NEWS : TECH (NFPC)

Trajectory of a Falling Batman: DNews Nuggets

Batman's Cape is Fatally Flawed: When is comes to comic books there is no end to commentary. We can pull apart, dissect, digest and conject to our hearts content, but when we enter the realm of comic book science, there's a whole new level of geekery.

According to students at the University of Leicester, Batman's flying cape (from the Christopher Nolan Batman reboot trilogy) would cause him to hit the ground at 50 mph. While he is athletic, this would likely cause fatal injuries.

According to PhysOrg, "If Batman jumped from a building 150 meters high, he could glide a distance of around 350 meters - but the problem arises as Batman's velocity increases during his descent. His velocity would initially rise to around 68 miles per hour, before reaching a steady 50 miles per hour as he gets down to ground level - a speed too fast for him to land safely." via PhysOrg

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Human-Powered Sub Sets Speed Record

The Olympics may be in London, but in Gosport, some 80 miles away on the south coast of England, another international competition unfolded for the fastest human-powered submarine.

The inaugural European International Submarine Races (eISR) were held on June 25-39 at Qinetiq, the former Royal Navy's testing facility in Gosport. Teams of students from around the world showed off their designs for a submarine powered entirely by human muscle. No energy storage was allowed -- no batteries, flywheels or motor assists.

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The winner was the Omer 8 (above), from the Ecole de Technologie Superieure of Montreal, Quebec. It hit a speed of 7.03 knots (8.08 mph) over a 13-meter section of the course. In second place was the Talon 1, from Florida Atlantic University, and the University of Bath's Minerva was in third.

The Talon 1, from FLorida Atlantic University, came in second place.

The race was in a 60- by 120-meter pool, with both a speed section and a slalom -- the point was to demonstrate both speed and maneuverability. Each team's overall score was calculated from how the sub performed on different tasks. So while Omer 8 won the speed round, FAU's Talon 1 took the prize for agility and the University of Michigan's Wolverine won for innovation.

The University of Bath's Minerva.

All were crewed by a person in SCUBA gear, as adding a separate air supply complicates the design. But they took slightly different tacks for powering the subs and maneuvering them -- some had electrical assists for adjusting fins in order to steer.

The Wolverine, the entry from the University of Michigan.

Powering a submarine is a lot different from a bicycle or even the human-powered aircraft designs, though they all use pedals. "You have to strap your feet into the pedals," said Jennifer Blowers, a mechanical engineering student on the University of Bath's team. "On a bike you have gravity and momentum, but on the boat you don't get any of that."

This means that a human crew member has to push that much harder. It's also important that the bottom of the sub be transparent, because the course is marked at the bottom of the pool.

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Then there are the engineering challenges of working in the water. "You've got rust, friction and you try not to drop the Allen keys," Blowers said.

This record has been accepted by the International Submarine Races -- home of human-powered submarine racing in the United States, which sponsors its own race, the next of which is scheduled for June 2013.

Photo: The Omer 8, which set the speed record (top). Credit: European International Submarine Races

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Suds Ahoy! Bubble Boats Better Fuel Efficiency

Bubbles aren't just for bath time anymore -- turns out they can also be used to improve the fuel efficiency of cargo ships.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries calls their Air Lubrication System the first in the world to be applied to a newly built ship, resulting "in a substantial reduction in the ship's resistance."

An array of powerful air pumps on the ship's underbelly blows streams of small bubbles around the ships hull. This creates a pocket of air between the hull and the water, so that a good portion of the hull is not touching the water.

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The blanket of bubbles greatly reduces friction, allowing the ship to move faster and more efficiently through the water. Mitsubishi predicts that their air lubrication system can reduce CO2 emissions by 25 percent compared to conventional cargo ships.

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Grain conglomerate Archer Daniels Midland has already put their order in for three dry bulk carriers to be equipped with the MALS system. The bubble boats, to be completed by 2014, will be 131 feet wide and 777 feet long and be built by Oshima Shipbuilding.

[Via Dvice]

Credit: Mitsubishi

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A Hybrid Three-Wheeled, Electric Fitness Scooter

Trikke Tribred 36v Lite: $1,299

As Trikke Tech President and CEO, John Simpson, told Discovery News at CES, "Originally, [co-founder Gildo Beleski] was looking for something stable just to bomb hills. He had no idea that this design would propel using your body. And now that the motor and battery technology has gotten so good, it was just a natural to plug them into our frame system."

