I did a beautifully designed remote controlled door
for a "female nightshift worker who lives in the country and is scared of being raped in the dark".
The rape reference got a few funny looks, as did my claim to have designed the radio transciever circuit. They didn't accept my explaination that I'd written "Velleman" on the front as a tribute to the Maplin-fodder electronics-kit makers...

Edit: Check out the R2 Builders Guild somewhere on the web. They've got plans and everything!

It did end up working quite nicely in the end- grossly overcomplicated (electropneumatic actuators all over the place as "safety interlocks", a completely uneccesary microcontroller "for safety and security- and also allowing integration with home alarm systems", twice as many double acting cylinders as required and doors made from some A4 paper and duct tape.
( uberdeity Wondered why Owen Lars knew of the term "hell" on, Thu 5 Feb 2009, 14:38, Reply)