LEE'S SUMMIT, MO (KCTV) -
The latest technological devices can steal children's attention, but a local father has invented a mobile app to help keep them under curfew.
Smartphones and Android tablets are devices that children love, and they are devices that can steal their attention, but a new app engineered by a parent in Lee's Summit aims to change the way they use their smart devices including those handy cell phones.
Stephen Pickell, a single parent and an engineer, says his kids have a handful of mobile devices, and he often finds himself trying to get their attention.
So he created an app that curbs usage by allowing parents to set a schedule and essentially bring back order to what can be often hectic schedules with kids and activities.
It is called Wi-Fi Parent, and it works by allowing parents to download an app, create a password and set time limits for usage. It limits all aspects of the device, whether it is a phone or a tablet.
He says during the time a phone is disabled the child can still use the phone so long as the parent sets the number up on what they call a "white sheet," which tells the phone the number is safe to receive calls from and makes calls to.
"A white list technology where you as the administrator or the parent set up the numbers, the phone numbers that can be communicated with thru text or phone calls," Pickell said.
However, Pickell says some of the research done effects more than just sleep habits.
"It's tied to many studies, obesity and a lot of other health related issues."
The app is available on the Android for $1.99.
Pickell says he is designing a portal where parents can log on at anytime through their computer and reconfigure access or change settings at anytime.
Copyright 2012 KCTV (Meredith Corp.) All rights reserved.
