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Panasonic details radar-based technology that can detect collisions in low light
Collision detection for cars? Yeah, scientists are on that. But whenever we read about concepts like this, the accompanying literature is often curiously light on details pertaining to real-life driving conditions; it's often unclear how well the tech will fare if you dredge it up on a foggy day, or in the middle of torrential storm. But in that press release you see down there, low visibility and poorly lit roads are all Panasonic wants to talk about. The company just unveiled its new crash-avoidance system, which, like other concepts we've seen, uses millimeter-wave radar technology to detect pedestrians and bicyclists. Since humans tend to reflect weaker radar signals than cars, Panasonic has designed a new pulse radar code sequence that allows pedestrians to leave a bigger footprint. It's so effective, the company claims, that it can detect bystanders up to 40 meters (131 feet) away, and will work at night and through rain, fog, snow and blinding sunlight. That all sounds promising, of course, but as with other concepts, it's not clear, when, exactly we'll see this system put to good use in the real world.
Headphone-wearing pedestrian injuries triple as audiophiles stop noticing onrushing trains
The number of pedestrians injured or killed while wearing headphones has tripled in the last six years: 16 oblivious PMP users were offed in 2004, the number rising to 47 for last year. The research, carried out by Dr Richard Lichenstein at the University of Maryland found that headphone wearers became "inattentionally blind" to dangers such as passing cars and on-rushing trains. That's not us being flip either: 55 percent of the incidents involved locomotives. The majority of victims were male (68 percent) and under the age of 30 (67 percent): which puts your average Engadget reader in the center of the danger zone -- take it from us guys: sometimes it's better to press pause, "Baby, baby" will still be there when you've crossed the railway.
Auto-insurance researchers: 'Cell phone bans don't help reduce crashes'
All those fancy in-car docks and voice navigation? Utterly pointless. At least according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, who reckons that it's not the phone that's the issue, but "the full spectrum of things that distract." The IIHS (funded by a group of car insurers) compared crash data between states that had instituted cell phone bans and those that hadn't. According to its research, while the ban had reduced phone use (whoa, really?), it hadn't helped reduce crash rates. The National Transportation Safety Board has presented several studies linking cell phone use to an increased chance of crashing and their latest proposals would ban most hands-free systems found in major car makers' vehicles today. Hear that? That was the sound of hundreds of third-party accessory manufacturers recoiling in horror.
Explosion at Apple supplier injures 57 workers
The welfare of Chinese workers is back in the spotlight after an explosion at Shanghai-based Riteng Computer Accessory Company left 23 people in hospital with burns and another 34 with more minor injuries. Local government officials said the explosion happened on Saturday afternoon at a workshop on the fourth floor of the facility. Riteng is a subsidiary supplier to Pegatron Corp and the Chinese newspaper Yi Cai Daily reported it was in the middle of trial production of aluminum iPad 2 back panels. A separate explosion at a Foxconn factory back in Spring was attributed to poor extraction of combustible aluminum dust.
Hangame MMO accidentally deleted, shut down forever
There's a good chance you've never heard of M2, a small free-to-play MMO developed by Japanese company Sankando and operated by Hangame, and if it wasn't for a major misstep last month, your ignorance might've gone on indefinitely. Due to a recent accident, the MMO was deleted and won't be coming back. Ever. The story goes like this: On October 21st, M2 suffered a critical server issue and the game was taken offline to check it out. Unfortunately, the problem was widespread and the company could not restore the game's data from whatever backups it did or did not have. With no other option but to declare the title dead on arrival, Hangame posted an announcement that it somehow deleted an entire MMO and could not -- or would not -- restart it from scratch. Hangame has since apologized and is offering conditional refunds to affected players, who were undoubtedly miffed when the money they spent on M2's microtransactions went poof during one October night.
The Daily Grind: What was your worst mistype?
