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Design
The Whip promises a revolution in Snowboard design
21:28 December 14, 2008 PST
Developed in the 60s and 70s and first appearing as a Winter Olympic Sport in 1998, snowboarding has now well and truly taken a hold on the ski-slopes. But despite the growing popularity of the sport, slicker graphics and better board construction have been the only notable innovations in recent times, with the core design of the snowboard not undergoing any major changes since steel edges were added two decades ago. That's the argument put forward by Cheetah Ultra Sports, a company that is set to reveal what it calls the most advanced snowboard ever - "The Whip". Read More
RSi unveils semi-transparent solar window
By Emily Clark
18:26 December 14, 2008 PST
Incorporating sustainable technologies like solar directly into building design is the logical next step in clean energy development and we can expect many more announcements like this one from Rainbow Solar Inc. (RSi) as the industry matures. The company has released details of its semi-transparent, photovoltaic-glass window, a next generation of BIPV (building integrated photovoltaic) which promises to generate up to 250 watts of electricity as well as providing a 100% reduction in Ultraviolet and Infrared radiation. Read More
Snake-like robots to assist construction work
By Kyle Sherer
16:21 December 13, 2008 PST
Researchers at the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory at Virginia Tech have designed a series of autonomous serpentine robots that are able to climb poles and inspect structures too dangerous or inaccessible for humans. The robots coil themselves around a beam and roll upward using an oscillating joint motion, gathering important structural data with cameras and sensors. Read More
Smart speed-humps retract at low speed
21:18 December 11, 2008 PST
Speed-humps are an undeniably effective way to slow down traffic in areas where high-speed poses an increased risk, but you can often get more of a bump than you bargained for, and if you happen to drive a low-slung sportscar this can be bad news indeed. Here's an idea that solves the problem by ensuring low-speeds while minimizing the impact on the motor vehicle. Read More
High efficiency wind turbine based on jet engine technology
By Paul Evans
16:31 December 11, 2008 PST
Massachusetts-based FloDesign has developed a wind turbine that could generate electricity at half the cost of conventional wind turbines. The company's design, which draws on technology developed for jet engines, circumvents a fundamental limit to conventional wind turbines. Typically, as wind approaches a turbine, almost half of the air is forced around the blades rather than through them and the energy in that deflected wind is lost, but by using a shroud design, the company says it is able to generate as much power as a conventional wind turbine with blades twice as big in diameter. Read More
Taga: it’s not just a bike or a stroller, it’s a multifunctional people carrier!
By Jude Garvey
22:55 December 9, 2008 PST
When you first see the Taga you wonder why nobody thought of this sooner? This machine has taken all the benefits of a bike and a stroller and put them together in one unique package. Firstly, it is a bike with a stroller attached to the front of it but the bike can be removed in a matter of seconds to convert the machine into a stroller and it can also be converted into a double stroller or simply used as a stand-alone bike. A clever way for parents to get their cardio fix whilst their babe relaxes in comfort and watches the world go by. Read More
Teddy Bears in space
By Kyle Sherer
03:05 December 8, 2008 PST
For half a century, the friendliest face of space travel was Laika the space-dog, launched into Earth orbit aboard Sputnik II. Now Britain has challenged Laika’s supremacy by launching two teddy bears into the stratosphere. The toys, named MAT and KMS, wore space suits designed by children at the Parkside and Coleridge community colleges. Read More
Finnair's future fleet: flying into the 21st century
By Kyle Sherer
20:54 December 4, 2008 PST
To celebrate its 85th anniversary, Finnair has served up a blue-sky vision of what the next 85 years of aviation could hold. Concentrating mainly on potential developments in environmentally friendly technology and lightweight material, the Departure 2093 website lists five aircraft that could grace our sky later this century. Read More
Sprig toys: eco-friendly, battery free fun
By Emily Clark
22:50 November 30, 2008 PST
