Designer Fabian Brunsing created “Pay & Sit: The Private Bench”. Normally, it’s covered with spikes. But if you slip half a Euro in the coin slot, they retract for a fixed period of time. An alarm goes off a few seconds before the user’s time is up and the spikes rise.
via Geekosystem
lewis82
I can already imagine a drunk inserting a coin, and falling asleep on the bench…
joe
what a terrible idea. this really bothers me so much
i hope it’s an art piece satirizing capitalism because it represents everything wrong with where civilization is going – even the most basic pleasures in life aren’t considered valuable anymore unless they put a dollar in someone’s pocket.
but there is a hidden cost to a bench like this much greater than that little bit of money – discouraging people from enjoying nature, from enjoying their own public places, giving people one more tiny little prod to keep moving, keep busy, be productive. that’s why 1/3 of americans are depressed and heart attacks are the number one cause of death and respect for the environment is worse than ever.
gruntus
So now we’re going to have to pay for the privilege of sitting down comfortably in public.
I can think of at least three reasons these things would never catch on anyway.
1. People will sue for being injured by them.
2. People like me, who resent them will vandalize/disable them.
3. An exposed coin box in a park, late at night? ‘nuf said.
pfelelep
the inventor-designer deserves to be tie down on his own bench for un undisclosed period of time.
Miss Cellania
There are some folks out there who would be excited by this.
Khemegil who cant be bothered to sign in
joe, they use euros in america? amd also its perfectly legitimate, if you dont want to pay, then sit on the ground
matt85
Also, terrible for blind people looking for a seat.
Or for that matter, deaf people, missing the alarm will be a painful experience.
I really do hope it’s an ‘art’ piece. However, for places like shopping malls where loitering is a ‘problem’, could be useful. Found no seats to sit on in IFC1 in Hong Kong, they are left out because the homeless/maids would sit all day.
A. Klaus
Seems like it could be defeated by sitting on the back and resting your feet between the spikes!
Mike99
If it’s not just an art piece, the creator deserves to be shot repeatedly with a large caliber handgun. Either that or I’ll fit a large rubber bag over his head with a coin slot- as long as he keeps inserting coins, he gets to breathe.
Gee Queue
While I think it is creative and I can think of actual legitimate uses for such a device, it would need to undergo quite a bit of change to be useful.
If I ever saw one in a public park though, I’d go at it with a sledgehammer.
This could be useful in some form to prevent vagrants from sleeping on benches.
_Jane
Jeez, people have you no humor?
This obviosly is art. And I’ve seen much “worse” art.
Imagine traps for toddlers and stuff.
I think it’s funny.
Personally, I would just sit on the back rest.
BikerRay
Be more interesting if the spikes deployed, quickly, after some random length of time. Russian Roulette for your butt!
Paddy
Whats the big deal? bring a plank of wood or smthing similar and you wouldn’t have to pay anything.
C.A.
Seems like a ripoff for a quarter, the spikes didn’t even retract completely! I would call the spike bench maintenance man. 
jtmcbath
I’d just put a newspaper on the ground and sit on that. Who would pay to sit for 2 minutes? Also I love how the alarm beeps for three seconds and the torture begins. It’s only one step away from having to pay to stand.
Frau
I could see it as a deterrent for skaters or bladers. But I would just save my money and sit on the curb.
Oscar G
This must be social commentary art.
In the tv show “Persons Unknown” the weazel salesmen type character pitches an idea of pay for parks
Gauldar
If only I thought of this years ago, I could have made a fortune!
…well, not really.
Mouserz
I wouldn’t mind these since I usually sit on the backrest anyway.
SuperCrap
Walk around the park, collect animal shit in bag, pour bag of animal shit on the “pay bench”, repeat daily. Enough said.
farleyk
Spike bench, meet Makita portable grinder.
http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/Tools/ToolDetails.aspx?ID=10948
Vive la résistance!
Sepp
Quite interesting art. And something to talk and reflect. A normal park bench also costs money/ressources. With this one, only the user would have to pay for it instead of everyone. Where is the difference to public toilets you have to pay for (depending on where you live) apart from the amount of money?
Seat Sale
The same thing was done about 10 years ago by Steve Mann at San Francisco Art Institute: a chair with spikes that retract when you insert a credit card, and a buzzer that sounds to warn when time’s running low. See Fig. 1 of the article in Leonardo 36(1), 2003, pp19-26 http://wearcam.org/leonardo/award2004.htm
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