It happens. Sometimes it's a typo. Sometimes you forget what chat channel you're in. And sometimes you really meant to hit the button for a reply, but you wound up announcing intensely personal details into the guild chat channel, which is followed by the awkward pause that inevitably ends only when one of your guildmates asks whether you're seeing a doctor about that rash. Of course, sometimes it's not merely a matter of laughter or a bit of personal shame. Sometimes you're having a serious discussion about guild officers, one you weren't quite ready to broadcast. Or dropping a word or two changes the entire meaning of what you said, so that your guild is left wondering why you just said someone is a complete idiot because you left out the "not." And sometimes it's just plain gibberish. Given enough time in MMOs, you're going to acquire quite a history of typos and incorrectly sent messages. So what was your worst mistype? Was it a case that incited some terrible drama, or was it just the sort of thing for which people still mock you due to the severe shame? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Blast at Intel's Arizona plant injures seven, investigation under way
Yesterday afternoon, a blast occurred at Intel's Arizona plant just outside Phoenix, injuring seven people with one suffering from severe burns. According to Phoenix Business Journal, the incident took place in a solvent waste treatment room at Fab 22 -- not far from Fab 32 which will be manufacturing 22nm chips -- but Intel Vice President Josh Walden assured us that "there was no damage or release of chemicals to the community," and production has already resumed in both facilities. The company is currently looking into the possible causes of this accident -- you'll know it when we have an update, and we wish the victims a quick recovery. [Image courtesy of neepster]
White Ninja crashes car into Greensboro, NC Apple store
A man reportedly dressed in a hooded white "ninja" outfit crashed his car into the Apple store in Greensboro, North Carolina. The accident occurred early Friday morning before the store was open. Witnesses who saw the accident claim that one man abandoned the car and fled the scene without taking any merchandise. Details are sparse, but the police believe this was a burglary attempt and not a random accident. Until employees can clean things up, the store at the Friendly Center will be closed for business. [Image from 107.5 KZL]
Foxconn plant reopens, resumes operations following explosion
Foxconn confirmed today that its manufacturing plant in Chengdu, China has reopened and resumed operations following an explosion in its iPad 2 production facility last month that killed three employees and left others in hospital. The company has also announced that while its investigation into the incident is "ongoing," it has already addressed the preliminary finding that the explosion was "likely due to an explosion of aluminum dust in a ventilation duct." To that end, it says it has put in place "improvements in workshop ventilation," as well as a "a total revamping of the policies and practices related to the disposal of that dust." All Things D has the company's complete statement at the link below.
Foxconn confirms third death from explosion, earlier watchdog report points at aluminum dust (updated)
Following the tragic explosion at Foxconn's Chengdu plant on Friday, the company has now confirmed to All Things Digital the death of a third employee, with nine remaining in hospital. While investigation is still ongoing, initial findings are pointing at "an explosion of combustible dust in a duct" at one of the polishing workshops, which supports earlier rumors of dust explosion; though there's no confirmation on what caused the ignition just yet. In related news: two weeks before the fatal accident, watchdog group SACOM released a report on the welfare of workers at the new Chengdu plant. Amongst the uncovering of management issues, excessive working hours, and hazardous environment, PC World highlights complaints from workers about the large amount of aluminum dust -- which is highly explosive -- floating around the polishing department, thus suggesting a lack of proper dust extraction methods within the facility. Foxconn has previously slammed this report, but the outcome of this explosion's investigation should once and for all prove who's telling the truth. For now, though, the priority is to make sure the victims and their families are taken care of. Full statement from Foxconn after the break. Update: According to China Times' industry sources, the explosion has only affected some storage facilities and chemical coating lines, though Foxconn president Terry Gou is said to be reallocating some production to his Shenzhen plant as a just-in-case measure.
Continental readies stereo camera system for 'seeing' cars
The idea of cars preventing accidents before they happen isn't novel, but at the end of the day, collision detection systems are only as smart as the information being fed to them. That's the ethos behind Continental's new stereo camera system, which spots people, pets, and other objects in a vehicle's path, and measures their height, distance from the vehicle, and how they might be moving. This rig, which will be just another part of Continental's ContiGuard safety system, uses the difference in the lenses' optical paths to make these calculations -- so long as those obstacles are 20 to 30 meters (66 to 98 feet) away. The company also says the cameras are sharp enough to detect partially obscured objects, and claims accuracy within 20 to 30 centimeters (8 to 12 inches). No word on when it will be ready to ship seeing cars, though if the press release is any indication, German drivers are likely to get their test drive first.
