Important Innovations

   DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF                                                                                                  By Journalists Maryanne Kane & Edward Kane                                                                                     Source:  Faraday FARADAY FUTURE'S LUXURIOUS, POWERFUL EV California-based Faraday Future will start production this month on a very powerful, luxurious EV with deliveries starting in April 2023 The much-anticipated and much-delayed FF 91 Futurist has been the talk of the automotive world for some time Faraday calls the vehicle not just an electric car but a "supercar robot that provides the 3rd internet living space" The EV is powered by 3 electric motors with 1 in the front and 2 in the back It delivers huge power with 1,050 hp The EV accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in less than 2.4 seconds 130-kWh battery has a range of 482 miles on a charge when the EV is keep to a cruising speed of 55mph Top of the line FF 91 will cost mo

  DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF                                                                                                  By Journalists Maryanne Kane & Edward Kane                                                                                     Source:  Faraday FARADAY FUTURE'S LUXURIOUS, POWERFUL EV California-based Faraday Future will start production this month on a very powerful, luxurious EV with deliveries starting in April 2023 The much-anticipated and much-delayed FF 91 Futurist has been the talk of the automotive world for some time Faraday calls the vehicle not just an electric car but a "supercar robot that provides the 3rd internet living space" The EV is powered by 3 electric motors with 1 in the front and 2 in the back It delivers huge power with 1,050 hp The EV accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in less than 2.4 seconds 130-kWh battery has a range of 482 miles on a charge when the EV is keep to a cruising speed of 55mph Top of the line FF 91 will cost mor

 D ear Viewers: We are launching a new, innovation news service on this blog called "Daily Innovation Brief".  At least one of the daily news stories will be transportation related, including new car, eVTOL and plane concepts.  The first edition of "Daily Innovation Brief" is below.  Thanks for viewing. Maryanne Kane MCLAREN'S NEW FLAGSHIP                                                                                     Source:  McLaren   Currently, the British performance automaker is developing its 750 S new supercar for unveiling this spring 740 hp supercar will replace the 720 S as the brand's flagship Powered by twin turbo 4.0-liter V8 Big rear wing, big air vents and inside a new front dashboard with an instrument panel above the steering wheel, plus a dramatic floating infotainment system Sporty, elegant, aerodynamic styling Priced to start at $340,000 and will debut in April 2023 Expected to be a performance dazzler. DARPA'S NEW CRANE X-PLANE  

  Dear Viewers: We are launching a new, innovation news service on this blog called "Daily Innovation Brief".  At least one of the daily news stories will be transportation related, including new car, eVTOL and plane concepts.  The first edition of "Daily Innovation Brief" is below.  Thanks for viewing. Maryanne Kane MCLAREN'S NEW FLAGSHIP                                                                                     Source:  McLaren   Currently, the British performance automaker is developing its 750 S new supercar for unveiling this spring 740 hp supercar will replace the 720 S as the brand's flagship Powered by twin turbo 4.0-liter V8 Big rear wing, big air vents and inside a new front dashboard with an instrument panel above the steering wheel, plus a dramatic floating infotainment system Sporty, elegant, aerodynamic styling Priced to start at $340,000 and will debut in April 2023 Expected to be a performance dazzler. DARPA'S NEW CRANE X-PLANE  

Bezos' Blue Origin Wins DARPA/Pentagon Contract for Nuclear Spacecraft                                             Source:  Blue Origin                                     Source:  DARPA Nuclear Powered Spacecraft Nuclear Powered Trips to Space Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' aerospace company Blue Origin has won a US Department of Defense contract to design a nuclear powered spacecraft.  The $2.5 million contract was awarded by the Pentagon's DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) as part of its DRACO program (Designated Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations).  Lockheed Martin and General Atomics were awarded similar contracts for the DRACO program. Nuclear Thermal Propulsion The DARPA program is focused on developing and testing nuclear thermal propulsion technology to power space travel.  The technology utilizes a small nuclear reactor inside the rocket to heat up the liquid fuel and propel the spacecraft beyond low Earth orbit into deep space.  DARPA believes that

