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Research reveals the most reliable vehicles Research reveals the most reliable vehicles
The Wall of Sound booms out 125W of tube-driven audio The Wall of Sound: the world's most powerful iPod dock unleashed
The boat tail mounted on the rear of the test truck Boat tail reduces truck fuel consumption by 7.5 percent
Green Wavelength's radical departure from conventional wind turbine design Green Wavelength unveils bumblebee inspired wind turbine
The Opera camper trailer has every conceivable luxury: electrically-adjustable beds, hot a... ‘Opera’ luxury camper trailer hits a high note
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Prototype system enables the visually impaired to ‘see’ the world with sound

By Jude Garvey

04:35 July 8, 2009 PDT

Sight through sound - CASBliP prototype

If you’re lucky enough to have perfect eye sight, it is incredibly difficult to imagine what the world is like for a visually impaired person. There have been some astounding breakthroughs in the development of new technologies to assist the blind which aim to replicate the function of the eye, but this project takes a totally different approach. The Cognitive Aid System for Blind People (CASBLiP) uses lasers and digital video images to create a three-dimensional acoustic map which, when relayed through headphones, enables users to "see" the world with sound. Read More

Shipping container to solar powered restaurant in 90 seconds? Meet the Muvbox portable restaurant

By Mick Webb

05:29 July 7, 2009 PDT

Muvbox - The solar powered restaurant in a shipping container

We have already seen the humble shipping container take on many guises ranging from pop-up hotel rooms to relocatable homes. Here to “cater” for the entrepreneur on the move is the Müvbox portable restaurant. This compact and mobile unit uncovers a fully operational kitchen in around 90 seconds at the touch of a button, and brings an eco-friendly ethos to the table to boot. Read More

ARPRO sports helmet offers protection from multiple impacts

By Jude Garvey

02:22 July 7, 2009 PDT

The Tatoo helmet is made from Ar  expanded polypropylene, a light weight material which ab...

It’s a fact of life that when you engage in certain sports you need to wear protective gear. Obviously, your head needs to be protected from any accidental impact and that’s where sports helmets come in. If you’re a keen sportsman, you’re likely to be frustrated by the fact that every sport requires a different helmet, which are not always comfortable or particularly cheap. Worse, if you happen to come to grief on your bike, snowboard, or other thrill seeking conveyance, you’ll be forced to buy a new helmet every time it's subjected to an impact. That could be about to change - Tatoo is a new sports helmet that is designed for comfort and can still be used even after multiple accidents. Read More

'Nike' Hindsight concept glasses increase peripheral vision

By Darren Quick

21:58 July 5, 2009 PDT

City cyclists could benefit from the extended peripheral vision provided by the Nike Hinds...

Cyclists aren’t always very visible to motorists, which is one of the reasons they need to be super vigilant when dealing with city traffic. As the saying goes, you need "eyes in the back of your head". To that end designer Billy May has come up with a concept design for cycling glasses that extend a rider’s peripheral vision by up to 25 percent on each side. Read More

Void player puts a whole new spin on playing your old LPs

By Paul Ridden

16:18 July 2, 2009 PDT

Magnets and the will of God are the only thing keeping that precious vinyl afloat

Korean designer Rhea Jeong says she's been astounded by the amount of interest in her conceptual Void LP record player. One look at the design and you can see why it's made so much noise without even uttering a sound. Close your eyes and imagine a little red globe spinning around on top of a vinyl record emitting sound from speakers inside it. The record itself is suspended in mid-air above a simple black base unit - no strings attached, no wires holding it up and definitely no safety net. The imagery is quite simply jaw-dropping. But can such a thing really work? Read More

Keyring device could save you from silent killer

By Michael Mulcahy

00:00 July 2, 2009 PDT

The Pocket CO can detect carbon monoxide at levels as low as one part per million

You can’t see it, smell it or taste it but, in high enough concentrations, it can kill you within minutes. It’s carbon monoxide (CO), and it’s America’s leading cause of accidental poisoning, with an estimated 400 deaths and 20,000 emergency ward admissions annually. The Pocket CO, the world’s smallest renewable carbon monoxide detector, will not only immediately alert you to dangerous levels of CO, but also calculate your exposure on a daily basis. Read More

Word clock tells the time in plain English

By Michael Mulcahy

01:27 June 29, 2009 PDT

The Word Clock spells out the time in full sentences

If numbers just aren't your thing or you simply want a clock that stands out from the pack, this could be the timepiece for you. The Word Clock consists of two adjacent rolls, one with five minute time increments written out and the other with the words one to twelve, that turn against each other within an acrylic tube to produce whole sentences like “a quarter to six”. Read More

Nitrogen-filled globes set to revolutionize access to fine wine

By Loz Blain

02:57 June 23, 2009 PDT

The N2Wine 'wine globes' as installed at the Bleu Restaurant and Wine Bar, Columbia, Misso...

