THE TECH-LICIOUS

Students develop drone to locate survivors via their mobile phones

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="Jonathan Cheseaux with the drone that uses a Wi-Fi antenna to locate mobile phones (Photo:..." height="358" src="http://images.gizmag.com/hero/drone-phone-location.jpg" width="640" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">These days, most people are inseparable from their mobile phone, with the device being one of the essentials along with keys and cash or cards that people don't leave home without. A project at EPFL's Mobile Communications Laboratory is looking to take advantage of this fact by developing a drone that would help rescuers search for victims of natural disasters by locating their phones.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">When a mobile phone's Wi-Fi is switched on, the device emits data packets at regular intervals. The strength of these signals can vary depending on the surrounding terrain, the weather, interference, or if the device is buried under a layer of rubble as the result of an earthquake or other natural disaster.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Taken in isolation, with all these variables it isn't possible to accurately calculate the location of the device that is emitting the signals. However, by capturing the signals from several different points it becomes possible to calculate the device's approximate location. This is where the drone comes in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Using a Wi-Fi antenna attached to what appears to be a senseFly eBee UAV, it is possible to capture the signal as the drone flies between different points to better map the location of the device and, hopefully, the person it belongs to.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Cheseaux, who worked on the project for his master's degree, says that automatically eliminating weaker signals from the calculations has helped to improve the accuracy of the system, which has been able to locate mobile phones on the EPFL campus with a high degree of accuracy.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/drone-mobile-phone-location-survivors/33005/pictures#2" style="background-color: transparent; color: #1e8dd7; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="The EPFL students also developed an interface that allows those on the ground to track the..." src="http://images.gizmag.com/inline/drone-phone-location-1.jpg" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" width="530" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">"In the best tests we have performed, the place indicated was within 10 m (33 ft)," says Cheseaux, who, being an amateur mountaineer, added, "The drone’s Wi-Fi antenna could be replaced by Avalanche Victim Detectors (DVA) which would enable the rapid and inexpensive deployment of the first avalanche searches."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The project also involved the development an interface that allows those on the ground to track the aircraft in real time. Detected mobile phones are indicated by colored dots on a computer display, with the drone also tightening its flight around a selected device to indicate its position.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The system can be seen in action in the following video.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">source-<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/drone-mobile-phone-location-survivors/33005/" target="_blank">GIZMAG</a></span></div>
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Students develop drone to locate survivors via their mobile phones

These days, most people are inseparable from their mobile phone, with the device being one of the essentials along with keys and cash o...

Xiaomi Mi4 2K Quad HD display with Snapdragon 805 processor coming soon

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<img alt="quad core Xiaomi Mi4 listed for $599" src="http://www.gogi.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Xiaomi-Mi4-listed.jpg" /><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 26px;">the awaited Xiaomi Mi4 will be announced on 22</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #222222; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;">nd</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 26px;"> July, however it has </span><a href="http://www.xiaomiworld.com/xiaomi-mi4.html" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5bb1f9; line-height: 26px; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">got listed online for $599</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 26px;"> along with the specifications. I am not sure if the specs are genuine. But if this is the Mi4 it looks, amazing.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The Mi4 is single SIM with FDD-LTE support. It sports a 5.5 inch screen with 2560 x 1440 pixels (Quad HD) [538ppi] resolution. The handset houses a 2.5GHz Quad Core processor – it’s<a href="http://www.qualcomm.com/snapdragon/processors/805" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #5bb1f9; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">Qualcomm Snapdragon 805</a> with Adreno 420 GPU. MiUi Version 5 runs on the Android 4.4 with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">There are no external card support and battery of 3200 mAh (Li-Po) comes built in (Non-Removable). A 16MP auto focus camera with optical image stabilization and flash are placed on the rear and another 5MP on the front for selfies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Xiaomi has entered the Indian markets and for now we have the Xiaomi Mi3 that will be officially available via Flipkart from 22<span style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;">nd</span> July, and most like the Mi4 will be also be launched on 22<span style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 0; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;">nd</span> (not in India). There is still time for Mi4 in India. No word about the exact dates.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As mentioned I am not sure about the specs but looking at Xiaomi history they always use something new, and since Mi4 is their flagship model it is quite possible that the specs that you have just gone through may turn out to be true.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">SOURCE-<a href="http://www.gogi.in/xiaomi-mi4.html" target="_blank">GOGI</a></span></div>
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Xiaomi Mi4 2K Quad HD display with Snapdragon 805 processor coming soon

the awaited Xiaomi Mi4 will be announced on 22 nd July, however it has got listed online for $599 along with the specifications. I am n...

Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">It doesn’t really matter what you use to do it – typing is just about the same on all devices. Oh, sure, it’s bigger on some devices and smaller on others, but the letters and the keys are pretty much all in the same spots, and you have to press them all the same to get your message out. We’ve been typing the same way since basically the advent of the typewriter, QWERTY and all. Don’t you think it might be time for some kind of a change?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The folks at AirType do, and I have to admit – <a href="http://airtype.io/concept/" style="color: #0092dd;" target="_blank">what they’ve designed is intriguing to say the least</a>. They’ve created a bluetooth keyboard that’s missing the keyboard, and they claim it will work anywhere, and even better, it will learn all of your typing habits and will adapt to each individual user. They claim a person can type on any surface whatsoever or they can also type on no surface at all if that’s their preference.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard" class="lazy alignnone size-large wp-image-17309 data-lazy-ready" data-lazy-src="http://news.filehippo.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/airtype-keyless-keyboard-12928.jpg" data-lazy-type="image" height="398" src="http://news.filehippo.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/airtype-keyless-keyboard-12928.jpg" style="background: rgb(236, 240, 244); display: inline; float: none; max-width: 708px; padding: 10px;" width="708" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The keyboard works using 2 bluetooth bracelets which connect to an app to learn your typing habits. The bracelets will even clip onto a tablet so you can easily carry them wherever you take your tablet. AirType claims that its text prediction and text correction are state of the art as well, so a user won’t have to spend all their time detecting and retyping words.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">At this point in AirType’s development there is no mention of how much it will ultimately cost. If it proves to be successful, though, it could provide a welcome change to mobile typing everywhere.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">source-<a href="http://news.filehippo.com/2014/07/check-airtype-keyboard-less-keyboard/" target="_blank">tech beat</a></span></div>
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Check Out This AirType Keyboard-less Keyboard

It doesn’t really matter what you use to do it – typing is just about the same on all devices. Oh, sure, it’s bigger on some devices and s...

Google letting curious explorers take Glass for a free spin

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Glass has run the opinion gamut from "<a href="http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/09/google-glass-parkinsons-uk-trial/" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;">great</a>" to "<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/i-was-assaulted-for-wearing-google-glass-2014-4" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">hate</a>" to "surprisingly useful," but Google thinks you should forget all that. We just received an invitation (after the break) to several Google Glass "Basecamp" offices with the following teaser: "There's a lot of talk about Glass, but have you tried it for yourself yet?" If you're near San Francisco, LA or New York, you'll need to <a href="https://support.google.com/glass/answer/6021600?hl=en" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">schedule an invitation</a> for a fitting, service or a demo. For those worried about the original, not-so-stylish <a href="http://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/2999x1996+0+0/resize/630x419!/format/jpg/quality/85/http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/midas/a4dd63d9fadc5c57bb737e4d45329be9/200119256/147229908.jpg" style="color: #3399cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">cyborg look</a>, Google has hooked up with couture magnateDiane Von Furstenberg to create more normal eyewear designs. And of course, anybodycan get them now -- as long as you're willing to burn $1,500.</span></div>
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Google letting curious explorers take Glass for a free spin

Glass has run the opinion gamut from " great " to " hate " to "surprisingly useful," but Google thinks you...

