Intersectional R&D

Volvo has delved into a new, fascinating, and intersectional, initiative.  The car company’s vision is to develop a collision safety system for automobiles based on the African grasshopper’s ability to not collide when it flies in swarms.

Scientists have discovered that the African locust has a unique internal radar system composed of a giant movement detector behind the eyes. The visual input is instantly transmitted to the insect’s wing nerve cells – seemingly bypassing the brain. The detector releases bursts of energy when the locust is on a collision course, which allows it to move out of the way quickly. Jonas Ekmark, preventive safety leader at Volvo Safety Division, points out how amazing it is that these grasshoppers can fly around in a chaotic swarm, looking for food, yet never once collide with each other. He feels that the discovery about the locust’s radar system has the potential of yielding information that could be used to develop new technology to cut down on road traffic accidents.

The connection between the locust’s sensory system and a potential road traffic safety system was made by Dr. Claire Rind at Newcastle University, in the UK. When asked how she came up with it, she answers that she thinks it came from her own experience as a driver and a pedestrian. Locusts are quick to react and have reliable circuits, and they can do their computations against a lot of background chatter, which is quite similar to driving a vehicle around town. And so she realized that the locust’s ability may be available in the context of road traffic safety.

Volvo safety division heard about Dr. Rind’s research, and thought it could be of use particularly in regard to pedestrian safety. The automobile company hopes to reproduce the locust’s radar system onto a computer chip, and install it inside a camera, which would compose the car’s safety system – although, so far, current hardware and software systems have proved unable to replicate the locust’s sensory system.

Sandra Ljung

Earlier we have seen how advanced technology from NASA and several other sources were used to give Speedo’s LZR Racer swimsuit extraordinary qualities. Considering the outstanding performance of the product it is not surprising that this thinking spreads to other sports. Right now, for instance, there is a cool experiment (Swedish) going on with cross-country skis in Sweden. An interesting difference is that while Speedo’s swimsuit was developed at a deliberate intersection where they harnessed the skills of experts from diverse fields this idea is more coincidental. And it did didn’t come from the sport people.

When some technicians who work with the Swedish combat aircraft Gripen heard that Norwegian skiers had successfully used sandpaper instead of ski wax to prepare cross country skis they got an idea. To make the colour attach well to the surface of the airplane they use an advanced technique where they blast it with minuscule plastic balls. That way they achieve pretty much the same effect as with sandpaper but with much more precision. Basically, they realized that they could do the same thing as the Norwegians – only better. Naturally, they didn’t contact them to tell them this – the Norwegians are annoyingly good as it is. Instead they approached their countryman Oskar Svärd who is one of the top long distance skiers in the world.

The precision with which they can use this technique makes it possible to adjust the surface for different temperatures and snow qualities. They have now made several pairs of skis for Svärd. He has tested them and is really pleased with the result. He will use them this winter and if he is successful it might change the sport as well as attitudes to the Gripen project in Sweden. It is ridiculously advanced and expensive and heavily criticized. But if it can help Svärd beat the Norwegians at cross-country skiing…

/Kristian Ribberström

Well, since it is Youtube week here on The Medici Effect Blog I want to share a video with robots inspired by animals.

The possibilities at this intersection of biology and technology seem limitless and I have written several posts based on bionics earlier. I have a strong feeling that the engineers creating these things are having a very good time and that they regard nature as an endless source of challenges.

/Kristian Ribberström

One of the first examples in The Medici Effect of the innovative power of intersectional teams is a ground breaking experiment that was conducted at Brown University in 2002; a team of researchers "eavesdropped” signals in a monkey’s brain so that it could control a cursor on a computer screen with its mind. They succeeded because the researchers behind the project came from a number of different scientific fields and this was the result of a deliberate effort to create an intersection of disciplines.

Now a team of scientists at the University of Pittsburgh has taken this one step further – their monkey eats with a multi-jointed brain-controlled prosthetic limb.

And again the breakthrough is a made at an intersection of disciplines: the researchers that were needed to make this possible represent neurobiology, bioengineering, cognition, regenerative medicine, robotics, physical medicine and rehabilitation. (I feel sorry for the monkey though…)

/Kristian Ribberström

Bertrand Gondouin in a Metro article (Swedish) when he recently presented his electronic jacket at a virtual reality conference in Stockholm. His aim is to explore how computers may be used without the traditional tools – for experimental and artistic purposes. He has used electronic textiles in the jacket (which looks like a perfectly normal jacket) and he controls the computer by waving his arms. With his movements he can navigate through a 3D environment projected on the wall.

