Revolutionary Flexible Paper Tablet

At the cornerstone of any good company or economy for that matter is efficiency. At Queens University in Ontario Canada researchers have come up with the ultra thin, ultra light weight, flexible plastic displays called PaperTab, a high resolution, 11 inch touch screen display with built-in electronics. The creator, Plastic Logic, incubated at Cambridge University’s Cavendish Lab, is now a world renowned creator of a stream of technological innovations in flexible displays.
The key difference is flexibility: there is a possibility of a wide range of applications that would not be possible with glass-based displays.  Expected applications include mobile devices, billboards, reading devices, art applications, and more.
The device runs on the Intel core i5 processor and employs a sensor material instead of an electrophoretic display and looks like a sheet of paper in a clear plastic sleeve, but is in fact an interactive display .  There are no mice or buttons and navigation is accomplished by finger swipes or simply bending the corner of the page up to go back or down to move forward.

A typical user would have any number of paper tabs, say 10, which are in effect like filing drawers.  Applications run in each PaperTab, for example word-processing, gallery, image editor, etc. Information can be shared and transferred between PaperTabs using copy and paste commands or finger swipes.  Uploading and downloading of files and videos wirelessly to and from multiple devices is a built in function.
Typical displays would be expected to last greater than five years and allow about 10 million page updates which is about the same yield as the LCD industry.  Memory capacity is ample: 16 or 32 GB. The device currently comes with black or white plastic backing.
At 10 times thinner than its glass competitors , reading outside or at a ballgame, displaying signage, wearing a rolled tablet on the wrist, displaying artwork, all with a superlight interface is indeed an innovation.

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New Flexible Glass Will Significantly Reduce The Cost Of Solar Panels

There is an interesting story about ancient Rome which tells us that flexible glass is a legendary lost invention from the time of the reign of Roman Emperor Tiberius Caesar. Tiberius Caesar ordered the execution of a glassmaker for inventing the ‘Vitrum Flexile’ or flexible glass, which was unbreakable and could be bended by hand. The emperor feared that the new invention would undermine the value of gold and silver and will shatter the whole economy.
Now after hundreds of years, In 2012 Corning introduced ‘Willow Glass’. As you probably know, Corning is the manufacturer of Gorilla Glass, which forms the front of most premium Smart-phones today. Willow glass is a type of flexible glass.
Willow Glass is very heat resistant, which is useful in high temperatures measured in hundreds of degrees Celsius. Willow Glass is flexible enough to be rolled up which can significantly speed up production and reduce costs. Willow Glass’s combination of flexibility, transparency, and heat resistance makes it a very good option for the creation of cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cells.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has built flexible solar cells out of Corning’s Willow Glass. These new solar cells are strong enough to even replace roofing shingles.
Conventional solar panels are bulky and breakable, which makes them expensive to transport and install. But with this latest technological development, the flexible glass can be used to make cheap solar cells. These flexible solar cells can even replace conventional brick or slate shingles.
The cost of installation is one of the most prohibitive factors in adopting solar power. But using flexible solar cells instead of conventional brick or slate shingles would make it much cheaper. With roofing made of solar panels, homes can generate their own electricity.

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Could These Solar Cells Replace Heavy Solar Panels?

Researchers at University of Alberta have discovered that phosphorus and zinc can be used to make inexpensive nanoparticle-based solar cells that can turn the sun’s power into electrical energy. Researchers have designed nanoparticles that absorb light and conduct electricity from these two elements.
It is a big breakthrough in making solar power more accessible to parts of the world that are off the electricity grid. Phosphorus and zinc are abundant materials in Earth’s crust and are more easily available than rare earth materials like cadmium. Moreover, there are no manufacturing restrictions imposed on phosphorus and zinc as is on lead-based nanoparticles.
The new nanoparticle-based solar cells are very easy to manufacture; these can be mass-manufactured using plain methods like roll-to-roll printing or spray-coating. By lowering the cost of manufacture, solar power is made more affordable, which is one of the biggest hurdles to widespread adoption faced by the solar power industry.
This research offers a promising approach towards making the Nanoparticle-based ‘inks’ which could be used to paint or print solar cells that are responsive to light. The researchers at University of Alberta are now conducting experiments with the nanoparticles by spray-coating them onto large solar cells to test their efficiency.

