Designer: Higgins-Aubé

Presto 02970 Professional SaladShooter Electric Slicer/Shredder, White

The Engineering EXPO has been a prestigious annual event held at Tampa, Florida’s University of South Florida since 1974. Sponsored by USF’s College of Engineering, the event is held during February’s National Engineering Week. In 1981, my father was chosen as part of one of only three student teams to present projects at the EXPO.

Robotics was considered an exciting wave of the future in those days, so Dad’s team created a robotics project. Using an Apple IIe, the team programmed a Unimate Puma 500 robot arm. With no real model to work from, Dad’s group brainstormed and developed the project from concept through implementation.

The robot arm had two claw attachments which were programmed to rotate on their own. The robot first inserted a bolt into an electric screwdriver attached to a table. It then retrieved two blocks of wood, one at a time, each containing a pre-drilled hole. It placed the wood blocks onto the bolt, and then placed a nut onto the end. Pressure on the nut activated the screwdriver for tightening. Finally, the robot picked up the entire assembly and placed it onto a conveyor belt.

Although the project was simple, it utilized highly advanced technology for the times. As a small child, I was flabbergasted by the ease with which the robot did the things my dad programmed it to do.

A year later, EPCOT Center opened at Walt Disney World. One of the attractions, World of Motion, featured a show at the end called “The Bird and the Robot.” In the show, an animatronic bird interacted with a robot arm. I couldn’t believe the robot that Disney selected was the Unimate Puma 500, the same type that Dad had programmed just a year before. It made me feel like my family was truly on the cutting edge of technology!

Incidentally, you can still buy a descendant of the Puma 500 today. Unimation was acquired by Swiss manufacturer Stäubli in 1988 and they produce robots capable of lifting from 1 to 100 kg with a variety of special-purpose attachments.

And - if you have deep pockets - you can pick up a Puma 500 on eBay.

In The Matrix, machines enslaved humans in womb-like pods and used their collective energy as a main source of power. A Japanese company is in the process of creating the next generation of batteries by using a similar principle of self-generating energy. But don't be scared.

Murata Manufacturing has only created a thermoelectric device that turns heat into electricity, an innovation that could eventually lead to self-powered gadgets. So thankfully, this won't involve any evil, sentient robots or even an overwrought performance by Keanu Reeves.

Murata placed two ceramic semiconductors at opposing temperatures (in a single device) to create electric currents. One is heated to 90 degrees °C and the second is cooled to 20 degrees °C -- when a metal plate connects them, the temperature gradient creates a very small electric current (about 10 milliwatts.)

The expectation is that these types of devices will be able to push larger currents without heating up or bursting through surrounding electronics in very small packages.   

Currently, this device creates about 39 milliwatts of power per square centimeter at 360 degrees Celsius. That's barely enough to run small time fan (much less a Big Ass Fan or a few hours of a mid-range laptop), but it's a harbinger of battery power to come (we hope).

'Recycling' energy sources, like the heating of a gadget, for the benefit of the consumer is the type of resourceful idea that we expect many companies will working on for the next few years.

Lead photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

This has to be the most wackiest DIY ever, a phone dial that let’s you browser the web via IP addresses.

Well, technically, you won’t be able to surf the web with this phone dial unless you can remember IP addresses of every website you visit but still is a cool project.

Let’s just say this DIY is more of an artwork than it is a practical thing to make.

Our relationship with technology is quickly becoming analogous to our relationship with fast food. Like the fast food restaurant chain McDonalds, information technology (e.g. the internet) seems to be everywhere. We expect it to be fast, and collectively value convenience and efficiency over elegance and craft. In the Phone Dial Web Browser, I ask how we might bring beauty and appreciation for craft back into our interaction with the now commonplace, pervasive web browser.

via make, DIY Page

Brought to you by: Zedomax.com

DIY Phone Dial Web Browser!

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By Evan Ackerman

With the Chevy Volt’s price going up just about as fast as its looks (and some specs) were toned down (okay, okay, for good reasons, but still…) here’s a bit of good news: In its infinite wisdom, the U.S. Congress has seen fit to include a tax credit of up to $7500 to future Chevy Volt owners along with the totally wicked awesome (or something) $700 billion bailout package. The sliding credit starts at just over $4100 for plug-in cars with 4 kWh batteries, but the top end $7500 is likely to only be seen by people who buy a Volt, with its 16 kWh battery. The Toyota Prius, with a measly 1.3 kWh battery pack, doesn’t come close.

Disappointingly, the Aptera Typ-1e, with its 10 kWh battery, is not technically an automobile (it’s only got 3 wheels, after all) and therefore does not get any tax breaks at all, which could put the $30,000ish space fighter on par with the $40,000ish - $7500 Volt. It’s gonna be an interesting next few years in the hybrid electric car market, that’s for sure… Maybe I’ll win the lottery and be able to get a piece of it myself.

[ DailyTech ] VIA [ CrunchGear ]

Mitsubishi Electric Corp. has rolled out its first USB PC monitor powered by DisplayLink Corp.’s innovative network display technology, that allows notebook users easy access to multi-monitor computing via one USB connection. The 20.1-inch Mitsubishi RDT201WDL wide-format LCD screen offers a USB hub, built-in Ethernet and WSXGA+ (1,680 x 1,050) resolution. The LCD monitor also features the on-screen energy meter and three levels of power usage. The Mitsubishi RDT201WDL is currently available in Japan. [Mitsubishi Electric]

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The search for the best electric bike starts with power. Lack of power leads to angry, stranded riders and minimal riding options, while adequately powered rides allow city commuters to finally ditch their gas-guzzlers. It's the team that gets the most out of its battery (while keeping the whole rig affordable), that gets a head start in this growing market. 

Electric bike maker Veloteq is relying on nickel-zinc batteries to give them that boost. As opposed to the NiMH and lithium-ion batteries of its competitors (like eGo's LEV), the nickel-zinc, 48V/20Ah batteries of Veloteq's Commander SHO-GT e-motorbikes are less expensive and slightly less weighty than NiMH. On average, nickel-zinc batteries are about 20% less than NiMH and 50% than Li-Ion batteries.

But are they as powerful? They come in at around (or a bit below) the same top speed as other bikes at 20 mph (with a fixed torque speed at 2Nm/284rp) and a range at about 25-45 miles per charge (filling up to 750Watts).

In terms of style and overall new innovation, these bikes don't really measure up to those found in bikes like the Enertia or the Vectrix, but if you want to try your first e-motorbike, it would be better to try one that costs only $2,000. You know, as opposed to a $10,000 rig that will surely get swiped by a car on your first ride.

See also:

With Motorcycles, Eco-Friendly and Badass Can Mix

The Peugeot HYmotion3 Compressor concept was recently unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. This two-seater trike will use Peugeot's 'HYmotion' hybrid/petrol technology being a hybrid scooter and car, featuring a glass bubble roof. Powered by an 3kW electric motor located in each of its two front wheels with a 125cc petrol engine in the rear, the HYmotion3 has the option of being ridden in an electric-only mode, a petrol engine only mode, or hybrid three-wheel-drive mode. It is able to hit 100km/h from a standstill in 11.2 seconds, with a maximum speed of 110km/h. I wonder how much this concept will cost when it is actually approved for manufacturing.

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