Elderly Georgian lady disconnects Armenian internet for half a day... by accident
A 75-year old lady from Georgia (the country, not the state) has perpetrated an impressive feat of international sabotage in what seems to have been an accident of extremely bad luck. While foraging for copper wire near her home in the village of Ksani, the unnamed septuagenarian managed to come across a critical fiber optic cable, one responsible for serving internet connectivity to "90 percent of private and corporate internet users in Armenia" and some in her own country as well. Her swift strike at the heart of said bit-transferring pipeline resulted in all those folks being thrown offline for a solid 12 hours, while the Georgian Railway Telecom worked to find and correct the fault. In spite of her relatively benign motivations, the lady now faces three years in prison for the damage she caused. We'd say all's well that ends well, but this doesn't actually seem like a very happy ending at all.
Visualized: Overturned ink-carrying tractor-trailer paints the town red... literally
What you're looking at in the psychedelic photograph above is the result of an overturned tractor-trailer in Peabody, Massachusetts that was carrying a load of -- you guessed it -- printer ink. Fortunately the spillage isn't believed to cause any environmental damage, but unfortunately you can't just take your empty cartridges down to Peabody for a quick fill-up. No word on how this may affect HP's bottom line, but since the markup on ink is absurd, we're sure they'll have enough dough to cover the loss. Bonus shot after the break. [Image: Boston.com]
Ouch! Accident at Berkeley Apple Store construction site closes two businesses
Two walls have partially collapsed at the construction site for Apple's new Berkeley store, forcing two neighboring businesses to temporarily close. There was "A very large bang" at about 9:50 AM on the morning of February 22, according to George Kiskaddon, a partner at the book store Builders Booksource (located next door to the new Apple store). "One wall has been left leaning and bowing into the next door building," he said. Site workers were apparently digging new foundations on the site of the former Slater Marinoff building when two of the remaining free-standing walls suddenly sank about four feet into the ground. Fire officers evacuated the neighboring buildings as soon as they arrived as a precautionary measure. "There were no injuries," said Assistant Chief Sabina Imrie of the Berkely fire department, adding that the suspicion is that recent rain may have made the walls' foundations unstable.
iPhone 4 glass spawns class action lawsuit
Apple faces a class action lawsuit from California resident Donald LeBuhn over the glass used in the company's popular iPhone 4 handset. LeBuhn accuses Apple of misleading customers by pointing to Apple's website, which boasts that the glass used on the iPhone 4 is "20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic." LeBuhn disputes this and other claims of durability in his lawsuit, which states: "Months after selling millions of iPhone 4s, Apple has failed to warn and continues to sell this product with no warning to customers that the glass housing is defective." LeBuhn asserts the glass does not stand up to normal use and cites his own experiences to back up this claim. On two separate occasions, LeBuhn has dropped his iPhone from similar heights. In the first incident, he dropped an iPhone 3GS, which survived the fall without breaking. In the second case, LeBuhn's daughter dropped an iPhone 4 while texting, and the handset's glass shattered. LeBuhn has sought class action status on this complaint and is asking Apple to refund the purchase price of the iPhone 4 and reimburse any repair fees for affected customers. This is not the first time the durability of the glass in the iPhone has been questioned. A report last year from Square Trade suggests the iPhone 4 has a 68% higher reported accident rate and 82% more damaged screens than the iPhone 3GS. That's not to say the iPhone 3G or 3GS wont break. One of our own writers cracked the glass screen on his iPhone 3G and detailed the process of screen replacement and repair. [Via IntoMobile]
Man with bionic arms dies after car crash
Otto Bock's mind-controlled bionic arms let Austria's Christian Kandlbauer work, play and even drive, but it seems the latter passion may have lead to the 22-year-old's untimely demise. Two days after a road accident where the young man's specially-modified Subaru crashed into a tree, Kandlbauer was pronounced brain-dead and taken off life support late last week. It's not known whether the prosthetic arms themselves had anything to do with the crash -- one was found ripped from his body at the scene -- but both he and his vehicle were cleared to drive by local authorities after passing a number of tests. Honestly, it's a tragedy for science and humanity either way.