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Aspid GT-21 Invictus, Pure Cutting Edge Design

Spanish automaker IFR Automotive S.L., founded in 2003 by Ignacio Fernandex Rodriguez, is based in Catalonia and its latest offering, Aspid GT-21 Invictus is named after a viper species native to the region.  The Aspid GT-21 Invictus is a “Supercar” that accelerates from 0 to 62 mph in 2.8 seconds with a top speed of 155 mph.  But what makes IFR’s Aspid cars special is not how fast they are.  Pure research and development at the center of its founder’s thinking is.
Rodriguez brought with him personal experience in the automobile industry from design of components and whole vehicle concepts to the engineering of high volume production of cars.  In addition, Rodriguez had developed specialized engineering skills in supporting competitive racers and rally cars.  His highest profile job was rally engineer with the Mitsubishi team competing in the World Rally Championships.
IFR uses an aluminum extrusion composite system called Alexcom which provides a main body that is ten times stiffer than a conventional aluminum frame.  A twin brake system is another innovation by IFR which was patented and is a light weight stainless steel brake system with twin discs with turbine shaped slots for unparalleled cooling and efficiency.
IFR has also created an innovative suspension system which is light weight and has a suspension arm extruded from an aluminum tube with an elliptical cross-sectional profile with two reinforcement cords running throughout the extrusion.
Finally IFR has implemented what it calls “Unidrive” which completely eliminates the traditional instrument panel and replaces it with two state of the art digital displays which totally integrates an almost infinite number of electronic and electrical possibilities within a common system.   A driver can change almost whatever parameter he chooses such as the rev limit, valve timing, power output, steering assistance, ABS, noise valve, brake balance, traction control, stability control, pitch, roll, yaw and ride height as well as damping characteristics. And, with a touch of the screen restore the factory settings.
Rodriguez decided to take up vehicle research and development when he saw the opportunity to bring innovative technologies to the car market.  His experience and connections in motorsports had exposed him to cutting edge technologies that he would integrate into his designs.
IFR’s cars are produced in limited runs and provide owners with a truly unique car.  Alliances with some of the top auto parts designers in the industry insures the finished product is among the best.

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You’re Hired! Trump’s 62-Story Dubai Hotel Could Be Revived with New VP

IndustryTap recently wrote about $616 billion Millennium Tower Boston, a project that lay inert from 2006 to 2013, victim to the “Global Economic Crisis” or “Global Credit Crunch.” The project finally became an active worksite when its owner, Millennium Partners, cobbled together financing.
Donald Trump, who has more lives than a cat, having raised himself Phoenix-like from the ashes of bankruptcy four times and narrowly missing a helicopter crash that claimed the life of one of his most-trusted partners, was forced to halt construction of Trump Hotel Dubai in 2009 due to the financial instability of a key partner. The hotel was expected to be 62 stories tall and bring with it Trump’s signature “chutzpah,” becoming part of what is now called the “Eight Wonder of the World,” Palm Jumeirah. The clear lesson is that if Trump can get financing, the project will go forward. The original design was to feature split-linked pinnacles that would rise above the Palm Golden Mile.
Last month, Trump hired Shafi Syed, as VP of Development and Acquisitions for India, the Middle East and Africa. Syed will work out of the Trump Dubai headquarters. If anyone can revive the project, it is Syed, whose experience at Wyndham Exchange, Cendant VNG and Taj Hotels, Resorts & Palaces India should be a boon to Trump.
Trump’s most recent project in the region, “Trump International Golf Club, Dubai”, is a 7,205 yard, par 71,18 hole PGA Championship golf course with a 30,000 square foot state-of-the-art clubhouse and Trump Spa & Wellness Center. The course is being designed by world-renowned golf course architect Gil Hanse and will be completed in 2016. Trump owns luxury properties in New York, Chicago, Panama, Toronto, Miami and Washington, DC. The following video goes into detail on Trumps golf course projects.

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Hacker Turns Hijacked Drones into “Zombies”

Will there be any blue skies and white puffy clouds to see in our future or will the view be muddled with a traffic jam of drones? We’ve been hearing a lot of talk lately about unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) filling the skies to make us feel as if that future sky will be filled with swarms of flying robots.
Though there aren’t that many drones flying around currently, this might change very soon. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) estimates that we could see as many as 15,000 drones in the sky by 2020.
There might come a time when we will wait for a drone instead of a truck to deliver our package. Amazon already shared plans to use airborne drones to deliver goods within 30 minutes of your order.
But what if hackers could hijack those drones?
One such hijacker is already here. Notable hacker Samy Kamkar has custom built the software for Skyjack, which he uses along with a modified Parrot AR.Drone 2 to seek wireless signals of other drones and take control of them … even while in flight.
Skyjack takes over drones in the sky and literally turn them into zombie drones. Skyjack’s controller can gain  complete access to other drones and can issue commands to them using just a tablet or laptop. The controller can change the other drone’s course, adjust its speed and even view the drone’s live video feeds.
At present, Skyjack can only hijack other drones that use similar communication systems to those employed by Parrot. But shouldn’t that be enough to wake up companies to make their future drones more secure?

