And so they came, from dozens of different companies, to hear from Rae about how to innovate. Most weren't sure what to expect. After an hour of traditional chatting, Rae broke the group into smaller circles of five people each. They were given a task: Create a better cell phone using an exercise Rae teaches at Georgetown. It's based on the method of Russian engineer Genrich S. Altshuller, who analyzed more than 200,000 patents to find patterns in creativity. In her day job, Rae does such seminars for large corporations such as Danaher, Kodak and Amtrak.
Each group had an easel, a marker and the task of coming up with as many ideas as possible, then narrowing the list to the best of the bunch and presenting it to the whole group. The winner would get a prize from judge Mary Foltz, director of location solutions at Nextel in Reston.
The techies sat down, pulled out their cell phones for inspiration, and began to throw out ideas: a solar panel for easier recharging. A biometric reader to ensure security. Jewelry-size phones, like the ones in "Dick Tracy" comics. A phone that somehow mutes your voice so people at the next table can't overhear you. One that locks and unlocks your car. A phone that tests atmospheric conditions, for the weather, pollen count, pollution and the like. One that helps find you. Or one that makes sure nobody can find you.
"How about a digital treasure hunt?" asked Christian Loredo, product manager at Nextel. It would be a combination of a location tracker and a video game, played with other cell-phone users. "What if it helped you cook something?" continued Loredo. Things were getting a bit unrealistic, but that's the point of such free-flowing exercises.
One group settled on "The Linus," a security blanket phone that acts as a secure wallet and identification system. "I'm going to be watching Nextel on this," joked Jonathan Lehman, a product developer with Opus Plus in McLean. Lehman is a fan of these PDMA events for purposeful networking. After being laid off from UUNet, he found his current job through someone he met at one of the organization's meetings.
The next group presented a phone that politely explains why cell service has been dropped to both parties (so the person at the other end no longer wonders if there was a car accident or an intentional hang-up) and reconnects the conversation when service is available.
There were two winners of the Nextel prize, a cooler filled with pens and paper and drink holders. First prize went for a health phone that would help count calories, act as a pedometer and check alcohol levels. Travez, who presented for his group, said it even could wirelessly send information to doctors and spouses. The runner-up was Pet-connect, a dog collar phone that tracks pets and could be modified for toddlers and people under house arrest.
Hart seemed disappointed that his group's invention, a personal appliance that would be flatter and more flexible than a regular cell phone, was not chosen. Nonetheless, "it was an entertaining evening," he said. And he may have met some potential hires.
Shannon Henry writes about Washington's technology culture every other Thursday. Her e-mail address is henrys@washpost.com.
