Self-cleaning
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Samsung's robotic vacuum takes Amazon Echo voice commands
Samsung has revealed Powerbot VR7000, a robotic vacuum you can control with your Amazon Echo. The company says that, in fact, all of its WiFi-enabled Powerbot vacuums will work with Alexa, including, presumably, current connected models like the Powerbot WiFi. It didn't say what you can command your bots to do, but the Neato Botvac (which beat Samsung to the punch by adding an Alexa "Skill" last month) basically just lets you start and stop cleaning.
Nissan's dirt-phobic paint keeps a car spotless for the duration of a PR video
For some people, washing the car is a calming pastime that induces feelings of satisfaction and fresh beginnings. For everyone else, there's this: Super-hydrophobic and aleophobic paint, which repels water and some oil-based liquids, and which Nissan is currently trialing on one of its cars in Europe. The video below shows what happened to a car that was taken for a messy drive with half of the body coated with the new stuff ("Ultra-Ever Dry") and the other half with regular Dulux (or whatever it is they use these days). The results speak for themselves, but they don't say anything about how long this self-cleaning ability actually lasts. In industrial applications, where a version of the paint is already being used, it's easily rubbed off and rarely survives longer than a year. Nevertheless, Nissan says it's evaluating Ultra-Ever Dry's viability and hopes to offer it as an aftermarket option on a future model -- at which point it might also make sense to splash out on a self-cleaning windshield, headlights, dash system, and door handles.
Patent app shows Roombas pooping on potties, being big boys
Roomba vacuums tend to be pretty self-sufficient, cleaning floors, committing burglaries, and even making futile attempts at communication. Cleaning themselves, however, is something they cannot do, but that may change if a recently unearthed 2007 patent application filed by iRobot ever results in an actual product. The app shows a variety of designs for docks that would either suck the detritus right out of your little guy or replace its dirt cartridge altogether, strip any wound-up hair from its brushes, and then send it back on its way to give your cat a lift to is litter box. No word on whether iRobot has something based on these designs anywhere near production-ready, but we wouldn't recommend giving away that robot changing table.
Nanotech polyester fabric never gets wet, brings back the leisure suit in a big way
Researchers at the University of Zurich have combined the stylish, debonair appeal of polyester with the cutting edge science of nanotechnology to create a material that just cannot get wet. When coated with millions of 40nm-wide silicone nanofilaments, the hydrophobic polyester is protected by a layer of air that prevents water from making contact with the fibers beneath. Since water never makes it to the material, it can be submerged for two months and still remain dry to the touch. According to scientists, nano-polyester could be used to make swimwear with low water resistance and self-cleaning clothes. And who knows? It just might herald the return of wide lapels, bell bottoms or even (and we admit, this one's a long shot) Tony Orlando & Dawn. Our fingers are crossed!
New coating may lead to fog- and dirt-free windshields
If you're like us and haven't washed your car since, like, ever, you're probably used to the windshield getting all fogged up (not in the good, make out point way, however) and habitually swiping at the glass with your sleeve while swerving between lanes and praying that your airbag still works. Well thanks to a new coating developed by researchers at Purdue University, your dangerous driving habits may soon be a thing of the past (well, except for those occasions when you're texting your buddies while eating a cheeseburger and fiddling with the radio), as this material has the unique ability to both prevent the formation of water droplets (no more fog!) as well as cause oil-based substances to bead up for easy cleaning (no more road grime!). The science behind this breakthrough is a little boring (i.e. we don't really understand it), but it seems that by covalently bonding a DuPont substance known as Zonyl FSN-100 to ordinary glass, the component polymers are able to change shape and react differently depending on the chemicals they come into contact with. After figuring out a way to apply the coating cheaply through spray or roll-on techniques, the next step for the Boilermakers will be to coax the material into repelling other nasty substances, making it suitable for use on the gadgets and glasses we geeks hold so dear.
