TechWirbel

Featured Image - CME

2012-09-10T21:16:00.001-04:00

AUGMENTED REALITY GLASSES

2012-07-04T19:42:00.003-04:00

wearing augmented reality glasses (note: characters are fictional)

Do you think your natural senses are inadequate? Have you ever wished for more information about your surroundings? Augmented reality (AR) glasses could solve your problem. AR refers to the idea of overlapping a computer display on top of your field of view. Last week Google demonstrated its work on this technology, Project Glass, although the focus was on the glasses' camera and not the display. Project Glass is still a few years away from being a consumer product. Right now it seems only good for streaming videos and pictures, and we are told that it has a small computer display. The concept video below shows Google’s idea of how we might one day use such technology, but such versatility could be many years in the making.

Many people use their smartphones to compare prices for products seen in “brick and mortar” stores. This requires a shopper to take the smartphone out of its pocket and either snap a photo or manually search for a product. With AR glasses, one could simply stare at a product for a few seconds, and online prices would be automatically displayed in the shopper's vision. The glasses should make information more natural and personal to access—to the point of forgetting that you are using technology to look up prices. In the eyes of a user, the physical and digital worlds are seamlessly blended to create an information-rich environment.

One major obstacle for this technology is control. How do you communicate with a pair of glasses? The three most likely solutions are voice command, gesture command, and using a smartphone as a remote. It seems natural to build AR glasses like the next generation of Bluetooth headsets—an extension of a smartphone rather than a standalone device. This way many verbal commands could be processed by software like Siri, and a lot of time handling the smartphone would be eliminated. Another method of control is gesture recognition. Much progress has already been made in this field through Microsoft's Kinect and MIT's SixthSense. To take pictures, a user could frame a shot with his/her hands. The AR glasses would recognize the gesture and act accordingly. Pointing at something might initiate search queries. Handshakes could activate some social media function. Sign language could be translated in real time.

Google’s main selling point seems to be that parents will want an unobtrusive way of filming their children. When you photograph your month-old baby with AR glasses, he/she is looking into your eyes, not the camera. Wearing the glasses all day, parents can start recording at a moment's notice. The baby's first words, first steps, and countless other moments would be preserved that might have gone missed. But this accessibility extends beyond parents. Think of YouTube videos. How many more embarrassing moments, personal injuries, and hilarious cat videos will be uploaded when people wear cameras on their heads most of the time. Tutorial videos might also get a boost in quantity with instructors providing a first-person view of what they are doing. AR glasses could also have telepresence applications. Anyone wearing a pair could have a live video stream (as was demonstrated by Google with the skydivers and bicyclists). Concerts, conferences, street performances, movies, and many other events could have countless online viewers seeing through the eyes of one who is physically present.

Google’s Project Glass is loaded with various sensors. It can sense the wearer's global position, direction of view, and angle of view. With so much data ready to be streamed online, Google could create a highly detailed and constantly updated digital model of the world. Nature trails, tour routes, store departments, museums, caves. . . all could be easily mapped and uploaded to Google Earth. Photos could be automatically sent to Street View. Anyone wearing Google glasses could serve as a virtual cartographer for Google Earth. With so much geographical data, people could have GPS guidance for finding their favorite book section, the nearest food stand, or even the nearest restroom.

Featured Image - Dragon Docking with ISS

2012-05-31T14:47:00.000-04:00

Featured Image - Family of Mars Rovers

2012-04-04T03:07:00.000-04:00

Featured Innovator - Carleen Hutchins

2012-02-27T11:40:00.003-05:00

Carleen Hutchins (1911-2009) was both a dedicated scientist and innovative luthier. She studied how violins produce their distinctive sound, and in the process she became a sought-after viola maker. Over the years she encountered criticism for being a woman and bringing scientific inquiry into an esoteric discipline. But the quality of her instruments gradually earned the respect and admiration of many luthiers and players. In scientific circles she was known for her extensive work in acoustics research. All this she did after age forty! In her school days she had no idea how prolific her life would some day be.

