Mechanical Tiger in Brugge January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in Bizarre, Robotics.add a comment
A truly amazing, although somewhat handicapped (!), custom-built mechanical tiger created by a local artist and taken out for its first ride, in Brugge, Belgium.
You can check out the artist’s site at www.kezanti.com and see some photos of his special creature here.
The Most Advanced Quadruped Robot on Earth January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in Apprehensive, Bizarre, HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Robotics.add a comment
BigDog is the alpha male of the Boston Dynamics family of robots. It is a quadruped robot that walks, runs, and climbs on rough terrain and carries heavy loads. BigDog is powered by a gasoline engine that drives a hydraulic actuation system.
Now with that noise and all I’d run like mad if anything like this ever aproached me! And if this is “The Most Advanced Quadruped Robot on Earth” as they so proudly claim, well it definately tells something about our stature as “creator-like” entities. Just take a look at all the rest quadruped beings that already walk this planet, they all seem way more advanced than this to me!
Light-emitting textile January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in Bizarre, HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Tech innovations.1 comment so far
A new technology Philips showcased at IFA 2006 in Berlin. It’s Luma live technology which can add as stated a totally new dimension to fabric, and sadly enough the very first suggestion from the video narator for possible applications is “dynamic advertising” – but of-course what else is there to do with it…. well I could think of a few (and I believe you can to)
Lumalive fabrics feature flexible arrays of colored light-emitting diodes (LEDs) fully integrated into the fabric – without compromising the softness or flexibility of the cloth. The jackets and furniture shown here represent versions that are ready to go into commercial production, and include integrated power sources and control electronics… You can read more here.
LED Throwies – meta graffiti? January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in Creative, HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB.add a comment
LED Throwies are an inexpensive way to add color to any ferromagnetic surface in your neighborhood. A Throwie consists of a lithium battery, a 10mm diffused LED and a rare-earth magnet taped together. Throw it up high and in quantity to impress your friends, city officials(!), express your creativity or your own special message!
LED Throwies are an open source graffiti technology developed at the Graffiti Research Lab, a division of the Eyebeam OpenLab.
Click here for instructions on how to make your own Throwies (and loads of other useful,.. or not so, but still interesting things).
Open HDD while booting January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in Bizarre, HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB.1 comment so far
Ever wondered what all that ticking and clicking you hear during the booting of your PC is all about? what is making those noises and what’s actually going on in there?
Well here’s the answers to these questions (and a few others too… watch closely).
Do not attempt to imitate this with a drive containing data you don’t want to lose permanently (sorry for stating the obvious… or where you really ready to give it a go?)
HoloVizio 3D-Display January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Tech innovations.add a comment
It’s 3D visualisation at its best, holography realised, and yet it is displayed on a screen!? Neverthe less the system is the first to meet all the below requirements simultaneously as stated by the HoloVizio team:
- No glasses needed, the 3D image can be seen with unassisted naked eye
- Viewers can walk around the screen in a wide field of view seeing the objects and shadows moving continuously as in the normal perspective. It is even possible to look behind the objects, hidden details appear, while others disappear (motion parallax)
- Unlimited number of viewers can see simultaneously the same 3D scene on the screen, with the possibility of seeing different details
- Objects appear behind or even in front of the screen like on holograms
- No positioning or head tracking applied
- Spatial points are addressed individually
web site: www.holografika.com
iBar – drinks anyone? January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Interactivity, Tech innovations.add a comment
The intelligent tracking system of iBar detects all objects touching the surface. This input is used to let the projected content interact dynamically with the movements on the counter.
Yet another application already available, the illuminated connecting lines suggest to me an interesting comment on (or visualisation of) human interconectivity and interaction (plus it can certainly break some ice in a bar environment). And tha’s one of the features (and applications), while the system is expandable since virtual objects can be created and activated by the users to triger actions. Just say goodbye to the days you could pass something over the counter unnoticed..
You can find out more at http://www.i-bar.ch
Sensitive Floor January 10, 2007
Posted by goss in HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Interactivity, Tech innovations.add a comment
Another great implementation of the “natural interactivity” principals out of the lab and soon to be patented and marketed, according to their site.
Having experienced its use already I must say I agree with their site’s statement “…(an) interactive medium that makes you smile“.
A “sensitive wall” and “sensitive table” are soon to follow. It seems that this is the next big wave by the abundance and frequency of such projects lately, and rightly so I believe.
It’s time (most probably long due) we had technology reaching out to people rather than having them striving to adopt to machine like thinking to be able to interact.
The official site is at http://www.sensitivefloor.com/ for more …
I/O Brush November 3, 2006
Posted by goss in HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Tech innovations.add a comment
I/O Brush is a new drawing tool to explore colors, textures, and movements found in everyday materials by “picking up” and drawing with them. I/O Brush looks like a regular physical paintbrush but has a small video camera with lights and touch sensors embedded inside.
Outside of the drawing canvas, the brush can pick up color, texture, and movement of a brushed surface. On the canvas, artists can draw with the special “ink” they just picked up from their immediate environment.
This is truly amazing, like a software application (like Painter) breaking out of “virtuality” and coming to real life! or vise-verso. Read more here and get inspired.
helio display, air video screen November 3, 2006
Posted by goss in HAND-PICKED VIDEOS FROM THE WEB, Tech innovations.add a comment
A San Francisco technology reporter (Gabriel Slate) looks at this new way to display a video signal on “thin air”, well actually pretty much condensed air.
It can use any device like Laptop, Camcorder, TV as the media source the images are not holographic but free-space. What the viewer sees is floating mid-air image or video. These projected images and video are two-dimensional, (i.e. planar) but appear 3D since there is no physical depth reference.
Helio Display is developed by IO2 Technologies and on the drawing board is adding interactivity so you can control the images by moving your hand through them.
