Curtis Boirum’s robotic car makes omnidirectional dreams come true (video)

Let’s face it: you’ve probably never met a hemispherical omnidirectional gimbaled wheel that you didn’t like. Neither has Curtis Boirum, a grad student at Bradley University. The aforesaid whiz kid has put together one of the most visually stunning robots we’ve seen in some time, and while the frame itself is nothing to get hot and bothered about, the motion capabilities most definitely are. The secret lies in the black rubber hemisphere, which rotates like a top and is outfitted with servos that are able to tilt the entire mechanism left / right / forwards / backwards. What’s wild is just how fast those changes happen — something tells us that whole “on a dime” thing was born to be used right here. Head on past the break for video proof.

Continue reading Curtis Boirum’s robotic car makes omnidirectional dreams come true (video)

Curtis Boirum’s robotic car makes omnidirectional dreams come true (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 09 Jul 2011 18:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceIEEE Spectrum, GerbilGod7 (YouTube)  | Email this | Comments

Ultrawideband tech could connect your body to doctors, bring Tricorders to the mainstream

The academic paper ‘Experimental Characterization of a UWB Channel for Body Area Networks’ won’t reshape your mental state, but that’s because academic papers are rarely titled ‘OMG. Tricorders!’. A team of scientists at Oregon State University have examined ultrawideband tech to see if it’s capable of transmitting the enormous load of data required to monitor a human body. Imagine it; your heart rate is monitored on your watch, smart bandages examine your blood insulin levels and feedback-pants measure your muscle responses, all viewed online by a doctor. Sadly you can’t rush to your nearest hospital and demand to be wired with some X Prize – winning kit — there’s a couple of hurdles to overcome before you can more efficiently post your bodily functions to Twitter. Transmission had to be line-of-sight and the energy needs are too vast for a handheld device. Still, given how sophisticated the network technology will be when it’s perfected, don’t be surprised if civilization grinds to a halt when Quake is ported to your temporal lobe.

Ultrawideband tech could connect your body to doctors, bring Tricorders to the mainstream originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 00:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Information Week  |  sourceHindawi  | Email this | Comments

OnLive CEO reveals ‘entirely new approach’ to wireless, credits Rearden for toppling Shannon’s Law

“In advance, yes — you’re right, it’s impossible. But nonetheless, we have ten radios all working at the same frequency, all at the Shannon limit… and there’s no interference.” You may not fully grok the significance of that statement, but anyone heavily involved in solving the wireless bandwidth crisis is probably dropjawed. For a little background, there’s a perceived limit in wireless known as Shannon’s Law, which largely explains why no one can watch a YouTube clip on their EVO at Michigan Stadium. For whatever reason, it’s been assumed that this law was fundamentally unbreakable, but it looks as if an unlikely member of society may have just overrode expectations. OnLive’s CEO Steve Perlman recently revealed a breakthrough from Rearden Companies — in short, they’ve figured out a workaround, and in testing, it’s doing things like “removing dead zones” altogether. His slide, shown during a presentation at Columbia, notes that the implications here are “profound,” and we couldn’t agree more. Do yourself a solid and hit play in the video below the break — we’ve fast-forwarded to where this section begins.

Continue reading OnLive CEO reveals ‘entirely new approach’ to wireless, credits Rearden for toppling Shannon’s Law

OnLive CEO reveals ‘entirely new approach’ to wireless, credits Rearden for toppling Shannon’s Law originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink OnLive Spot  |  sourceYouTube (Columbia SEAS)  | Email this | Comments

NC State discovery finds optimal connections 10,000 times more quickly, ResNet admins do a double take

Ever wondered how just one message in an average Chatroulette session finds its way to whatever destination fate may deem suitable? Sure you have. As it stands, every single pulse from your Ethernet socket starts its initial journey by hunting for an optimal connection path; in some cases, that involves routing through massive ring networks crossing over untold miles of fiber optic cabling. Using traditional techniques, nailing down an optimal solution for a ring can take eons (or days, whichever you prefer), but there’s a new methodology coming out of NC State‘s den that could enable the same type of scenario to reach its natural conclusion 10,000 times faster. Dr. George Rouskas, a computer science professor and proud Wolfpacker, has just published a new paper describing the scheme, with the focal point being a “mathematical model that identifies the exact optimal routes and wavelengths for ring network designers.” More technobabble surrounding the discovery can be found in the source link below, but unfortunately, there’s no telling how long it’ll take your impending click to be addressed using conventional means. Here’s to the future, eh?

NC State discovery finds optimal connections 10,000 times more quickly, ResNet admins do a double take originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 08:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceNC State University  | Email this | Comments

Thin film coating makes everlasting energy a piezoelectric possibility

Let’s be honest, it’s no big secret that we’re running out of dead dinosaurs to fuel our lives. And with recent natural catastrophes proving atomic energy isn’t what you’d call ‘safe,’ it’s a good thing the researchers down at the RMIT University in Melbourne have been hard at work figuring out how to turn you into a self-sustained energy source. Marrying piezoelectrics with a thin film microchip coating, those scientists Down Under have for the first time identified just how much energy your pressure can generate. This is certainly not the first time the tech has been put to use — Orange UK’s been doing something similar, albeit bulkier, for the Glastonbury fest each year. What are some practical uses, you ask? Imagine a gym powered by a sea of workout-hamsters, each producing significant energy from the soles of their feet. Curious for more? Try a pacemaker that runs solely on blood pressure, or a laptop charged by banging out Facebook updates. Who knows, maybe even RIM can put this to use in its next Storm. Just sayin’.