As a child, Carleen Hutchins raised silkworms, joined the Girl Scouts, and enjoyed woodworking. When Hutchins entered college she studied entomology, but by the time of graduation she was interested in becoming a doctor. Because of little money and gender-based discouragement, she decided to become a high school science teacher. It was not until she was in her forties that Hutchins got involved with string instruments. She played trumpet in an amateur chamber music group during the late 1940s, but the group decided a viola would sound better. So she give up the trumpet and bought a cheap viola. Dissatisfied with her poor quality instrument, Hutchins set about to make her own. In 1949, after two years of work, her first viola was ready to play. It was around this time that she stopped teaching to start raising a family with her husband, Morton. That same year she began a six-year study with luthier Karl Berger. With his advice Hutchins made over twenty violas, four violins, and one cello. Also in 1949, Hutchins met Harvard physicist Frederick Saunders who had an active interest in acoustics. He wanted to experiment with the structures of string instruments, but luthiers and players do not like holes drilled in their expensive violins. Hutchins agreed to make “boxes” (unfinished but playable instruments) for the sake of science. Eventually she would turn her own basement into an acoustics laboratory filled with various instruments and electronic equipment. And so it was that she spent the 1950s learning both the art of violin making and the science of sound from two qualified mentors.

In her collaboration with Saunders, Hutchins made a collection of string instruments that underwent hundreds of experiments. Most of those instruments did not survive to the present day, but much was learned and many papers were published. Hutchins' skill in instrument making reached such a level that some of her instruments were being purchased by professional players. Over the years she devised a surprisingly visual method of analyzing the front and back “plates” of a violin. The setup involves holding the plate over a loudspeaker by placing foam blocks under its corners. Some glitter is sprinkled over the plate, and the speaker is activated with a frequency generator. The operator slowly changes the frequency while watching the glitter. At certain tones, the glitter will astonishingly move into definite patterns on the violin plate. These patterns are called Chladni patterns, and they indicate how the plate naturally vibrates. By observing these patterns and the frequencies at which they occur, a luthier can refine the shape and thickness of the plate for optimal tuning.

As Hutchins' knowledge of wood grew, so did her resourcefulness in finding quality materials. She obtained wood from such unconventional sources as wine crates and polo balls. One memorable story even tells of Hutchins and the famous doctor, Virginia Apgar, taking a shelf from a payphone booth under the cover of night. The shelf became the back plate of a viola and was replaced by a replica shelf of lesser-quality wood.

Once she had enough technical experience in acoustics, Hutchins felt the need to connect with other researchers and promote the sharing of information. To that end, the Catgut Acoustical Society was founded in the 1960s—bringing isolated minds into a group for studying musical instruments. The society's membership would grow to 800 in less than twenty years.

Perhaps Hutchins' most memorable contribution to violin making is her New Violin Family, also known as the violin octet. Composer Henry Brant came to Hutchins with a challenge in 1957. He wanted her to create seven new string instruments centered around the violin. Each instrument was to be tuned half an octave apart with the highest-pitched instrument tuned one octave above the violin. While certain members of this family are similar to the viola, cello, and double bass, they are designed as large violins, not mere copies of their conventional counterparts. The intention is a group of instruments that sing together in perfect harmony and with amazing clarity. With funding from the Guggenheim Foundation, Hutchins and her many collaborators had a complete octet ready for concert testing by the mid-1960s. The new family was impressive, but Hutchins would spend decades refining each violin for an ever-improving sound. In the end she made eight instruments—slightly modifying the traditional violin design. The members of this family are named the treble, soprano, mezzo, alto, tenor, baritone, small bass, and contrabass violins. The mezzo violin is tuned just like a traditional violin, but its body is longer. The alto violin is tuned like a viola, but it has an endpin and is played upright like a cello. Hutchins traveled the world on lecture tours to spread awareness of the violin octet. She was met with both admiration for her innovation and enmity for trying to change the classical orchestra. Because of this controversy, it took some time for the Metropolitan Museum of Art to display an octet. Nevertheless, the quality of the octet's sound is undeniable, and musicians are catching on to it. Yo-Yo Ma has made recordings using an alto violin, and the instrument has also been favored by William Berman and Randall Vemer.