Sprig Toys earn an eco-friendly tick on two fronts. Firstly, they are made from a child-safe composite of recycled wood and reclaimed plastic with minimal packaging and no decorative paint and secondly, rather than contributing to the mountains of used batteries littering the planet they use a "kid-powered" system to operate lights and other electronics. Read More
The real-life Minority Report computer interface
By Kyle Sherer
14:23 November 30, 2008 PST
The second best thing about the film Minority Report has to be the glove-controlled, wall-sized computer display (first place goes to the jetpacks). Oblong Industries is working on a computer interface that operates in a similar way – and rather than a case of tech imitating art, the Minority Report computer was actually based off early Oblong designs. Read More
Doro mobile phone keeps it simple
18:44 November 26, 2008 PST
Like the recently discussed ClarityLife C900, Doro's HandleEasy mobile phones are aimed at the large number of consumers who simply want basic phone functionality without all the bells and whistles. The Swedish company has now entered the U.S. market with two models - the HandleEasy 330gsm and the HandleEasy 326i gsm - both of which feature an uncomplicated design, large display screens and finger-friendly keypads designed for easy calling and text-messaging rather than game playing or web-surfing. Read More
The space-age Aerohotel concept
02:47 November 26, 2008 PST
We've seen some incredible examples of terraforming in recent years - most notably "The World" in Dubai - and if the fact that the government of the low-lying Maldives is looking to buy land elsewhere to escape global warming is any indication, the practice of resurrecting land from the waters may be about to become a whole lot more commonplace. But why shift all that dirt around if you can just use stilts? Alexander Asadov's futuristic Aerohotel concept is an alternative to man-made islands that would provide a 650 foot wide circular playground perched over 200 feet above the waterline using only three supports designed to cause minimum disturbance to the ocean floor. Read More
Mazda Kann wins LA Auto Show Design Challenge
19:21 November 24, 2008 PST
The Mazda R&D team has fended off some very impressive competition to take out the Los Angeles Auto Show's 2008 Design Challenge. This year's Challenge posed the question - "How will auto racing look in the year 2025?" - and Mazda responded with this rakish three-wheel design that utilizes a patented electronic tire system to draw energy from an electro-conductive road surface and achieve speeds of 250 mph with no harmful emissions. Read More
Two-in-one-furniture: the table-chair
By Emily Clark
00:07 November 21, 2008 PST
We've seen some interesting dual-purpose furniture design concepts of late and the SwiTCh from Ellesco International in Belgium is another bright example. Put the two pieces together and it's a comfortable armchair, separate them and flip the back section upright and it becomes a small table with a seat. Read More
SJ30 breaks light jet speed record from London to Dubai
By Kyle Sherer
16:39 November 20, 2008 PST
The London to Dubai route is probably going to see a lot of private business air traffic in the coming years and Emivest Aerospace has used it to showcase the high speed capabilities of its SJ30 Business Jet. The aircraft has set a speed record for its class, flying from London to Dubai in seven hours and seven minutes, including a 41-minute refueling stop in Istanbul. Read More
Micro generator produces power from movement
By Kyle Sherer
13:32 November 18, 2008 PST
A micron-scale generator that uses zinc oxide wires to produce alternating current could be woven into clothing to power wireless devices or implanted in the body to monitor vital signs. A team led by Zhong Lin Wang at the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Center for Nanostructure Characterization has developed the generator, which can produce an oscillating output voltage of up to 45 millivolts. Read More
F-35 Lightning II breaks sound barrier
By Kyle Sherer
13:30 November 18, 2008 PST
Lockheed Martin has promised that its fifth gen F-35 fighter will allow pilots to “do things that were previously considered impossible, and to think things that were previously unthinkable.” Almost two years after its maiden flight, the F-35 Lightning II has reached another development milestone – supersonic flight. Test pilot Jon Beesley accelerated the F-35 AA-1 to Mach 1.05, with a full internal load of dummy weapons. Read More
Gordon Murray's T.25 wins Idea of the Year
By Mike Hanlon
14:28 November 17, 2008 PST
