Floating Backpack

Have you ever carried a heavy backpack to school or on a trip? If so, you've probably felt a sore, achy feeling in your back and shoulders. Biology professor Lawrence Rome wanted to make it less painful to carry heavy items around by inventing a "floating" backpack!

The backpack, called the HoverGlide, doesn't actually float in the air. But it sure moves like it does! As the user runs or walks, the pack glides up and down with the help of a bungee cord coiled inside. This movement balances the weight and force that makes your body feel tired.

When Rome first had the idea for the backpack, he tested the movement by pulling on a bungee cord attached to a 20-pound weight. From this first prototype, to his current design, the HoverGlide took about 10 years to create! He spent 3 of those years adjusting the backpack’s frame to be small, light, and quiet enough to take on any kind of adventure.

What would you design to make things easier to carry? Show us your ideas in the design section!