Carleen Hutchins left a legacy of acoustic innovation. One of her collaborators, Gabriel Weinreich, continues his research to this day and is developing an electric violin and speaker system that recreate the experience of an antique instrument. Hutchins also taught her methods of violin making to many students, even traveling so far as China in 1982 to share her knowledge. Gregg Alf and Joseph Curtin learned from her in the 1980s. Alf specializes in high-quality traditional violins, and Curtin is working on reproducing Stradivarius sound with electric instruments and software. The violin octet continues to be promoted by such groups as the Hutchins Consort, and hopefully its popularity will only increase in the future. Most important of all, what survives Hutchins is her open-mindedness towards innovation and using technology to blur the boundaries between science and art. More luthiers are experimenting with string instrument design and materials. More players are trying out the new instruments. Violin making used to be a stagnant, arcane subject, but it is quickly becoming a dynamic and open-minded field.

Featured Image - Space Launch

2012-01-26T21:00:00.000-05:00

6 WAYS ULTRASOUND HEALS

2012-01-10T14:58:00.002-05:00

For years ultrasound (sonic vibrations with frequencies beyond human hearing) has been used to noninvasively examine internal structures of the human body. One of the most common applications is viewing a developing baby within the womb. But ultrasound can also serve as a medical treatment, not just a diagnostic tool. Here are six examples (in no particular order) of such treatments.

1) Ultrasound has been used to break up kidney stones and gallstones into smaller, more manageable pieces.

2) Astonishing results have shown that ultrasound therapy is an effective way to improve the healing of broken bones. Treatments in Glasgow have mended injuries that doctors doubted would completely heal at all.

3) Israeli scientists developed a way of using ultrasound to kill brain tumors. Sonic energy is transferred through the skull and focused on a tumor without cutting it open. This noninvasive, sonic surgery could be a great relief for both the surgeon and the patient.

4) Ultrasound can be used to enhance drug effectiveness. It makes targeted cells more receptive to absorbing chemicals that help fight disease, especially cancer.

5) Canadian researchers have invented a tiny ultrasound device for dental patients. Ultrasound applied to the jaws can cause tooth roots to regrow. This treatment is helpful for teeth that have fallen out or become loose from playing hockey or wearing braces.

6) DARPA is funding the development of a portable device that stops internal bleeding. Intended for soldiers on the battlefield, the Deep Bleeder Acoustic Coagulation (DBAC) project promises automatic detection of ruptured blood vessels using ultrasound. Once the site of bleeding has been located in 3D, the device will noninvasively cauterize the internal wound with high-intensity ultrasound.

Featured Image - PackBot

2011-11-11T13:11:00.002-05:00

Featured Company - Boston Dynamics

2011-11-10T12:02:00.005-05:00

Boston Dynamics, originating from MIT, is a current developer of cutting edge robotics. This company is known for its DARPA-funded research, and it continues to produce products that are likely to revolutionize military operations in the future.

Over the last several years, Boston Dynamics' most popular project has been BigDog, a four-legged robot designed as a twenty-first century pack mule for soldiers. Amazingly, this robot can walk over very uneven terrain and even stabilize itself when pushed sideways. BigDog can carry over 300 pounds of whatever a soldier needs: weapons, ammunition, communications equipment, maybe even a wounded soldier. While BigDog is impressive, DARPA wants even more capability for a final design, calling the desired product a Legged Squad Support System (LS3). Boston Dynamics is working on a prototype for the LS3 which it calls AlphaDog. The goal is a robot that can carry 400 pounds, function with minimal noise, and walk twenty miles without refueling.

The most impressive project today is definitely the PETMAN, or Protection Ensemble Test Mannequin. This humanoid robot is over five feet tall and about 180 pounds in weight. It was designed for testing military uniforms, but we all know how versatile the human body can be. Perhaps terminators and robot butlers are not so distant a possibility. After all, would it be so strange for people to prefer robots to fight wars rather than friends and family members? And might wealthy families invest in upgradable, tireless android servants instead of traditional domestic workers?

CNT INVISIBILITY CLOAK

2011-10-31T21:50:00.003-04:00

Metamaterials are no longer the only option for invisibility. For years that technology has been the source of hope for some future invisibility cloak, but so far only certain frequencies of light can be affected. Carbon nanotubes, on the other hand, can be used to bend all frequencies of visible light right now. Researchers at the University of Texas have used a sheet of carbon nanotubes to artificially create the mirage effect.

