Matsushita Drive Recorder
Matsushita has come up with a prototype drive recorder that is capable of recording all sides of a vehicle - the front, rear and interior using a single interior and three exterior cameras. Each view will be shown on 1/4 of the screen. Upon detecting the shock of an impact, the system will then record all 30 seconds of images - combining the ‘before’ and ‘after’ videos on a 2GB SD memory card in MPEG-4 video format. The total recording time is 3 hours, but I guess you wouldn’t want to get involved in approximately 180 crashes before emptying the card, do you? This is one great device to settle disputes whenever there is an accident. The prototype device is currently being marketed at $165, featuring a color CCD image sensor at 250k resolution with horizonal and vertical viewing angles of 134° and 103° respectively.
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Add comment November 4th, 2007
TDK has manufactured a prototype holographic material that enhances recording capablility, boasting a high overwriting capability that translates into a higher recording density. Initial tests have shown that the prototype material is capable of providing a recording density of 76 Gbits/inch2. Now that’s a whole lot of data and would certainly put current media like HD DVD and Blu-ray to shame, but the fact that holographic material is still a long way off from being commercialized would mean we will have to make do with what we have now and leave the rest to scientists to come up with an affordable working solution for consumers.
The Tartan Racing Team from Carnegie Mellon University walked away with the $2 million first place price after beating out on five other teams who completed the DARPA Urban Challenge this weekend. Using a fully automated Chevy Tahoe, this driverless vehicle navigated an urban environment with the best time and least amount of errors. It is interestin to note that this challenge involved such vehicles to obey traffic laws as well as avoid obstacles while getting to their destination without any outside help whatsoever. The Stanford Racing team took second spot with $1 million while the Victor Tango team from Virginia Tech pocketed $500,000 for their third place efforts. Looks like fully autonomous vehicles are still a long way off in the future, although such strides are commendable.
Scene It for the Xbox 360 requires these new Big Button controllers, and thankfully they don’t have to be purchased separately. For $60, you get the Scene It game along with a quartet of these babies, but how long will this game actually last you? Hopefully other games on the Xbox 360 platform will take advantage of this unique controller lest it being chucked away into a remote corner somewhere once you’re done.
Sony has just expanded its Micro PC line to include the VGN-UX490N/C. This tiny wonder ain’t cheap though, retailing for $2,499 but it does improve upon the UX390 in many aspects. Improvements include a Core 2 Solo processor, a 48GB SSD flash drive, an extended battery in addition to the standard battery, and a Bluetooth GPS receiver to help you find your way round unfamiliar territory. Other features that stand include a couple of cameras, EDGE support, 1GB RAM, and a 4.5″ touchscreen display. All in all, this is a pretty good deal since a standalone GPS receiver and extended battery will set you back by half a grand, but this new system throws both in and costs just $150 more than the UX390.
