2024 – Page 46 – Impact Lab

Google

Google Enhances Accessibility with New AI Features for Global Accessibility Awareness Day

May 22, 2024

While Google I/O 2023 was largely dominated by AI announcements, including the Gemini project, Global Accessibility Awareness Day brings additional AI-enhanced vision features to Google’s accessibility apps. These updates aim to improve communication for those with language or literacy challenges and provide better navigation tools for low-vision users.

The Look to Speak app, introduced in 2020, is an eye-tracking application that allows users to select phrases and words that the phone then speaks aloud. Google’s recent update enables users to choose from a variety of emojis and symbols, enhancing communication for those who may not use traditional text. Users can now personalize which emojis and symbols they want to use, making the app more versatile and inclusive, especially for non-English speakers.

communication

Breakthrough in Wireless Communication: Enhancing Indoor Location Precision with RIS Technology

May 22, 2024

Engineers from the University of Glasgow, along with colleagues from the U.K. and Australia, have made a significant breakthrough in wireless communications that could revolutionize indoor location tracking. This development has the potential to aid emergency services in locating individuals trapped in smoke-filled buildings and provide device-assisted navigation for the blind and partially sighted. Additionally, it could enhance mobile phone signal quality indoors, eliminating the need to search for optimal spots to make calls.

The research, detailed in a new paper published in the journal Communications Engineering, focuses on improving an emerging wireless communication technology known as Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS). RIS consists of flat surfaces with programmable elements that manipulate electromagnetic waves, including high-frequency signals used in wireless communications.

Robotics

Revolutionary “Feeling” Robotic Hand Mimics Human Touch

May 21, 2024

Researchers from Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed a groundbreaking robotic hand that can sense touch like a human. This innovation promises significant advancements in tactile prosthetics and robotics.

The robotic hand was created through a collaboration between Uppsala University’s Signals and Systems Division and the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Division of Neurogeriatrics at Karolinska Institutet. The team leveraged data processing and machine learning to develop the system.

Environment

Kind Designs: Innovating Eco-Friendly Seawalls to Combat Sea Level Rise

May 21, 2024

Miami’s coastlines are uniquely beautiful, but they face a significant existential threat similar to many major cities worldwide: sea level rise. The conventional response—building concrete seawalls—is costly and often leads to environmental issues such as erosion and habitat degradation.

Enter Miami-based Kind Designs, which is revolutionizing seawall construction through 3D printing technology. This innovative approach not only reduces costs but also benefits ecosystems. A 10-foot-tall robotic arm manufactures the seawalls layer by layer, using a technique known as “biomimicry design” to mimic natural environments. This groundbreaking method has earned Kind Designs the 2024 World Changing Ideas Award from Fast Company for companies operating between one and four years.

AI

Expedia Unveils AI Assistant “Romie” for Enhanced Travel Planning

May 21, 2024

In a strategic move to outpace its competitors, online travel agency Expedia announced the upcoming launch of an AI assistant designed to enhance features like search, itinerary building, trip planning, and real-time updates, including flight delays.

Expedia, which operates a variety of online travel aggregators and metasearch engines, is introducing a bot named Romie. This bot, trained on a combination of in-house and OpenAI models, will assist users in searching for hotels, building trip itineraries, and making minor adjustments. Romie can be integrated into iMessage chat groups or used one-on-one on WhatsApp, functioning behind a phone number and leveraging ChatGPT.

Science & Technology News

ISRO Achieves Milestone with 3D-Printed PS4 Engine

May 20, 2024

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully completed a long-duration test of its PS4 engine, which has been re-engineered using advanced additive manufacturing (AM) techniques, commonly known as 3D printing. This breakthrough was achieved with the collaboration of Indian industry, ISRO announced on Friday.

The newly designed engine, now a single piece, offers remarkable efficiency improvements, saving 97% of raw materials and reducing production time by 60%. This milestone was marked by a successful hot test of the liquid rocket engine, which was manufactured using AM technology and operated for 665 seconds on May 9, according to an official release from ISRO.

