During the year 2002 the inventor of the ZapNo Bill Thorp became fed up with being zapped by almost every metal object he touched, particularly when he was exiting motor vehicles. Bill had left his role as the manager of a then prominent Brisbane industrial electronics design and manufacturing company which operated with strict static electric control conditions.

 

At first Bill simply used some electronic components that gave him instant relief from the problem but over time he kept misplacing the components from his pockets, particularly when taking the keys out of a pocket. When other people saw Bill using the electronic component to eradicate static, they commented that it was a great idea, and over time Bill decided to put the components into a proper housing that would hang from a keyring where the device would always be in a convenient place. The small metal device was given the name ZapNo and Bill decided to see if other people would be as happy as he was to eliminate the problem of being zapped.

 

Bill manufactured the devices at home and then set about marketing it in his local area in Brisbane Queensland Australia. During this time Bill was approached by a local TV program called Brisbane Extra because they became aware of this unusual product and Bill saw this as an opportunity to see how people would respond to such a device. Following the airing on TV about 600 people called the TV station to ask for Bill's phone number so they could purchase a Zapno. Some people ordered several as gifts for their friends and family.

 

The ZapNo is still manufactured in Australia .. see the video that was aired on TV.

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