Important Innovations

  Jaguar Land Rover's Major EV Commitment                                             Source:  Jaguar Luxury Electric Vehicles Luxury automotive brand Jaguar will be entirely electric by 2025.  That commitment puts it in the forefront of the global race among automakers to offer zero emissions vehicles.  The JLR - Jaguar Land Rover - group will offer a full range of EVs by 2030. Multi-Billion Dollar Investment JLR is owned by India's Tata Motors.  Over the next five years, Land Rover will offer six new electric vehicles.  JLR will keep its plants open in the United Kingdom while its transitions the operation for the production of electric vehicles.  The company will spend $3.5 billion yearly on electric technology and the development of connected vehicle services.  The challenge for Jaguar will be to give the new electric vehicles the feeling of power and thrust that Jaguar has traditionally had for drivers.

  2022 Chevy Bolt EV & New Bolt EUV                                                                              Source:  GM Bolt EUV                                          Source: GM Bolt EUV & EV Electric Vehicles Designed For Affordability After four years of development, GM has unveiled its new Chevrolet Bolt EV and a new bigger version of the Bolt, the Chevy Bolt EUV.  For GM, the Bolt has been a big success to bring electric driving to the masses since its introduction in 2017.  Bolt sales surged 26% in 2020, despite the pandemic.  Bolts have been driven by owners for a staggering 1.2 billion electric miles in the past four years. Customer Preference Designed Models GM diligently consulted with Bolt customers and came up with a series of their desired upgrades now included in the 2022 Bolt.  The new Bolt EV comes with an upgraded charger 11kW that provides 42 miles of charge per hour.  It also contains an optimal charging cord.  Most importantly, GM is providing a stand

  Perseverance To Land On Mars February 18                                             Source:  NASA's Perseverance Robotic Geologist To Explore Mars NASA's highly advanced robotic rover Perseverance will land on Mars on Thursday.  The potential discoveries are huge as Perseverance is the most advanced rover NASA has built.  Perseverance will serve as a geologist on Mars, collecting rocks, minerals and soil samples.  The mission's purpose is to search for any signs of ancient life on Mars.  The rover will also have a small helicopter onboard to conduct the first drone flights on another planet. Amazing Technological Journey Perseverance has travelled onboard a spacecraft for the 300 million mile journey to Mars.  It will exit the spacecraft in a capsule for the descent into the Martian atmosphere.  The capsule will travel at a blistering 12,000 mph.  It will have to endure temperatures of 2,370 degrees F.  Then, rover will release by supersonic parachute travelling 750 mph

Uber's Major Commitment to EVs and Hybrid Vehicles For 0 To Low Emissions                                        Source:  Uber Electric Vehicles More Than 1400 Cities in North America Involved Ride sharing company Uber is expanding its electric car and hybrid vehicle ride service.  It will be offered in more than 1400 cities in North America.  The cities include Miami, New York City, Washington, DC, Houston, Tucson, Calgary and Winnipeg.  The company says drivers can rent zero emissions vehicles through their partner Avis.  The service is available in Los Angeles but it is being rolled out nationally this year. Green Goals By 2040, Uber wants all of its vehicles in its global ride sharing service to be electric.  It is also contributing through 2025 $800 million as incentives to help drivers switch to electric vehicles.  This Green Trips program includes discounts on electric vehicles bought or leased through Uber partner automakers.  Uber is clearly encouraging drivers to take gre

TUMI's Virtual Stores :    Retail Innovation                                          Source:  TUMI Virtual Store TUMI's Virtual Stores Global luxury brand TUMI, headquartered in South Plainfield, NJ, is launching a highly innovative, virtual store platform. to deliver an immersive, multichannel retail experience.  The virtual approach will roll out to customers in the Asia Pacific region and the Middle East.  The virtual store launch ties into the debut of TUMI's spring 2021 collection of bags, luggage, backpacks and other luxury travel items. TUMI defines itself as a leading international lifestyle, international travel and performance brand. Digital Retail  TUMI's virtual store is a look at the future of digital retail.  Using interactive touchpoints, customers will be able to explore products through 360 degree, 3D and AR (augmented reality) presentations. They can also share photos on social media through TUMI's Magic Mirror.  The technology even includes Insta

  The Roadster with Rocket Thrusters                                             Source:  Tesla Roadster A Car That James Bond Would Love Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk says he wants his new Tesla Roadster to be able to hover in the air.  The Roadster comes equipped with rocket thrusters capable of top speeds of 250 mph with a range of 620 miles on a charge.  The sportscar is coming to market in 2022 at a price of $200,000.  Now, Musk has disclosed that he wants to additionally use the rocket thrusters to enable the Roadster to hover in the air, as far up as a meter above the ground.  It sounds like a vehicle straight out of a James Bond movie. Innovation Breakthroughs Musk is actively working on his concept of a "hovering" car.  He is focused on making it work and work safely.  Musk has made his global reputation on technological innovations and breakthroughs.  His redesigned Model S sedan and Model X SUV automatically shift between park, reverse, neutral and drive.  Musk s

  Hewlett Packard & Oak Ridge National Lab                                                                                               Source: NASA                                    One of the World's Most Advanced Weather Forecasting Systems With the back to back, forecast-defying storms we've been getting in North America and elsewhere in the world, the prospect of much more precise weather forecasting is of great appeal.  Hewlett Packard Enterprises just announced that it is helping the US Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Lab build and utilize a pair of extremely high performance supercomputers to model and forecast the weather with much greater precision.  The system is primarily for the US Air Force's Weather Service for global military operations. Supercomputer Weather Forecasts The supercomputers are operating at the Oak Ridge National Lab and are powered by HP's Cray EX technology.  They even have names "Miller" and "Fawbush&qu