Kongtechnology.com

Kongtechnology.com

Autonomous Quadroters; Building Our Way to the Future

Posted: 26 Jan 2011 06:57 PM PST

Autonomous robots certainly aren’t a brand new technology, but I think it gets a little more interesting when these robots start to be able to build things, not just preform tasks.

The University of Pennsylvania GRASP Labs are the genius minds that are responsible for these Quadroters that are able to construct simple structures. They are able to lift these pretty heavy building blocks and place them into various precise positions to build something. Sure these structures are seemingly rudimentary, but I can imagine a day when these little bots are able to build houses.

In order to get the Quadroters constructing, the team fitted them with a special gripper in order to lift parts, and the parts have magnets that enable them to be put together.

Watch the video to see the Quadroters in action.

The Quadroters are able to work together in unison in their construction work.

Maybe one day there will be larger sized robots like these that are capable of constructing buildings and even skyscrapers. For now though, these Quadroters just reminds me of a hive of bees or wasps working together. Quite an eerie sight, if you ask me. They even sound like a hive of these bugs…

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>>  at 07:21 |  add a comment  | 

Kongtechnology.com

Kongtechnology.com

Real-Time Speech Translation with Google Translate for Android

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 03:05 AM PST

Here’s another translation app for you guys, and this time it’s with a twist. Remember the iphone app Wordlens that does real-time translation of text? Well, Google has taken that a step further and has added a feature on Google Translate in translating speech in real-time.

Check out the video demo here.

Like Wordlens, Conversation Mode is only currently available in translations between Spanish and English (and vice versa). Utilisation of this mode is as easy as just pressing a key when the language is being spoken. It translates what you are saying on the fly and reads it aloud for your conversation partner. Your partner can then respond in their language and you’ll hear the translation spoken back to you.

And here’s a user video of the application.

So far the feature is in its early experimental stages, with its speech recognition still a little rough on the edges. Also, factors like regional accents, background noise or rapid speech may make it difficult to understand what is being said.

Nevertheless, this is some very interesting technology that is being developed on the translations of languages. It’s almost as if the universal translators that we have seen in science-fiction are right now coming to life right in front of us. It would be great to see (and hear) translations of languages like Chinese and Korean through this application.

Google Translate supports 53 languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish, and voice input for 15 languages. You can download the application, available for devices running Android 2.1 and above.

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>>  at 07:32 |  add a comment  | 

Kongtechnology.com

Kongtechnology.com

DIY Briefcase opens at the Right GPS Coordinates

Posted: 12 Jan 2011 01:26 AM PST

I’m always amazed by the sheer ingenuity some people have for making things out of scratch, and this case is certainly something that falls into that category.

Here’s a nifty little case made by Arduino Forum member RickP, that can only be unlocked when it is at the correct GPS coordinates that have been programmed onto the case. He uses an Arduino, a GPS sensor, and a trio of nixie tubes, which indicate the box’s distance from that special spot. When the button is pressed in that spot, a servo motor unlatches the lid.

As the nixie tubes draw a lot of power, Rick has powered the case with 4 D-cell batteries and estimates that the case can do 600 GPS fixes before they run out. The power to the case is connected by a latching relay, which allows the Arduino to shut the power off after the GPS fix has been attained and distance has been displayed.

Rick refers to the case as a reverse geocache (because that is just what it is) and it is made out of a metal medical box from the French army and Ikea door handles.

As interesting as the case is, I have to say I do express some doubts as to being able to bring the case along on a trip, especially onto a flight. Personally, I just loved that he used nixie tubes in the design, as I’ve always been fascinated by those home-made nixie tube clocks.

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Kongtechnology.com

Kongtechnology.com

Legocamera automatic pinhole camera of Lego Mindstorms

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 07:52 PM PST

Pinhole cameras can be made from pretty much anything, and you could make pretty much anything out of Lego Mindstorms. So it comes as pretty much a no-brainer when someone did combine the two. This is the brainchild of Basil Shikin, who has created the Legocamera, a fully automatic pinhole camera built of Lego Mindstorms.

A basic pinhole camera involves some photographic paper taped onto the back of a light-fast container, with a tiny hole pricked on the opposite side of the container. The Legocamera operates under the same basic principle with a little add-on that automates it.

Made with the programmable Lego Mindstorms, the fully automatic pinhole camera is able to wind the film and control the shutter all on its own. The Legocamera even has a user interface that gives you all the information you need to know about the camera: what is current light sensor reading, how many snapshots are left, what is the current operation, etc.

View the video here to see the automated camera in action.

There are two parts that make up the automatic camera and that is the camera body itself, which is the housing that holds the film inside it and is light-fast, and the external module that automates the camera.

Here are two of the photos that have been taken using the Legocamera:

Lego Mindstorms is a line of educational toys that can be used to create programmable robotics.

This certainly proves that legos are much more than just a child’s toy. I’m amazed every time I read about these crazy lego constructions. I wonder what else will people think up of next.

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>>  at 07:09 |  add a comment  | 
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