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In-Wheel Engine, Throwable Thermal Camera, Sweat Powered Monitor w/ Ralph Bond

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Show Notes 8 November 2024

Story 1: China’s compact in-wheel engine promises 201 brake horsepower output, and enhanced EV range

Source: Interesting Engineering Story by Abhishek Bhardwaj

Link: https://interestingengineering.com/transportation/china-gac-in-wheel-engine-evs

A car chassis with wheels

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  • My comment – Wow, what a fascinating idea!  Put an electric motor at each wheel of a car!  Radically simplify the design of a vehicle!
  • Side note: 
    • What does brake horsepower mean? It’s a way to measure an engine’s power, specifically the engine’s output before any losses from the gearbox, alternator, differential, water pump, and other auxiliary components. Basically, it’s the raw power the engine produces before anything else gets factored in.
  • What does 201 bhp output mean? It stands for brake horsepower. This measures how much power an engine produces, and in this case, it’s 201 brake horsepower.
  • China’s Guangzhou Automobile Group has unveiled a new inline electric motor, also known as an in-wheel engine, that can revolutionize electric vehicles as we know them.
  • The main feature of the inline electric motor is that it can be fitted in the wheel of a car, and manufacturers can completely remove gear boxes, driveshafts, and other parts to make the drivetrain more compact.
  • The gamechanger can perform 30,000 revolutions per minute at top speed, which is much higher than the performance of electric motors used in EVs these days.
  • The motor is quite small, and it measures just 330 mm in diameter [13 inches approximately]. This increases the chance of it getting packed in all kinds and sizes of vehicle wheels.  And each motor has a weight of just 37 pounds (16.8 kg), which not only boosts performance but also helps in keeping the overall vehicle light.
  • The in-wheel engine’s increased efficiency, reduced weight, and the exclusion of gear box and other components can result in significant improvements in the performance of an EV vehicle.
  • The in-wheel engine can offer up to 31 miles (50 km) additional range to an EV, making them even more lucrative.

Story 2: Throwable thermal imaging: World’s 1st 360° ball-like camera for battlefield safety

Source: Interesting Engineering Story by Sujita Sinha

Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/throwable-thermal-imaging-world-s-1st-360-ball-like-camera-for-battlefield-safety/ar-AA1rkdYN?ocid=BingNewsSerp

See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgpPYOYkywo and here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nKQJHekS8U

Additional articles:

See also: https://bounceimaging.com/worlds-first-thermal-360-throwable-camera-revealed-at-ntoa/#:~:text=Bounce%20Imaging%20unveils%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20first%20360%C2%B0%20thermal

See also: https://thedefensepost.com/2024/09/26/bounce-imaging-throwable-camera/#:~:text=American%20tech%20firm%20Bounce%20Imaging%20has%20unveiled%20a,inertial%20measurement%20unit%20the%20size%20of%20a%20grapefruit

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The Pit Viper 360
  • American tech firm Bounce Imaging recently introduced the Pit Viper 360, a revolutionary panoramic tactical camera designed to safeguard soldiers in high-risk environments.
  • It is about the size of a grapefruit, with a diameter of approximately 4 inches (10 cm).
  • This throwable device will allow military personnel to collect critical intelligence from a safe distance, thereby minimizing their time in a danger zone.  My comment – so many other possible applications beyond military!
  • With its compact size, the Pit Viper 360 is the world’s first camera to combine six thermal imaging cores with an inertial measurement unit.
  • Side note: Inertial measurement refers to the process of using sensors to measure and track the motion and orientation of an object. These sensors typically include accelerometers, gyroscopes, and sometimes magnetometers.
  • Its robust design makes it suitable for various tactical missions, including hostage rescues and armed standoffs.
  • The Pit Viper 360 is built to be hurled across floors, rolled down stairs, or launched out of windows, hence presenting operators with views into dangerous spaces without being directly exposed.
  • Panoramic views are enabled using thermal imaging so that soldiers can see heat signatures from people or objects inside a room.
  • The pairing of these technologies enhances operator safety during military or law enforcement missions, particularly in environments that are hard to navigate or too dangerous for humans.

