New Technology That Could Cut Public Restroom Wait Times

The planes don't show which restrooms are free, just that one or more are. I've been on a few flights where there are several people waiting, and no one is sure which are occupied since you can't see around corners or into other aisles.

Yes. And yet, still a better tech story than Yo.

To be fair, this falls very well into the "Internet of Things" category. Imagine this scenario: You're at a convention and looking for a bathroom - but the convention hall floor just closed and there's big lines everywhere. You have to choose: A. Wait in line B. Look for a less occupied bathroom

With this, you could look at a map with simple %'s and see not only average usage - but the exact occupation rate right now. You could then see that the Hall A's restroom is only at 50% capacity and head over there.

A similar technology could be employed for seating and room occupancy as well, telling you better break rooms or where all the crowds are. Wouldn't it be awesome if you knew your coworker was in her cubicle, even if she wasn't on the computer? Or if you're a building manager, you could note the number of people who use certain restrooms, hallways and meeting rooms and adjust accordingly to redirect traffic elsewhere.

Essentially, these sorts of things are what traffic engineers have been doing for a long time - but applied to people instead of cars.