Japan Gadget Turns Plants Into Speakers

MythicaL · Sep 15, 2004, 12:21 AM

TOKYO (AP) - The therapeutic power of flowers takes on new meaning with a Japanese gadget that turns plants into audio speakers, making the petals and leaves tremble with good vibrations.

Called Ka-on, which means "flower sound" in Japanese, the machine consists of a donut-shaped magnet and coil at the base of a vase that hooks up to a CD player, stereo or TV.

Place the flowers into the vase, turn on Ka-on and the magnet and coil relay the sound vibrations up the stems through the plant's water tubes.

Near your ear and hear the music emanate from the petals. Touch a leaf, and feel it shake as though in a quiet dance.

Later this month, you'll be able to carry on a telephone conversation with a flower with a planned speaker phone model.

Unlike regular speakers, which send sound in one direction, Ka-on shoots it in all directions, filling an entire room with music in a more natural ambiance.

Masumi Gotoh, president of Let's Corp., a Nagoya-based telecommuncations-equipment company that developed and manufactures Ka-on, calls it ideal for flower table-arrangements at weddings, reception desks at hospitals and decoration at restaurants.

Ka-on vases and amplifiers come in various sizes, ranging in price from $46 to $460. There's a version that works with potted plants, and a wireless connection will soon be available for piping music to the Ka-on.

Not only does Ka-on deliver flowery music, it keeps bugs off plants and helps cut flowers last longer, Gotoh claims.

"The plant is happy listening to music," says Gotoh, showing off a rubber plant hooked up to Ka-on in his Tokyo office. "Gerberas and sunflowers work especially well as speakers."

Ka-on is also being used for concerts. Several Ka-on were planted near a bamboo grove to play music at a recent event in Japan.

About 3,000 of $46 Ka-on version, on sale via the Internet since July, have been sold and some 10,000 orders have been received so far.

Source: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040913/D852TP280.html

Markius · Sep 15, 2004, 12:23 AM

pr0digal jenius · Sep 15, 2004, 12:24 AM

"this is your conscience speaking---all your herb garden are belong to us"

Nacht · Sep 15, 2004, 12:25 AM

thats weird.

i wonder how good the audio quality is? instead of 5.1 speaker systems we could have 5xTulips for surround sound and a poinsettia for the bass

MythicaL · Sep 15, 2004, 12:51 AM

Would probably sound best in the middle of a room, since it gives sound in all directions

**dj_stick** · Sep 15, 2004, 12:58 AM

interesting idea though i must admit

Sandok · Sep 15, 2004, 02:30 PM

Those japs think up of all the weird stuff... Can imagine my garden playing my fav songs :P

Shinjikun · Sep 15, 2004, 02:58 PM

Hmm I wonder what weed would say to you...

Sandok · Sep 15, 2004, 03:09 PM

Smoke me babey!!!

Nacht · Sep 15, 2004, 08:27 PM

didnt they make those cube watermelons too? whats the point of all this crap?

GutterPunk · Sep 15, 2004, 08:31 PM

thats awesome so innovative

Sharkims · Sep 15, 2004, 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nacht

didnt they make those cube watermelons too? whats the point of all this crap?

Dude! This will change everything, using plants instead of ugly speakers. That idea is awesome.

Stylpe · Sep 16, 2004, 06:32 PM

Heeey! I'm getting one of those! Flower power all the way!

Nacht · Sep 16, 2004, 09:23 PM

i bet they sound like crap! and on top of that, you've still got "ugly" cables running out from under your pots...and what happens if you over water them? haha goodbye cd player!

i think speakers look good (well...if you buy the right ones hhahaha)

Sharkims · Sep 17, 2004, 02:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nacht

i bet they sound like crap! and on top of that, you've still got "ugly" cables running out from under your pots...and what happens if you over water them? haha goodbye cd player!

i think speakers look good (well...if you buy the right ones hhahaha)

I think first of all.... They would need to be waterproof, or the idea is just dumb. Second of all, you only need to power it. Most of the time people will run outlets to a location just for that reason.