Story 3: Edible Electronics Advance: Toothpaste-Based Transistor Developed

Source: Science Blog Story from Italian Institute of Technology

Link: https://scienceblog.com/548049/edible-electronics-advance-toothpaste-based-transistor-developed/#:~:text=Researchers%20at%20the%20Istituto%20Italiano%20di%20Tecnologia%20have

A toothbrush and small bottles of toothpaste

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  • In a remarkable fusion of dental hygiene and cutting-edge technology, researchers at the Italian Institute of Technology in Milan have developed a transistor using a common toothpaste ingredient. This innovation marks a significant step forward in the field of edible electronics, with potential applications in health monitoring and smart pill technology.
  • The study, published in the journal Advanced Science, focuses on copper phthalocyanine, a blue pigment used as a whitening agent in many commercial toothpastes. This substance, which we unknowingly ingest daily, has proven to be a promising semiconductor for edible electronic devices.
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  • Copper phthalocyanine’s journey from toothpaste to transistor is rooted in its unique chemical structure. The pigment’s crystals facilitate charge conduction, making it an excellent semiconductor for organic electronics applications.
  • To create the edible transistor, the team integrated small amounts of copper phthalocyanine into an existing recipe for edible circuits. The device is built on an ethylcellulose substrate, with electrical contacts printed using inkjet technology and a solution of gold particles – a material already used in culinary decoration.
  • A key component of the transistor is its “gate,” made from an electrolytic gel based on chitosan, a food-grade gelling agent derived from crustacean shells. This design allows the transistor to operate at a low voltage of less than 1V, making it safe for potential in-body use.
  • Potential applications include:
    • Smart pills that can monitor health conditions from within the body
    • Ingestible sensors to track medication efficacy and adherence
    • Temporary electronic implants that dissolve after completing their function

Story 4: Finger wrap uses sweat to provide health monitoring at your fingertips – A sweat-powered wearable has the potential to make continuous, personalized health monitoring as effortless as wearing a Band-Aid.

Source: Science Daily Announcement by University of California, San Diego

Link: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/09/240903144927.htm#:~:text=Engineers%20at%20the%20University%20of%20California%20San%20Diego%20have

See also: https://interestingengineering.com/health/sweat-powered-finger-senso-tracks-health

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  • My comment – We’ve seen other wearable devices that generate energy from sweat.  This is a new twist.
  • Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed an electronic finger wrap that monitors vital chemical levels — such as glucose, vitamins, and even drugs — present in the same fingertip sweat from which it derives its energy.
  • The device, which wraps snugly around the finger, draws power from an unlikely source — the fingertip’s sweat. Fingertips, despite their small size, are among the body’s most prolific sweat producers, each packed with over a thousand sweat glands. 
  • These glands can produce 100 to 1000 times more sweat than most other areas of the body, even during rest. This constant trickle of natural perspiration — without any stimuli or physical activity — offers a reliable energy source, fueling the device even during periods of inactivity or sleep.
  • The device is constructed from several electronic components printed onto a thin, flexible and stretchable polymer material. Its design allows it to conform to the finger while being durable enough to withstand repeated bending, stretching and movement. 
  • One of the lead researchers noted, “It is based on a remarkable integration of energy harvesting and storage components, with multiple biosensors in a fluidic microchannel, along with the corresponding electronic controller, all at the fingertip.” 
  • Central to its operation are biofuel cells that are positioned where the device contacts the fingertip. These cells have been specially engineered to efficiently collect and convert chemicals in sweat into electricity. 
  • This electricity is stored in a pair of stretchable, silver chloride-zinc batteries, which power a suite of sensors — four in total — each tasked with monitoring a specific biomarker: glucose, vitamin C, lactate and levodopa, a drug used for treating Parkinson’s disease. 
  • As sweat is wicked through tiny paper microfluidic channels to these sensors, the device analyzes the biomarker levels, all while drawing energy it needs from the very sweat it is sampling. A small chip processes signals from the sensors and wirelessly transmits the data via Bluetooth low energy to a custom-designed smartphone or laptop application.

Honorable Mentions:

Story: Chinese researchers use solar power to extract lithium from seawater

Source: SAN.com Story by Jack Aylmer

Link: https://san.com/cc/chinese-researchers-use-solar-power-to-extract-lithium-from-seawater/#:~:text=The%20team%20of%20Chinese%20researchers%20created%20a%20solar

  • A team of Chinese researchers created a solar transpiration-powered lithium extraction and storage device that can pull lithium from seawater.
  • The solar-powered technology uses iron phosphate electrodes, which can capture and separate lithium ions from saltwater.
  • It is estimated that the world’s oceans contain around 230 billion tons of lithium, 16,000 times more than the reserves found on land.
  • However, extracting lithium this way is currently over 10 times more expensive than conventional methods, posing a significant financial barrier.
  • The Chinese researchers hope their innovation will reduce costs and make this method a viable alternative as global demand for lithium continues to rise.