November 18, 2008 Celebrated automative designer Gordon Murray was last night awarded the prestigious ‘Idea of the Year’ accolade at Autocar magazine’s annual awards ceremony for the T.25, a radical, innovative design for a new type and class of personal transport vehicle. Autocar’s editor Chas Hallett said, “Gordon Murray is looking to completely reinvent the cars that we buy and the way they are made. And from what we’ve seen it doesn’t get a much better idea than that”. Three of Murray's diminutive T.25 vehicles will fit in a single parking space. Read More
Touch Sight camera for the blind
By Emily Clark
22:14 November 16, 2008 PST
Capturing an image takes on a different meaning with the Touch Sight camera. The device makes it possible for the visually impaired to take digital photos by using a Braille-like screen to make a raised image on the user’s forehead of whatever the lens sees. Read More
Packaging innovation promises to reduce landfill
By Emily Clark
21:07 November 13, 2008 PST
Each year an estimated 20 billion cubic feet of styrofoam is used globally for the shipment of 250 million perishable packages. Once the packages have arrived safely, this quickly translates to mountains of landfill. Coldpack's eco-friendly alternative is an inflatable insulating liner that converts a corrugated box into a cooler with better insulation and cushioning properties than styrofoam, reducing supply chain costs as well landfill. Read More
Cricket portable laptop stand
16:58 November 12, 2008 PST
Laptop stands are a great solution for keeping your machine cool and your posture upright when spending hours at the desk, but when it comes time to pack your bags and get on the road, there just never seems to be room for these types of added extras. It's a problem that the collapsible, lightweight Cricket Laptop Stand is designed to solve. Read More
The MechRC Megatron-esque robot
By Kyle Sherer
14:52 November 11, 2008 PST
Is this Megatron's love-child? The MechRC is a programmable, remote controlled robot with 17 independently controllable servos (points of articulation), each capable of up to 180 degrees of movement. This provides the bot with an extremely wide range of actions – and the database of 100 pre-programmed motions and sound can be expanded by using the included software to create new manoeuvres. Read More
40 Signature Series: stunning Lord Norman Foster designed super-yacht
00:00 October 31, 2008 PDT
One of the most elegant water-going creations to cross our desk in recent times is the Foster and Partners designed YachtPlus 40 ‘Signature Series'. Designed by a 7-strong architectural team led by Lord Foster himself and being built at the Rodriquez Cantieri Navali shipyard in northern Italy, the ultra-contemporary 135 foot (41m) luxury superyacht offers 5737 square feet of useable living space with extensive outer deck area including a submergible beach deck, a grand staircase at transom and seperate jet ski storage space. The innovative interior layout has four decks accommodating up to 12 guests and 7 crew while the full beam owner’s cabin on the main deck includes forward-facing windows that lead to private balconies and the glass walled main saloon features 180 degree views. Read More
Design Los Angeles asks how motor-racing will look in 2025
00:03 October 29, 2008 PDT
After last year being asked to provide a glimpse of what automobiles will look like 50 years into the future, design studios vying for recognition in this year's LA Auto Show Design Challenge are leaving city streets behind and heading for the racetrack under the theme "Motorsports 2025". Throwing away preconceptions of what motor racing should be and incorporating the possibility of cars that never crash or need re-fueling, nine of Southern California’s big-name automotive design houses have submitted entries, and again the results are both outrageous and thought provoking - from vehicles that race over land, sea and air to 8 x 4 wheel-drive ATVs and solar sailing energy-miser's that compete on see-through tracks. Read More
The pedestrian-powered Human Water Pump concept
By Emily Clark
19:10 October 28, 2008 PDT
According to research from the Pacific Institute, more than five million people die each year from water-related disease, primarily due to inadequate access to clean water which, if it is available, often requires trekking over long distances to reach it. Gunwook Nam from South Korea has proposed a solution that harnesses people power - literally. The Human Pump concept uses a boardwalk structure fitted with springs that captures and stores kinetic energy from foot-traffic and uses it to pump underground water to the surface. Read More
Freedom Glen
- November 25, 2009 @ 02:47 UTC
