November 8, 2017

Williams F1 Develops Babypod 20 for Infant Safety

Posted on November 8, 2017February 19, 2024 by Staff Writer

Formula One (F1) racing is the fastest auto racing on the planet. Through the years, it has also been the test bed for some of the most iconic technologies in use on the road today. Due to the high speeds and the danger it entails, F1 racing has developed technologies and bold innovations for safety on the track many of which been adopted for civilian use.

One important feature the Babypod 20 has is that there is no need for the baby to be transported in an incubator. The high tech crib was designed around the same philosophy of safety at whatever speeds which is incorporated in the design of F1 cockpits.

Companies that work on Formula 1 technology, such as car manufacturers, oil companies, and teams, have created products based on what they learned on the track and have marketed these for different other purposes.

Williams Advanced Engineering is a veteran Formula 1 team which usually partners with engine manufacturers for their cars. A key component of every F1 car is the design of the cockpit, where the driver sits and controls the race car. Engineers and designers make sure to include every safety device and consideration in the design of the cockpit, ensuring the drivers would have an even better chance of surviving a crash, collision, or even a fire.

Babypod 20

This driver cockpit technology was put to an alternative good use: the design of the transport pod for babies to be used in regular ambulances. Normally, a special vehicle with space for a large incubator is used when transporting babies; it also contains a power supply that supports the electrical requirements of the incubator. The vehicle has power for the incubator or any other appliance used for the safe transport of a baby.

Dubbed the Babypod 20, this revolutionary transport pod functions as a crib with a built-in harness to keep the baby safe and secure. It has a carbon fiber monocoque design which can withstand up to 20 g-force acceleration. The baby is safely strapped in just in case anything happens to the vehicle while in transit.

One important feature the Babypod 20 has is that there is no need for the baby to be transported in an incubator. The high tech crib was designed around the same philosophy of safety at whatever speeds which is incorporated in the design of F1 cockpits.

The Babypod 20 is lightweight, strong, and crash-proof, and is already in use with the UK Children’s Acute Transport Service. According to the UK Neonatal Transport Group, from July 2016 to June 2017, there were 7,938 transfers of newborn children between hospitals in the UK. Williams expects to produce 500 Babypods during the year.

Williams also recently developed technology which keeps more cold air inside open-front refrigerators used in store and food displays. This device was the result of aerodynamic technology that McLaren uses in their F1 cars.

Another Win for Team McLaren

Apart from Williams, another team which have a development arm is McLaren Racing Limited. For more than 20 years, McLaren has also been developing expensive super cars which are completely street-legal. Another tech that McLaren developed allowed London’s Heathrow airport to improve planes’ ground movement, which in turn reduces the time spent on the air circling overhead. Getting the planes out and away from the landing strip as soon as it touches down helps the traffic control to land more planes at a faster clip.

Augmented Reality Changes Auto Design

Posted on November 8, 2017January 9, 2024 by Staff Writer

Augmented reality (AR) is helping designers bring car designs to life. Ford improved its design process by giving its creative minds access to Microsoft Hololens augmented reality technology for commercial and industrial applications. This bold action is groundbreaking and may change the car design process forever.

Ford is hoping that their new augmented reality arm can eventually be used in a similar way when consumers pick out colors, accessories, tires and interiors without having to stock all options at the showroom.

Designers use Microsoft’s holographic goggles which allow them to stand in front of car clay models and then see three-dimensional (3D) overlays of vehicle elements digitally projected onto them. The radical new step has enabled designers to quickly evaluate and alter new car designs.

“This ability to mesh digital and physical worlds together is for us the future of designing products,” Craig Wetzel, Ford’s manager of design technical operations, said. “It also places our engineers and designers in the same space, speeding that relationship along, as well.”

Ford has revealed that they are only using Hololens to work on the finer details, not in the early design stages. The new augmented reality stage also allows teams all around the word to see the designs at the same time, which helps to further speed up and improve the design process.

“In today’s world, my design team might make a mirror that we have to digitally render, send to the engineers so they can study it, and then make changes based on their feedback,” Wetzel says. “That takes time, and we find ourselves out of phase there a lot. But placing engineering and design in the same space, a process we call co-creation, streamlines that interaction,” he added.

