You can draw circuit boards onto paper with this pen (video)

When dreaming up that world-changing invention, wouldn’t it be great if you could just sketch out the circuits and have them magically work? That’s the idea behind Circuit Scribe, a ballpoint pen that’s full of quick-drying ink that’ll help you doodle your circuits on notebook paper. Emerging out of research from the University of Illinois, the team is now accepting your cash through Kickstarter to help bring it into the real world. $20 will get you a pen and an LED component, while $30 will buy you a basic kit, complete with plenty of accessories to help you test the systems to their fullest. We imagine it’ll be a big hit with STEM educators as well as hobbyists, but if you’re not yet convinced, check out the video to watch it in action.

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Kickstarter

SpiderSense ultrasonic radar suit lets you know when danger is near

SpiderSense suit lets you know when danger is near

Know that feeling when someone wanders too far into your personal space? The University of Illinois‘ Victor Mateevitsi does, which is why he’d built a suit that does the job to a far greater degree of accuracy. SpiderSense is a onesie that uses a series of microphones to rend and receive ultrasonic signals from the space around you, like high frequency radar. When the outfit senses something approaching, a robotic arm corresponding to the microphone exerts pressure on your skin, pointing you in the direction of the danger. Mateevitsi tested the gear by blindfolding researchers and asking them to throw a cardboard ninja star whenever (and wherever) they sensed a threat — with positive results 95 percent of the time. SpiderSense will get its first public showing at Stuttgart’s Augmented Human conference in March and it’s hoped that the hardware will eventually help Blind people get around easier.

[Image Credit: Lance Long]

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Via: New Scientist

Source: Victor Mateevitsi

John Rogers returns with a silicon-silk circuit that dissolves inside your body

John Rogers returns with a siliconsilk circuit that dissolves inside your body

While you’d be forgiven for not knowing who John Rogers is, he’s certainly graced these pages more than once. He’s the research chief at the University of Illinois that’s previously broken new ground in the world of invisibility cloaks and wearable technology. This time, his team has cooked up a silicon, magnesium, magnesium oxide and silk circuit that’s designed to dissolve in the body in the same way that absorbable sutures are used in minor surgeries. It’s thought that the tech could eventually be used to implant monitors that never need removal, reducing invasive medical procedures, or even build devices that eventually turn into compost rather than E-waste — although we’re not sure we’d appreciate our smartphone doing the same thing when we’re making calls in the rain.

[Image Credit: Fiorenzo Omenetto / Science]

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John Rogers returns with a silicon-silk circuit that dissolves inside your body originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 08:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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