最近，荷蘭一家名為 PAL-V 的公司推出了一款 Liberty 飛行汽車，與之前的各種概念產品不一樣，這是一款已經取得了適航證並可以買到的產品。Liberty 的出生折騰了 20 年，1999 年團隊成員萌生想法，2006 年發表概念車，2012 年車輛定型並開始試飛，2017 年開始銷售，2018 年開始供貨。 在汽車模式下，其實說是三輪車更為恰當，蛋狀的外殼上，還背著兩個黑色的螺旋槳。等到要起飛的時候，兩個簡單的旋翼展開並鎖死，尾翼擺好，一副要上天的樣子，別以為這個 Pose 能瞬間擺好，Liberty 需要 5 分鐘才可以做好起飛準備，所以如果你正在開車的話，最好提前靠邊。注意，Liberty 並不是直升機，它的旋翼本身是不接通動力的，起飛靠的是機身後旋轉的螺旋槳向前推進，頭頂上的旋翼只是在被動旋轉，以提供升力。所以 Liberty 還是要助跑一段才能起飛的，因此它需要 180 公尺長的跑道，並保證有 200 公尺×100 公尺的安全空域才可以，如果你不幸堵在車陣中，保證飛不起來。 Liberty 的機身重量是 664 公斤，最大起飛重量是 910 公斤，車上只有兩個座位，如果都是壯漢的話，再加上不少燃油，其實就帶不了什麼東西了。整車一共有兩台引擎；路上跑的 100 馬力，最高時速能到 160km/h，因為整車油箱 100 升，這車能續航 1,300 公里；要是飛的話，另一台 200 馬力的引擎會接手，最高速度 180km/h，能堅持 500 公里；還有一個好消息是，這車用的是普通汽油。既然能飛，安全就很重要，Liberty 在介紹產品時費力展示了各種品質檢測的過程。 但是保養就不能按公里算了，那得按小時，飛行 25 小時之後就得首次保養，之後每 100 小時保養一次。開頭就說了這車已經可以買了，一共分兩個版本，PAL-V Liberty Pioneer Edition「先鋒版」和 PAL-V [...]
JCR: The Future of Skateboarding is Here! The world’s first genuine, intuitively-controlled electric skateboard. OVERVIEW: The JCR is a one-of-a-kind electric skateboard that offers the easiest and safest way to ride. Our team of designers and developers have created a unique, intuitively-controlled board that makes skateboarding fun without the anxiety of falling off. Anyone can [...]
協同日本精工、東洋電機合作，東京大學藤本博志教授成功開發出世界首例，行動間即可無線充電至發電機的電動車系統，已比一邊駕駛一邊「充電」的概念先進一步，有望進一步解決現有電動車單次充電行走距離有限、充電時間過久的問題。 其實許多國家正在積極開發一邊駕駛一邊充的無線充電電動車系統，像韓國 2013 年就開始運用在公車上，英國 2015 年完成了第一條電動車專用車道，而美國去年也在 66 號公路上開始鋪設太陽能板道路。那麼這次日本的系統是特別在哪裡呢？根據日本媒體 IT media 報導，這款「第 2 世代 Wireless IWM」系統有別於以往電動車單一發電機的設計，而是每個車輪都安裝了獨立的發電機與無線充電線圈，搭配無線充電路面的話，不是把電充進電池，而是直接向這些輪子旁的發電機充電！ 這麼做的好處有兩項：第一是可以再為電動車的驅動裝置減重約 30%-40%，第二則是可以減少傳統電動車「電池→發動機」這過程的能量耗損，同時達到延長電池壽命的效果。當然這系統也配上了電池，可實現電動車在減速期間就可回收能量，也讓車子不用擔心離開專用道路就不能充電的問題。 當然，電動車要全面取代燃油車還有一段不短的路要走。除了商業因素外，單次充電行走距離有限、充電設施不夠普及都是有待克服的地方，像 Tesla 的解方就採跟 Panasonic 合作，往電池體積更小、效能更高的方向前進，但這次東大思維很不一樣，用了翻轉電動車本體設計來解決這個難題。說不定在不久的將來，我們就能看到這種「四輪電驅」的電動車奔跑在台灣路面上呢。 出處:https://www.inside.com.tw/2017/04/07/tokyo-university-made-new-electric-vehicle
Fly home fast and tackle the toughest hills without breaking a sweat. Volta is packing a 40 mile range to get you where you need to be, quickly and easily – just like riding a bike. 40 miles on single charge From Palo Alto to San Francisco, from Brooklyn to the Bronx and back, with [...]
Honda’s new Riding Assist motorcycle model isn’t a shipping product yet, but it is an impressive technical demo. The concept at CES showed how it can help motorcycles maintain balance while traveling at low speed, something particularly tricky for even experienced drivers. Speeds between 2 and 3 mph actually prove among the most challenging in [...]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMBDUomv_Fo ssince controversial ‘hoverboards,’ first graced the markets, the misnomer of the design has made for an ironic distinction —they don’t actually hover.Now, Arca Space Corporation in New Mexico has developed an electronic flying vehicle that can hover over any terrain, including water. The design can hold up to 243 lbs and flies a foot [...]
Starship Technologies is leading the revolution in local delivery. By introducing smart, friendly robots that travel the sidewalks, Starship is aiming to ultimately make the local delivery of goods free. For the delivery of goods we’re doing what broadband did for the delivery of content. We call it the Broadband of Things. SELF-DRIVING DELIVERY ROBOT [...]
https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn28243-painting-bot-follows-your-eyes-to-create-art/ It’s no Picasso, but it’s a start. A robotic arm that can be controlled with your eyes has just painted its first picture: a simple image of a house, grass and the sun. Developed by Aldo Faisal of Imperial College London and his team, the system takes a different approach to that used for [...]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeX5VqerOP4 The picture at the top of this article almost definitely isn’t Verb’s new surgical robot. It’s Taurus, from SRI Robotics, which (according to a press release) “is licensing next-generation robotics technology to Verb Surgical that we believe will impact both the open and minimally invasive surgery markets and ultimately make the benefits of robotic [...]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6gai4SbRIU A 26-year-old man who is paralysed in both legs has walked for the first time in five years – just by thinking about it. He is the first person to have his brain activity recorded and used to control a muscle-stimulating device in his legs. Every year, 250,000 to 500,000 people worldwide suffer spinal [...]