Battery powered trousers could have you walking on walls

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="A student paper has concluded that battery-powered trousers allowing people to walk on ver..." height="358" src="http://images.gizmag.com/hero/vacuum-pants.jpg" width="640" /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">A group of students at the University of Leicester in the UK have shown that it is theoretically possible to build a pair of battery-powered trousers which would allow the wearer to walk on walls or even the ceiling, if only for a short time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">In the 1993 Wallace & Gromit claymation movie <em>The Wrong Trousers</em>, Wallace buys Gromit a pair of battery-powered robotic trousers that, among other things, allow the wearer to walk up vertical walls or even on the ceiling. They work both on Earth and in space using a combination of vacuum and magnetic field generators placed in the soles of the boots. A team of graduate students at the University of Leicester set out to establish whether building such a gadget is physically possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The mechanics of walking means that the device needs to function even when only a single boot is in contact with the wall or ceiling. Therefore, the students made their calculations assuming that only one boot is supporting the entire weight of both the person and the device itself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">If each boot had a slightly raised rubber insulator on the edge of its sole, this would create a cavity when the wearer puts their foot down on a surface. Applying a vacuum to this cavity would make the boot stick firmly to the surface, similarly to a suction cup, but with finer control.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Making basic assumptions on the area of the sole as well as the weight of the wearer and the device itself, the students concluded that the vacuum generator would need to reduce the pressure of the air underneath the boot by approximately 18.5 kPa compared to the surrounding environment. This is roughly the vacuum created by an ordinary vacuum cleaner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">According to the students, the main issue with building such trousers wouldn't be generating enough vacuum, but rather powering them effectively. Because of weight constraints, the students say their gravity-defying pants could realistically only be powered from a battery for about 20 minutes before needing recharging. The alternative would be to draw power directly from the grid, though this would obviously constrain movement.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Because the device relies on creating a lower pressure than the surrounding environment, the trousers wouldn't work in space, where pressure is already close to a perfect vacuum (negative pressures are possible in liquids, which is how very tall trees can carry water all the way up to their leaves, but gases cannot have negative pressure). The students say that a possible workaround could be to use magnetic generators rather than vacuum generators.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The students presented their findings in a paper for the <em><a href="https://physics.le.ac.uk/journals/index.php/pst/article/view/651/437" style="background-color: transparent; color: #1e8dd7; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Journal of Physics Special Topics</a></em>, a peer-reviewed student journal designed to give students practical experience of writing, editing, publishing and reviewing scientific papers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">source-<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/vacuum-trousers-wall-ceiling-walking/32988/" target="_blank">gizmag</a></span></div>
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Battery powered trousers could have you walking on walls

A group of students at the University of Leicester in the UK have shown that it is theoretically possible to build a pair of battery-pow...

Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept looks to the future of HUDs

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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><img alt="The 'Virtual Windscreen' is also able to display a racing line for trackday warriors" height="359" src="http://images.gizmag.com/hero/jaguar-landrover-virtual-windscreen.jpg" width="640" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Looking to add a touch of <em>Gran Turismo</em> or <em>Forza</em> to your daily commute? Jaguar Land Rover is developing a Virtual Windscreen concept that aims to do just that with a slew of driver assistance technologies designed to keep your eyes on the road, including a head-up display (HUD) that overlays the driving line featured in many virtual racers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">As well as projecting key information onto the windscreen like speed and navigation, the Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept would also overlay the driving line and even a "ghost" car, which acts as a reference point from previous laps.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Although this may seem like a bit of fun for track-day warriors, HUD systemsoffer some obvious safety benefits for having key information at the driver's eye-level.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Jaguar's concept also extends to replacing rear view and external mirrors with cameras and virtual displays. This system would incorporate a of a "3D instrument cluster" linked to head-tracking technology that could deliver key information unobtrusively as well as giving drivers a clear picture of their surroundings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Finally, the system would include gesture-based control for functions like sunblinds, rear windscreen wipers and maps. Rather than having to search for buttons on the dash, the idea is that drivers could simply wave at the gesture-sensor with a range of 15 cm (5.9 in) to operate particular functions. Of the three tech concepts in development, this is the one most likely to appear in production models in the near term, with Jaguar claiming it could be on sale "within the next few years."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Below is Jaguar's video detailing how the Virtual Windscreen concept would work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">SOURCE-<a href="http://www.gizmag.com/jaguar-land-rover-virtual-windscreen-concept/32930/" target="_blank">GIZMAG</a></span></div>
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Jaguar Virtual Windscreen concept looks to the future of HUDs

Looking to add a touch of Gran Turismo or Forza to your daily commute? Jaguar Land Rover is developing a Virtual Windscreen concept ...