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Story: Farmer develops revolutionary, solar-powered ‘E-Horse’ tractor technology 

Source: The Cool Down Story by Jon Turi

Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/farmer-develops-revolutionary-solar-powered-e-horse-tractor-technology-here-s-how-it-works/ar-AA1qJ52L

A blue and green tractor with green wheels

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  • A Dutch farmer has developed his own electric tractor in a quest to go emission-free, and it’s not just another pluggable electric design. 
  • The environment has been breathing a small sigh of relief lately as the heavy-duty equipment industry has begun to shift from dirty diesel engines to more sustainable electric models. From wheel loaders to compact rollers, rechargeable machines have been appearing on work sites, helping to reduce noise and air pollution.
  • However, Bastian van der Veen, a farmer in the Netherlands, decided that solar power was the way to go for his E-Horse tractor, as Future Farming reported. He took his concept to machine manufacturing company Boessenkool to create the final product. 
  • To make this solar-powered vehicle design viable, he focused on minimizing energy requirements, while keeping it lightweight and entirely electric. As a result, the E-Horse can put in a respectable six to eight hours of crop care tasks including hoeing, harrowing, and seeding.
  • There’s a 20-kilowatt-hour battery onboard the thin-framed tractor, as the report detailed, with eight solar panels on top to gather the sun’s energy, although it can accommodate up to 12. 
  • It has a maximum driving speed of eight miles per hour and a working speed of five, which helps reduce energy consumption. The E-Horse also offers four-wheel drive and four-wheel steering, although it relies mostly on the front wheels for minimal trajectory adjustments.  

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Story: Researchers are commercializing technology to turn waste into plastic-free, biodegradable packaging

Source: Phys.org Story by Anna Zarra Aldrich, University of Connecticut

Link: https://phys.org/news/2024-09-commercializing-technology-plastic-free-biodegradable.html#google_vignette

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  • Seafood is a major industry in New England. It generates a lot of revenue for coastal communities, but with that productivity can come a lot of waste.
  • Right now, that waste—things like crab and lobster shells—is just dumped into landfills where it decomposes slowly and releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
  • Researchers in New England have been looking at how that waste could be used to help rather than harm the environment.
  • Mingyu Qiao, assistant professor of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Department of Nutritional Sciences, and Yangchao Luo, associate professor of nutritional sciences, are two researchers in the University of Connecticut’s College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources investigating how seafood waste and algae can be used to produce plastic-free, biodegradable packaging.

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Story: Shape-Shifting Aircraft Could be Possible with New Titanium-Nickel Alloy

Source: Tomorrow’s World Today

Link: https://www.tomorrowsworldtoday.com/manufacturing/shape-shifting-aircraft-could-be-possible-with-new-titanium-nickel-alloy/#:~:text=Researchers%20at%20the%20National%20Institute%20of%20Materials%20Science

A white airplane in the sky

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  • Researchers at the National Institute of Materials Science in Japan have developed a highly flexible alloy that could be used to make shape-shifting aircraft or superstrong artificial muscles.
  • The alloy, comprised of titanium and nickel metals, has the strength of steel but the stretchiness of rubber under certain environmental conditions.
  • The challenge when creating this type of alloy is that strength and flexibility need to balance each other. Making an alloy more flexible would diminish its strength and vice versa. Therefore, while a flexible aircraft could deliver benefits for higher energy efficiency and faster transportation, that can’t come at the expense of passenger safety.
  • Previous research has shown that this type of alloy could stretch far higher than other metallic alloys and, when subjected to increased temperatures, return to its original form. The fact that this alloy could only remain flexible under specific temperatures, however, has presented a challenge to previous researchers.
  • A research team led by Xiaobing Ren, a professor at NIMS, devised a three-step procedure to make the alloy display these characteristics across a wide range of temperatures. The researchers began by deforming the alloy and elongating it by over 50 percent.
  • Next, they heated it to 572 Fahrenheit (300 degrees Centigrade) before elongating it again. Finally, the researchers elongated the alloy by only 12 percent.
  • By the end of the process, the material could withstand pressure about 18,000 times greater than normal atmospheric pressure. The strength performance of the material is comparable to steel but with 20 times more flexibility, and it can achieve this flexibility under temperatures ranging from minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit to 176 degrees Fahrenheit.
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