The mirage effect can often be seen on hot days when the sun heats paved roads. Sometimes you can see a puddle of water far down a road, but you know it is just an illusion. How does it happen? The air in contact with the pavement is much hotter than surrounding air. This temperature difference bends light so that instead of seeing the road, you see a warped image of the sky (which closely resembles reflecting water). Wherever there is an extreme temperature difference, there will be this mirage effect. The metallic bodies of cars can effectively heat the air around them, but carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are better. When an electric current passes through a sheet of CNTs, heat is quickly produced and dissipated. In the demonstration video, water was used instead of air. Like flicking a switch, the mirage effect can be activated and deactivated at will. This is a very convenient quality of the technology.

The CNTs seem a preferable alternative to metamaterials. The main drawbacks are excessive heat and possibly limited angles of cloaking. On the positive side, CNTs are much more durable than metamaterials and can bend all colors at once. Metamaterials have difficulty bending more than one color of light at a time. Indeed, it is hard to make a metamaterial that works with visible light at all. Rather than a small sheet, imagine a blanket of CNTs. With the press of a button that blanket becomes a personal wall of invisibility. With some advanced insulation on the inner side, the blanket might be able to hide a person, small car, or other item of interest. The main obstacles to this dream are the high cost of producing CNTs and supplying the energy necessary for what is essentially a high-tech electric heater.

Featured Image - Tractography

2011-10-18T21:05:00.000-04:00

HOW VIDEO GAMES CAN IMPROVE YOUR LIFE

2011-10-17T12:30:00.001-04:00

(re-posted and updated from Fruedu)

Video games often present players with virtual worlds that can be explored and manipulated. Playful exploration is a key aspect of the learning and creative processes. Just think about how difficult it is to learn when you are bored. If you are having fun, like playing a new game, you tend to learn rules and strategies much more easily. As young children playing is our primary occupation, but, as we progress through public schooling, our method of learning is forced to become quiet listening and frantic memorization. The lack of exploration and experimentation stifles creativity in students. Video games provide environments where experimentation and exploration are highly encouraged and beneficial. Is it any wonder that so many kids hate school and love video games?

Virtual worlds allow a player to take risks, explore freely, and test the rules that govern how those worlds function. The interactivity of video games can make players more engaged and mentally stimulated than quietly sitting in a classroom. Players have to act, observe any reactions, hypothesize appropriate courses of action, and act again to achieve goals set by the games. All this thinking and focus is good exercise for the brain, and it improves problem solving ability.

The demanding hand-eye coordination required for some video games is also a good thing. Some surgeons actually play video games to prepare for surgery with very satisfying results. First-person shooters, while sometimes criticized for their violence, improve hand-eye coordination and reaction times for players. Perhaps martial artists should play video games, and vice versa, for synergistic benefits.

The Nintendo Wii has become a fun tool for physical fitness. No longer sitting on the couch, Wii players are up and moving—burning calories in front of the TV instead of gaining them. Dance Dance Revolution has been a popular video game that also has its players exercising and having fun at the same time. Now the Xbox 360 Kinect is encouraging exercise in the living room. With its visual feedback of the player, the Kinect helps correct posture and body movement. This could be an invaluable tool for learning martial arts, yoga, dancing, etc.

Even creating video games can be beneficial. There is the obvious benefit of earning money. The video game industry earns tens of billions of dollars a year in the United States alone. To make a good game, collaboration is needed between artists, programmers, marketers, writers, and many more talented people. Programming is a good way to hone one's logic, reasoning, and problem-solving skills.

Massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) allow players to meet other people from around the globe and communicate with them in real time. Players make friends, improve social skills, and sometimes even experience romance via video games. Some players even end up marrying people they meet in MMOs.

Playing video games can be a source of income as well as a hobby. There is a definite need for players to test games for bugs and glitches before they are sold to the public. Gaming competitions often reward winners with cash and other prizes. People have even created virtual economies in online games such as Second Life. People design virtual merchandise that is purchased by players with real world money.

Video games can also enhance school learning. Young children are often given simple games that challenge their math, spelling, and other skills. Yet, older kids playing video games is viewed with a very different attitude. There is a lot of unseen potential for games being applied to adolescents' education. Reading from a textbook can be boring for many students. Video games often introduce players to new ideas and give unique perspectives on events which can make textbook content feel more relevant. For instance, the game Age of Empires allows one to control small armies, manage resources, and strategize attacks against opposing civilizations. Reading about Sir William Wallace's exploits is much more interesting after virtually leading his troops into battle. The numerous World War II games create a similar interest in their period of history. Maybe future games will be embraced by teachers as interactive means to educate students.

