New weather-predicting clothes pegs designed by a Birmingham student could stop clean washing from getting drenched in the rain.
The plastic pegs lock themselves shut if a downpour is imminent to prevent the user hanging clothes outside.
They only unlock once a signal tells them that it is not likely to rain within the next half hour.
A device within the clothes pegs' holder senses biometric pressure in the air and predicts whether showers are on their way.
Electrical signals are then sent from the holder to metal strips in each peg, causing them to lock or unlock depending on the forecast.
The plastic pegs will not shut once outside the holder.
This prevents them from locking on to clothes lines.
The system was designed by 22-year-old Oliver Mac-Carthy during his final year of a product design course at Brunel University.