Augmented reality is taking off not only in business but also in the commercial sphere. A recent study found that the sector will reach over $50 billion by 2021, increasing from an estimated $5 billion this year.

We revealed earlier this year how an AR layer added to everyday products allows consumers extra information as they look through their camera lens. The Blippar app is becoming so popular that makers claim more than 65 million people in 170 countries use it.

As the technological possibilities using AR evolve daily, Ford and Blippar are able to provide users with content layered onto everyday objects. For example, using Blippar, if you point your phone at an apple, the app can give the user all the details about that object, where to buy it, and the nearest store that stocks it.

Ford is hoping that their new augmented reality arm can eventually be used in a similar way when consumers pick out colors, accessories, tires and interiors without having to stock all options at the showroom. The possibilities are endless, experts claim.

So, as the digital world evolves at a rapid pace, it is certainly ideas like this that make a bold impact on how we see the world and the way its created.

Unmanned Underwater Vehicles Making Splash in Tech Industry

Posted on November 8, 2017January 9, 2024 by Staff Writer

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) drones are a huge market for businesses these days because of the continuous innovation and growing importance that they bring to the society. While many people and organizations are fond of the flying drones, another device that was somewhat overshadowed is the underwater drone.

For these submarine-like devices to reach their full potential, they need to overcome some hindrances like power restrictions, cooperation between underwater systems, vehicle maneuverability, and autonomous system integration.

Despite the popularity that flying drones have, the interesting fact is that underwater drones have preceded UAVs. Since the 1950s, the presence of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), or most commonly known as underwater drones, has skyrocketed in the technology scene.

The bold idea behind the submarine-like device has helped industries such as oil companies and the navies of multiple countries like the UK, Russia, France, and the USA. There are two categories of UUV:

Autonomous Underwater Vehicle – An underwater drone that works independently because of direct human input.
Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicle – An underwater drone that is managed by a remote human operator.

The Special Purpose Underwater Research Vehicle (SPURV) is one of the first UUVs that was operated to delve into research and marine exploration. The model was made by the University of Washington’s Applied Physics Laboratory with help from the Office of Naval Research in 1957.

In 1985, an underwater drone called Argo discovered the wreckage of the Titanic. It also found the sunken World War II battleship called the Bismarck in the year 1989.

Through the years, engineers and naval scientists around the world have been working really hard to try and innovate unmanned underwater vehicles. With the dedication that has been put in, experts believe that the industry is just a few years away from reaching its fullest capacity. Sooner or later, underwater drones may even rival the importance of unmanned aerial drones.

Important Tasks of Underwater Drones

Just like a flying drone, an underwater drone has its own set of interesting and useful features. UUVs also play important roles in the society, and are used for both military and commercial aspects. Underwater drones can:

Detect, detonate, and disable mines.
Recon amphibious insertion.
Be an Anti-Submarine-Warfare.
Be used for rescue operations.
Be used for exploring the marine world.
Monitor and inspect oil pipelines and oil rigs.
Be a device that maps the ocean floor.

For these submarine-like devices to reach their full potential, they need to overcome some hindrances like power restrictions, cooperation between underwater systems, vehicle maneuverability, and autonomous system integration.

Companies Innovating Underwater Drones

Companies have tried different ways on how to solve the issues that surround underwater drones. And as time goes by, they made progress on how UUVs work and even their appearance.

According to David Lang, an ocean explorer of the National Geographic Society, “Once people see it (underwater drone), you can see their eyes get big and they start imagining what they would use it for and that’s where the innovation begins.”

Recently, a Chinese research expedition called Kexue even claimed to have created a vital breakthrough on UUVs. Kexue was said to have made an underwater drone that has the capability to gather hydrographic information with the potentially significant military application for submarine operations.