There are plenty of reasons why video games are beneficial. The negative aspects of gaming should not be overlooked (perhaps the most prevalent one is addiction) but any human activity has its occasional shortcomings. With the proper attitude and ingenuity, video games should greatly benefit their players.

TECH TITAN PASSES AWAY

2011-10-05T22:16:00.000-04:00

Steve Jobs is no longer with us. His absence will be felt by countless people, as this man has left many astounding marks on the pages of history. He helped create the personal computer industry and made computers more user-friendly. After driving his company to greatness, he was fired from it and later returned to make it great again. He was honored with a medal by President Reagan. He brought us the iPod, a device that has become an integral part of American culture. Apple's computers have been symbols of individuality and creativity. The iPad might fundamentally change how people view and use computers from now on. His demand for greatness from both himself and his company created an air of excellence and uniqueness that few people have. What direction will the tech industries take now that he is gone? Who could to hope to fill the gap left from his death? How will Apple continue to innovate without his direction?

DECODING YOUR THOUGHTS

2011-09-26T12:00:00.004-04:00

It would be amazing to record your thoughts with a computer, would it not? The continuing efforts of researchers at UC Berkeley are making that possibility more feasible every year. Their latest experiment involves reconstructing videos based on fMRI readings. First a subject is shown various movie trailers while their brain is scanned. A computer correlates patterns in the fMRI data with visual patterns in the trailers. For part two of the experiment, the subject watches movie trailers while being scanned again. This time, however, the computer analyzes millions of seconds of YouTube videos to find clips that closely match the brain scan data. The matching clips are overlapped into a single video that very roughly resembles what the subject was viewing.

So far the clarity of the reconstructed videos is extremely limited. But the scientists' work is still quite astonishing. They can create videos of what people see just by scanning their brains! In the future this should result in the ability to create videos just by imagining them and clicking record on a computer. That would create quite a stir on YouTube. Recording dreams would fulfill a longtime wish for many. Perhaps within the next few decades there will be a slim headset that one puts on before going to bed. In the morning, a nearby computer has wirelessly received the brain activity information and generated an easily watched video file. After watching your own dream with the benefit of wakefulness, you might upload it to YouTube, email it to your psychiatrist, or just file it away for later viewing.

There are still a few obstacles to get through before we can do all that. First of all, MRI machines take up most of a room, and being scanned by one is like laying in a coffin. Researchers at the University of Toronto are working on using ultrasound headsets to scan brain activity, but sonic waves are not yet as capable as magnetic ones. Another limitation is that fMRI and ultrasound collect data on blood flow in the brain, not the electric and chemical signals between neurons. This is an indirect way of scanning thoughts, and it will always mean a delay between when a thought occurs and when the equipment actually detects it. An ideal setup would be a headset that can scan for the signals between neurons instead of measuring blood flow.

UPDATE (09-29-11): Swiss and Japanese researchers are working on cars that can read a driver's thoughts, such as knowing that a right turn is coming up.

WATCH FOR SPIES IN THE SKIES

2011-09-21T06:00:00.007-04:00

As quickly as technology improves our security, it also endangers our privacy. Over the course of human history, one persistent dream has been that of flight. People enjoy watching birds soar through the air, and many marvel at Superman's aerobatic abilities. The Wright brothers used technology to achieve this dream, but technology might soon turn the open air into a source of fear instead of aspiration.

Take the ingenious Nano Hummingbird (from AeroVironment), for instance. With a built-in camera it could effectively aid humans in discovering hidden terrorists and trapped disaster victims. But in the wrong hands it could be used to spy on unsuspecting civilians. It can hover in front of windows to observe from a distance, or, if the window is open just enough, it could enter a room and land in a dark corner for longer periods of surveillance.