Nicky-chan · Sep 17, 2004, 02:44 AM

be nice if it actualy works. Then maybe i could put a bunch of flowers over this trash pile in the corner to make it look better and sound better.

drewpa13 · Sep 18, 2004, 05:20 AM

Long live Japan

po3tik_one · Sep 21, 2004, 06:29 AM

LOL now THERE'S an innovation

Sturmbahn · Sep 21, 2004, 10:56 PM

Crazy, I wonder if the sound quality is better than Bose. Maybe these japs could cooperate with the fly-eating robot scientists in Britian to make a singing cyborg venus-fly trap. No need to water!

**dj_stick** · Sep 21, 2004, 11:24 PM

now the weed REALLY speaks to you

MSX · Sep 22, 2004, 01:52 AM

Hah, no shit. Put this down as a christmas gift for my mom.

Sep 15, 2004, 12:21 AM	#1
MythicaL I like computers. Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: In front of a monitor Posts: 3,399 Rep Power: 89 System Specs	Japan Gadget Turns Plants Into Speakers TOKYO (AP) - The therapeutic power of flowers takes on new meaning with a Japanese gadget that turns plants into audio speakers, making the petals and leaves tremble with good vibrations. Called Ka-on, which means "flower sound" in Japanese, the machine consists of a donut-shaped magnet and coil at the base of a vase that hooks up to a CD player, stereo or TV. Place the flowers into the vase, turn on Ka-on and the magnet and coil relay the sound vibrations up the stems through the plant's water tubes. Near your ear and hear the music emanate from the petals. Touch a leaf, and feel it shake as though in a quiet dance. Later this month, you'll be able to carry on a telephone conversation with a flower with a planned speaker phone model. Unlike regular speakers, which send sound in one direction, Ka-on shoots it in all directions, filling an entire room with music in a more natural ambiance. Masumi Gotoh, president of Let's Corp., a Nagoya-based telecommuncations-equipment company that developed and manufactures Ka-on, calls it ideal for flower table-arrangements at weddings, reception desks at hospitals and decoration at restaurants. Ka-on vases and amplifiers come in various sizes, ranging in price from $46 to $460. There's a version that works with potted plants, and a wireless connection will soon be available for piping music to the Ka-on. Not only does Ka-on deliver flowery music, it keeps bugs off plants and helps cut flowers last longer, Gotoh claims. "The plant is happy listening to music," says Gotoh, showing off a rubber plant hooked up to Ka-on in his Tokyo office. "Gerberas and sunflowers work especially well as speakers." Ka-on is also being used for concerts. Several Ka-on were planted near a bamboo grove to play music at a recent event in Japan. About 3,000 of $46 Ka-on version, on sale via the Internet since July, have been sold and some 10,000 orders have been received so far. Source: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040913/D852TP280.html __________________ Always knew I didn't belong in this world. I wasn't made for this. But I'll never forget those who betrayed me, and those who never failed my trust.

Sep 15, 2004, 12:23 AM	#2
Markius DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 2,350 Rep Power: 0	__________________ DriverHeavens Aussie... "Lifes tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late"

Sep 15, 2004, 12:51 AM	Thread Starter #5
MythicaL I like computers. Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: In front of a monitor Posts: 3,399 Rep Power: 89 System Specs	Would probably sound best in the middle of a room, since it gives sound in all directions __________________ Always knew I didn't belong in this world. I wasn't made for this. But I'll never forget those who betrayed me, and those who never failed my trust.

