WinPlayBox: AWESOME TECH YOU CAN’T BUY YET: RECORD-PLAYING ROBOTS

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Showing posts with label AWESOME TECH YOU CAN’T BUY YET: RECORD-PLAYING ROBOTS. Show all posts

Saturday, 24 December 2016

HEIMPLANET’S NEW PACKS AIM TO BANISH SWEATY BACKS WITH 3D FOAM

AWESOME TECH YOU CAN’T BUY YET: RECORD-PLAYING ROBOTS wpb 23:59

Does the name Heimplanet ring a bell? No? Well, even if you don’t remember its name, there’s a good chance that you remember the company’s flagship product: that crazy inflatable, geodesic tent that popped up on the web a couple years ago. The Cave, as it’s called, was the company’s first big product release — but now its back with something new on Kickstarter.

This time around, Heimplanet decided to rethink the backpack and continue its geodesic design theme with the Motion Series — a pair of innovative packs that aim to do away with the dreaded “sweaty back syndrome” that plagues most backpacks. Heimplanet built these suckers with a clever 3D foam backing that promotes airflow and keeps your back dry while you hike, but without adding any extra bulk or weight to the pack itself.

Five years ago, German company Heimplanet blew our minds with its geodesic tent, the Cave. Using a one pump system with its patented multi chamber, which allows evenly displaced air, inflating into the coolest-looking tent ever made. Why would you stay in a Holiday Inn type tent, when you could have the Standard Hotel of tents?

Following the Cave, would Heimplanet be a one-hit wonder, or will it be able to continue making slick and functional gear that pushes the boundaries of the what we think gear should look like? Heimplanet is attempting to answer that with the new Motion Series of backpacks.

The Motion Series are thus far just two backpacks that continue Heimplanet’s theme of 3D, geodesic designs. To help do away with sweaty “back bath” syndrome of many packs, Heimplanet uses a 3D foam panel to allow airflow between the pack and your back.

“We created a solution that’s great for all kinds of sports, activities and everyday carry.”

While a backpack may seem like a huge design departure from a geodesic tent, there is a common link. “The idea for the foam panel came from our Cairo Camo tent design,” Heimplanet Co-Founder Stefan Clauss told Digital Trends. “This design originally was developed because some of our clients asked us if we could develop something that allows the tent to melt with its surroundings, so that it will not be detected whilst wild camping. The Cairo Camo pattern was our modern interpretation of former military camouflage designs.”

The packs come in two volumes and styles – the Arc 20L and Ellipse 25L – and are both available in two colorways: purple/light grey and dark grey/green. The 3D foam molded back pad is comfortable with balanced pressure points that feel great. The backing looks super sharp, although it is tad hefty.

“The 3D pattern is made out of an EVA foam panel and Nylon Spandex that is molded onto the foam panel with the help of heat and pressure,” Clauss detailed. “The main fabric of the Motion series is 210D Rip Stop Nylon Mélange with PEVR lamination. We internally developed this nylon mélange material especially for those bags and so far you won’t find this material on any other product.”

The inside pouch has a polished computer sleeve well protected from the elements that doubles as bladder pocket for hydration systems. The external spandex storage layer for the packs are easily accessible and allow 2-way breathing for drying a shell or jacket. Each pack also has unique outer storage units that can be detached for lighter treks.

With a very long list of tech specs, one might assume that the pack would look more “techy” than chic, but the packs are stylish. Imagine if Arc-teryx and Rick Owens had a love child backpack.

“Moritz Grebe also developed our first product, the inflatable, geodesic tents,” said Clauss. “Inspiration for theses backpacks was born during his search for the perfect everyday backpack, but there was no model that combines all the functional aspects of an outdoor backpack with the stylish look of an everyday urban backpack. We created a solution that’s great for all kinds of sports, activities and everyday carry.”

