Hasta La Gadget!

Somebody needs to get a hold of Doctor Evil quickly and let him know that his evil lair needs a new projector for the media room. Sony has announced that it is now shipping the world’s first 3LCD projector with a laser light source. Yes that’s right, it’s a projector with frickin’ lasers.

Rather than using the normal bulbs that are expensive and burnout rather quickly, or dim low-end LEDs, the Sony VPL-FHZ55 laser light source projector uses a blue laser as its light source. You may be wondering how blue laser can reproduce full-color. The answer to that is a phosphorescent material that outputs pure white light when the laser shines through it. Once the white light is produced, 3LCD tech turns it into the colors you need for a high-quality image.

The projector offers an impressive 4,000 lumens of color light output and supports a resolution of 1920 x 1200. Sony estimates that the laser unit will provide 20,000 hours of use before it needs to be replaced.

There’s no indication of how expensive the VPL-FHZ55 might be, though I found one for sale via Amazon’s Marketplace for about $6500(USD).

Fact: turbulence is no fun at all. Aside from the brief moments of bone-deep terror it can cause passengers, clear air turbulence (CAT) can also prove costly for airlines in terms of damages. To help pilots deal with difficult-to-spot areas where CAT is likely to occur, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) is spearheading a new joint European project known as DELICAT. Essentially, the DELICAT program calls for planes to be equipped with a light detection and ranging instrument (LIDAR) that emits short-wave ultraviolet lasers. Radiation then bounces off oxygen and nitrogen particles in the air, indicating fluctuations in air density that signal the presence of CAT pockets. Until the end of August, the DLR will run test flights in a specially modified Cessna Citation plane to both show off LIDAR’s capabilities and to give researchers invaluable data on CAT patterns. Though the system is still in its infancy, the folks at the DLR hope that the technology will one day become a standard part of commercial air travel.

Filed under: Misc, Transportation

Comments

Via: Gizmodo

Source: German Aerospace Center

Nike Football Spain is helping Spaniards with their pick-up soccer games by providing a laser field.

Like It , +1 , Tweet It , Pin It Original content from Ubergizmo.

It wasn’t too long ago that Sony kind of introduced us to its inaugural Laser Light Source Projector with 3LCD technology, but now it’s time for the company to let us know a little more about the device. For starters, Sony’s officially dubbing it VPL-FHZ55, and it’s also emphasizing that it’s indeed the world’s first laser projector to be powered by 3LCD imaging tech. Just as we’d heard back in January, the lamp-less VPL-FHZ55 can deliver 4,000 lumens of color light at a maximum resolution of 1,920 x 1,200, which Sony says should be more than enough steam to “deliver bright and vivid color reproduction.” The VPL-FHZ55 is expected to be available later this August, however there’s no word on how much you’ll have to spend to add one of these to your setup. But, while we wait for those details to come to light, perhaps you’d be interested in perusing the gallery below.

Filed under: Misc, Home Entertainment, HD, Sony

Comments

Source: Sony

For a technology that’s still largely in its infancy, you can do some things with 3D printing that are pretty much impossible with any other technique. Take, for instance, these intricate 3D-printed mobiles.

Designed by kinetic sculptor Marco Mahler, along with mathematician Henry Segerman, these mobiles are unlike handmade mobiles you might have seen before.

Each one was designed using mathematical equations to generate shapes that range from organic to highly procedural in style. The most complex of the bunch is the Quaternary Tree (Level 6), which has a whopping 1,365 parts. Each model was then output using one of Shapeways’ industrial laser-sintering 3D printers.

Best of all, you can order a variety of these mobiles for yourself over at Shapeways. Since each one is made to order, it’ll take about 1 to 2 weeks to generate and then ship yours. Prices range from $10 (USD) for a small, simple mobile up to $600 for the most complex design.

It still blows my mind that a single 3D printing session can generate complex forms like these in which individual parts come out as separate, moveable objects.