Numerous inventions take us by surprise each day, no matter the field of interest they are developed into. Probably one of the areas of activity which allows total freedom in design is that of clocks and watches. The multiple sci-fi like models stand for that. However, few seem to have oriented their creations towards the past so far, most of them choosing the future as a source of inspiration. But there is now an exception, the Da Vinci clock, created by Marc Owens.



The Da Vinci Alarm Clock assists the user in adhering to the 3.5/.5 sleep schedule devised by the Renaissance Man, allowing the user 21 hours of awake time a day, completely free of sleepiness. According to its creator, the Da Vinci Alarm Clock works on a very basic system. The Dot Matrix display will always show either Sleep or Awake and not the time, as it would be expected from such a device.



When the product is first switched on the display will immediately show the word Awake. This will continue to be displayed for 3 hours at 30 minutes. At this point the clock display will change to show the word Sleep and a high-pitched alarm will signal this change in state. This will continue to sound until the user presses the alarm-reset button.



The word Sleep will continue to be shown for the next 30 minutes, at which point the display will revert back to show the word awake, the alarm will also sound at this point to signal that a change in state has occurred.



The 4-hour cycle will repeat itself six times over the course of a 24-hour period and will continue to do so until the clock is switched off. If the user follows the directions given by the clock then they will be able to enjoy the benefits of a 21-hour day, with little of the associated tiredness they would normally experience.



Although this mechanism seems to be perfect in theory, there are slight chances that a person could actually live could live this sort of life and work with regular everyday activities which require social interaction. On the other hand, round the clock updates on projects could be made, and all hours would be available for that perfect moment of intuition or brilliance.