The Heimplanet Arc and Ellipse packs are available for preorder now on Kickstarter with early bird pricing started at around $100

FEED IT TO THE WORMS: AUSTRALIAN COMPANY DEBUTS COMPOSTABLE COFFEE PODS

Tech wpb 23:53

comPod

You know those single-serving coffee pods that let you make precisely one mug of coffee instead of brewing an entire pot? Well, despite the fact that they’re outrageously convenient (or perhaps because of it), they’re also pretty bad for the environment. According to one study, all the little plastic K-cups produced in 2013 alone could encircle the Earth 10 times if they were stacked end to end.

ComPod wants to put an end to this pollution — but without putting an end to the glorious convenience of single-serving coffee. How? By making the cups biodegradable, of course! “ComPod capsules brew just like your favorite Nespresso-compatible capsule,” the creators explain on Kickstarter, “but they help the environment instead of hurting it. Simply brew a delicious cup of coffee like any other Nespresso-compatible pod and when you’re done, throw your used coffee capsule in your compost, garden, or worm farm. The capsule will completely biodegrade within six months.”

For many instant coffee makers, the pods which transform a small dose of concentrated coffee into a mug of java or espresso haven’t always been particularly Earth-friendly in their construction — despite the fact coffee itself is derived from an Earth-grown plant. To combat this issue, a company out of Melbourne, Australia, recently took to Kickstarter to unveil what it’s calling the compPod, a fully compostable coffee pod compatible with Nespresso’s line of instant coffee machines. While it would be great to see a versatile line of pods capable of working with a wide array of machines, comPod is a positive first step.

Developed under the idea to help make “the world a better place, one coffee at a time,” comPods boast the incredible ability to fully biodegrade roughly six months after use. As stated on its Kickstarter page, comPods creator Dan McQuinn points to the fact that billions (an estimated number) of single-use coffee pods wind up making their way to various landfills annually. A staggering amount of literally anything — even something as diminutive as an instant coffee pod — McQuinn desired a way to start unclogging those landfills.

“Coffee shouldn’t cost the Earth,” stated comPods introductory Kickstarter video. “ComPod capsules brew just like your favorite Nespresso-compatible capsule but they help the environment instead of hurting it. Simply brew a delicious cup of coffee like any other Nespresso-compatible pod and when you’re done, throw your used coffee capsule in your compost, garden, or worm farm. The capsule will completely biodegrade within six months.”

More: Indulge your cold-brew cravings with the Arctic at-home coffee brewer

For roughly $22, McQuinn allows interested backers to purchase a month’s supply of comPods — i.e., 30 capsules — to be delivered by February 2017. Though the capsules are compatible with nearly every model of Nespresso machine, save a few professional “pouch” and “capsule-holder” machines, comPods are in no way affiliated with Nespresso or its parent company, Nestle. As of this writing, the campaign had already raised just north of $1,000 to its goal of $11,177 with 25 fundraising days left

THE ROKBLOK PORTABLE RECORD PLAYER DRIVES AROUND YOUR VINYL LIKE AN RC CAR

Tech wpb 23:49

Normally, if you want to play a record, you place your album on a turntable, which spins it and reads the tunes with a needle. RokBlock turns that method on its head. Rather than spinning the record itself, RokBlock is designed to drive around your vinyl like a little car going in circles, read the songs with a needle, and beam the audio to a Bluetooth speaker. Pretty clever, right?

And for those of you who are worried about scratching up your vinyl, don’t be. “RokBlok has been engineered to prevent damage to your records when in use,” the company states on its Kickstarter campaign page. “We do this by carefully balancing and distributing the weight of the player (3.2oz) across it’s scratch-proof rubber wheels and not the needle. This makes it so the needle does not take the brunt of the weight out on your record’s grooves.”

The very name turntable conjures a pretty accurate image of how it works, with the platter that the record sits on essentially being a table that turns. That’s how all record players work, right? With its RokBlok portable record player, the San Francisco-based Pink Donut has set out to prove that isn’t always the case.

