We have featured lots of Rubik’s Cube solving robots on Hacked Gadgets. Seems that there are many creative ways to come up with the same result. Since the solution to the actual problem has been well documented the solution turns into a detection of the existing cube orientation and then a method of moving the cube one move at a time in the correct order. Spinning the cube is
Have a look at this high tech approach to cutting your lawn. Sanjiv Singh from the Robotic Institute is using technology that we have seen used in many of the DARPA Grand Challenge to cut grass! "Approach The first approach to obstacle detection is color segmentation, which is the ability to distinguish obstacles based on color. We are developing a method that is robust to changes in color due
Bill Beaty has created a neat way for magnets to be levitated. If you build it please be cautious since you could loose your hand if you aren’t careful. "While working on science museum exhibits in 1990 I came up with the above idea: it is known that a spinning metal disk will lift and fling a strong magnet. Therefore, metal rods with opposite spin will lift a magnet
This DIY Hovercraft Project was done on a budget and the results are very good based on the amount of money that was put into it. "The workings of a hovercraft are fairly straightforward: one high-power motor with an airplane propeller forces air down through the hole in the center, which pushes the bottom of the hovercraft off the ground. This greatly reduces friction, allowing the hovercraft to scoot
No emails this time, we are going to do another Guess what this isn’t contest since the last one was so much fun! Simply reply in the comments what this device isn’t. 🙂 Make it funny, crazy, weird… Just use your imagination. You can enter more than once if you come up with more than one thought. With a short vote the best comment will win the prize. The prize
If you want to have the coolest headphone setup on the block have a look at this Tube Headphone Amplifier project. When everyone else simply plugs their headphones into a transistor amplifier you can enjoy the rich sound that comes from a tube amp (at least that is what some people say). "The tube heater draws 150mA at 12.6 and the whole amp draws 580 mA at startup and
A recent study by Kevin Fu, an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and director of the Medical Device Security Center, has uncovered a weakness in some pacemakers. It turns out that pacemakers communicate with a computer during initial configuration. This wireless communication channel is not encrypted and provides test functions that can turn off the device! The research team has developed a countermeasure which allows
