Impact Lab – Page 353 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Aviation

You’ve probably heard of satellite advancements that are taking telecommunication systems and capabilities to the next level, but did you know that there’s an unmanned, solar-powered aircraft that’s about to revolutionize telecommunications services? 9 photos

High Altitude Platform Stations (HAPS) are an alternative to satellites operating in the stratosphere instead of space. HAPSMobile, a subsidiary of a Japanese corporation called SoftBank, is one of the pioneers in this rising industry and developed the Sunglider.

This innovative aircraft is meant to carry the telecommunications payload to the required area, and the fact that it’s been backed by NASA shows the importance and potential of this new way of providing connectivity. In addition, this norm-breaking air vehicle was supposed to stay at operational altitudes for a long time without having to return to the ground for refueling.

Electric Automobile

ABB launches the world’s fastest electric car charger

October 12, 2021

ABB is launching an innovative all-in-one Electric Vehicle (EV) charger, which is said to provide the fastest charging experience on the market.

ABB’s new Terra 360 is a modular charger which can simultaneously charge up to four vehicles with dynamic power distribution. This means that drivers will not have to wait if somebody else is already charging ahead of them – they simply pull up to another plug. The new charger has a maximum output of 360kW and is capable of fully charging any electric car in 15 minutes or less, meeting the needs of a variety of EV users, whether they need a fast charge or to top their battery up while grocery shopping.

“With governments around the world writing public policy that favours electric vehicles and charging networks to combat climate change, the demand for EV charging infrastructure, especially charging stations that are fast, convenient and easy to operate is higher than ever,” comments Frank Muehlon, President of ABB’s E-mobility Division. “The Terra 360, with charging options that fit a variety of needs, is the key to fulfilling that demand and accelerating e-mobility adoption globally.”

Driverless cars

Autonomous Vehicle Companies Cruise & Waymo Can Now Offer People Driverless Rides In California

October 12, 2021

By Ashley Palya

Autonomous vehicle companies Cruise by General Motors and Waymo by Alphabet have been permitted to operate in a limited number of cities in California by The California Department of Motor Vehicles.

“The California Department of Motor Vehicles today issued autonomous vehicle deployment permits to Cruise LLC and Waymo LLC, allowing the companies to charge a fee and receive compensation for autonomous services offered to the public,” The California DMV said on Thursday.

The new permit will officially allow people to catch rides with vehicles that are being operated without drivers and only by an operating system.

Cruise vehicles will be fully driverless and are authorized to operate within parts of San Francisco on public roads at a maximum speed limit of 30 mph between 10 p.m and 6 a.m. The company has been testing autonomous vehicles since October 2020.

Aviation, Science & Technology News

Autonomous High-Speed Test Vehicle Gearing up to Revolutionize Hypersonic Flight

October 11, 2021

By Otilia Drăgan

Supersonic and hypersonic aircraft are slowly but surely coming back to the forefront of aviation. NASA is in the last development stages of its supersonic research aircraft, X-59, and Stratolaunch is getting ready to operate its first hypersonic test vehicle, the Talon-A. 8 photos

Despite previous attempts, the hypersonic flight is still in its infancy and requires a lot of testing, which wouldn’t be possible without an adequate launch platform. Stratolaunch first developed Roc, the world’s largest airplane, meant to act as a multi-vehicle carrier aircraft for hypersonic test vehicles. Roc has already completed two test flights, with several others to follow.

Another recent milestone for Stratolaunch is the successful completion of the Critical Design Review (CDR) for its first hypersonic vehicle, the Talon-A, which was carried and launched by the Roc.

3D Printer

Telemedicine Has a New Tool: World’s First 3D-Printed, Connected Stethoscope

October 11, 2021

Ultrafast polymer 3D printers from Nexa3D and performance-matched materials developed by Henkel are key to achieving annual production goals of 100,000 units.

By Norbert Sparrow

The Chinese word for “crisis” is composed of two characters, one meaning “danger” while the second one signifies “opportunity.” One can feed off the other, in other words. That came to mind as I learned about the world’s first additively manufactured, connected stethoscope developed through a partnership between Nexa3D, a startup that makes ultrafast polymer 3D printers; global giant Henkel; and French medtech startup WeMed. The medical device OEM saw an opportunity in the rapid adoption of telemedicine and remote diagnostics as COVID-19 — the crisis — marched across the globe.

Produced on the NXE400 ultrafast 3D printer using performance-matched Henkel materials, the WeMed Skop is the world’s first connected stethoscope to be additively manufactured in its entirety at scale. Annual production volumes will exceed 100,000 units, according to Nexa3D, which will showcase Skop at RAPID + TCT 2021 at McCormick Place, Chicago, on Sept. 13 to 15.

AI

New AI-based Hospital-at-Home Network

October 11, 2021

Nanowear, a hospital-at-home and remote diagnostic platform informed by proprietary cloth nanotechnology and AI, today announced that it received its third FDA 510(k) clearance and first software-only clearance as an end-to-end digital platform, illustrating unique capabilities available to enterprise customer channels across a broad spectrum of diagnostic and monitoring verticals.

