# One ring...for the transit commuter



## CHamilton (Aug 26, 2013)

Brilliant Gadget of the Day: A Stylish Ring To Replace the Transit Farecard



> The days of rummaging frantically for the card that gets us onto public transit may be over.
> 
> A team of engineers from MIT has created the 3D-printed "Sesame Ring," which has an embedded RFID tag that lets you tap it to a RFID-based fare reader and hop on. Watch the demo:
> 
> The team first conceptualized the ring in January; a working prototype was tested by over 300 university students in Singapore. The waterproof Sesame Ring now works with the MBTA transit system in Boston -- which uses the RFID-based Charlie Card. The first commercial batch of Sesame Rings just opened to the public through a Kickstarter campaign. The $17 early bird special is already sold out, but for a donation of $20 or more, you can get a black or gold ring delivered by Christmas. More colors and personalized designs are available with a bigger donation.The campaign is just one day old and it's already nearing the $5000 goal. The team said over email that if the funding pace continues, they'd gladly fulfill the additional requests, as well as look into better methods of fabrication (i.e. using injection moulding to give the rings more hardiness and a matte finish) and accommodating more types of Charlie Cards (i.e. monthly auto-renewal and senior citizen passes).


----------



## Anderson (Aug 26, 2013)

One ring to rule them all...and in Penn Station bind them!


----------



## afigg (Aug 27, 2013)

Anderson said:


> One ring to rule them all...and in Penn Station bind them!


So you are equating NY Penn Station with Mordor? I know it is little cramped and has some dodgy looking people there, but I don't recall seeing any orcs. So far. 

As for the ring, that is an interesting concept. Or more of a gadget to have to have something different. If the ring RFID tag system works on the T, I would expect one could be designed for the DC Metro in place of a SmarTrip card. A SmartRing? Pass your hand over the SmarTrip plate and say Open Sesame as you enter and exit the fare gates...


----------



## Anderson (Aug 27, 2013)

afigg said:


> Anderson said:
> 
> 
> > One ring to rule them all...and in Penn Station bind them!
> ...


I've seen plenty of orcs...they're usually guarding the gates to the trains!


----------



## jerichowhiskey (Aug 27, 2013)

They have a "money poll" option, where-in if people contribute the most money to them for a specific transit system, they will look into making rings for it. Seems a bit crass though.

I would definitely love to use it for the PATH.


----------



## fairviewroad (Aug 27, 2013)

Wow, do I NOT get this.

File it on the long list of things I never knew I needed.


----------

