Join Augmented Reality, now in candy form
We have talked about augmented reality more than once on this site, and usually it is about putting things in front of a webcam to create some interesting 3D graphics that the user can manipulate by moving the object around.
This would be the first time that I have seen augmented reality come in the form of taste and not sight. I’m not certain whether you can call it augmented reality, really, but hey, we might as well use the buzzword.
Keio University’s TagCandy allows the user to put a lollipop candy on some sort of fancy stick, and then connect the stick to a computer. Apparently, the user can control the taste by controlling the vibrations that will come to his or her mouth. Apparently, if you want fizzy soda or crisp apple, that is totally a matter of programming. Check out the video after the jump for more.
Continue reading » Augmented Reality, now in candy form
Document Extractor – a monitor, printer, scanner concept we can only hope for
Every now and then something comes along that wows you with its practicality, something that just feels right. Something that makes so much sense, you have to wonder how it took so long for someone to come up with it in the first place.
The Document Extractor, brainchild of Byeong Min Choe, marries your printer, scanner and monitor into one potentially perfect device. The monitor, has a touch screen interface that allows you to select and crop the area of the page you wish to print, and the selected area will print from the back to the front of the device, dropping from your computer screen into reality. Continue reading » Document Extractor – a monitor, printer, scanner concept we can only hope for
Robot is programmed to pick strawberries
This posting should be a warning to anyone who has a career in harvesting fruit. You could be replaced by a robot.
This robot has been developed by Japan’s National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, and it has the ability to detect how ripe a strawberry is, and then can cut the stalk without damaging the sweet fruit itself. There is a video of it after the jump so you can see the strawberry-picking robot in action.
Continue reading » Robot is programmed to pick strawberries
Microsoft’s plan for shape-shifting touchscreens
One of the problems with touchscreens is that they are way too…flat. That, and there is often very little tactile feedback. If I want to type, I want to feel physical keys underneath me. That way, if I hit a “g” instead of an “f” key, I can feel it. I don’t want to have to look at my text to find out that I screwed up.
According to my Source, Microsoft filed a patent last year that “details a light-induced shape-memory polymer display screen. In a nutshell, that means a touch screen that has a real texture and tactile feedback to it, making people feel as if they’re touching an actual object”.
This screen would be coated with certain polymers that can change and hold their shape, provided different wavelengths of ultraviolet light hit them from below.
Continue reading » Microsoft’s plan for shape-shifting touchscreens
DreamBots Ltd. presents the WheeMe massaging robots
So who says that you need human hands to give you a massage? Well, you do, actually.
However, if you are willing to try out an acceptable substitute to fleshy human hands touching your back, you might want to consider the WheeMe from DreamBots Ltd.
The WheeMe is clearly designed to look like one of those massage wheels that a human is supposed to push across your back. Now, the creators of this massage thing could have made a robot arm to manipulate this thing, but they have made this autonomous contraption.
When I say autonomous, I mean that it has a built-in sensor that will insure that it never falls off the user’s back. I’m guessing that it probably spends a lot of time on your spine.
Continue reading » DreamBots Ltd. presents the WheeMe massaging robots
Conrad makes a lock to put your bike up high
I’m guessing that most bike locks can be taken off using some fast-filing skills or some very sharp Sawzall.
However, what if there was a way to make it very inconvenient for a thief to get to a bicycle because it was high up on a lamppost?
This is apparently the idea from Conrad, a German toy and model company who made a very interesting bike lock made from a motorized skateboard. You can watch a video of their accomplishment after the jump. Just be warned that most of the video is in German with some sporadic English.
Continue reading » Conrad makes a lock to put your bike up high
BendDesk could change the face of desktop computing
This is the BendDesk from Media Computing Group. Just looking at this picture makes me want one, badly.
I can honestly say that I would probably keep my desk a whole lot cleaner if it was a screen. I have a video of it after the jump that shows a very interesting photo sorting session. You will note how they can be arranged in a row at the “bend”.
What really made it interesting was the games. You will note how the horizontal area is used as a controller to zap the bad guys dominating the vertical portion of the screen. Don’t let them go around the corner!
Continue reading » BendDesk could change the face of desktop computing
See Legos come to life with OASIS
Okay, this is about the neatest thing that you will see on Black Friday. Intel has been working on a system called OASIS (Object Aware Situated Interaction System) that combines projections with Lego.
This system uses cameras that can detect both objects and depth. As a result, it knows where the Lego toys are, and can even add a little bit of special effects with the practical application of some projectors.
I have a video of this OASIS in action after the jump if you want to see how it works, and it is the coolest thing to happen to Lego since the Mindstorms NXT.
Continue reading » See Legos come to life with OASIS
