Your older brother’s arm wrestling grip is killing you?  The Human Grasp Assist device might be able to give you a helping hand (or a helping glove actually). The device, which is also known as Robo-Glove or K-Glove, is the result of the collaboration between GM and NASA and has been developed to help astronauts and autoworkers stay away from stress injuries.

The technology powering the Robo-Glove is based on the grasping technology which was developed for the hands of Robonaut 2, the humanoid robot presently helping out at the International Space Station. The robot features actuators in its fingers, and pressure sensors for sensing touch.

By using the same technology, the engineers from GM and NASA have created the power-assisted glove which is equipped with actuators in the upper sections of each finger, and pressure sensors. When a user who has the gloves on tries to grasp an object, the sensors detect it and the actuators work to pull the fingers into a gripping position. The fingers will be held in the position until further notice.

Since the glove is doing the work to maintain the grip, there won’t be any strain for a user. According to estimations, a person using the Robo-Glove will only have to assert five to ten pounds of gripping force for a task which requires a human worker without the glove to assert 15 to 20 pounds.

They developed a prototype glove back in March 2011 and another version three months later. Both versions weigh in at around two pounds and come with a display. They are powered by lithium-ion battery pack. A third model is being developed and that should come with improved features.

And from the video you will understand that the device will be safe for humans, so there won’t be any problem when you scratch yourself.

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NEC started working on organic radical batteries back in 2001 and the company has just introduced their latest development, a 0.3mm super-thin prototype organic battery that appears to be a perfect fit for future integrated circuit cards and may be the world’s thinnest battery yet.

Organic radical batteries are incredibly thin, have a very high energy density and use no heavy metals (therefore no problem of proper disposal). ORBs of 0.7mm thickness were standard until now. The newly developed NEC organic battery is ultra thin and can be printed directly onto a standard IC card of 0.76mm thickness.

And we will be able to add circuit boards with tiny components like a display and antenna onto the surrounding polymer film. According to the company, the new technology will allow us to incorporate features such as a display and data communications to next-gen smart cards.

But for now, all those things that could be incorporated will depend on the battery which comes with a capacity of 3mAh. The company says that this is good for refreshing the integrated display (unspecified) up to 2000 times or for transmitting data via the antenna 35 times before there is a need for a recharge. The incredible thing is that it will take only around 30 seconds for recharging the battery fully. And after 500 recharges, its capacity will be reduced by only 25%.

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Remember that tablet/notebook cross which was shown off by Sony at CES earlier this year? The convertible concept tablet dubbed “Hybrid” looked interesting although there was no confirmation whether the company would work on the prototype for market launch. And now a new info suggests that Sony has plans for bringing out the QWERTY-equipped slider.

In case you were out cold during CES, Sony’s hybrid tablet is Windows powered and is suspected to feature Intel’s Clover Trail Atom chip. The device is also thought to be coming equipped with a stylus for the pen input.

A print advertisement for the device, which comes to us courtesy of Pocketnow, hints that Sony might be planning to launch the device under the Vaio U brand. Although a release date is not mentioned, the poster suggests that the device might arrive with some changes.

When compared to the prototype (see below), the device in the ad does not have a stylus holder at the front of the keyboard and it appears to have a larger bezel as well. It also looks a bit thicker. And it will be awesome if it runs Windows 8, if it’s coming that is.

We will let you know when more info arrives. In the meantime, you can take a peek at a few pictures of the Hybrid prototype here.

[Image Source]

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It appears like the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds are getting thinner and thinner. Microsoft’s Applied Sciences team has shown off their prototype 3D desktop which allows you to interact with the objects on a transparent screen with something called “view-dependent, depth-corrected gaze”.

The team has been studying what things they can do with a transparent Samsung OLED screen and Microsoft’s Kinect technology, along with some special software. What they have come up with is a virtual desktop which can be manipulated with the hands in real-time.

As you will see in the video clip below, there is a keyboard behind the transparent screen which does the same job as your normal computer keyboard. But to interact with the desktop, instead of using a mouse, you just have to reach up and manipulate the virtual objects with your fingers. What makes this possible is the Kinect tech.

The Kinect sensors will track where your hand is and at the same time will also detect your head and eye position for delivering a 3D image with depth and perspective based on your position. But sometimes a short clip is better than a thousand words. So check out the video below and don’t forget to place your thoughts below.

Head here to stay updated about all the things from MWC 2012.

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CES is not only about smartphones, Ultrabooks and tablets (although all those are what attract us), but also about a lot of upcoming accessories. The Celluon Prodigy is a new battery case for the iPhone 4 and 4S with an intriguing concept.

Obviously, the first thing to say about the Prodigy is that it can be used to charge your iPhone. What sets this new case apart from all the other iPhone battery cases is that the Prodigy can project an interactive infrared keyboard onto any flat surface.

You will be able to type emails and messages on the infrared keyboard, provided your iPhone is propped up stably on a table or desk. It’s that simple. Although you might be managing to type fast on a virtual keyboard, the Prodigy might help you do it better. Or will it?

The prototype that is being shown off at CES has a lot of work to be done on it. First of all, the Prodigy’s infrared projector and attached camera (for detecting where your finger is when it cuts through the infrared beam and what key you are hitting) make it slightly longer. Although you can adjust with that, you might not tolerate the bigger problem.

Our guys at CES found out that the Prodigy was not good at telling what key was being hit. For example, just imagine you typing the word Duck and it ending up as something else, if you know what I mean.