The RokBlok, as the name implies, is a fairly utilitarian-looking block constructed of medium-density fiberboard (MDF) and bamboo that plays records by traveling in circles on top of them. Just place the RokBlok on top of a record, pull its lever, and away it goes. The hardware packs in a preamp and included speaker, and it also features Bluetooth, allowing it to wirelessly transmit sound to headphones or speakers located within 30 feet.

More: Shinola Runwell turntable is designed by a watch company, and it looks awesome

This might seem like a fast way to damage your records, but Pink Donut has already thought of this and says it won’t be a problem. “RokBlok has been engineered to prevent damage to your records when in use,” the company states on its Kickstarter campaign page. “We do this by carefully balancing and distributing the weight of the player (3.2 oz) across it’s scratch-proof rubber wheels and not the needle. This makes it so the needle does not take the brunt of the weight out on your record’s grooves.”

The RokBlok can play both full-sized LPs and 45s, and the company says the included rechargeable battery offers up to four hours of music playback or two days of standby time. Once it has run out of juice, two hours of charge time is all it takes to get it up and running again. The product is meant to be fun and easy to use, but even its manufacturer admits it won’t replace a high-end turntable.

While the retail price isn’t incredibly high at $100, Kickstarter backers can get an even better deal, with a single RokBlok going for $80 or even $70 with the limited Early Bird pricing. If you don’t want to spend that much but are interested in the novelty factor, the Kickstarter is also offering another kitschy record player in the SheetRok — a paper record player that uses no electricity. Backers can opt for a SheetRok with a random record included for just $15.

The RokBlok has already surpassed its $50,000 goal, with 47 days left to go at the time of this writing. The campaign comes to a close on January 24, with rewards planned to begin shipping to backers in September. For more information, see the campaign page on Kickstarer.

The NexD1 - The first Multimaterial & Electronics 3D Printer

Robots wpb 23:41

3D printing has progressed by leaps and bounds over the past few years, but regardless of all the advances we’ve made, the vast majority of printers can still only print parts. If you want to create a functional electronic objects, you generally have to print multiple separate parts, add wiring/electronics, and then fasten everything together at the end.

The NexD1 aims to change all that. The printer features an innovative multi-material printing system that allows you to not only print plastic parts, but also print functional circuits directly into the parts you’re printing. In essence, this allows you to create electronic objects that are fully functional and ready to use right after you pull them off the print bed — no wiring, no soldering, and no assembly required. This could very well be the future of 3D printing.
The NexD1 by Next Dynamics is the first 3D printer to ever give high end prototyping capabilities to everyone by making Multi-Material, 3D Electronics printing, extreme precision, high reliability and fast printing times available in one exciting machine.

We took the most advanced, industrial 3D printing technology called PolyJet™, optimized and reconfigured it and shrunk the cost radically.

We call it DigiJet.

DigiJet technology is able of print a wide range of materials, including special resins with nano-particles or pigments.

Read our full coverage here.

The Universe in a Sphere (Relaunch)

UNIVERSE YOU CAN HOLD wpb 06:30

In this very sphere, every one of the 380.000 lasered dots is not only a star, but an entire galaxy with billions of stars. A journey through our entire galaxy, the Milkey Way, would last 120.000 years...with the speed of light! and it contains of 300 billion stars. A journey to our nearest neighbor, the Andromeda galaxy, would last around 2.5 million years with that speed. And there we are, at the first tiny dot, next to our own tiny dot in the center of this very sphere. If you add the next 100 000 Galaxies you can see the structure of Laniakea, our home supercluster. Laniakea is around 160 megaparsec in size and of cause surrounded by even larger structures.

The diameter of the cloud of galaxies in the sphere is around 250 megaparsec (Mpc). One Parsec is equal to 3.2616 lightyears, which means, that the cloud is 815.400.000 lightyears in diameter. 815 million years of travel, with the speed of light, captured in an 8cm glass sphere.
With all these information, this sphere convinced me, that we can´t be alone in the universe.

Read our full coverage here.