Report: iPhone 4 "more prone to physical damage"
SquareTrade, a company that provides extended warranties for iPhones, is reporting that the iPhone 4 is "more prone to physical damage" than the iPhone 3GS, according to the warranty company's iPhone reliability report. In the report, SquareTrade compared over 20,000 iPhone 4 claims, from the first four months of its release, to the equivalent for the iPhone 3GS. They found that the overall reported accident rate for the iPhone 4 is 68% higher than the 3GS, and that iPhone 4 users reported 82% more damaged screens than the 3GS. The report goes on to say that "the aluminosilicate glass seems to crack at least as often as the old [3GS] glass, and there is now twice as much surface area to break," despite Apple claiming that the glass used in the iPhone 4 is 30 times harder than plastic, according to its website. However, SqaureTrade's report says that accident rates need to be taken into perspective, and that overall, the iPhone has a much lower non-accident malfunction rate than compared with most other consumer electronics. SquareTrade also notes that in its last smartphone reliability study, it found the iPhone to be "far more reliable" than Blackberry and Palm Treo phones, though, this was compiled in November 2008. Having just received my iPhone 4, I'm debating whether to get a case for it or not. I did purchase a highly rated case for my 3G, but it was more of a hassle than its worth, especially since I was particularly careful with the phone. I guess it boils down to how well you look after you gadgets. Nevertheless, accidents do happen. You can download a PDF of SquareTrade's report here. [via International Business Times]
Are higher iPhone 4 accident rates really something to worry about?
A report that surfaced from SquareTrade a couple days ago claims that accident rates are higher on the iPhone 4 than its 3GS sibling. SquareTrade says that in the first four months of the iPhone 4 being out in the wild, there is an 82 6 percent increase in reported broken screens over the rate on the 3GS. Thing is, SquareTrade counts the back of the iPhone as a screen, not just the front display, and reports that broken glass on the back of the iPhone accounts for 25 percent of the issues they've run into. One thing to take with a large grain of salt -- SquareTrade makes its living by selling warranties. It culled its numbers not from AppleCare, but the company's own warranties that it sells. Far more iPhone 4 users most likely have AppleCare or no extended warranty at all on their iPhone and this study, which has grabbed a good bit of media coverage, seems to have been created to sell more of SquareTrade's warranties. There was also a pent-up demand for the iPhone 4 as evidenced by the numbers sold compared to those for the 3GS. Many people, myself included, waited to upgrade from the original iPhone or iPhone 3G and never got a 3GS. The phones are also constructed differently. So, take double the amount of glass in a phone, add the fact that there are more phones out there, and you're going to have more accidents. Read through the report and make your own decision. If you're still worried, slap a good case on your iPhone and don't use it as a hockey puck or bottle opener. [Via MacObserver]
Segway Inc. owner rides over cliff to his death
UK businessman Jimi Heselden, the man who believed in the Segway so much that he went ahead and bought the company, has died after reportedly driving a ruggedized version of the scooter off a cliff and into a river. He was found early on Sunday morning in the River Wharfe, having earlier been touring his estate in the personal transporter. The cause of the accident is not yet known. Mr. Heselden was 62 years old and, true to our geeky hearts, generated his fortune by coming up with an innovative design for wire cage walls that has since become standard equipment for NATO, American, and British forces. Our thoughts are with the good gent's family, and please, behave yourselves in comments. [Thanks, David]
Optical illusion lets you safely run over fake children
Traffic: it's one of our least favorite things in the universe, especially when it's caused by rubbernecking. A Canadian organization called Preventable has taken a bizarrely proactive twist on the motorist's compulsion to stare at accidents by putting the "accident" in front of the car. Drivers on 22nd Street in West Vancouver approach a large decal on the road that takes on the image of a little girl chasing a ball -- it becomes realistic-looking about 100 feet out -- hopefully causing them to be so weirded out that they slow down and think about it for a second. Of course, it's hard to tell whether this will do more good than harm in practice (also see: Road SMS), so the decal is just in place for one week as officials observe changes in driver behavior around the little lady. Check out a test drive after the break.