  Pentagon's DARPA Seeking JetPack Prototypes                                                       Source:  Carbon Fiber JetPack Wing Source:  JetPack Stock Image Portable Personal Mobility Vehicles The US Pentagon's DARPA, or Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, wants to equip the US military with highly advanced and reliable flying jetpacks, also known as portable personal air mobility systems.  They have invited companies to send their prototypes for jetpacks and other unique, personal, portable flying technologies for development. Technologies of Interest DARPA's level of interest for new forms of personal air mobility is fascinating.  Beside jetpacks, technologies of interest include powered wing suits, powered gliders and powered parafoils which, according to DARPA, "can leverage emerging electric propulsion technologies, hydrogen cells or conventional heavy fuel propulsion systems." No Pilots License Required DARPA wants these vehicles to be extremel

  Flying Carriers With Swarming Gremlin Drones                                                          Source:  DARPA Flying Aircraft Carrier Rendering                    Source:  DARPA's Flying Carrier and Gremlin Drones DARPA R&D Project Stranger Than Science Fiction The Pentagon's DARPA (the Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency) is working at forever changing the face of warfare.  They are developing for the US military huge, flying aircraft carriers.  The carriers would be loaded with highly advanced drones, called Gremlins, instead of fighter jets.  Military officials believe the carriers would be safer in the the sky than on the ocean where they are becoming increasingly vulnerable to long range missile attacks.  The Pentagon is particularly concerned about new maneuverable, ballistic missile technology from China. The Gremlins The US Navy currently has 11 nuclear powered carriers.  Each carrier contains up to 80 fighter jets and 6,000 personnel

  Interceptor to Neutralize Hypersonic Nuclear Warheads                                       Source:  DARPA Glide Breaker DARPA's Glide Breaker Project The US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA is developing a hypersonic interceptor vehicle, which experts are calling a potential gamechanger.  It's called Glide Breaker. The vehicle would travel at extremely high, hypersonic speeds while flying at such a low altitude that it evades early warning radar systems that track ballistic missiles.  The technology is extraordinary and straight out of science fiction. Twenty Times The Speed of Sound The technology is designed to take down a nuclear warhead travelling at 20 times the speed of sound.  It's the equivalent of hitting a bullet with a bullet.  And, the enemy "bullet" is capable of evasive maneuvers.  The interceptor, that DARPA wants to quickly develop and test, is targeted at hypersonic missiles.  An example is Russia's Avangard,

  Reusable, Affordable, Flying, Launch & Release Drones                                 Source:  DARPA's Gremlins Program For the US Military and Multi-Purpose Missions DARPA, the US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency, has a fascinating, highly advanced drone program underway to launch and catch airborne drones.  DARPA calls it the Gremlins program and it just completed the first flight test of its X-61A drone vehicle that is designed for airborne launch, free flight, swarming and then retrieval in the air, for re-use thereafter.  Drones Within Inches of Retrieval What DARPA is striving for is the aerial recovery of multiple drones that are low cost and reusable, unmanned aerial systems or  GAV (Gremlin Aerial Vehicles). The test drones each flew two hours autonomously and successfully tested for all formation flying positions and for safety.  But, within "inches", they failed to lockup in flight for the catch by a retrieval system on a C-130 H

  DARPA Expediting & Optimizing eVTOL Designs                                      Source: Flying Taxi Stock Image Artificial Intelligence Created Flying Taxi Designs The US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency - DARPA - has awarded a $7.2 million contract to Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas to test air  taxi designs created by artificial intelligence systems.  The team will analyze the AI designs and evaluate their capabilities.  The purpose is to use AI to optimize and accelerate the development and deployment of flying taxis, known as eVTOLs or electric, vertical takeoff and landing vehicles. Short Distance Air Taxi Travel The Texas research team has a set of priorities to follow from DARPA. DARPA wants flying taxi designs that can carry at least two people, travel 20 to 30 miles and be no larger than two cars parked side by side so that the vehicle can take-off and land from small spaces like parking lots and driveways.   Streamlining Tra