All wine tastes better once it's aged, right? Wrong. In fact, wine experts say around 90% of wines are released by the winemaker tasting as good as they're ever going to get - and after 6 months of sitting in a bottle, most are deteriorating noticeably. Now, that's a great excuse to fling open your cellar doors, warm up your corkscrew and start drinking - but it's also the key idea behind a new wine storage and dispensing system called N2Wine that could start a revolution in the wine service industry. By keeping each wine completely isolated from oxygen, and at its perfect serving temperature, these racks of "wine globes" allow restaurants to serve a broad selection of their best wines by the glass, confident that even after months or years, every drop will be as fresh as it was the moment the bottle was opened. But will the market accept such a radical departure from the traditional romance of a fine bottle, opened and poured at the table? Read More

The Go Plate – for a balanced diet

By Darren Quick

00:15 June 23, 2009 PDT

The Go Plate fits over bottles...

Juggling a beer and a plate loaded with appetizers at summer barbecues can become a delicate balancing act. With both hands tied, how do you actually get the food in your mouth without burying your face in the plate? The Go Plate offers a solution by fitting over your drink to free up one hand for shoveling that food in. Read More

Opera lovers Unite: the internet just got more close and personal

By Paul Ridden

17:57 June 17, 2009 PDT

Opera Unite is designed to bring web communities closer together

Continuing to lead the field in browser innovation, Norwegian internet company Opera has just announced a brand new development that promises to genuinely open up the internet to absolutely everyone. Opera Unite uses a compact web server inside Opera's latest desktop browser that lets you share your content – photos, music, thoughts and the like. Designed to give users more privacy and flexibility by sharing and serving content directly – without the need for third-party servers – Unite also can run chat rooms and host entire websites. The collaborative web experience has well and truly arrived. Read More

Flexible solar strips shed light on bus waiting times

By Karen Sprey

03:51 June 15, 2009 PDT

The flexible solar strip installed on the curved bus shelter roof
 
 Photo courtesy  of Fa...

Canadian research engineers at McMaster University in Ontario have developed flexible solar cell technology which generates enough power to light bus shelters as well as send internet-based updates of transport schedules. The attraction of the solar strips is that they can be bent to fit the curved roof of the campus’ bus shelters. Read More

Handheld weapon detector promises safer street searches

By Darren Quick

23:57 June 10, 2009 PDT

A prototype scanner developed by British scientists could free police from the time-consum...

Recent advances in body scanning technology such as the BodySearch personnel inspection system might be fine for airports, but are a bit too big to be an option for cops on the beat who are forced to identify criminals carrying guns and knives the old fashioned way. A prototype scanner developed by British scientists could free police from the time-consuming and often dangerous practice of stop and search by using electro magnetic waves in order to pick up ‘reflections’ from concealed guns, gun barrels or knives without the need to be close to the subject. Read More

Squad positioning system helps fight fires and save lives

By Michael Mulcahy

23:22 June 10, 2009 PDT

Squad positioning system helps fight fires and save lives

Student designer Roy Hareguina's "Squad" is a compact indoor positioning system that enables fire fighters, even in dense smoke, to know their exact location and that of their colleagues at all times. Using a dual-mapping system, the tough polyetheretherketone (PEEK) units reduce the danger of separation and disorientation in high-rise buildings, and increase a fire fighter’s ability to save lives. Read More

360 Paper water bottle offers renewable alternative to plastic

By Jude Garvey

05:20 June 10, 2009 PDT

360 Paper water bottle offers renewable alternative to plastic

Most people realize that plastic water bottles are bad for the environment, not only because research suggests it takes 2000 times more energy to produce bottled water than tap water but also because so many of them are not recycled. You may choose to filter your own water or just go without, but a new environmentally friendly solution may mean you can continue to drink bottled water and keep a clear conscience - the 360 Paper Water bottle. Read More

Rescue Reel is designed to let you down in an emergency

By Alan Brandon

18:01 June 5, 2009 PDT

The Rescue Reel features a sling harness and enough cable to descend from a 100 story buil...

The Rescue Reel is a compact, self-contained device designed to allow people to escape from high-rise buildings in an emergency. Taking inspiration from a fishing reel, inventor Kevin Stone's design features a simple sling harness and enough cord to descend from a 100 story building, yet the device is small enough to be stored in a standard filing cabinet drawer. Read More

X Sting Wish fire extinguisher aims for safety in style

By David Greig

05:11 May 29, 2009 PDT

X Sting Wish fire extinguisher

If Ferrari made fire extinguishers it might well be knocking on Adam Scott's door. The UK designer's X Sting Wish concept sports a sleekly contoured exterior backed by some good thinking aimed at making it safe and easy to use: it's lightweight, ergonomic, color-coded, uses durable non-conductive materials and incorporates LED lights to help navigate through smoke. Read More

The Bushbunker: last resort wildfire protection

By Karen Sprey

06:43 May 19, 2009 PDT

The Bushbunker is a purpose-built fire shelter designed to maximize the likelihood of surv...