Because of the growing demand, there is a new generation of underwater drones and its potential. Businesses and even universities have opened up new opportunities for sea exploration in the same way that flying drones have unlocked access to the sky. Here are some of the companies taking advantage of UUVs’ high growth niche:

PowerVision – The global company develops smart robot products that cater to the consumer market. Headed by their CEO Tony Williams, the company focuses on products and services such as data visualization and forecasting, smart drones, augmented reality, and virtual reality. PowerVision created the PowerRay drone, which is an underwater drone that can go as deep as about 100 feet. It is a sister product of PowerEgg, the company’s aerial drone model.
OpenROV – Founded by David Lang and Eric Stackpole, the startup company is located in Berkeley, California. It creates low-cost robotic submarines that are intended to make the underwater experience accessible to everyone. OpenROV has developed an underwater drone called Trident, which has the capability to go as deep as 328 feet (100 meters).
Blueye Robotics – The Norway-based company headed by CEO Erik Dyrkoren aims to develop and sell the world’s finest underwater drone. Blueye Robotics launched a drone called The Pioneer, which can go as deep as 150 meters (492 feet) down.
Azorean® Aquatic Technologies – The company is located in Portugal with Edmundo Nobre as their CEO. Azorean has developed their application-controlled underwater drone called Ziphius, a drone that could go as deep as 300 feet (91 meters).
Bluefin Robotics – The company is located in Quincy, Massachusetts and it specializes in the manufacture and design of civilian and military autonomous underwater drones. David Kelly, the President and CEO of Bluefin Robotics, wishes for underwater drones to continue innovating as technology advances. He also hopes that people will start to be more familiar with the capabilities of the device.

It is no doubt that underwater drones are beginning to evolve even more and maybe become the latest trend to come out of the robotics community. The industry of unmanned underwater vehicles has been around for years, but it is just starting to create a bold impact. With continuous innovation, people may see its success much sooner.

AES Incorporates AI for Energy Efficiency and Maintenance

Posted on November 8, 2017January 9, 2024 by Staff Writer

The AES Corporation is a large energy company that generates and distributes electricity to 17 countries and has more than 19,000 employees. It produces or distributes more than 36 gigawatts (GW) of power capacity and has revenues of $14 billion. It services the electricity needs of more than 10 million people worldwide. But, the bold move here is that AES is building another 5-GW capacity, along with a rapidly growing energy storage unit that sells battery systems.

In addition, any spike, fluke, or otherwise unique data can be flagged and pinpointed, and then analyzed and sent to the user before these can be noticed by humans. These are unique problems that would not be normally detected by conventional means.

With this big operation, the company is moving towards artificial intelligence in energy and utilities to explore how it can improve the efficiency and maintenance of its electric grid systems. The use of AI promises to improve the electricity system. Though it is still the early days of using AI, it is already considered as one of the most exciting things brewing in the industry.

Various companies are now involved in developing AI systems for electric generation, prediction, as well as for consumer use. General Electric (GE) and International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) are creating AI applications for forecasting models and maintenance. Startups are tackling niche energy applications which can help lower solar panel cost, as well as making office buildings more energy-efficient.

In broad terms, AES is interested in AI systems for neural network design, machine intelligence, and natural language processing. The company is creating a suite of data science tools to take advantage of a large amount of data they accumulate on a daily basis. The data comes from the power plants they manage, including solar energy farms, batteries, and gas plants. AI is required to make sense of all the data being acquired, and help the company improve the daily operations of the energy farms, either for more efficiency, produce more power or to lower the cost of operations.

AI – Predicts Outcomes

With the use of AI systems, it is possible to predict output depending on the weather forecast. This information can be used to plan ahead for any shortfall which may necessitate buying energy from other sources, or for transferring energy from other plants. Battery use can also be optimized with the help of AI. Electrical transmission and distribution can also benefit from using AI for current location-related consumption data.

AI and machine learning depend on a large volume of data which electrical systems generate on a regular basis. These tools can sift through the data and understand what is normal, and what is not, and can be taught to backtrack for historical reasons of their normality. The processes are iterative and straightforward, and can be modeled after what users would normally do, but cannot do because of the mountain of available data.

The benefit of machine learning is that at some point, the users do not need to come up with questions. The AI itself would be able to come up with questions based on gathered data. In addition, any spike, fluke, or otherwise unique data can be flagged and pinpointed, and then analyzed and sent to the user before these can be noticed by humans. These are unique problems that would not be normally detected by conventional means.

Using AI on power systems can help the company improve in a short time. It could also introduce fundamental changes, not just evolutionary changes to the way electric systems are operated.

Day: November 8, 2017