  Highly Advanced Sensors to Warn of COVID in the Air                                                                           Source:  COVID-19 stock image US Defense Dept.'s DARPA Push The US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA plans to build a series of prototype detectors capable of spotting the COVID virus in the air.  The devices are targeted for use in office buildings and schools.  The sensors would quickly and accurately detect the presence of the virus in the air in order to alert occupants and prevent the spread. Rising COVID Toll Experts have warned that the virus is airborne.  More than 52 million people worldwide have been infected and more than 1 million have died.  Both Europe and the US are experiencing a second wave of the pandemic with cases rapidly accelerating.  But there is hope in the form of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and the emerging Moderna vaccine.  Now, DARPA is moving on airborne detectors. Highly Advanced Technology Highl

DARPA's Blackjack Satellite Program on a Space Rideshare Source:  DARPA Blackjack Satellite Program Small Sats, Low Cost, Low Earth Orbit Ridesharing is a growing megatrend in Space.  A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will fly on a ridesharing mission, early in 2021, carrying a Loft Orbiting satellite with a DARPA Blackjack Pit Boss mission system inside for a space demonstration.  Loft buys space buses (satellites) and rents space.  The US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will be flying onboard the SpaceX rocket with many other customer payloads.  DARPA's Blackjack programs aims to deploy low cost, small, low earth orbit satellites into operation for the US Military. Space Experiment DARPA's testing of Blackjack will commence in early 2021.  The experiment is called Sagittarius A.  It's designed to demonstrate any risks or problems before the main Blackjack satellites go into production and launch in late 2021. Pit Boss Pit Boss

DARPA'S Impressive Tech R&D Project for US Navy Super:  DARPA Linked Autonomous Ships This is a highly impressive and innovative new project by DARPA, the US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency. DARPA is developing unmanned surface ships (USVs) that would physically link together like train cars to cross the ocean as a sea train.  Linking the ships together lets them overcome wave resistance and make much longer trips with much greater efficiency.  The Sea Train concept envisions many unmanned ships physically linked together to traverse oceans and grow the US Naval fleet.  Naval Force of Unmanned Vehicles The Navy is investing in all sizes of USVs, including large 300 ft. ones and medium sized ones of 39 to 154 feet.  DARPA's Sea Train project is focused on the medium sized USVs that are more efficient, more difficult to detect but less capable of making long journeys.  The Sea Train concept should extend their travel distances across

Harnessing Ocean Energy As A Power Source Source:  DARPA Sustainable Energy The concept of underwater energy harvesting by drones is being developed by the US Defense Department's Advanced Research Agency DARPA.  This could not only revolutionize naval propulsion, particularly for drone submarines, by providing them a sustainable energy source.  But also, if the drones transport the harvested ocean energy to ships at sea, there would be far less need to return to port to refuel.  The time and energy efficiencies would be breakthrough. Manta Ray Project DARPA calls the program the Manta Ray Project.  It's goal is to develop unmanned underwater vehicles - drones - that can operate underwater for very long, extended periods of time, all the while harvesting the energy of the ocean as a power source.  Four companies have just been selected for the job.  Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman and Navtek LLC are working on the drones.  And Metron is developing underwater energy

Stop Gap Covid-19 Treatment Source:  DARPA Race to Stop COVID-19 in its Tracks The US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency - DARPA - has been given the green light to fast track "mission critical" programs to fight and defeat the coronavirus,  which has infected nearly 1 million Americans.  DARPA is a global epicenter of breakthrough innovation. It has created the internet, Artificial Intelligence, cloud computing and  much more. Unique Stop Gap Therapy in the Pipeline Right now, DARPA is working on a therapy - what they're calling a "firewall" - that would temporarily  protect someone from contracting the disease.  It is a stop-gap therapy for use before a vaccine is created, which is expected sometime in 2021 at the earliest. Firewall P3 Platform DARPA wants their P3 Platform therapy  to work immediately in the patient and last for six months.  DARPA has identifi