Another looming threat is a small quadrocopter with the ability to hack wireless networks. The toy-sized robot, named SkyNET (yes, that is its real name) by its creators, was demonstrated at WOOT '11 last month. The SkyNET drone can fly around a neighborhood via remote control. Once its target is found, it can land on the roof of a house or building near the wireless network. Then the drone uses on-board software to hack the network. Worst of all, the drone can use the compromised computers to form a botnet, adding to the resources of the person in control of SkyNET. If that was not enough, the drone can also track cellphones. All this, and the SkyNET drone costs just a few hundred dollars to build.

The SmartBird (by Festo) is a wondrous feat of engineering. Like the Nano Hummingbird it could be used for surveillance, especially scouting uneven terrain. If it were solar-powered, it might even be used to take close-up footage of migrating birds. Disguised among a flock of geese, it could also scan neighborhoods and stalk unwitting travelers.

Lastly, the figurative “fly on the wall” may soon become literal reality. Researchers at Harvard are designing robots that fly like insects and are of similar size. In recent years DARPA has been funding the development of mind-controlled insects. So far scientists have implanted computer chips in large beetles that enable remote control of their flight direction. With ever-shrinking electronics, it would not be too surprising to see remote-controlled flies in the next decade or so. What if they did this with stinging insects? As one commenter pointed out on Popular Science, an augmented wasp or bee might make the perfect assassination weapon. Scientists have also developed a tiny generator that harvests energy from an insect's beating wings to power the mind-control chip. In fact, the generator provides a surplus of energy. With a little electricity to spare, what else might DARPA want to add to these cyborg bugs? A camera, microphone, or tracking device? In the future, when espionage agents talk about bugs, they will mean real live bugs.

UPDATE (09-28-11): It seems the statement about a flock of geese was prophetic. The Laboratory of Intelligent Systems, in Switzerland, is developing UAVs that are programmed to fly in flocks, just like geese.

UPDATE (09-29-11): UC Berkeley has a couple of robots that fly like giant insects.

Featured Image - Global Hawk

2011-09-20T07:40:00.001-04:00

Featured Image - Ooh, technology!

2011-08-30T07:34:00.002-04:00

www.kremlin.ru/news/8149

GLOWING PLASTIC THAT STRETCHES

2011-08-27T10:03:00.007-04:00

Finally, a major step towards flexible display screens has been made. UCLA has developed a stretchy sheet of plastic that glows blue when given an electric current. It is a combination of carbon nanotubes and polymer layers. The future possibilities for this kind of technology are endless. The first thing that comes to my mind is a super-portable, resilient computer screen. Imagine a newspaper that plays videos, and you get the idea. As smartphones become more and more capable, it might be convenient to keep an external monitor in your pocket. As you sip your morning coffee, you could pull out a folded-up sheet of plastic. Unfold it, plug it into your iPhone, and have the iPhone download the latest news stories to be displayed like an old-fashioned newspaper. Better yet, go to YouTube, and you have videos playing on a high-definition display. If touch-sensitivity was included, then you could fold the sheet in half for a makeshift laptop. The flexible screen would serve as keyboard and monitor, and the iPhone would do all the computing.

There are other exciting applications, too. Think about safety—construction workers and other people exposed to traffic dangers. Instead of vests that reflect light, they could wear ones that glow in the dark like neon signs. Traffic cones that glow, too. Clothes with computer displays would come in handy. Again, smartphones might be crucial. A jacket covered with the flexible screen could enable a user to access a smartphone without taking it out of its pocket. Connected to a smartphone, a [smart-jacket?] could show the time of day on its sleeve, like a watch. If the user wants to dial a number, then the sleeve shows a keypad. For self-expression or advertising purposes, the front and back of the jacket become personal billboards. The jacket might even be used for camouflage. Imagine wallpaper and curtains that, once wirelessly connected to your computer, can illuminate a room from all angles. What strange lighting effects that might produce! Selecting a picture or video instantly turns an entire wall into a panoramic vista. Interior design would be radically changed by walls that can change color and pattern at the press of a button. Do you have any ideas?

Featured Image - NASA Helios

2011-08-26T07:25:00.001-04:00

Featured Company - AeroVironment

2011-08-24T06:00:00.012-04:00

This company is based in California and was founded by Paul MacCready. AeroVironment specializes in flying machines, most notably unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and solar-powered airplanes. Innovation has been a prime goal of this company for something like forty years. This company created an all-electric, solar-powered airplane, named Solar Challenger, that successfully flew from France to England in 1981. No fuel! Think about that for a second: an international flight that used zero gallons of fuel. In the same decade, AeroVironment collaborated on the GM Sunraycer, a solar-powered car that won the first World Solar Challenge.

