them if we thought of it. For example, when children have many toys, packing some away for a while and getting them back out, seems like it can offer as much enjoyment as getting them new toys, and at a lower cost
• Wishlists: People could make lists of things they wanted or needed. The app could help them have the discipline to get rid of one thing before getting another. The app could also help them make shopping lists for getting certain things from their wish lists that were available at different stores. Perhaps the app could facilitate various users trading things, giving gifts, or selling them to each other based on such lists
• Virtualizing: Perhaps the app could help users virtualize items which could be virtualized (scanning in images of paperwork, letters, receipts, etc.)
• Insurance: This app could possibly also help with insurance
• Disasters: This app could help people recover after their stuff has been affected by a disaster
• Estates: This app could include features to help survivors deal with stuff from someone who has passed away

Verified Author: Serafino Software™
Maturity:  Idea 
Type: Software Product
Date Claimed: 19 September 2017