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That need for downhill stability led to a three-wheel design, which eventually lent itself to either a great workout or just a great ride. To exercise the upper body more, push off with a simple leg pump or the cooler looking rock forward method. Weave the handlebars back and forth until you build enough momentum. Then evolve the quick swiveling into a rhythmic swaying motion that mimicks carving like a downhill skier.

Or if like a certain lazy reporter (see video below) you're looking for the less strenuous version, twist the hand throttle to let the 36-volt battery and 180-watt motor give you that initial push. And after that jumpstart, rock it yourself the rest of the way. Or some combination thereof.

Whether you're into training or just blasting around, the Trikke Tribred is a fun, super smooth way to travel 6 to 10 miles at 9 to 13 MPH. The 36v Lite weighs just 38 pounds -- incuding the battery. And its frame folds down so that two can fit in the trunk of a Prius. But based on how cool (not to mention green) it is to ride, you'll want to minimize the amount of time you're transporting it without actually being on it.

Credit: Trikke Tech

This article is part of our ongoing coverage of this year's Consumer Electronics Show. Find more CES articles here.

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Smooth Out Your Front Pockets with a Key Slider

Keyport Slide: $39.00

Keys aren’t really that controversial, we need them, they work, what else is there to improve upon? It turns out, there’s a lot that can be done. Enter Keyport Slide, a device that can consolidate your keys into one small package. Most keys are compatible with Keyport, unless you have integrated buttons, which is a drag, but the company does hint that this feature may not be an issue for long.

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For keys that do work, the process of getting a Keyport is pretty simple. Just order the number of blank blades you’ll need and then take the device to a locksmith or hardware store to cut them. Once you have all of your keys cut, slide them into the ports. Easy peasy. The company also offers special inserts like an LED light, barcode inserts for loyalty program tags and USB flash drives.

Credit: KeyPort

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Google Street View To Map Amazon

Google Street View lets users explore some pretty cool places. How else could you tour the Colosseum, the Eiffel Tower and Westminster Abbey all in one afternoon? Soon, virtual travellers will also be able canoe down the Amazon and Rio Negro rivers in Brazil and explore surrounding communities.

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In effort to promote awareness of one of the world's most biodiverse ecosystems, Google has partnered with the Sustainable Amazon Foundation (FAS) to map the Amazon river, as well as the surrounding forests and river communities.

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Members of the Brazilian and U.S. Street View team, along with the Google Earth Outreach team will mount their Street View camera-trike to a boat as it floats downstream. They'll also use the trike to pedal along the dirt paths of communities near the rainforrest. Doing so, they say, will give viewers a chance to experience what it's like to live and work in Amazonian communities.

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"We’re honored to work with FAS on this project to bring the Amazon online for those who can’t visit in person, and help our partners share with the world the unique stories of its inhabitants and the beauty of this place they call home," team leader, Karin Tuxen-Bettman wrote on Google's Lat Long Blog.

[Via Inhabitat]

Credit: Marcus Lyon/Getty Images

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Cashless Parking Tested in Germany

Finding a parking space is a pain (at least if you live in a city like San Francisco, New York or Boston). Once you get to the parking meter you have to make change. Using a parking garage means trusting your vehicle to the parking valet, or waiting in line behind other cars paying the attendant.

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Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany were likely as fed up as anyone else, so they came up with a cashless system based on radio frequency ID tags -- the same technology used at automated toll booths. The system involves a computer chip stuck to a car's windshield that uses a radio signal to transmit a 12-digit code unique to each vehicle to receivers on the ceiling of a parking garage. The garage ceiling receivers track when a car enters and exists and bills the driver accordingly -- no attendant required. The system, called VIATAG, is being developed for MotionID Technologies and is being tested in three German cities -- Essen, Munich and Duisburg.

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Fraunhofer says hacking isn't a problem because the code doesn't contain any personal information -- it only identifies the car. In addition the RFID chip self-destructs if it is removed from the windshield. This does leave open the possibility of spoofing the car’s identifier, however, which might open a chance to avoid paying or possibly sticking someone else with the bill. We’ll see how the tests work out (and if anyone finds the hack at next year’s Black Hat confab).

