Important Innovations

New Agritech from UK Provides Massive Data at the Crop Level Autonomous Robots on the Farm A new robot powered by artificial intelligence autonomously collects massive amounts of data on crops.  It's called Mamut and was just developed by Cambridge Consultants in the UK.  Crop data is routinely collected by aerial drones.  The flying drones can miss produce hidden under leaves or trees.  The Mamut works on the ground to provide a more complete look. It's designed for farms, including massive industrial farms, orchards and vineyards. Mamut The 4-wheeled autonomous robot is loaded with sensors and AI to gather crop health and yield data as it roams the fields.  It integrates stereo cameras,  LIDAR, a compass, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and wheel odometers.  The onboard AI integrates all the sensor data inputs.  The system provides the farmer easy access to the data to maximize production. No GPS The autonomous robot doesn't use GPS but depends on its own p

Samsung's Smart Shirt Source: Samsung's Smart Shirt Sensors Monitoring Your Lungs Wearable Tech to Monitor Your Respiratory Health thru Your Smart Phone This is cutting edge, wearable tech to know if you, your baby or parent have a respiratory problem.   Is it a cold, pneumonia, asthma, bronchitis or a respiratory or lung problem?  Samsung's Smart Shirt has embedded sensors that answers questions to give you vital information if you need to go to a doctor or to the ER to get immediate help. It's very new medical innovation in a smart device - a shirt. For a great news blog on this, go to  Important Innovations Collection: Samsung's Smart Shirt : Samsung Is Launching Wearable Tech to Monitor Your Health Source:  Samsung's Smart Shirt Shirt Sensors Transmit Results to Your S...

Expands and Monitors Stomach Health MIT E-Pill MIT has developed an ingestible e-pill that is jello-like and expands just like a pufferfish.  It stops in the stomach in place to take readings overtime. This new e-pill overcomes the limits of other e-pills that just past through the system. New, Expanding E-Pill  Monitor This is a medical device at the cutting edge.  Composed of two types of hydrogels, the pill expands to take stomach readings for thirty days.  It's a quickly expanding pill to monitor your stomach health.  It's been tested in animals and its sensors stay in place for 30 days to monitor the stomach. Other Potential Use The MIT team believes several e-pills expanding in the stomach could serve as a weight loss system.  The jello like substance would make the stomach feel full and reduce appetite.  This cutting edge innovation is under development and testing for commercial applications.

Helmet Mounted Brake Light that's Sensor Activated Important New Safety Tech for Motorcyclists It's called BrakeFree and it's been innovated by a startup in San Jose, CA.  The device is a helmet mounted, brake light system that's activated by sensor arrays.  It detects the engine breaking, break activation, the motorcycle's deceleration and flashes a big LED illumination on the back of the helmet.  If you're a biker, it's a safety device worthy of taking a look at. For more on this innovation gear, go to my journalist colleague Ed Kane's blog at Important Innovations Collection: Helmet Break Lights for Motorcyclists : BrakeFree Smart Breaks Source:  BrakeFree Increased Safety for Motorcyclists This is an elegantly simple and needed innovation.  The...

Sensor Backpack that Rides on Bumblebees Source:  University of Washington Small, Sensing Biosystem for Farms & The Environment This is extraordinary innovation at the cutting edge to monitor the environment and farms.  It's from computer scientists and engineers at the University of Washington.   They've invented a sensor system small enough to ride on the back of a bumblebee to gather data on the health and quality of farm plants. Better Than Drones Farmers are using drones to monitor temperature, humidity and crop health over their fields.  There are big limits caused by power needs of drones.  The drones can't go very far without a recharge every 10 to 20 minutes. Bees on Patrol with Backpacks Bees fly on their own, so the system needs only a tiny rechargeable battery.  It lasts 7 hours for data collection and can be recharged wirelessly when the bees return to their hives.  The scientists download the data when the bees return to the hive.  The team

24/7 Highly Advanced Medical Biomarker Monitoring DARPA's Biosensor Connects to Devices Like Smartphones You know when you don't feel well. But this advanced research would take monitoring your health to a whole new level. Implantable health trackers are futuristic technology being developed right now for delivery ASAP.  It's called tissue-integrated biosensor technology and it's being developed by the US Army Research Office and DARPA, the US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency. Biosensors The biosensors are tiny, soft, hydrogel-based sensors implanted under the skin.  The purpose is to use them to measure biomarkers related to oxygen, lactate, urea, glucose and ion levels.  The sensors can stay in the human body for up to 2 years.  They can read out information to connected devices such as smartphones. General Public Use Every project that DARPA undertakes is aimed at providing the US military with overwhelming technological advan

SNOO Smart Sleeper SNOO Smart Cradle Sensors, Robotics and Microphones Concealed It's called the SNOO and was designed by a Swiss innovator.  Its sensors immediately pick up your baby's cry and automatically rocks the baby back to sleep.  It customizes the best white noise and rocking motions for the child.  The manufacturers claim it's able to add an hour or more to your baby's sleep every night.  For parents of newborns that means an hour or more for them too. Sleep Sack Another important feature.  It has a special sleep sack that attaches to the bed to swaddle the baby and importantly has the baby sleeping on their back, which is the safest position.  Swiss designer Yves Behar calls his innovation "technology with a deep sense of humanity" as it performs an important function for parents and babies. Minimalist Design The minimalist design conceals the sensors, robotics and microphones.  All the white, the SNOO encloses the baby in soft, was

