Hasta La Gadget!

Electric bikes can be expensive and sometimes just plain ugly, which really sucks, because if you are lazy, you want one. There are some conversion kits available, but they make the bike look too weird. Rubbee to the rescue!

Rubbee recently-launched as a Kickstarter project and the idea is that it turns your regular bike into an electric one. Even better, it does this in mere seconds. It is an electric motor drive that you mount on your bike. Just attach the motor pack, connect the throttle, and you’re done. There is a friction wheel at the back tire, which turns when the electric motor is on. The Rubbee will give you about 15 miles of range on a 2 hour charge. Best of all, it looks nice and doesn’t get in the way.

All done with your electric bike and need some exercise? Just flip a switch.

Then full Rubbee electric drive package will cost you a minimum pledge of £699 or about $1,070(USD). While this is as expensive as some standalone electric bikes, the Rubbee lets you use your existing bike, and keeps weight to a minimum.

[via C|NET via Oh! Gizmo]

Bus-sized satellites require massive engines for even the slightest movements, but as far smaller structures become a possibility, a tiny driving mechanism can offer usable thrust. To serve this next-gen tech, MIT saw a need to develop “microthrusters,” which are each the size of a penny and can be mounted to tiny cubed satellites. With thruster components measuring a few microns each, the magnetic levitation system is able to accommodate 500 microscopic tips that emit ion beams in a very small package, serving to push two-pound structures through space. The tiny devices have not made their way into orbit yet, but they have been tested in a vacuum chamber. Because of their size, it’s possible to add several to each satellite, then enabling sophisticated movements for more precise turns.

There are currently two dozen “CubeSats” in orbit, each measuring only slightly larger than a Rubik’s cube, but without any thrusters to power them, positioning can’t be adjusted once they’re released. Because of their current location, CubeSats eventually burn up in the atmosphere, but once they’re released farther from Earth, they won’t be able to enter the atmosphere on their own, remaining in orbit as “space junk” even after completing their missions — micro thrusters could also serve to move these satellites closer to the planet so they can burn up during re-entry. There’s no word on when, or even if, MIT’s invention will make its way to the launchpad, but you can take a closer look in the demo video after the break.

Continue reading MIT ‘microthrusters’ are the size of a penny, could reposition tiny satellites

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MIT ‘microthrusters’ are the size of a penny, could reposition tiny satellites originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 18 Aug 2012 09:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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