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Live with 1 Million People in a Futuristic Pyramid City

Dubai is building one of the wonders of the world, inspired by incredible feats of architecture of Mayans and Egyptians. They built the pyramids to weather the test of time, but masterpiece structure ‘Ziggurat’ will be self-sustainable with all natural-energy sources.
Here are some interesting facts and features that are going to be incorporated in the Ziggurat Project:
• Ziggurat is named after the temple towers of the ancient Mesopotamian valley.
• The structure is a gargantuan and will cover 2.3 square kilometers (0.88 square miles).
• Ziggurat is green and will be capable of running completely off the grid by utilizing solar, steam, wind and other natural resources.
• This carbon-neutral structure is shaped like a pyramid and will house nearly one million people.
• This structure will have plenty of green spaces for recreation and agriculture.
• The building has an efficient public transportation system that will run horizontally and vertically.
• It will use just 10% of land surface that a normal one million person city would need.
• Facial recognition technology for security purposes will be integrated into the structure’s design.
Ziggurat was unveiled at the recent Cityscape Dubai. The project puts forward the ideal model for the future with space-saving design and non-reliance on fossil fuels.

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Traffic Jam on the Interstate? Fly the Aeromobil 2.5 to Work

Flying cars have been a popular topic of discussion for decades. Way back in 1940, Henry Ford said, “Mark my words: A combination airplane and motorcar is coming.”

One such attempt was made at this direction in 1973 by Advanced Vehicle Engineers, a company focused on bringing a flying car to market. The company built its prototype by fusing the rear end of a Cessna Skymaster airplane with a Ford Pinto. The tail section was designed to be attached and detached from the car. Unfortunately, the aeronautical engineer who came up with the invention and his pilot were both killed when they went on a test flight.

Slovakian company Aeromobil has been working to make the dream of a flying car come true over the last 20 years. Now, the company is celebrating a monumental victory. Its ‘Aeromobil 2.5’ aircraft just flew for the first time. Aeromobil 2.5 is a propeller-driven aircraft that also functions as an automobile.
It might not be the world’s first flying car, after Massachusetts-based startup Terrafugia successfully tested its hybrid-electric flying car ‘TF-X’ earlier this year. But it is certainly the prettiest road-able aircraft with many exciting features. As per the saying in flying, “If it looks good, it will fly well.”
Aeromobil 2.5 combines the performance of a sports car with the qualities of a light aircraft. It can fit into any standard parking space and can be fueled at any gas station. It can adapt to road traffic and as a plane it can take off or land at any airport.

It runs on a rear facing 100 hp Rotax 912 engine with in-flight top speed of 124 mph and a range of 430 miles. It has a 27 foot wingspan; the wings fold and unfold with a touch of a button from the cockpit. The vehicle weighs about 980 pounds. In comparison, a Ford Fiesta is over 2,200 pounds.
As of now, there is no indication of when a production version of this flying car might be available … only the future will tell how it takes wing!

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Colored Solar Glass Pretty, Yet Powerful Enough to Generate Electricity for an Entire Building

Oxford Photovoltaics, a commercial offshoot of the University of Oxford, has developed colorful and transparent glass that can generate electricity from the sun’s energy. This semi-transparent dyed glass that acts as a solar panel enables an entire building to act as a solar panel. The colorful glass adds a very small extra cost to the building’s façade.

Solar cell makers have long used dark colors, most often black, to increase the cell’s photon-absorbing power and thus to improve the cell’s energy efficiency. The solar glass can be almost any color; however, the efficiency varies depending on the color. While black has the highest efficiency, blue isn’t so good.
The technology developed by Oxford Photovoltaics works by adding a layer of transparent colored, non-toxic organic solar cell materials that’s three microns thick, at most, to conventional glass. The colored glass works really well and produces clean renewable energy.
The additional cost of a solar glass building with this technology would be no greater than 10% of typical glass building façades. It’s believed that the solar glass could eventually replace conventional solar PV in glass buildings. Oxford Photovoltaics CEO Kevin Arthur says you can expect to see test modules in 2014.

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Super Thin Plastic Laptops Sturdier Than Metal

Thinner, Lighter, More Portable, Tougher = More Productive

PC design engineers are forever seeking ways to improve the products they make. These days with all the breakthroughs in materials, CAD modeling, electronics and software across so many industries, it is no wonder there are new methods for making laptop computers. Intel Corporation has hired former Boeing Corporation aircraft desigers and engineers to quicken the adoption of novel design techniques.
IndustryTap has reported on new ultrathin smart phones that will soon be possible due to breakthroughs in battery design and construction as well as an article on a new innovation in cooling technology that will end the days of uncomfortably hot laptop computers and accelerate the adoption of “razor thin” laptops.

From A Facelift To Reworking “The Guts” Of A Computer

In a modern day version of “harakiri” PC designers are cutting out hard drive, motherboard, and other components that have made up of the guts of a computer for decades and redesigning components with new materials, in new configurations, saving material and energy.

Thinnest Laptops

1. Lenovo IdeaPad – 2.9 lbs., 0.6 in. thick
2. Apple MacBook Thunderbolt – 2.85 lbs., 0.6 in. thick
3. Samsung Series 9 – 2.9 lbs., 0.6 in. thick

The new ultrathin, ultra-sturdy laptops will cost from about $699-$1000.

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