Sep 15, 2004, 02:58 PM	#8
Shinjikun 第3 子供 Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Nerv HQ Posts: 1,319 Rep Power: 0	Hmm I wonder what weed would say to you... __________________ Xfire: [Shinji1225 \ Status] A7N8X-E Deluxe Athlon XP 2500+ (@ 2.2 GHz 11x200 MHz FSB) Corsair TwinX XMS 1GB PC3200 Dual Channel (2-2-3-5) [color=red]ATi [/color][color=white]Radeon 9500 Pro (@ 330\310) \ [/color][color=white]Omega Catalyst Drivers v2.5.90[/color] [color=white]Ultra X-Connect 500W PSU[/color]

Sep 15, 2004, 08:31 PM	#11
GutterPunk I = Greatest Dood Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Nebraska Posts: 5,949 Rep Power: 71	thats awesome so innovative __________________ Rock On \m/ Thank you Mousey for the Sig! --------------- Intel Core2Duo E6660 (3.4GHZ) ~ Tuniq Tower 120 ~ Enermax Galaxy 1000W ~ Corsair Dominator @ 1090MHZ 5-5-5-15 (OCZ XTC Modded Cooler)~ EVGA 8800GTX W/ HR-03 Plus 120MM ~ Asus DVD-RW LiteScribe ~ LG DVD-RW ~ Corsair Voyager 2GB ReadyBoost Drive ~ Vantec Nexus Fan Controller ~ ThermalTake Armor 25CM fan ~ Personal Finance Blog: Dent Your Debt

Sep 15, 2004, 12:24 AM	#3
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	"this is your conscience speaking---all your herb garden are belong to us"

Sep 15, 2004, 12:25 AM	#4
Nacht ein Krieger Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Clemson Uni Posts: 3,127 Rep Power: 0	thats weird. i wonder how good the audio quality is? instead of 5.1 speaker systems we could have 5xTulips for surround sound and a poinsettia for the bass

Sep 15, 2004, 02:30 PM	#7
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 0	Those japs think up of all the weird stuff... Can imagine my garden playing my fav songs :P

Sep 15, 2004, 03:09 PM	#9
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 0	Smoke me babey!!!

Sep 15, 2004, 08:27 PM	#10
Nacht ein Krieger Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Clemson Uni Posts: 3,127 Rep Power: 0	didnt they make those cube watermelons too? whats the point of all this crap?

Sep 16, 2004, 06:32 PM	#13
Stylpe DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Bergen, Norway Posts: 11 Rep Power: 0	Heeey! I'm getting one of those! Flower power all the way! __________________ Originally posted by elwaxmanus: 10 points to you man. This means you're just as perverted thinking as I am. Congratulations. Shit does NOT just happen, shit takes time and effort. [color=red]Keep violence virtual![/color]

Sep 16, 2004, 09:23 PM	#14
Nacht ein Krieger Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Clemson Uni Posts: 3,127 Rep Power: 0	i bet they sound like crap! and on top of that, you've still got "ugly" cables running out from under your pots...and what happens if you over water them? haha goodbye cd player! i think speakers look good (well...if you buy the right ones hhahaha)

Sep 17, 2004, 02:44 AM	#16
Nicky-chan formally Elclair Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Arizona,Pheonix Posts: 360 Rep Power: 0	be nice if it actualy works. Then maybe i could put a bunch of flowers over this trash pile in the corner to make it look better and sound better. __________________

Sep 18, 2004, 05:20 AM	#17
drewpa13 DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 14 Rep Power: 0	Long live Japan

Sep 21, 2004, 06:29 AM	#18
po3tik_one DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 14 Rep Power: 0	LOL now THERE'S an innovation

Sep 21, 2004, 10:56 PM	#19
Sturmbahn DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 156 Rep Power: 0	Crazy, I wonder if the sound quality is better than Bose. Maybe these japs could cooperate with the fly-eating robot scientists in Britian to make a singing cyborg venus-fly trap. No need to water!

Sep 22, 2004, 01:52 AM	#21
MSX Burning the frozen... Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 1,201 Rep Power: 0	Hah, no shit. Put this down as a christmas gift for my mom.