Lifeboat Foundation

Tesla has officially released its API documentation to support third-party apps – after years of operating in a gray zone with an unofficial API.

For now, it is geared toward fleet management, but developers are hoping it is a first step toward creating a healthy app ecosystem.

The automaker has talked on and off about releasing a software development kit (SDK) to create a full third-party app ecosystem operating with its vehicles, which have giant touchscreens and connectivity.

Alumni of IIT-Kharagpur have built a cold storage facility named Ecofrost via their startup, Ecozone Solutions. This is a portable facility that offers pre-cooling of fruits, vegetables and flowers to increase their shelf life and reduce transportation costs.

It is. based on reinforcement learning algorithms (RL) to allow for quick robot movement.

Robotic dogs have a massive hurdle in autonomous navigation in crowded spaces. Robot navigation in crowds has applications in various fields, including shopping mall service robots, transportation, healthcare, etc.

To facilitate rapid and efficient movement, developing new methods is crucial to enable robots to navigate crowded spaces and obstacles safely.

Continue reading “New algorithm may allow robots to move in crowded places” »

Ultracapacitors are awesome. But could they viably replace batteries in future electric vehicles?

Ultracapacitors have significant advantages over batteries, after all, they are much lighter, faster to charge, safer, and non-toxic. However, there are some areas where batteries wipe the floor with them, at least for now.

With recent acquisitions of ultracapacitor manufacturers by the likes of Tesla, ultracapacitors could be on the verge of ousting batteries as the go-to power source for electric cars.

Scientists have observed the molecular motion of rubber components typically used in automobile tires—polybutadiene and carbon black—with the world’s fastest time resolution.

The study, published in Applied Physics Letters, reveals a clear interaction between the two components on the atomic scale, paving the way towards improved diagnostics of tire rubber degradation and the development of materials with enhanced durability.

Tire rubber is a composite material that typically includes synthetic rubber, such as polybutadiene, and added nanoparticles, such as carbon black, to improve its physical properties. During driving, strong forces act on the tire, causing its components to move against each another, which can lead to wear and degradation of the material.

Google’s Green Light initiative uses AI and Google Maps to optimize traffic lights and reduce emissions.

Traffic jams are not only frustrating but also harmful to the environment. According to a study, road transportation accounts for a large share of global and urban greenhouse gas emissions, and the situation is worse at city intersections, where pollution can be 29 times higher than on open roads. The main reason is vehicles’ frequent stopping and starting, which consumes more fuel and emits more carbon dioxide.

But what if we could use artificial intelligence (AI) to optimize traffic lights and reduce these emissions? That is the idea behind Green Light, a Google Research initiative that… More.

Continue reading “Google’s Green Light: AI for smarter and greener traffic lights” »

Consumers discard or possess disused electronic goods containing raw materials critical for the green energy transition and worth almost $10 billion every year, the United Nations said on Thursday.

Toys, cables, electronic cigarettes, tools, electric toothbrushes, shavers, headphones and other domestic gadgets contain metals like lithium, gold, silver and copper.

Demand is expected to soar for these materials due to their crucial role in rapidly growing green industries such as electric vehicle battery production.

Ceramic nanowires could essentially be used even for car tires reducing even hazardous rubber waste.

A team of MIT-led engineers found a simple, inexpensive way to strengthen Inconel 718 with ceramic nanowires to be used in metal PBF AM processes. The team believes that their general approach could be used to improve many other materials. “There is always a significant need for the development of more capable materials for extreme environments. We believe that this method has great potential for other materials in the future,” said Ju Li, the Battelle Energy Alliance Professor in Nuclear Engineering and a professor in MIT’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE).

Li, who is also affiliated with the Materials Research Laboratory (MRL), is one of three corresponding authors of a paper on the work that appeared in the April 5 issue of Additive Manufacturing. The other corresponding authors are Professor Wen Chen of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and Professor A. John Hart of the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Continue reading “MIT researchers develop Inconel 718-ceramic nanowires powder for AM” »

From the astrology software of the 1970s to the Co-Star app, spirituality has proliferated online. Now, large language models can find overlooked ways to connect with a higher plane.