Month: May 2013

Pitches with Prototypes: The Pixeldelic Vest

Pitches with Prototypes: The Pixeldelic Vest

On May 14-15 this year, hopeful innovators and industry experts will gather at MAKE’s Hardware Innovation Workshop. One of the hopefuls will be self-described artist, designer, photographer, scientist, and engineer Joshua Hubert. Josh and others will have a chance to showcase their creations and pitch them in a five minute presentation and demonstration. Workshop attendees will vote for the most interesting and innovative product idea, taking into consideration its application, target market, and commercial viability. The winner will receive a slot on the Maker Faire Innovation Stage to present their prototype the following weekend.

Joshua specializes in creating some of the most amazing illuminated art you are likely to see. He has consulted on many fascinating designs for television, film and stage, including Katy Perry’s peacock costume from your 2010 appearance on David Letterman.

Pitches with Prototypes: Haptix

Pitches with Prototypes: Haptix

Haptix is a sensor that enables multitouch on any surface, such as a screen, keyboard, or table. The creators are competing in MAKE’s 2013 Hardware Innovation Workshop, set for May 14-15 to compete in the “pitches with prototypes” contest. A dozen companies have submitted hardware projects and workshop attendees will vote for the most interesting and innovative ideas. The winner will receive a slot on the Maker Faire Innovation Stage to present their prototype the following weekend.

Using the BeagleBone to Control a Powerful Upper Body Exoskeleton

Using the BeagleBone to Control a Powerful Upper Body Exoskeleton

My senior design team at the University of Pennsylvania has developed a powered upper body exoskeleton for use in physical therapy and assistive mobility applications. We’ve named the suit Titan after the powerful deities of incredible strength and stamina in Greek mythology. The exoskeleton runs off a master BeagleBone microcomputer running Ubuntu Linux and PyBBIO, an open-source Python library for BeagleBone control.

R&D Media Labs: Podcasts for Makers

R&D Media Labs: Podcasts for Makers

Need help with a project? Former Make: Labs intern Matthew Dalton and Jacob Rogers, both from Instructables, have launched a great new podcast called R&D Media Labs, where they field project questions and offer answers. Matt writes: “The goal of the podcast is to assist people in brainstorming ideas for projects to be worked on, […]