Turns Everyday Objects into Robots Courtesy of Yale University:  Robotic Skin Robotic Skin Yale University researchers just turned tech around.  Robots are usually rigid, solid and built for specific purposes.  According to the Yale roboticists, their robotic skin is breakthrough innovation and can change everyday objects into robots and animate the inanimate. NASA Partnered on the Research NASA partnered on this research with the lab of Asst. Professor Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio and her team of mechanical engineers and materials scientists. The soft robotic system is a collection of sensors and actuators.  It's mounted on a flexible substrate that's placed on a flexible object that serves as the structure. Make Your Own Robot The scientists say this tech will allow you to create multi-functional robots. For instance, when placed on a toy horse, it can make the horse's legs move.  The researchers say it can be used for everything from search and rescue to wear

Electronic Capsule Potentially Big Diagnostic and Dietary Tech RMIT University's e-Capsule New e-Pill In Australia, RMIT University scientists have developed an ingestible electronic capsule.  It provides a potentially powerful diagnostic technique and unique information on the effects of diet and medical supplements. The pill is loaded with highly advanced sensors that monitor and measure. Individualized, Precision Diets The e-capsule could help to develop individualized, precision diets.  It precisely monitors what's present in the stomach and intestinal track, including oxygen, CO², hydrogen and microbes.  According to the RMIT scientists, it safely and accurately measures the effects of diet - what's working and what isn't.  The e-pill also has the potential of working as a powerful diagnostic tool. 24/7 Info On Cell Phone The e-capsule monitors 24/7.  It sends the data real-time to a monitor that displays on a cell phone. Every 5 minutes it also displa

University of Colorado at Boulder Breakthru Technology E-Skin This e-skin is self-healing, malleable and fully re-cyclable.  It can be used for robotics, prosthetics and for better medical devices. E-skin is a thin, translucent material that mimics the function and mechanical properties of real human skin. University of Colorado's e-skin also has sensors embedded in the skin for critical measurements. Awesome Tech Loaded with Sensors The e-skin has sensors embedded to measure pressure, temperature, humidity and air flow.  The tech has several unique properties including a polymer called polyimine.  It's also laced with silver nanoparticles to provide strong mechanical strength, chemical stability and electrical connectivity. The e-skin can be easily fitted to curved surfaces like a human arm or hand and even a robot's finger for a sense of touch. Polyimine Does It According to University of Colorado scientist Jianliang Xiao, what's unique is the chemical bond

Size of a Band-aid, Made from Paper New Sensors University of Washington researchers use paper to create band-aid sized sensors. The sensor, placed on a pair of glasses, can detect eye movement.  It's wearable and can also detect a heartbeat, pulse, the blink of an eye, finger movement and more. Many Applications - All from Tissue Paper The researchers tear the paper which is loaded with nanoparticles from carbon nanotube laced water. The carbon nanotubes create electrical conductivity.  The fibers of the tissue are broken.  It then becomes a sensor.  The scientists say it has wide applications in health care, entertainment and robotics.  For instance, it could be used to monitor a person's gait or eye movements to determine brain function. Major Innovation The sensor is light, flexible and inexpensive.  The major innovation is that it's a disposable, wearable sensor made from cheap paper.  The University of Washington researchers are looking to commercialize it.

Israeli App with Sense of Smell for Smart Phones This one is a first.  Israeli researchers are developing an app to give Smart Phones a sense of smell. The purpose of the sensor is to help users choose products.  The applications are many including alerting those with allergies what products are safe or not for them and warnings about toxins in the air. Nanoscent The Israeli company Nanoscent is developing the app and sensor that can analyze and identify scents in products that are most useful and suitable for the user or not.  The sensor acts as an electronic nose.  The sensor is made up of nanoparticles.  It emits signals based on the scent it's exposed to. Soap, Cosmetic, Perfume Compatibility The system can determine users' scent profiles and help them select products like cosmetics, detergents, perfumes and soaps most compatible to them.  The technology uses the interaction between the sensor and chemical substances emitted from our bodies to generate a di

Trillion Sensor World It's called the Internet of Everything (IoE).  Networked connections between people,  data, devices and processes.  A prediction from The Engineer, out of the UK, that within 7 years there will be more than 100 billion devices, each with a dozen sensors collecting data.  That's a trillion+ sensors accelerating at a speed beyond the imagination.  It's also $19 trillion in newly created economic value by 2025. What Kind of World is That? Mega connected.  It's a world of 8 billion hyper connected people.  Global connectivity will be at 1 MB/sec.  That's going to increase the number of connected people from 3 billion to 8 billion, creating for the world economy 5 billion more customers. At the Epicenter - Exponential Information It's called by some a future world of perfect knowledge.  A trillion+ sensors collecting data from satellite systems, autonomous cars, cameras, drones.  The potential is impowering us to know what's goi