Australia’s ‘Black Saturday’ in February claimed 173 lives and countless homes and livelihoods. The country’s worst wildfire tragedy, this horrific disaster was an extreme example of an annual threat faced not only in Australia but also North America and South Africa where similar dry conditions are experienced. As the survivors struggle to come to terms with their losses and begin to rebuild their lives, questions are being asked about what could have been done, and what must be done now to better protect populations. Tougher building standards for homes in fire-prone areas will be introduced, but another option under scrutiny is fire resistant shelters - are they safe, should governments play a role in their development and how should they be designed and built? Entering this debate is the Bushbunker, a dedicated fire shelter design which aims to maximize the likelihood of survival regardless of the intensity or type of fire. Read More

Lighten your workload with the LED-lit workstation

By Jude Garvey

06:47 May 17, 2009 PDT

The LED-enhanced workstation is one of the entries in this year’s Emotionalize Your ...

A bright idea (pun intended) for lighting a workstation is one of the entries in this year’s Emotionalize Your Light competition. Andres4, the designer of the LED-enhanced workstation, has created a working prototype that features a band of LED lighting running around the desktop edge and additional lighting suspended from the ceiling. The disc in the middle of the upper panel is a “must for every Star Trek fan”, according to the designer. The colored lights of the desk can be changed using switches, but the designer is working on a way of switching the lights using a computer controller. Read More

If you want to solve a problem - forget about it

By David Greig

21:19 May 14, 2009 PDT

fMRI brain scans from UBC Mind Wandering Study
 (Image: Courtesy of Kalina Christoff)

If you think letting your mind wander is unproductive then you may be in for a big surprise. A recent study at the University of British Columbia found that our brains are much more active when we daydream than previously thought. What is surprising is that the study also found that brain areas associated with complex problem-solving – previously thought to go dormant when we daydream – are actually more active than when we focus on routine tasks. Read More

Digital Signage Agency Training

By Mike Hanlon

01:31 May 14, 2009 PDT

Digital Signage Agency Training

Advertising agencies have had increasing difficulty in extending their services into new media, a combination of being unable to monetise their efforts outside the simple main media models and a lack of understanding of the new mediums themselves. With digital signage now becoming increasingly sophisticated and affordable at the same time, cellular digital signage and content delivery specialist MediaTile has announced a series of new programs for advertising agencies to accelerate digital signage deployment and adoption. Announced at the 4th annual Digital Signage Content Strategies Summit this week, the new programs will equip agencies and brands with the knowledge, ability, and tools to create “brand networks” which use digital signs to attract, influence and engage viewers in ‘point-of-sale’ and ‘point-of-wait’ environments. Read More

Gizmag is hiring - apply here

By Mike Hanlon

19:57 April 30, 2009 PDT

Gizmag is hiring

Gizmag is seeking writers with a serious passion for new technology to join our editorial team. Specifically, at this moment, we're looking for those who can offer expertise in one or more of the following areas: electronics and consumer electronics of all kinds, telecommunications, mobile telephony and lifestyle, home entertainment, home automation, digital photography and video, and personal computing. If you have expertise in other areas, and want to be considered for a position when they become available, fill the application form out anyway. Read More

Lip-reading computers can recognize different languages

By Karen Sprey

00:51 April 28, 2009 PDT

Lip-reading computers distinguish between different languages

Computerized lip-reading technology for deaf people - and surveillance cameras - has taken a step forward with scientists from the University of East Anglia successfully teaching computers to recognize different languages from the shapes and movements of people’s mouths. Read More

Tree harvesting design that is forest-friendly

By David Greig

18:19 April 27, 2009 PDT

Making strides: this concept tree harvester can take 8-meter steps and functions on marshy...

A German mechanical engineer has designed a tree harvester that weighs just over a tenth of conventional vehicles used to fell trees, which causes less damage to forest floor. Industrial tree harvesting vehicles can weigh up to 55 tons. In comparison, the “Striding Harvester” weighs only 7.5 tons. The concept harvester by mechanical engineer and industrial designer Christian Knobloch works by using a small footprint selectively pushing down on the soil as it moves. Through this approach the soil is allowed to recover much faster than if conventional heavy forest equipment was employed. Read More

Space sail to take out the trash

By Darren Quick

12:47 April 26, 2009 PDT

The space sail for an Ariane 5 launcher (pictured), for example, would is conical with a s...

We’ve recently examined the danger posed to future space missions by the ever increasing collection of space junk orbiting the Earth. Now a plan by a pair of space engineers to use a sail to take out the trash – or rather, bring it back to Earth – may help to stop future space missions adding to the problem of space junk. Read More

Motorola's pocket-sized personal shopping assistant honored

By Anne Hanrahan

16:01 April 16, 2009 PDT

Motorola's pocket-sized personal shopping assistant, the MC17, has won three important des...

Motorola's MC17 "shopping assistant" computer has impressed international design judges, picking up three prestigious product design gongs. Gizmag was also impressed by the company's pocket-sized computer, which can scan items, check pricing, locate complimentary items, access personal promotions and create gift and wish lists, when we wrote about it back in 2007. The company won the International Design Excellence award (IDEA), iF Product Design award and Good Design award. Read More

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