This clearance enables Nanowear to implement standalone AI and deep learning algorithms that will inform remote diagnoses as Software-as-a-Medical Device (SaMD). Future clearances include, but are not limited to, diagnosing or monitoring of hypertension, COPD, sleep apnea, worsening heart failure and post-surgical recovery.

drones

Matternet’s automated drone-docking station makes its real-life debut in Switzerland

October 10, 2021

No one knows exactly how drone delivery will fit into the future of logistics, but one thing is for sure: The aircraft aren’t going to drop off important payloads directly onto someone’s lawn. Matternet’s Station, an automated landing space and payload control tower, may be the solution, and the flower-like structure has finally made the jump from render to reality at a medical facility in Switzerland.

The Station was teased early last year, but one never knows with these concept renders whether the final result will be anything like the idea. In this case it’s dead on, looking for anything like a prop from a ’60s sci-fi flick.

The unusual shape serves a purpose, however, providing a safe place for a cargo drone to land and swap its battery out, protected from the elements and the type of ne’er-do-wells who would snatch a medical payload from an innocent robot.

Health

$1B science fund seeks blockchain projects to expand human lifespan

October 10, 2021

Longevity Science Foundation accepts crypto donations and aims to use technology to advance healthy human longevity.

By ERHAN KAHRAMAN

Scientists are continuously pursuing ways to lengthen the human lifespan, and blockchain might have been a missing part of the puzzle. The Longevity Science Foundation, a Swiss entity launched by a consortium of biotech founders, clinicians and leading longevity research institutions, aims to spend more than $1 billion over the next 10 years to find tech-based means to achieve a 120-year human lifespan.

The foundation seeks to fund research, institutions and projects that use blockchain and other next-gen technologies to find new horizons in four critical areas of the field; namely, therapeutics, personalized medicine, artificial intelligence (AI) and predictive diagnostics. The announcement states that such projects can make a significant difference in people’s lives, even within a five-year timeframe.

Robots, Science & Technology News

Honda is working on small rockets, electric aircraft and robots for the Moon

October 10, 2021

It wants to send humans to the ‘fourth dimension.’ Yeah, it’s pretty weird.

By RONAN GLON

Honda builds a surprisingly diverse selection of products that includes cars, motorcycles, generators, lawn mowers and planes. It will branch out into even more sectors over the coming years by adding robots, small rockets, and a second plane.

The expansion is part of Honda’s 2030 Vision of serving people worldwide with what it calls “the joy of expanding their life’s potential” — even if that means putting down the snowblower (built by Honda, of course) and taking a quick jaunt to outer space. The firm explained that it wants to expand the potential of mobility in the third dimension before turning its attention to the fourth dimension, which we’re told defies the constraints of time and space, and ultimately head into space.

Honda, which has made the HondaJet for years, will initially develop an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that won’t be as electric as its name suggests. Shown in the gallery above, it will be propelled by a hybrid powertrain built around a gas turbine, and it will have enough range to carry passengers from one city to the next. On paper, it sounds a lot like the flying taxis that several other carmakers are hoping to pelt into the sky at some point in the future. Like many of its rivals, Honda plans to create an ecosystem in which its aircraft can operate while connecting it to some of its land-bound products.

Profitably building and operating an eVTOL makes autonomous driving look easy; the technology isn’t ready, the regulations are murky, and the infrastructure is nearly non-existent beyond helipads and airports. And yet, Honda’s entry into this much-hyped segment is more credible than most. It operates a successful plane-building division that makes the HondaJet, which was recently updated with more range.

Driverless vehicles

New Citroen Skate is autonomous platform with swappable pods

October 10, 2021

Urban mobility concept can drive itself around a city, hosting travel compartments designed by different companies

By Felix Page

Skate, a new platform concept, is Citroën’s vision for the future of autonomous shared mobility in cities and forms part of a revolutionary “open-source” model that the firm says could improve traffic fluidity by 35%.

The platform, equipped with level-five autonomous capabilities to move around urban areas with no human input, can operate “almost continuously” 24/7, charging itself at dedicated hubs.

t has a maximum speed of 3mph or 16mph, depending on its surroundings, and is equipped with Citroën’s Advanced Comfort hydraulic cushion suspension set-up for optimum ride quality. Bespoke motorised spherical wheels designed by Goodyear allow for 360deg manoeuvrability, “just like a computer mouse”.

Medical Breakthrough

First Prototype Bioartificial Kidney Successful: Man-Made Organ May Solve Medical Problems, Giving Hope to Dialysis Patients

October 10, 2021

By Ron Jefferson

The first bioartificial kidney developed by The Kidney Project earned a $650,000 prize from the KidneyX’s Artificial Kidney Prize. The man-made kidney technology is expected to be among the most promising solutions in today’s medical advancements that could end challenging kidney problems. Among the key interests of the bioartificial kidney is to implant the device on patients instead of treating them through dialysis machines and decrease the patients on the waiting lists of transplant procedures. The Kidney Project was led by UC San Francisco and Vanderbilt University Medical Center experts Shuvo Roy and William Fissel.

Alternative Transportation

Cityhawk, An Electric Flying Car Without Wings That Already Takes To The Skies

October 10, 2021

By Leonard Manson

Cityhawk: For about 4 years, we are seeing more and more ‘flying cars’. More and more companies, companies, projects that are with this concept underway. In some cases it is that literal concept, like the Klein Vision AirCar, a car with folding wings that can fly like a plane and be driven on the highway. In others, it’s basically a huge drone with seats. And in today’s case, a vehicle that looks like something out of an 80s Sci Fi film.