Hasta La Gadget!

Remember that camera that takes 1 trillion exposures per second? Well, the illustrious folks at MIT have outdone themselves (again) by developing a camera that accomplishes all that and more, for just $500. Similar to the recently released Xbox One Kinect, this three-dimensional “nano-camera” is based on “Time Flight Technology.” That means an object’s whereabouts are calculated by measuring the time it takes light to reflect off its surface and return to the sensor. But, thanks to some fancy math, the nano-cam can capture translucent and moving objects in 3D, using a new encoding method. In the past, the results of the process (which has been dubbed “nanophotography”) could only be achieved with a $500,000 “femto-camera.” With such a dramatically lower price tag, it could be a solution to one of the many hurdles facing self-driving vehicles: the ability to tell the difference between a puddle and a cat in the pouring rain. And, even though it functions like a Kinect, don’t expect it to be standard issue with an Xbox Two (or One II, or whatever Microsoft decides to call it).

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Source: MITnews

Volvo’s no stranger to autonomous vehicles — it’s been working on SARTRE for several years now — but yesterday the company shared some info about a new self-parking concept it plans to demo next week. The prototype car (a V40) is able to find a space and park in it without a driver on board, all while avoiding pedestrians, vehicles and other obstacles. What’s most interesting is the level of integration Volvo is showcasing here — sensors, electronics and controls are seamlessly built into the car, making the tech look production-ready. Vehicle to infrastructure communication is used to alert the driver when the service is available, and the car is smartphone-enabled for easy drop-off and pickup. You’ll recall that Audi showed a similar self-parking concept at CES, so it certainly looks like the space is heating up. Hit the break for Volvo’s video and PR.

Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation, Mobile

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Via: Autoblog

Source: Volvo

Ionut Budisteanu of Romania certainly does seem to have a pretty bright future ahead of him, especially after he picked up the top prize at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, which so happens to be the largest high school science research competition in the world. This would mean that Ionut Budisteanu managed to earn the Gordon E. Moore Award, in addition to a $75,000 prize that was named in honor of the Intel co-founder and fellow scientist. According to the organizers of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, “Their research demonstrates the value of hard work and creative thinking. All the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair finalists here this week show great promise in harnessing the power of science and innovation to solve problems and create opportunity for our global community.” Just what made Ionut’s work so valuable? Well, he manages to address a major global issue by potentially reducing the cost of a self-driving car dramatically, so much so that it could make such technology affordable to the mainstream folks.

Thanks to an array of 3-D radar and mounted cameras, Ionut has successfully created a feasible design for an autonomously controlled car which is smart enough to detect traffic lanes and curbs, in addition to keeping track of the real-time position of the car. The best part of the news is? The entire shebang would cost a mere $4,000, which is a whole lot more affordable that what Google is currently using in their self driving car project.

Ionut decided that processing webcam imagery using artificial intelligence technology to check out items like curbs, lane markers, and who knows, soccer balls which so happen to go out of the field of play and roll onto the road, would be able to eliminate the need for a high end 3D radar, resulting in the use of a low-resolution 3-D radar to get the job done when it comes to recognizing large objects such as other vehicles, houses, and obstacles like trees. Ionut ran 50 simulations with his system, where in 47 of them, no accidents were recorded. Three of the simulations that failed involved the non-recognition of people who were 65 to 100 feet (20 to 30 meters) away, and a slightly higher-resolution 3-D radar should get the job done down the road.

Press Release
[ Romanian teenager advances self-driving car idea copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

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Someone would have to sit down and do a really deep think through of existing road laws and regulations when self-driving cars become more and more commonplace. What happens when the data received by the vehicle is incorrect, and the car actually breaks the speed limit, all the while when you are sipping on your Starbucks mocha at the back seat, reading up on all that is happening in the world on a tablet? I suppose humanity will cross that particular bridge when they arrive at it, but otherwise, it remains something to chew over at this point in time. Toyota has already demonstrated a self-driving car over at CES 2013, although there are still some lengths to go before something like this is perfected for everyday and safe use.

The ride, a luxurious Lexus LS600, has been outfitted with its fair share of radars, cameras in addition to an array of sensors which enables it to be more than just cognizant of its immediate environment. Toyota is not the first to create a driverless car, as Internet search behemoth Google was first to do so, and has been behind the wheel (literally) since 2010, working on refining its technology. Needless to say, there is nothing quite like some competition behind you to spur you on to greater heights, and we as the consumer will only be able to say that we win out in the end.

The experimental car from Toyota is currently able to avoid collisions with pedestrians and other automobiles, where it will get up and about based on detailed electronic map data which is able to accurately perceive roadway information including traffic lanes and signals. I guess with this, you can truly drink those non-sobering beverages without having to worry about arriving at the destination while endangering the life of others on the road.

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[ Toyota demonstrates self-driving car at CES 2013 copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]