Although the company’s reps said that it’s just a matter of getting used to the new keyboard, they also seemed to be finding it difficult to type. And it’s not because it’s a prototype, as their Magic Cube does the same thing for the iPad and we can’t say its better.

They will be releasing the case in the coming months with a price tag close to $189.95. About $100 more than most battery cases out there. Interested?

The concept is cool and might be paving the way for something awesome for the future. But for now, we recommend you to stick to the touchscreen.  Check out Prodigy’s predecessor, the Magic Cube in the video below.

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Electric cars are really starting to take on all forms, from sensible compact hatchbacks to full out sports cars. Falling into neither of those categories is the Toyota RAV4 EV. The sport utility vehicle with an electric inclination isn’t exactly new, but its “Phase Zero” prototype has now been taken out for a test drive by someone not from Toyota.

As you might recall, this vehicle comes from a partnership with Tesla. However, it’s a completely different beast than the Tesla Roadster. There are about thirty of these prototypes making their way around, but they say that the Phase Zero models aren’t even version 1.0: “this is a sophisticated proof of concept.”

The 150 horsepower electric motor for the current FWD-only RAV4 EV is supposed to eventually provide the same kind of performance as its petrol V6 counterpart. This means a 0-60mph time of nine seconds. The 37 kWh battery pack is good for almost 100 miles of real world driving, which is impressive given the size and weight of this car.

In the test drive, the reviewer was impressed by the high level of regenerative braking: “let off the go-pedal while traveling at a clip of 40 mph or so, and you’re pulled down to about 5 mph in a matter of seconds.” However, he anticipates that Toyota/Tesla will be cranking down this regen when the EV eventually hits the real world marketplace. That’s a shame; because that’s really how you get the most out of an electric vehicle. You get 10-30% more range with that kind of regen.

Is an electric sport ute really the best way to use the tech? Probably not, but I don’t think they’re the future either way.

[Read]

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He has started up a new project on Kickstarter for an open source Bluetooth network sniffer called the Ubertooth One. It plugs into your PC’s USB port, runs on an ARM Cortex M3 processor-based board, and offers an antenna out the other end. The idea, then, is that you can monitor Bluetooth signals.

While in the so-called “promiscuous” mode, you can actually use the radio to pick up everything that is passing through the wireless waves; remember that Bluetooth normally only pays attention to stuff addressed to it, ignoring everything else. With Ubertooth One, you can theoretically nab data packets being sent between two nearby phones or other Bluetooth devices.

Yes, this opens up a huge can of worms for Bluetooth-based hacking, but it can also be used to, um, “test network security.” Remember that the WiFi equivalents have been used for cracking network passwords. In any case, you can head over to Kickstarter to show Ossmann your support. You should also check out our own Kickstarter project and pledge today!

[Michael Ossmann via Wired]

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Researchers at the University of Technology in Sydney have come up with an interesting solution for devices like the Apple iPad. In effect, you can rest your fingers on the screen of the tablet without accidentally typing anything. That’s the biggest problem with the virtual keyboard on the iPad (and other products like it); you touch it, you type it, but you don’t get the clickity-clack of a physical button. But the full QWERTY keyboard is “liquid” insofar that it follows your fingers. No matter where you rest your four fingers, that half of the keyboard will be there. The “fluid” keyboard adjusts to your specific physiology too, since people have different size hands and slightly different finger positioning.

The LiquidKeyboard won’t give you that “sense of where keys are relative to others” like how a physical equivalent would, but it’s probably closer than the rigid layout of a standard tablet’s virtual keyboard.

[GizMag via UTS]

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While tablets were by far the showcase product at CES 2011, there were some interesting 3D products, following up on the technology’s dominance of the show last year. Included in that would have to be Sony’s personal 3D headset prototype.

Totally reminiscent of Geordi LaForge’s visor in Star Trek: TNG, the headset overcomes some of the traditional roadbloacks with 3D eyewear. By using active shutter glasses and incorporating two OLED displays (1280×720 pixels each) Sony has overcome the crosstalk issue experienced on 3D TVs.

What makes these so personal is that each set is manually calibrated to the user using a dial on the unit. Sound is also individualized, as the headset simulates 5.1 channel surround sound on integrated earpieces.

The prototype was essentially on for show, as there is no way to keep it on your face without holding it, but Hiroshi Yoshioka (Sony’s Executive Deputy President) revealed that he used the headset to play Gran Turismo 5.

[Tech Tree, Gizmag]

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Have you ever wanted to look at the display on your notebook, for example, while still watching the big game on the TV behind it? Normally, your head (or eyes) have to keep bouncing between the two. If you want to keep your head and eyes right where they are, you might want to know about the new Samsung Transparent AMOLED display for TVs and monitors.

There are two reasons why this display is noteworthy. First, it is the world’s first large-screen transparent AMOLED production prototype. Up until now, we’ve only seen this kind of tech on a much smaller scale. Second, the prototype AMOLED is able to provide up to 30% transparency. Samsung says other similar displays has averaged “below 10 percent.”

You probably won’t want to do too much heavy lifting with this screen, since it only does qFHD (960×540), but it’d be great for the NFL Wild Card games this weekend. Keep up with the stats on NFL.com while watching the TV behind your notebook screen. That would be, you know, if this was somewhere beyond prototype status.

In any case, seeing this display in person was quite intriguing. The display itself wasn’t quite as “crisp” and “bright” as you’d get with conventional AMOLED, but the demo box they had set up really helped to show you can see past the display. In this case, they had a fashion show on the screen and a (physical) dressing room in the back. Pretty neat stuff.

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