Gizmodo: breakthroughs

Researchers Cram a Camera Into a Sheet of Fiber

Adrian Covert — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:30:00 EDT

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.Another day, another innovation from MIT researchers. This time, it's a camera built in the middle of a 25mm fiber sheet, which might be the coolest invention we will never use (save for an appearance in Splinter Cell 10).

MIT Tech Review says Noel Fink, the man responsible for the breakthrough, isn't even entirely sure what it could be used for, except for weaving it into clothing for some military reconnaissance. But the fact that it's designed to be foldable.

Researchers worked this magic by embedding 8 sensors in an arrangement around the center of the fiber sheet which allows it to detect light and color from various angles. Even better, the sensors can detect the angle at which light hits the fiber, which would make 3D imaging theoretically possible. (the MIT article goes into even greater depth as to how they pulled this off, but I'm trying to keep you awake). Anyways, cameraphones are so 2000s. In the '10s I want a goddamn camerasuit. [MIT Tech Review]

AU Optronics unveils 0.69mm ultra-thin mobile...

Charlie White — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 13:20:00 EDT

AU Optronics unveils 0.69mm ultra-thin mobile device panel and multi-touch coolness [AU Optronics]

Paper-Thin, Flexible Batteries Developed

Brian Lam — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 21:12:08 EDT

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and MIT have developed a battery that uses carbon nanotubes and paper to make a flexible battery that can be cut by scissor and could eventually be printed. The energy density is fair, at about 110mAh/gram, and small prototypes are powerful enough to power small fans. But the flexibility is still the main selling point. Which means these won't make portable CE devices that use molding lithium polymer batteries, like iPods, any smaller. [Ars]

IBM Chip to Let You Download an HD Movie in One Second

Charlie White — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 11:45:00 EDT

IBM trash-talks all those other chipsters with its latest breakthrough, an optical transceiver chipset that can accomplish the technological equivalent of cramming a basketball through a garden hose. The trick here is moving data through fiber optic cables at 160GB per second; that's eight times faster than today's optical components can do.

What does that mean for you and me? How about an HD movie downloading in one second compared with the snail's pace of a few hours it takes to download a 720p flick from Xbox Live today? All that breakneck speed will be made possible by this tiny device that's just 3.25 x 5.25mm small. But will this minuscule chip really solve the current bandwidth problem?

There's plenty of fiber around, but until this breakthrough, it was all dressed up with no place to go. What's needed is this kind of technology that can speed up transfer and receive rates. Well, and then actually getting that fiber optic connection to the doorsteps of households across the world (otherwise known as fiber to the home) is no easy task, either. However, Verizon FiOS is making some progress here.

Once those connections are made, it'll be up to weasels like Time Warner Cable and Comcast to figure out ways to throttle this blazing speed, and charge you unreasonable fees for it. Propellerheads, check the press release link for details. – Charlie White

Press Release [IBM, via Sci Fi Tech]

Laser TV Technology: Plasma and LCD Killer?

Charlie White — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:35:39 EDT

Two companies blurted out some boisterous bluster today, saying they have laser TV technology that can smack down LCDs and plasma displays because their idea costs half the price, looks twice as good, is half the weight and thickness, and only uses a quarter of the electricity. Big talk.

Aussie company Arasor and its stateside partner from the Silicon Valley Novalux say their combination of a unique optoelectronic chip and a laser projection device will be available by Christmas, 2007 and placed inside TVs made by companies such as Mitsubishi and Samsung.

These are bold claims from this couple of companies, but don't expect everyone to be throwing away those brand-new LCDs and plasma displays just yet. A lot can happen between now and December, 2007. – Charlie White

Laser TV unveiled [News.com.au]

EEStor Ceramic Battery: Internal Combustion Replacement?

Charlie White — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 13:09:56 EDT

Seasoned scientists at EEStore say they've created a battery made of glass- and aluminum-coated ceramics that could allow electric motors to completely replace the internal combustion engine. The inventors, erstwhile Xerox PARC and IBMmers, boast about the car's efficiency, saying it'll be so cheap it'll be as if gas costs 45 cents per gallon, will drive 500 miles on nine bucks' worth of electricity, and needs just five minutes to completely recharge. Plus, the company's CEO says, "a four-passenger sedan will drive like a Ferrari." Tall claims, EEStore.

Meanwhile, Feel Good Cars, those Canadian electric carmeisters whose ZENN electric car is pictured above, vow to make this technology roadworthy by 2008. Oil companies, get out your checkbooks, but you'd better have some phat cash 'cause these EEStore guys are well-financed. – Charlie White

Never-Ending Potency: Battery Replacement Could Charge Electric-Car Industry [Jalopnik]

MIT Working on Nanotube Batteries, Could Be a Breakthrough

Charlie White — Sat, 11 Feb 2006 10:42:16 EST

In the search for that holy grail, the everlasting battery, not much has been accomplished over the 200 years since old man Volta rolled out the first crude battery back in the dark ages. Now those whiz kids at MIT are using nanotube structures to create new super batteries by using energy storage doodads called ultracapacitors. These devices do their magic by storing electrical fields at the atomic level. Bear in mind that ultracapacitors are nothing new, but what is new is making them small enough to put into regular-sized batteries. Best of all, the MIT researchers are saying these nanotube batteries can be made using ordinary manufacturing methods. No word on how much more energy storage capacity these whiz-bang batteries will have than the conventional ones we know and love to hate. If these scientists can pull this off, standby world—you're about to be changed forever.

MIT Researchers Fired Up About Battery Alternative [TerraDaily]