Two of the most significant projects that AeroVironment has today are Raven and Global Observer. The Raven is a UAV that is small enough to be launched by hand. Over 13,000 have been made, and many of them are used by the United States military (especially in Iraq). Various foreign countries also use the Raven, such as the U.K. and Netherlands. Once launched, the Raven can fly for over an hour, reaching speeds exceeding thirty miles per hour and altitudes around two miles up.

The Global Observer is still in development, but it is very promising. It is a high-altitude UAV that should become a versatile alternative to some space satellites. Soaring eleven miles above Earth, the Global Observer burns hydrogen to power its four motors for up to a week. When it runs low on fuel, it will be relieved by a second Global Observer and land for refueling. It may require two UAVs to take the place of one satellite, but flying on hydrogen is cheaper than launching a huge rocket into space. Some of the desired uses for the Global Observer include spying on terrorists, capturing real-time data on weather and natural disasters, and serving as as communication relay.

AeroVironment's latest innovation is called the Nano Hummingbird. This miniscule UAV is capable of flying in any direction and hovering, just like a live hummingbird. It has a built-in camera for surveillance and weighs less than one AA battery. Its wingspan is only six inches long! The DARPA-funded Nano Hummingbird is likely to generate controversy in the coming years. While such devices are great for spying on terrorists, the possibility exists of spying on local citizens (either by the government or other citizens). America has been struggling to find a satisfactory balance between security and privacy lately, and the Nano Hummingbird will not make that struggle any easier. But it will probably save some soldiers' lives and make their jobs a little safer.

Featured Image - Infosys building

2011-08-23T11:15:00.001-04:00

Featured Company - Gridbots

2011-08-23T11:00:00.001-04:00

Gridbots is a robotics company based in Ahmedabad, India. It was founded by Pulkit Gaur, who has been awarded a TED fellowship. His company focuses on developing robots that are “more intelligent” and can be used in everyday life. Gridbots' products range from smart surveillance cameras to telepresence robots. This company also makes educational robots; ones that are user-friendly and designed for experimentation. The Turtle, for instance, is called the “do it yourself robot,” and it is claimed to have an assembly time of just fifteen minutes. It is accompanied by visual programming software and preset behavior modes to make first-timers' experiences that much easier.

Featured Image - Fuel Cell Bus

2011-08-19T17:30:00.002-04:00

Featured Image - Last Shuttle Mission

2011-08-01T11:50:00.001-04:00

Featured Company - Festo

2011-07-28T03:42:00.001-04:00

Some companies are currently pushing the limits of new technology and design solutions. They are developing futuristic, exotic products to meet the needs of a world that demands extreme engineering. One of these companies is Festo, an industrial engineering and design company in Germany. Of primary interest to this blog is the Bionic Learning Network, a part of Festo that specializes in designs “inspired by nature” and collaborates with universities and other companies.

Festo's Bionic Learning Network has created some really cool products that challenge everyday views of robotics. Take the “bionic handling assistant” for example. Robotic arms are usually rigid, powerful, and jerky in their movements. Festo's alternative (whose appearance resembles the tentacles of Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man 2) is instead elegant, gentle, graceful, pneumatically powered, and was inspired by the elephant's trunk. Other projects created by Festo include modular robots, flying robot penguins, 3D printers, moving walls, flying robot jellyfish, and ion-propelled lighter-than-air robots that are reminiscent of Naboo starships. Can you imagine being able to honestly cite work on “bionic plasma drives” and flying robot penguins for your job history? What fun those Germans are having!

Another remarkable invention from Festo is the SmartBird. This feat of biomimicry is uncanny. The lightweight robotic bird has a mounted camera and flaps its wings like a real bird. This product has obvious applications in reconnaissance. The possibility, or perhaps inevitability, of robotic avian spies reminds me of a movie scene. In The Fellowship of the Ring, the heroes are followed by a flock of birds. One of them exclaims, “Spies of Saruman!” Maybe someday such a situation will be replicated in the real world. Imagine terrorists peering out of a cave, sighting a flock of birds and muttering to themselves, “Spies of America!”