Image: MotionID Technologies

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Spy Helicopter Device Sports a 1.3MP Camera

Silverlit I/R Spy Camera Helicopter: $113

It's the stuff little brothers' dreams are made of: a helicopter that can not only be steered around the house, but that can film video while doing it. Ah, the possibilities! Introducing the Silverlit I/R Spy Camera Helicopter, a device that does what every sister or coworker fears and more, because it has a 1.3 megapixel camera built into its lightweight body and software to upload and share the resulting footage.

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Aspiring air-videographers need only launch the Spy Camera Helicopter and then push a button on the remote controller to begin capturing video or still images. The device offers a range of up to 30 feet, and a series of internal gyroscopes ensure its stability while in the air, translating into a smooth filming result. A full 128 MB of internal memory is on hand to save any juicy video captured between charges; once back on solid ground, included PC software lets you upload the best parts, adjust the images, and share them on Facebook or Twitter. Consequences? Plenty of time to worry about those later.

Credit: Firebox.com Ltd.

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New UPS Vehicles 1,000 Lbs Lighter

These days fuel efficiency is not far from anyone’s mind. Hybrid Vehicles are becoming more and more popular and companies are finding ways of squeezing more energy out of the existing systems. This is especially the case for shipping and delivery businesses, such as UPS, whose costs are fundamentally linked to transportation.

The company has previously flirted with the idea of hybrid vehicles, but now it has taken a drastic step in a different direction. It announced a new fleet of vehicles called CV-23s that are designed to be 1,000 pounds lighter and 40 percent more fuel efficient than their older models. The dramatic decrease in weight was possible by using composite panels for the body instead of steel. These materials have the advantage of being tougher as well as much lighter than more traditional materials.

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Because of the lower vehicle weight, UPS was also able to use a smaller, 150 horsepower engine to achieve the same performance that was possible with a 200 hp engine on the older P70 steel models. According to Daily Tech, the new CV-23s are expected to “save the company 44,000 gallons of fuel per year and reduce carbon emissions by 457 metric tons per year.”

The only drawback to these impressive changes is that the new vehicles are expected to have 630 cubic feet while the older less efficient vehicles can accommodate about 700 cubic feet. This seems to be a negligible price to pay for the remarkable overhaul. 

Credit: UPS

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Corkscrew-Drive Robot Spirals Over Rough Terrain

Metal corkscrews are great for opening wine, but who would think they'd also work well as wheels? Tim Lexen, an engineer in Cumberland, Wisconsin -- that's who. In his spare time, he built an omnidirectional, all-terrain rover with corkscrew "wheels."

The underbelly of Lexen's prototype includes a flat triangular compartment (7 inches per side), made from PVC, that houses three electric servo motors, battery packs and electronics. These independently operate three 8-inch stainless steel helical coils, which have a low-friction outer coating to keep the device from getting stuck in rough terrain. The corkscrew motion of the coils allows them to push or pull against rugged surfaces, making the robot ideal for roving on textured surfaces such as dirt, sand or gravel.

Such a device could be used to roam the Martian landscape or aid soldiers on Earthly battlefield, but Lexen there are few challenges Lexen needs overcome.

"While significant progress has been made in the development of sensor and control technology, one of the major challenges is that of mobility -- that is, physically traversing obstacles, soft and rocky soil and other hazards in complex, unstructured and high-risk environments," Lexen wrote in a paper he presented earlier this month at the IEEE International Conference on Technologies for Practical Robot Applications in Woburn, Massachusetts.

"Most current rover design solutions are improvements over the basic four-wheel or tracked vehicle designs," Lexen wrote. "But these still can be easily foiled in the rover mission."

Helping overcome these obstacles is the prototype's Y-shaped layout and low-friction, rounded edges of the coils. These give the device the ability to move in any direction.

The prototype is currently remotely controlled by a human operator. Lexan plans to add motion sensors so the robot can orient itself, making it suitable for missions requiring independent maneuverability, such as surveillance and search-and-rescue missions.

[Via Gizmag]

Photo: Tim Lexen

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