Innovative electric vehicles have been stirring up a lot of buzz in
recent times, but their mechanisms can sometimes be bulky. One company
has decided to take electric biking to a whole new level and incorporate
bluetooth connectivity into the innovative design. On
top of this incredibly functional feature, the Electric S bike looks
nothing like you would expect, and there are very few indications that
it is actually powered through an electric motor, according to TNW. The short video released by Amsterdam based company VanMoof shows off their product in a new light.
Naturally, you may be asking why bluetooth would be necessary to
integrate into a bike, but it actually provides an even greater level of
security to the somewhat expensive design. With a built in locking
feature and display monitoring, the battery powered bike can travel 75 miles on a single charge. Adjustable speeds, and all of its other features mean there isn’t much not to like about the incredibly stylish design.
One of the best abilities the user gains when having an internet
connected bike is no longer having to hassle with keys, or remembering
your bike lock’s combination. Now you can simply unlock the bike with a
tap of your screen.
If for some reason a thief does steal your bike, there’s a built in
GPS that allows users to recover the bike, with the help of the local
authorities of course.
Now here is the major downside to the Electrified S electric bike, it costs a whopping US$3500, likely leaving the product to only be bought by the very well off. Containing a 250W electric motor,
the bicycle can certainly hold its ground for all of your biking needs.
If you are someone who rides their bike to work each day, you may be
able to justify the several thousand dollar price tag.
So why don’t you head out and go get yourself a stylish electric bike?
Oh, yeah we forgot, it costs as much as some used cars . . . Well you
could always save up for one. As technological innovation meets
centuries old mechanisms, the future is looking pretty bright for the
recreation industry.
The Mirror reports a 42 year-old man named Ricky Ma has built a $50,000 humanoid robot named Mark 1 from scratch. He’s not revealing the name of the Hollywood actress it was modeled after, but one look at the robot immediately gives it away: Scarlett Johansson. I would be curious to find out what Scarlett Johansson herself thinks of this robot lookalike. If I was the real Scarlett Johansson, I imagine it would be hard to go to sleep at night, knowing that a robotic doppelganger sits or stands somewhere in Hong Kong, eyes never shutting. Equally disturbing would be the idea of this lookalike robot responding to Ma’s incessant commands with a canned, programmed, “Hehe, thank you.” The future, er, the present, just got that much creepier.
Ricky Ma is a product and graphic designer and when he began building his robot, had no in-depth knowledge of coding, robotics or electromechanics. He taught himself everything about robot construction as he went along, which took about a year and a half. He admitted that it was incredibly difficult to build all the parts from scratch. Ma said,
“During this process, a lot of people would say things like, ‘Are you stupid? This takes a lot of money. Do you even know how to do it? It’s really hard.'”
He built Mark 1 in near total isolation and told Yip he didn’t know anyone else who was currently building a robot in Hong Kong. He also told the Reuters journalist that few in his city understood his mission to build a robot. Ma admitted that he has been obsessed with building a robot since his childhood. He said he loved animation and cartoons as a child and never quite stopped loving them.
The humanoid robot’s silicone skin covers a 3D printed skeleton and 70% of the body was created using 3D printing technology. Mark 1 responds to a set of a programmed verbal commands that Ma speaks into a microphone. The robot can perform simple movements with its arms and legs, can turn its head and bow as well. Additionally, Mark 1 can create highly detailed facial expressions.
