Important Innovations

  Big Discovery by MIT Engineers                                                                           Source:  MIT No Wires or Battery Needed MIT engineers have discovered a brand new way of generating electricity.  They're using tiny carbon particles that create an electric current by interacting with their liquid environment of an organic solvent.  The particles are made of crushed carbon nanotubes (blue in the image) coated with a teflon-like polymer (green). The MIT researchers say the current can power micro or nanoscale robots and can also be used to trigger chemical reactions.  Their process of generating electricity is completely new and innovative.  All that is necessary is to surround the carbon particles with the solvent....

  Big Discovery by MIT Engineers                                                                           Source:  MIT No Wires or Battery Needed MIT engineers have discovered a brand new way of generating electricity.  They're using tiny carbon particles that create an electric current by interacting with their liquid environment of an organic solvent.  The particles are made of crushed carbon nanotubes (blue in the image) coated with a teflon-like polymer (green). The MIT researchers say the current can power micro or nanoscale robots and can also be used to trigger chemical reactions.  Their process of generating electricity is completely new and innovative.  All that is necessary is to surround the carbon particles with the solvent....

  Invention Could Make Electricity Dramatically Cheaper, Faster, More Powerful Source:  University of Rochester New Discovery - University of Rochester University of Rochester engineers have created a super, superconductor that could save the world billions of dollars in annual electricity costs.  The engineers created a material composed of hydrogen, carbon and sulfur which becomes a superconductor when squeezed between two diamonds.  Superconductors are materials that effortlessly conduct electricity with no resistance and no energy lost.  Until the University of Rochester breakthrough, superconductors only worked at extremely cold temperatures of minus 100 degree Fahrenheit and below.  The new superconductor works at room temperature of 59 degrees.  That opens up the possibility of widespread use. Why This is Such a Big Deal This breakthrough superconductor could usher in an age of dramatically cheaper, faster and more powerful electricity.  Ac...

New Tech Cuts BBQ Pollution 90% Source:  Stock Image of Steak on a Grill German Innovation German scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics (IBP) have invented a technology that cuts toxic carbon fumes from barbecues by 90%.  The IBP team studied and analyzed the toxic pollutants emitted by charcoal grills, pizza ovens and bread ovens and innovated a new system to greatly reduce it.  Their research was commissioned by the German Environment Agency.  By some estimates, the pollution emitted from a barbecue for a family of four is the equivalent of driving a car for 90 miles. BBQ Pollution The IBP scientists demonstrated that the BBQ grill produces nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, benzene and hydrocarbons - many of which are harmful to human health.  They found that the pollution is produced by incomplete combustion of fats combining with the type of fuel used.  The higher the fatty content of the meat, the h...

For Sea, It's an Electric Boat  Source:  Zeltini For Land, It's a Bike & Tiny Camper The Z-Triton is a unique travel invention.  The electrically powered vehicle can travel on land and sea. It's a combination tiny house, electric, amphibious boat and a bike.   It's the creation of designer Aigars  Lauvis of Latvia.  He says he created it for adventure and expeditions around the world.   New Electric Vehicle This innovation appears to be unlike any other form of transportation in the world.  The design studio behind it, Zeltini, will start renting the electric vehicle in 2021. It's not yet available for sale. Zeltini says its mission is to create sustainable products and prototypes that can function well and also be a lot of fun. ... ...

Invention Created by Self-Taught Engineer Source:  Zhao Deli flying motorcycle Flying Above Traffic 30 Feet in the Air The China Xinhua News Agency reports that a self-taught  "genius" Chinese engineer has created a flying motorcycle.  And he has demonstrated its capabilities and effectiveness. The motorcycle is capable of flying 30 feet in the air to get above and over traffic jams. Flying Above it All The inventor is engineer Zhao Deli from China's Hunan  province.  He has worked for many years to create his own flying scooter to simply fly above it all, particularly on traffic congested streets. The latest prototype is a white drone-like vehicle with fast moving propellers on the four corners of the motorbike.  Deli hopes to eventually sell these personal  mobility vehicles to the public.  A prototype he created in 2018 reached speeds of 44 mph and had a battery life of 30 minutes. The latest version looks much sleeker and ...

Debuting at 2020 Tokyo Olympics: Airless Tires Source:  Bridgestone World First from Bridgestone It's been a long time coming but Bridgestone has created airless tires.  They're going to debut them on a fleet of bikes at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.  The airless tires are a world first and took years to develop.  Among the hurdles that Bridgestone had to overcome for the tires:  distributing the vehicle weight on the tires evenly, consistently transmitting loads and finding a means to prevent debris from trapping inside the tires. Recycled Materials The tires are made of recycled, high strength thermoplastic resin spokes. The non-pneumatic, airless tires won't puncture, won't go flat and don't need refills.  You also don't need spare tires.  Bridgestone also says it reduces CO2 emissions from vehicles. Keep on Trucking The company is developing airless tires for the passenger vehicle market and they say that's sparking a great ...

German Scientists' Breakthrough Invention Source:  Max Planck Institute Potential Wide Applications Scientists at the Max Planck Institute and the University of  Bayreuth in Germany have invented a transparent, extremely thin material that both conducts and insulates heat simultaneously.  That's a first.  The scientists say the first application is for the creation of high-performance LEDs.  But it could be even bigger than that. Everyday Life Applications Thermal insulation and thermal conduction are important to our everyday lives from heating our homes to computers, where it's important to dissipate heat as quickly as possible.  The new material has the potential of widespread impact as it both conducts and insulates heat at the same time. Novel Breakthrough The team made the material by manipulating how heat travels.  They stacked wafer thin plates of glass in layers and placed polymer chains between them.  The configuration cut...

