Electronic-Geek.com » Transportation

Jetpack + Skis, A Bond Prop or Maker Project?

John Baichtal — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:59:54 +0000

Troy Hartman was building a jetpack that he planned to use to fly out of an airplane at 8000 feet. But before leaping from a plane into thin air, he had a great idea: Why not test it out on skis first? Hartman tells PM how his jetpack ski test worked, how fast he went, and just how close the 1500-degree flames came to toasting his rear end.

[Via PopMech]

Visualized: Schumacher’s F1 racing Mercedes, exploded drawing style

Laura June — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 08:37:00 +0000

Even if you're not into race cars, well, you can appreciate the museum-quality beauty of this, can you not? Hit the source for more photos.

Visualized: Schumacher's F1 racing Mercedes, exploded drawing style originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Mar 2011 04:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EADS’s Airbike is a 3D-printed nylon bicycle, actually looks rather decent

Richard Lai — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 18:50:00 +0000

We've seen plenty of neat 3D printing products over the last year or so, though none are as impressive as this bicycle in terms of scale. Unveiled by EADS (European Aerospace and Defence Group), the Airbike is "grown" with nylon powder using a process called additive layer manufacturing, which is similar to 3D printing but with the added benefit of laser-sintering to reinforce the structure. This way the parts can save up to 65 percent in weight while retaining the same strength (of steel or aluminum in this case), and apparently Airbus was quick to pick up this technology well before everyone else (hence named Airbike, in its honor). It's all well and good, except EADS does say there's still some way to go before we can print our own custom Harley-Davidson bikes without breaking our banks. Shame -- as with many things in life, we'll just have to wait.

EADS's Airbike is a 3D-printed nylon bicycle, actually looks rather decent originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pssst. Hey, Buddy, Wanna Buy a Space Shuttle?

Sean Michael Ragan — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:02:12 +0000

Or maybe the right metaphor is a used car salesman on late-night TV: “Come on down to Crazy Bolden’s! [Flings money in air] We’re givin’ em away!”

Because, in point of fact, they are. Not counting tax, title, and license, of course, which in the Space Shuttle’s case amount to some $28 million. When Discovery returns from its final mission today, some 21 museums will be waiting in the wings to see which will become the lucky custodian of Orbital Vehicle 103, artifact. Atlantis and Endeavour (OVs 4 and 5, respectively) are also up for grabs. Contending institutions include the Johnson Space Center in Houston, the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum in Manhattan, Seattle’s Museum of Flight, Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, and the Smithsonian. More details and used-car metaphors at The New York Times.

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Transportation secretary Ray LaHood: no restrictions (yet) on in-car information

Darren Murph — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 13:54:00 +0000

Worried that the fancy-schmancy SYNC system you just ordered up in your Mustang will soon be outlawed? Fret not, speed demon. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will reportedly not push for restrictions on handsfree phones or in-car technology until "the government conducts further research." There are generally two prevailing trains of thought: one feels that any type of calling -- be it handsfree or otherwise -- is a terrible distraction to the driver, while the other feels that properly integrated technology is safe enough for use on the road. As the story goes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently investigating whether systems like SYNC post a "cognitive distraction," while some automakers suggest that motorists are going to goof off with their phone anyway -- might as well make it as safe as possible for 'em. Of course, things could change in short order once this so-called "research" gets finalized, but for now, feel free to request that your OnStar system read on to the next post. Your OnStar system can read Engadget, right?

Transportation secretary Ray LaHood: no restrictions (yet) on in-car information originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 09:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink emgCarTech | The Detroit News | Email this | Comments

Toner Transfer Etched Custom Car Audio Panel

Sean Michael Ragan — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 14:02:47 +0000

Great looking results from the very accessible process of toner transfer galvanic etching, by Rab. [via Hacked Gadgets]

Boeing’s new unmanned X-37B launches into orbit, won’t come home until it finds Major Tom

Sam Sheffer — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 06:01:00 +0000

Model X-37B might look familiar to you -- it was the name of an autonomous space vehicle that took flight just about a year ago, orbited for a whopping eight months, and then successfully returned to our planet all by itself. Now a new version of the X-37B has blasted off to hang outside of the atmosphere for a while. The spacecraft left Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 41 down in Florida and hurtled to a low-Earth orbit with help of a Atlas V rocket. Boeing isn't saying exactly what it's doing up there, but we suspect this spaceship knows which way to go.

Continue reading Boeing's new unmanned X-37B launches into orbit, won't come home until it finds Major Tom

Boeing's new unmanned X-37B launches into orbit, won't come home until it finds Major Tom originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 02:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GaugeFace iPhone dock displays your Harley’s data on a 3.5-inch touchscreen

Joseph L. Flatley — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 17:06:00 +0000

GaugeFace is an app-and-dock combo that interfaces with your Harley's ECU (Engine Control Unit) to display the bike's speed, tachometer, engine temp., gear, and turn signal info on your iPhone or iPod touch. And the installation is almost as easy as setting your phone in a charging cradle. So, what do you think? Ready to turn your late-model motorcycle into an overpriced -- yet totally bad-ass -- iPod dock? Available for an MSRP of $250. See it in action after the break, or it the source link to order up one of these bad boys for yourself.

Continue reading GaugeFace iPhone dock displays your Harley's data on a 3.5-inch touchscreen

GaugeFace iPhone dock displays your Harley's data on a 3.5-inch touchscreen originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 13:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gallery of spherical cockpit panoramas

Thehoboprince — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 21:04:56 +0000

The field of panoramic photography needs some better terminology, IMHO: "360-degree panorama," it seems to me, could just as easily apply to a circular panorama of, say, the horizon, as it could to a fully spherical panorama that also includes up, down, and every other direction in space you could possibly look from a particular point. Or maybe the term is already out there and I just couldn't figure it out? If you're in the know, please share below.

Anyway! 360 Cities has a beautiful gallery of 14 fully-spherical panoramas of various airplane and helicopter cockpits. I think my favorite so far, if only because it activates my 1980s Cold War nostalgia gland, is the Mi-24D "Hind" attack helicopter cockpit. [via Boing Boing]

Brooklyn bus riders get real-time bus tracking via cellphone

Donald Melanson — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 16:50:00 +0000

New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority launched a pilot program a few months back that offered bus riders some real-time tracking information, but it's now expanded things with a whole new program on the B63 route in Brooklyn. That service is currently accessible via a mobile-friendly website or text message, and smartphone users can also scan simply snap a picture of a barcode (presumably a QR code) at a bus stop to immediately check in on the location of the next five buses that will arrive at the stop. What's more, unlike the previous program, this new system is based on an open source platform developed with the help of OpenPlans, and the MTA is actually encouraging developers to dig into the API and develop their own solutions -- which could certainly get interesting as the program is expanded across the city (the Staten Island bus line is next up). Head on past the break for the MTA's press release, and hit up the link below to try out the service right in your browser.

Continue reading Brooklyn bus riders get real-time bus tracking via cellphone

Brooklyn bus riders get real-time bus tracking via cellphone originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Feb 2011 12:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Mass Transit | MTA BusTime, OpenPlans | Email this | Comments