Energy

Germany’s Enapter Pioneers Emission-Free Hydrogen Technology

May 20, 2024

Emission-free hydrogen has the potential to entirely replace fossil fuels, and a startup in Germany, Enapter, believes it has the key to making this green technology accessible to all.

Vaitea Cowan, co-founder of Enapter, was inspired by her upbringing on a climate-change-affected South Pacific island. “I wanted to replace all the diesel generators in New Caledonia and remote areas that relied on dirty diesel,” she explains. “But realizing the potential for green hydrogen to replace fossil fuels, I wanted to be part of this change.”

Augmented Reality

Breakthrough in Augmented Reality: Prototype Glasses Offer Immersive 3D Experience

May 20, 2024

Researchers in the field of spatial computing have developed a prototype augmented reality (AR) headset that projects full-color, 3D dynamic images onto lenses resembling ordinary glasses. This new design promises a visually immersive 3D experience in a sleek, comfortable form factor suitable for all-day wear, unlike the bulkier AR systems currently available.

“Our headset looks like everyday glasses to the outside world, but the wearer sees an enriched environment overlaid with vibrant, full-color 3D computed imagery,” said Gordon Wetzstein, an associate professor of electrical engineering and a leading expert in spatial computing. Wetzstein and his team introduced their device in a recent Nature paper.

quantum computing

Breakthrough in Quantum Computing: Controllable Hole Spin Qubits in Silicon Transistors

May 19, 2024

A reliable and ultra-powerful quantum computer could finally be on the horizon. Researchers from the University of Basel and the NCCR SPIN in Switzerland have achieved a significant advancement in quantum computing by controlling the interaction between two “hole spin qubits” inside a standard silicon transistor. This breakthrough, published in Nature Physics, could enable quantum computer chips to carry millions of qubits, drastically scaling up their processing power and potentially revolutionizing modern computing.

A qubit, or quantum bit, is the fundamental unit of data in quantum computing, analogous to a bit in conventional computing. Unlike a standard bit, which can be either a 0 or a 1, a qubit can exist in both states simultaneously due to quantum mechanics principles. This unique property allows quantum computers to perform complex calculations at speeds unattainable by today’s computers.

AI

Nike Unveils AI-Driven Product Design Using Athlete Data

May 19, 2024

Sportswear giant Nike is developing a generative AI model to design products using its extensive athlete performance data, Dezeen reports.

According to Nike’s chief innovation officer John Hoke, the company aims to leverage its exclusive athlete performance data with a custom-built large language model (LLM). LLMs are a text-based form of artificial intelligence trained to recognize language patterns, with OpenAI’s ChatGPT being a prominent example.

Energy

Revolutionizing Energy Storage: A Breakthrough in Capacitor Design

May 19, 2024

Capacitors, the unsung heroes of energy storage, play a crucial role in powering everything from smartphones to electric vehicles. They store energy from batteries in the form of an electrical charge and enable ultra-fast charging and discharging. However, their Achilles’ heel has always been limited energy storage efficiency.

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have unveiled a groundbreaking capacitor design that could overcome these energy storage challenges. In a study published in Science, lead author Sang-Hoon Bae, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering and materials science, demonstrates a novel heterostructure that curbs energy loss, enabling capacitors to store more energy and charge rapidly without sacrificing durability.

Drone

Vampire Drone: The Drone That Never Lands

May 17, 2024

Engineers at the University of Southern Denmark have developed an innovative “vampire drone” capable of indefinite flight. This drone can fly for extended periods without landing by pausing to leech power from nearby power lines to recharge its onboard batteries.

The drone’s ability to recharge mid-flight is made possible by a sophisticated docking mechanism, multiple sensors, and an onboard AI system. These technologies enable the drone to recognize and attach to power lines whenever it needs to recharge. “The vampire drone can essentially live on the grid and operate completely autonomously for extended periods, without needing human supervision,” the team explained to Fast Company.