Important Innovations

Microrobots with Controlled Flight Source:  Harvard University Search & Rescue Missions Harvard's RoboBees are the first microbots powered by soft actuators to achieve controlled flight. They have soft artificial muscles that enable them to survive crashes and collisions making them perfect for search and rescue missions in dangerous, cluttered environments. The robobees are so sturdy, dexterous and resilient they can even crash into a wall or collide with another robobee without any damage. Hoverbots The tiny robots are equipped with actuators made from dielectric elastomers that deform when hit with an electrical current.  The actuators are soft and the Harvard team says they're easily assembled and scaled up.  Unlike other drones made with soft actuators, the robobees have enough power density to hover in place. Going for Commercialization The Harvard team has created a number of models including one with 8 wings and 4 actuators that can

Revolutionary New Electric, Self-Heating Battery Source:  Penn State University Recharges in 10 Minutes with Up to 300 Mile Range The future of driving green and emissions free is electric.  Now a team of engineers at Penn State University has invented a new battery to make that future a lot closer and more doable.  Their new lithium-ion battery can be charged in ten minutes, self-heats and provides a driving range up to 300 miles.  They envision this being done at local service stations with electric charges for EV's. Revolutionary New Tech This new battery is revolutionary.  It can be recharged over and over again for up to 500,000 miles of travel.  That's a big deal.  Some lithium-ion batteries rapidly degrade based on ambient temperatures.  This battery overcomes current limitations.  The Penn State team has installed nickel foil on the batteries, eliminating lithium plating. The nickel warms quickly through resistance to 140F. That triggers rapid charging bu

Far Better Mapping of Wet Road Conditions Source:  Toyota Toyota's New Tech Innovation Toyota's connected windshield wipers are designed to create far more accurate weather maps when the wipers are operating.  They're part of a joint project between Toyota and Japan-based Weathernews, which offers app based weather reports.  The 2 companies are currently conducting what they call a "verification test" using wiper data to provide drivers with real-time information about road weather risks.  They say the tech is designed to increase driver safety by increasing the accuracy of available weather forecasts and data. Lots of Tech Involved The system uses the onboard loT communications in most new Toyota models, along with Big Data and artificial intelligence.  It can detect whether wipers are on or off in designated regions.  By using data on the operational status of wipers, Weathernews weather data and vehicle data

Aeroponically Grown Vertical Vegetables and Herbs Source:  Prague University Scientists From Prague University, Important Food Science Czech scientists from Prague University have created a new lab to experiment on growing food for very constrained and extreme conditions with a lack of water like on Mars.  But the utilization is also for back on Earth to boost agricultural output in places hard hit by urbanization and Climate Change. Marsonaut Experiment The Czech scientists call it the Marsonaut Experiment and it's being led by their top life scientists.  They're using aeroponics which grow plants in the air, without any soil and very little water.  To minimize space, they grow the plants in vertical units stacked one on top of the other. Harvest Time The team has succeeded in growing salad leaves, mint, basil, mustard plants, herbs and radishes.  They enjoyed the fruits of their harvest last week and said it tasted great. Their next big crop is strawberries.  Th

Betting Big on Electric Vehicles Driv ing to an All Electric Market Over the next five years, GM CEO Mary Barra expects to spend more money on research, development and selling electric vehicles than gas powered cars.  She also thinks the production of electric cars will be less labor intensive than gas powered vehicles.  GM has 20 electric models in the pipeline that will be on the market in 2023.  Barra believes the future of driving and the future for GM is fully electric. UAW Contract:  No Limits on Electric Vehicles CEO Mary Barra shared her vision of the future of electric vehicles with the Wall Street analyst community.  She forecasts that electric vehicles will start becoming an increasingly larger part of the sales mix by 2030.  Barra just signed a labor contract with the UAW union that is concerned about its membership losing jobs because of the less labor intensive manufacturing of electric vehicles.  However, the new UAW contract does not limit the number of electri

New Tech from MIT Enables Self-Driving Cars to See Around Corners Early Warning System to Prevent Accidents MIT engineers and computer scientists have invented an advanced early warning system to make autonomous cars safer and prevent collisions.  The device is called ShadowCam and can read tiny changes in shadows on the ground to detect an oncoming car or pedestrian that isn't yet visible. This is an advanced early warning system that's been successfully tested on autonomous vehicles in enclosed parking garages.  It's capable of alerting an autonomous vehicle to slowdown or stop for oncoming vehicles and walking pedestrians in blind-spots.  For a great news blog on this, go to Important Innovations Collection: Making Autonomous Cars Safer : ShadowCam - New MIT Technology Source:  MIT Cars That See Around Corners MIT engineers and computer scientists have invented a new d...

"Important Innovation Collection" - Audiobook Series on Innovation Source:  Important Innovations Collection by Edward Kane/Maryanne Kane New Free Codes from ACX  National TV journalists Ed Kane and co-author/narrator Maryanne Kane have just received new free codes from ACX for listeners to enjoy for free our audiobooks on new innovations in travel modes, robotics and renewable energy.  Just email either Ed at ejkane2@gmail.com or me at mdkane26@gmail.com to get a great resource audiobook on the latest in global innovations. Important Innovations Collection: ACX Free Codes - My Audiobooks : Important Innovation Collection Audiobooks By Journalists Ed Kane, Maryanne Kane Robotics, Energy and Travel - Three New Audiobooks on t...