Apr 11
Furniture of the future could have a shapeshifting feature that allows it to change shape based on the owner’s mood. The work on this was performed by MIT, with the … Continue reading
Apr 10
Titanfall has earned more than its fair share of fans, one of whom has recreated the game’s EVA-8 Shotgun entirely out of LEGOs. The shotgun is incredibly similar to the … Continue reading
Apr 01
Today is the day in the technology reporting world where you mustn’t believe anything anyone tells you. Today, after all, is April Fools’ Day. One of the most consistently top-notch … Continue reading
Mar 05
Yesterday, fans the world over got a jolt of excitement when a viral video surfaced showing off celebrities and athletes alike demonstrating the HUVr, a purported “real” hoverboard bringing the … Continue reading
Mar 05
This week on top of the Back to the Future HUVr board comes the Oscar Mayer Bacon alarm. This product has Oscar Mayer suggesting that we plug in to an … Continue reading
Sep 24
It seems there’s no shortage of strange gadgets coming out of Japan. I guess we can thank the Pokémon craze for the rash of wearable faux animal parts for humans. In the past, we’ve seen some rather odd necomimi robotic cat ears that would move based on your mood.
Something that appears to be made to go along with those robotic cat ears has now surfaced called the Shippo brain controlled tail. The device is in concept stage right now, but seems to use the same technology as those cat ears. The tail is worn around the waist and is connected to a sensor that claims to sense the wearer’s mood.
The tail interfaces with a smartphone app that lets users share their mood. The user can also use the app to search for places other Shippo users found relaxing. The video shows that the tail wags slowly when a user is relaxed and wags quickly when the user is excited.
The app also claims to be able to detect when the person is frightened. I wonder if one neural controller might be able to operate the robotic cat ears and the robotic tail. I still think these are some of the strangest gadgets I’ve seen in a long time.
[via NewLaunches]
Brain controlled kitty tail for humans is called Shippo is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 25
Marketing agency Razorfish has taken the idea of a regular gumball machine and transformed it into an NFC-enabled prototype that takes quarters and spits out digital content for smartphones instead of gum. Once you’ve inserted the coins and twist the handle, you can hold your smartphone where the gumball chute is supposed to be to have that digital content delivered to your device.
Apps, movies, songs, ebooks and location-based coupons are offered from the prototype, which is probably a whole lot better than gum that loses its flavor after about 5 seconds of chewing it. The prototype uses a Galaxy tab for a display with two Arduino microcontrollers and an NFC reader that has been embedded in the front of an original gum machine metal base.
Razorfish technical director Heiko Schweickhardt said the machine brings “the best of both worlds together” between physical and digital content. While it only took about two days to create, it’s definitely a great little idea that gets us excited about all the possibilities of how NFC technology can be used.
[via Verge]
NFC gumball machine sells digital content instead of candy is written by Elise Moreau & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 24
Playing a game of real life paper toss just got way simpler, all thanks to a new trash that can swiftly move across a room to catch any airborne piece of trash you toss past your shoulder. The Smart Trashbox actually uses Kinect technology that operates on a wheeled base and is configured to an integrated circuit board. And even though this sort of thing was likely designed for lazy people or people with bad aim, we’re pretty sure it could be used purely for entertainment purposes too.
Created by Japanese inventor Modder FRP, the system can measure the flight of air-born garbage so it can make its position to catch it. It’s controlled by a Kinect sensor installed above the room and a code written from scratch that allows it to track anything tossed in the air. Check out the video below to see how the entire thing works.
The high-tech trash bin still needs some improvements to tighten up system accuracy, but for now it’s still pretty fun to watch. If something like this could ever be brought outdoors, polluted parks and streets may never be a problem ever again.
[via Verge]
Kinect-controlled trashcan catches trash tossed in the air is written by Elise Moreau & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 17
How do you beat the summer heat? Most people would probably just try to stay hydrated or stand under some shade when outdoors, but Japanese company Kuchofuku has taken it a step further with its new fully air-conditioned pair of pants. In fact, Kuchofuku already has a range of other air-conditioned pieces of clothing, including an air-conditioned shirt and an air-conditioned cooling coat. So it only seems reasonable to add a nice pair of air-conditioned pants to complete the whole ensemble.
The pants have built-in air-conditioning fans designed to ensure sweat cools down the body, with each fan being visible from each side. The battery-powered fans direct cool streams of air down each leg and up toward the waist section so cooling is spread out. The pants are made of a polyester-cotton blend and only seem to come in Khaki at the moment.
Probably the biggest drawback is that the fans tend to inflate them in a kind of hilarious way that the creator describes as “like a Michelin man.” But despite looking ridiculously inflated when the fans are turned on, they may be a realistic clothing option for construction workers or other people who spend long hours out in the heat. They come in a variety of sizes and go for about $208 on Japan Trend Shop.
[via Daily Mail]
Kuchofuku unveils air-conditioned pants with built-in fans is written by Elise Moreau & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Jul 10
The top place for the 10th annual Microsoft Imagine Cup was won by a Ukrainian team of students for a pair of sensory gloves, called EnableTalk. The gloves use sensors to translate hand gestures from sign language into speech, designed to help deaf and mute people communicate through verbal language.
Equipped with flex sensors, touch sensors, gyroscopes and accelerometers, the gloves work with a Bluetooth-enabled Windows Phone and Microsoft’s Speech and Bing APIs to translate hand gestures. Team member Osika Maxim said that their idea to develop the gloves came about from needing to interact with hearing-impaired athletes at their school in Ukraine.
Other products that are more or less comparable to EnableTalk have fewer sensors, use more wires and aren’t powered by software, still costing around $1,200. The team said that the parts for EnableTalk prototypes only cost about $75 per device. Over 350 students from 75 countries participated this year with the Ukrainian team being awarded a grand prize of $25,000 for placing first.
[via TechCrunch]
EnableTalk sensory gloves take top prize in Microsoft’s Imagine Cup is written by Elise Moreau & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
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