[Image courtesy Alberto Villarreal]

Thin film coating makes everlasting energy a piezoelectric possibility originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 02:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PhysOrg  |  sourceRMIT University of Melbourne  | Email this | Comments

Touch pad prototype works without movement, makes fingertips feel like they’re sliding (video)

This comes from the same touchy-feely Kajimoto lab in Japan that brought us the tactile kiss transmission device and we totally see where they’re going with it: maximum sensation, minimum effort. You only have to exert the gentlest of pressures on this prototype touch pad and it zaps your fingertip with little electrical signals, mimicking the feeling of sliding your finger over a surface. We imagine it’s a bit like the little red pointing stick in the middle of a Lenovo ThinkPad keyboard, for example, but with the addition of “position-dependent data input” to create the illusion that your finger is actually touching different areas of the screen. For now though, if you don’t mind stretching a finger to your old-stylee mouse or trackpad, then check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Touch pad prototype works without movement, makes fingertips feel like they’re sliding (video)

Touch pad prototype works without movement, makes fingertips feel like they’re sliding (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 May 2011 09:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceDigInfo TV  | Email this | Comments

Amar Bose donates majority of Bose Corporation shares to MIT, says thanks for the education

If you haven’t heard of Dr. Amar Bose directly, you’ve surely heard of his eponymous audio equipment company. Late last week, the 81-year old founder and chairman of Bose Corporation announced that he’s donating the majority of shares in the privately held company to his alma mater, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A member of that college’s graduating class of 1951 and its electrical engineering faculty all the way until 2001, Bose felt compelled to give something back and he’s opted for the most grandiose of gestures. MIT won’t be able to sell its shares in Bose Corp. nor have any say in the way it is run, but it’ll receive dividends as and when they’re paid out, which will then be reinvested in its research and education programs. In making this perpetual endowment public, Amar Bose took the time to credit Professors Y. W. Lee, Norbert Wiener and Jerome Wiesner as his mentors — in the image above, you can see him pictured with Lee (left) and Wiener (right) back in 1955. Chalkboards, that’s where it all began.

Amar Bose donates majority of Bose Corporation shares to MIT, says thanks for the education originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 May 2011 05:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink CNN Money  |  sourceMIT  | Email this | Comments

Tactile kiss transmission device finally makes it okay to smooch your computer (video)

They say the vast majority of communication is done physically rather than verbally, but in the realm of technological advances we seem to have rather neglected the transmission of physical contact. Thankfully, there’s always Japan to provide us with off-the-wall innovations, this latest one being a kiss transmission device that will record, relay, and — if you wish it — replay your finest tongue gymnastics. It’s the height of simplicity at the moment, with a plastic implement taking input from one person’s mouth and conveying it to a second box, intended to be gobbled up by the recipient of this techno-affection, who may respond in kind or just sit back and enjoy the thrill of it. The researchers sagely point out that there’s more to be done, as the sense of taste, manner of breathing, and moistness of the tongue are all important aspects of a kiss that have yet to be recreated. Once they do get their kiss transmitter to v2.0, however, they envision a pretty neat market for it in reselling kiss replays performed by celebrities. For now, you can see a celeb-free video demo after the break.

Continue reading Tactile kiss transmission device finally makes it okay to smooch your computer (video)

Tactile kiss transmission device finally makes it okay to smooch your computer (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 May 2011 03:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceDigInfo  | Email this | Comments

UPenn’s PhillieBot throws out first pitch, Skynet calls for a reliever (video)

We’ll hand it to the University of Pennsylvania — mixing robotics and sport definitely isn’t easy. But in the heart of Citizens Bank Park today, the so-called PhillieBot came close to generating a universal chorus of boos after it failed to successfully toss a first pitch to the Phanatic. We’re guessing it’ll be wound up a bit more before trying again; after all, it’s not like Philly needs another reason to pelt an otherwise lovable character with vitriol (or snowballs).

UPenn’s PhillieBot throws out first pitch, Skynet calls for a reliever (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceESPN  | Email this | Comments

World Bank report finds selling virtual goods in games more profitable than ‘real’ economy

A report commissioned by the World Bank’s infoDev unit has cast fresh light on one of the more fascinating aspects of our brave new interconnected world: the virtual economy. The “third-party gaming services industry” — where wealthy but impatient players have someone else grind away at online games for them in exchange for monetary reward — is one of the focal points of the study, chiefly owing to it having generated revenues in the region of $3 billion in 2009 and now serving as the primary source of income for an estimated 100,000 young folks, primarily in countries like China and Vietnam. What’s encouraging about these findings is that most of the revenue from such transactions ends up in the country where the virtual value is produced, which contrasts starkly with some of the more traditional international markets, such as that for coffee beans, where the study estimates only $5.5 billion of the $70 billion annual market value ever makes it back to the producing country. The research also takes an intriguing look at the emerging phenomenon of microwork, which consists of having unskilled workers doing the web’s version of menial work — checking images, transcribing bits of text, bumping up Facebook Likes (naughty!), etc. — and could also lead to more employment opportunities for people in poorer nations. To get better acquainted with the details, check the links below or click past the break.

Continue reading World Bank report finds selling virtual goods in games more profitable than ‘real’ economy

World Bank report finds selling virtual goods in games more profitable than ‘real’ economy originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 09 Apr 2011 04:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink BBC  |  sourceinfoDev (PDF), Virtual Economy Research Network  | Email this | Comments