Inventor Jacob Fraden has patented the smartphone thermometer. He wants manufacturers to equip phones with infrared sensors. You could then aim at your little one's head, and have her temperature in less than a second.

 

 Temperature-taking wouldn't be limited to humans. You could use it on pets (another pesky chore), or inanimate objects like stoves or bathtubs.

It sounds promising. The small infrared lens would lie near the smartphone's camera, without any protrusions. Fraden says that results are accurate, falling within International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards. He adds that the manufacturing cost would be "incremental."