dataSTICKIES: When USB drives meet Post-Its

In a move that might change the way we look at data storage, designers Aditi Singh and Parag Anand have come up with the concept of graphene-based flash drives that come in the form of sticky-notes (or Post-Its) and can be carried around in a stack. Each of these notes - which the designers call dataSTICKIES can be peeled off from the stack and stuck anywhere on the proposed ODTS (Optical Data Transfer Surface), which is essentially a panel that can be attached to the front surface of devices like computer screens, televisions, music systems, and so on. The special conductive adhesive that sticks the dataSTICKIES to the ODTS is the medium that transfers the data. This special low-tack, pressure-sensitive adhesive is capable of being reused without leaving marks like a repositionable note, claims the website. When the dataSTICKIES are being read by the device, their edges light up.

Singh, an Architect & Industrial Designer, holds a Masters Degree in Design from SPA, New Delhi and Anand is Associate Professor of Industrial Design at the SPA, New Delhi. He has a Masters Degree in Design from IIT, Delhi and has also trained at the TU Delft, the Netherlands. They came up with the concept to help overcome the inconvenience of USB-based drives which need to be inserted into its earmarked slots precisely. More so, placing drives in the slots when they are positioned at the rear of the device.
[caption id=“attachment_79032” align=“alignleft” width=“640”]  Screengrab from datastickies.com[/caption]
DataSTICKIES are made from graphene - a super-strong, conductive material made of a single layer of carbon atoms - and will be sold in a range of different sizes up to 32GB. The technology is still being developed, but its hoped they will one day replace popular USB drives. Graphene is already being used in diverse applications ranging from aiding electronic sequencing of DNA to electrodes for Li-ion batteries and supercapacitors.

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The website states that dataSTICKIES are conceptualised to come in various colours and patterns that make data segregation according to type and size easier. They can be stacked and used together for increased capacity which also enables carrying them together. The top surface can be written on. If a file needs to be given to someone, a single sticky can be handed out rather than an entire pen drive. The fact that they can be stuck down on any object, makes it that much more difficult to misplace them.

“They also provide an opportunity to bridge the virtual world and the physical world. Digital data becomes easier to associate with, as it can be integrated with the physical objects it relates to,” says the website.