New Invention:  Tablet Toothpaste "Change Toothpaste" Source:  Change Toothpaste Potentially Cuts 900 Million Plastic Toothpaste Tube Throwaways Per Year Tubes of toothpaste aren't something you think about but their impact on the global environment is hugely negative.  900 million toothpaste tubes are discarded into oceans and landfills globally every year.  Importantly, it takes 500 years for them to breakdown, which means virtually every toothpaste tube created is still discarded someplace in the world.  And, the tubes, which contain multiple layers of plastic, polymers and resins, can't be recycled.  A company headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta Canada just came up with a solution in the form of tablet toothpaste. "Paste with No Waste" Entrepreneurs Mike Medicoff and Damien Vince are the inventors and founders of CHANGE Toothpaste. Their tablet toothpaste is an all natural vegan substance that works just like toothpaste but has no harsh chemi...

Heatbox, the Self-Heating Lunchbox from the Netherlands Source:  Heatbox Mobile Hot Meals This is another example of great innovation from the Netherlands. Heatbox warms food with steam. The steam is created by the lunchbox's heating element working with a small amount of water.  It was created by the Netherlands start-up Heatbox. The device is portable and small enough to fit in a backpack.  It's rechargeable and can work multiple times a day. The smart lunchbox heats your food in minutes.  It enables the user to have a hot meal wherever they are. Heatbox and Your Phone Heatbox can be controlled manually or by a smartphone app.  It can even charge your cellphone.  The device has a modern, sleek design.  It appears to have great potential for students and anyone on the go.  It's in the Kickstarter phase with product deliveries set for July 2020.  It's a breakthrough gadget that provides mobile hot meals.  For a fre...

New Polaroid Lab Device Source:  Polaroid Lab From the Cloud to the Real World Polaroid Lab has invented a device that enables you to turn digital images from your smartphone to instant Polaroid photos. These are hard copy photos from digital images that you can put in a photo album or place on your fridge to remind you of the "Polaroid moment". Elegantly Simple The new device is simple to use.  You select an image from your phone using a companion app.  Then, you place the phone with the selected digital image face down on the Polaroid device.  You push a button and with a combination of light, mirrors and Polaroid "chemistry" the system gives you an instant photo copy of the digital image.  This takes your digital photos from the Cloud back to the real world as tangible photos. It's full circle technology.

Advanced Water Harvester from UC Berkeley Source:  UC Berkeley's Water Harvester Capable of Supplying Fresh Water to Global Villages in Need One of humanity's biggest challenges is to develop technology to meet global drinking water supply needs.  A team at UC Berkeley has invented a new water harvester capable of collecting water from very dry desert air.  Most importantly, the team says their technology is scalable and capable of supplying clean drinking water to people in villages.  This technology promises to be a new source of clean drinking water to people in arid environments globally. New Engineering The device has been tested in the Mojave Desert and it works.  The base is a metal-organic framework (MOF) that pulls in and condenses water molecules from the very dry desert air.  The cartridges of MOFs are in a large, transparent box that includes a condenser to collect the water molecules as liquid water. Third Variation on an Innovativ...

New Green Plastic Dissolves in Water Source:  Denxybel Montinola's green plastic Innovation from Young Filipino Physicist The world is awash in plastic waste with million of tons being dumped every year.  From a young Filipino biophysicist comes an alternative, sustainable plastics solution from the plentiful products of his native land The Philippines - mango peels and seaweed.  The inventor is Denxybel Montinola, who is currently part of the research team at the Academia Sinica in Taiwan. Green, Sustainable, Dissolvable  Plastic His green plastic from mango peels and seaweed is sustainable and dissolves in water.  That means no plastic packaging and waste being dumped.  Reports indicate that it is stronger and performs better than traditional plastic.  It can be used for packaging but in the future has the resiliency and robustness to serve as a means to protect burns and stop bleeding.

Very Smart Glasses Source:  Stanford University New Invention from Stanford University that Restores Focus and Vision Engineers at Stanford University have invented a prototype for autofocals that restores focus and repairs vision.   It's a remedy for age-related farsightedness which affects more than a billion people.  The system has been tested on patients and it works.  The engineers are now focused on downsizing the system so it is light and wearable.  For more details, go to Important Innovations Collection: Very Smart Glasses : Autofocal Lenses That Track Your Eyes to Bring What You're Looking at into Focus Source:  Stanford University  New Innovation Fro...

Smart, e-Table Solar Powers Your Electronic Devices Brilliant Concept from Barcelona, Spain The Ebort is a sleek, practical table for use in your home or office.  It's also an intelligent, e-table that harvests solar energy to green power your electronic devices with renewable energy. You can recharge four devices at once on the table top, which is wireless, self-sustaining and works off artificial and ambient light.  It's one of those ideas that is so practical, convenient and time saving.  It makes you wonder why didn't I think of that!  For more details on this new invention, go to Important Innovations Collection: Table Solar Charges Electronic Devices : Solar Powered, Green Charging  Table Source:  Proton New Energy Future Ebord Renewable Energy The green charging device - the Ebord ...

New Link Flip Shoe With a Lot of Sole Source:  Link Flip Shoe Part Flip Flop, Part Shoe This invention is a new and creative approach to minimalist footwear.  The top is totally open and a sturdy bottom wraps around the heel, sides and toe to secure itself to the foot.  It's called  the Link Flip Shoe and it's being touted as creative and innovative. Footwear Innovation The company claims it's as safe as sneakers and as comfortable as flip-flops.  It strikes me conceptually as a combination of barefoot running shoes and flip-flops.  The open top allow for more air and less chafing and the strong sole features a breathable insole and interlaced flex joints for better traction. For Running Too The company calls it the world's first Flip Shoe that is as free as flip-flops and safe as shoes. It's a sole based shoe with arch support.  It's patented technology that you can also run in.