Kondo Kagaku KHR-3HV humanoid kit robot

By Damir Beciri
3 Comments23 October 2012

kondo-kagaku-khr-3hv-robot-1Back in June 13th 2009, during their 5th Anniversary, Kondo Kagaku released the KHR-3HV humanoid kit robot. Although it’s been a while since they released the robot, its abilities and price make it ideal for hobbyists as well for use in advanced educational purposes. Hence, we decided to publish an article about this great humanoid… »

PRIMER V4 – a steel wire crossing robot

By Damir Beciri
23 October 2012

primer-v4Japanese robotics researcher Masahiko Yamaguchi, who represents himself as Dr. Guero in other robotics projects, modified a Kondo KHR-3HV hobby kit robot and created a robot dubbed PRIMER V4. This two-legged hobby-kit robot was modified in a way that allows it to balance and cross over a 4-mm (0.16-inch) thick and 1 meter (3 feet)… »

Green architecture – 25 York Street (Telus House Toronto)

By Damir Beciri
One Comment21 October 2012

25-york-street-telus-house-toronto-1Although it represents an office building whose sustainability in general is sometimes questionable, the 25 York Street (Telus House Toronto) still serves as an example how office buildings can be improved in order to conserve resources and provide healthier working environment. Located on the northeast corner of York Street and Bremner Boulevard in downtown Toronto,… »

Butterfly wings biomimicry for dirt free coated surfaces

By Damir Beciri
One Comment19 October 2012

yang-advanced-functional-materials-dropAside the technology being used to generate the energy from the sun, the efficiency of solar panels also depends on the cleanliness of the panels. Moisture and dust debris piled up on their surface require time consuming and costly maintenance, however, a group of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania used bio-inspiration to develop a… »

Two types of artificial cornea being developed

By Damir Beciri
18 October 2012

fraunhofer-artificial-cornea-gives-the-gift-of-visionBlindness is often caused by corneal diseases which are usually treated with a corneal transplant, but in many cases this is not possible and donor corneas are often hard to come by. In order to solve this problem, a group of researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research (Fraunhofer IAP) is developing two… »

Creating GeS nanostructures with flower patterns

By Damir Beciri
18 October 2012

nc-state-cao-flowerResearchers from North Carolina State University have devised a way to create nature inspired elements out of germanium sulfide (GeS) – a non-toxic semiconductor material – that could one day be used in creation of next-generation energy storage devices and solar cells. They managed to use this method to create flower-like GeS structures that have… »

Next generation memory chips from silicon oxide and graphene

By Damir Beciri
17 October 2012

rice-silicon-oxide-memory-1A group of researchers from Rice University led by chemist James Tour came to a discovery that it was possible to make bits of computer memory from silicon oxide and carbon. Their research could lead to transparent, non-volatile, heat- and radiation-resistant memory chips which provide more memory storage while being smaller compared to memory chips… »

Using math tools to improve energy efficiency of courtyards

By Damir Beciri
17 October 2012

mediterranean-courtyard-math-tool-1While some may wonder how our ancestors managed to realize similar solutions in architecture throughout the different cultures around the world, researchers from the University of Seville (Spain) propose that climate played a major role in that process. They also used mathematical tools to reveal the phenomenon that the temperature inside the typical Mediterranean courtyard… »