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DARPA's crowdsourced UAV competition heats up, takes off (video)
Late last year, DARPA launched UAVForge -- a competition that invites contestants to create their very own unmanned aerial vehicles, and submit them for voter-based evaluation. The project is far from over, but competing teams have already started sending in their proof-of-flight videos, giving us a glimpse of what's to come. So far, it looks like the GremLion UAV (pictured above) is the early favorite, after coming out victorious in the first round of voting. Developed by a team from the National University of Singapore, the GremLion looks like a bite-sized Death Star and flies around using a coaxial set of rotors that expand tulip-style out of its shell. Also included in the UAVForge showdown is a guy known as X-MAUS -- an Arduino-controlled quadcopter that can apparently transform into a more aerodynamic plane form upon liftoff. And, rounding out the list of notables is a submission from TU Delft known as the QuadShot, which is basically a miniature B-Wing from Star Wars. Except it's real. Hit up the break to see all three in action.
Megaframe Imager takes its one million frames-per-second capabilities to the medical world
The iconic Megaframe Imager has been kicking for a good while now, but gurus have been scratching their heads in an effort to figure out how to best take advantage of a sensor that can capture one million frames per second. A European consortium made up of the NPL, ST Microelectronics, the University of Edinburgh, and TU Delft have something in mind, and not surprisingly, it's in the medical realm. Researchers are currently looking to use this here device in "cellular / sub-cellular imaging; neural imaging; biochemical sensors; DNA / protein microarray scanning; automotive collision studies; and high-sensitivity astronomical observations," and for the first time, tests are proving that it could be a vital tool in the future of biosensing. Tangled in technobabble? Here's the long and short of it: a crew has demonstrated "detection of viral DNA binding events using fluorescence lifetime imaging at the very low target concentrations relevant in biosensing applications with acquisition times of less than 30 seconds," something that should be useful in disease screening, mutation and forensic analysis. So much for escaping the jargon, huh?
NEMS takes step forward, MEMS looking nervously over shoulder
Just as it's starting to seem like MEMS motion sensor technology is gaining more widespread use, we're now hearing rumblings of activity from the developers of its eventual successor: NEMS (Nano-Electro-Mechanical Systems). To contextualize this discussion (and to give laypeople a shot at understanding), MEMS sensors are the magic behind the Wii MotionPlus as well as a stunning tech demo recently conducted on a Toshiba TG01. The nascent nano version promises even greater sensitivity, and now scientists from TU Delft in the Netherlands claim they have successfully measured the influence of a single electron on an 800nm-long carbon nanowire. Just detecting such an event is a feat in itself, while the ability to measure its effects can be used in a huge range of ways: from transportation and medicine to ultra-sensitive gaming controllers. While accurate comparisons between the Dutch breakthrough and current generation sensors cannot yet be drawn, we can confidently say that this marks an important step toward making our dreams of playing a nanoscale piano a gargantuan reality.
Flame is the world's most advanced -- and Dutch -- walking robot
Walking robots never cease to amaze, but "Flame" from TU Delft PhD student Daan Hobbelen is what we like to call a mega breakthrough. By mimicking the way that humans actually fall forward when walking, this robot comes insanely close to the real thing. Usually, walking robots are energy-hungry propositions, but this is the first that's both efficient and stable. Inside Flame are seven motors and a balance "organ" loaded with stability algorithms. By measuring each step, the robot adjusts stance width, speed, and gait on the go. In the end, kids, we're looking at the world's most advanced and efficient walking robot. If you want to see this thing in action, head on over the read link where you can download a .wmv.