Gondouin is a designer in interactive visuals who really exploits the innovative power of intersections of different disciplines. This is how he describes it himself:

“My work combines three disciplines: art direction, software engineering and live performance. This scope of activities enables me to deliver responsive, environmental graphics in real-time, which creates uniquely immersive experiences.”

At this intersection he seems to have a lot of fun and apparently barriers don’t exist to this visionary thinker. Considering what he has achieved it is amazing that he has no background in technology but he certainly brings new perspectives into this field since he is educated in art and has been working with live television. Check this crazy video from his first experiments with the jacket where he controls sound with arm movements or this earlier post which also includes electronic textiles.

/Kristian Ribberström

When I saw Peter Jackson’s The Two Towers back in 2002 I was amazed, like everybody else, by the digitally animated creature Gollum. The filmmakers had achieved something extraordinary and I realized there and then that I would never again be surprised the possibilities of motion-capture technique. But I was wrong. The designers at Front make everybody surprised with their innovative design method. They make freehand sketches in the air and record the strokes with motion-capture technology. The information is then digitized into 3D models.

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One of the main ideas in The Medici Effect is that if you apply existing concepts in fields where they haven’t been used before it dramatically increases your chances of being innovative. The Front design team is a very good example of that. When they placed themselves at the intersection of 3D animation and furniture design and applied motion-capture where it doesn’t “belong” it gave them originality as well as attention. Arguably, it would take some rather advanced technical breakthrough to revolutionize the way motion-capture is used for 3D animation in films or computer games but all they had to do at Front was to use the technique in a new way.

Naturally, this is not their only design method but all their work is characterized by the same open-mindedness that enables them to break down the associative barriers between fields. When I assumed that I would never again be surprised by the possibilities of motion-capture it was because I didn’t see beyond those barriers.

/Kristian Ribberström

Check out this nano-vent skin of micro-wind turbines by Augustin Otegui. At the intersection of biology and nano-technology it transforms the energy of sun and wind.

/Kristian Ribberström

Yes, I know, IT can be integrated into anything and the combinations are not automatically intriguing just because they are new and far-fetched. What I do like about Smartus, however, is that it is not just another use of IT for the sake of it. The objective is to explore the pedagogical use of physical play as a method for learning – and IT interactivity happens to be the ideal tool to achieve that.

Smartus collaborates with different providers of content, software, and technology but also with university researchers to study how the IT applications facilitate teaching and learning processes. At this intersection they create playgrounds that are suitable for pre-schools, schools, experience parks, shopping centres and other contexts.

/Kristian Ribberström

When Mercedez-Benz presented their bionic concept car back in 2005 they showed that they were capable of optimizing aerodynamic form in a very unorthodox way; they used the R&D of nature itself and modelled it after the angular but streamlined boxfish.

Even though this example is not new it shows how expertise and open-mindedness can be combined to explore the possibilities of intersectional innovation. Let the images will speak for themselves or follow the link and read more details.

/Kristian Ribberström

When Maria Nyström studied kitchens and cocking in developing countries she saw a strong connection to the living conditions for astronauts. The need to maximize the use of limited resources was what the two seemingly diverse fields had in common. Nyström, who is an architect and Professor of Sustainable Development at Chalmers University of Technology, realized that the same principles and recycling techniques that are developed for astronauts could be used here on earth. As we know by now, the resources are limited down here as well.

Even though she thought the idea had potential she didn’t believe NASA would even reply when she contacted them in 1997. But they did. Today she is responsible for Star Design (Space and Terrestrial Architectural Design) – a project where architects and designers develop equipment with focus on function and usability. The aim is to find simple solutions that can be used in space but also to improve life in developing countries. In order to understand environment issues and find the parallels between tough conditions in space and tough conditions on earth they need to work in extreme and unknown places. Therefore Nyström sends her students to Africa. It forces them to see reality and to be open-minded.

Systems for sustainable living are needed in a time with growing population and growing cities. It all comes down to smart use of resources and Nyström means that smart often means simple rather that high-tech. One of their projects is focused on using NASA technology for water cleaning and energy supply on food markets in Nigeria. Using these existing solutions may mean fewer diseases, cleaner environment and better food for many people. It is simple in a way, but it took someone like Nyström to see the intersection of space technology and poor living conditions to have that vision.

/Kristian Ribberström