40 tonne electric truck delivers parts to BMW

Credit: Terberg/Cnet

BMW has already shown an interest in electric vehicles with its i3 electric & i8 hybrid, with more planned.

Recently, they have deployed a 40 ton articulated electric truck, supplied by Dutch manufacturer Terberg, for parts deliveries from automotive service provider Scherm. Initially, it will be used on a trial basis between the BMW Group Plant & Scherm Group Logistics Centre, a distance of 2 kilometres, 8 trips per day.

http://www.theverge.com/2015/7/10/8927489/bmw-electric-truck-europe-terberg

http://www.cnet.com/news/bmw-puts-a-40-ton-electric-truck-on-the-road/

http://qz.com/450487/an-all-electric-bmw-18-wheeler-truck-is-on-the-road-in-germany/ / electric truck Munich Bavaria Germany German automobile manufacturer BMW automotive service provider Scherm first 40-ton electric vehicle public roads truck designed built Dutch truck manufacturer Terberg charged using energy renewable sources takes 3 to 4 hours charge completely travel up to 100 kilometres full charge work for a full day single charge BMW Scherm truck is quiet CO2-free no fine particle pollution using renewable energy save 11.8 tons of CO2 compared equivalent diesel truck Bavaria leading industrial research Bavarian electric mobility Bavaria's Minister for Economic Affairs Ilse Aigner truck's launch 7 July 2015 BMW succeed global market sustainable products innovative companies electric buses smaller trucks vehicles 10-ton weight 40-ton electric truck first for Europe electric truck sustainable urban mobility Hermann Bohrer head of the BMW Group Plant reducing emissions city electric truck transport materials on public roads trips between BMW Group Plant Scherm's logistics centre Munich transporting vehicle components shock absorbers springs steering systems 16 kilometres daily BMW Scherm trial basis gain valuable information possible electric trucks future city logistics Jürgen Maidl head of logistics BMW Group Scherm Group new journey delivering pioneering work /

Airbus E-Fan electric aircraft crosses the Channel (video)

Credit: PA/Daily Mail

Not the first plane to cross the Channel, not even the first electric, but it is an electric aircraft with definite plans for commercial development, with 2 & 4 seat variants in the works.



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3117977/World-s-plug-plane-takes-Bright-sparks-Airbus-unveil-electric-two-seater-E-Fan-aircraft-Paris-Air-s-nearly-silent-flight.html

http://www.theverge.com/2015/7/10/8927841/airbus-e-fan-electric-aircraft-english-channel

The first person to fly a heavier-than-air aircraft across the Channel was Louis Blériot, going in the opposite direction, in a monoplane which bore his name, on 25 July 1909. In the last few frames of the video, there is what looks like a Blériot monoplane, with yellow wings, just left of centre.


Blériot monoplane
Credit: J. Klank/Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bl%C3%A9riot_XI / Airbus E-Fan 2.0 electric prototype aircraft Paris speeds of 136mph plane can fly for up to an hour all-electric enter service in 2017 2050 Airbus 100-seat electric plane fleet Airbus aircraft manufacturer plug-in plane Paris Air Show E-Fan 2.0 prototype endurance stay airborne for one hour carbon dioxide CO2 emission-free nearly silent in flight weight weighing less than half a tonne revolutionary flyer LiIon lithium-ion polymer batteries 31ft wings dual electric motors total power of 60 kiloWatts ducted fan electric motors prototype Airbus plans assembly line E-Fan at Pau south-west France /

Reversible micro USB cable — update

MicFlip micro USB to USB A cable — both ends reversible
Credit: Winnergear/IndieGoGo

Update — producers of MicFlip have advised supporters that they have been unable to source reversible USB A connectors which perform reliably over the thousands of plug/unplug operations they are likely to be exposed to in normal use.

More detail at: http://hhg2tech.blogspot.com.au/2015/07/reversible-micro-usb-cable-update.html
__________

How many tries does it take you to plug in a USB plug? World-wide collective frustration with this problem lead Intel to document the phenomenon as shown below.


Credit: Intel/Arstechnica

Arguably, the problem became worse with micro USB.

USB-C solves the problem by being reversible, but has so far appeared in only the Chromebook Pixel & the MacBook 12".

While you’re waiting for the inevitable avalanche of USB C adoption, & on an ongoing basis for your legacy devices, you may be interested in a cable with reversible micro USB at one end & a reversible USB A connector at the other:

MicFlip
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/micflip-world-s-first-fully-reversible-micro-usb#/story

MicFlip is the only cable sighted to-date, with reversible plugs at both ends. There are a number of crowd-funded cables which go half way: reversible one end only.

Reversible micro USB at one end, conventional, one-way USB A connector at the other:

Micro-Flip
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/46674142/micro-flip-reversible-micro-usb?ref=nav_search

Lightors
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1490536746/lightors-cable-worlds-first-reversible-micro-usb-c?ref=nav_search

These cables have conventional, non-reversible micro USB at one end & reversible USB A at the other:

dio
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/moopti/dio-naked-reversible-usb-cables-for-lightning-and/description

Woodie
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/370070655/woodie-leather-and-wood-reversible-usb-charging-ca?ref=discovery

Reversible USB connector
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/reversible-usb-charging-cable-for-iphone-android#/story / reversible Micro-USB cable that is long overdue for Android handset users braided nylon gold plated connectors aluminium housing plug durable tangle free Kickstarter IndieGoGo crowd funded funding product delivery backers product quality durability pilot production run Micro-Flip cables passed reliability durability tests withstand withstanding 10,000 plugging cycles demand production mass quantities funding goal deliver product backers quality control manufacturer quality USB cables industrial quality control process USB cables USB 2 USB 3.0 3.1 charge sync synch /

Pluto — sharpest images to-date

As New Horizons approaches Pluto, the images keep getting sharper. From 5.4 million km on Thursday 09 July, resolution was 27km per pixel.
Credit: NASA/JHU-APL/SWRI/BBC

And there is more to come — NASA’s New Horizons is getting closer to Pluto, at 50,000 kilometres per hour (31,000 mph) — closest approach will be at 11:50 UTC on Tuesday, July 14, 2015, just 12,500km above the surface. Resolution of images will be better than 100 metres per pixel.

The image above was taken on Thursday. Why is it just being published now? Pluto is more than 4.7 billion km away. Over that distance, transmission is at very low bit rates.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-33491454

http://www.wired.com/2015/07/new-horizons-scientists-react-geological-detail-pluto/

The view two days previously:
http://hhg2tech.blogspot.com.au/2015/07/pluto-best-image-to-date-from-nasas-new.html

More about Pluto:

NASA’s “New Horizons Pluto in a Minute” channel on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiuUQ9asub3RUlLBXMFGq8aFEPS5yONT2

New Horizons web page, including a count-down-timer for closest approach
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html / whale’s tail polygonal feature band of complex patterns New Horizons interplanetary space probe launched NASA's New Frontiers program Applied Physics Laboratory Southwest Research Institute Alan Stern spacecraft launched study Pluto moons Kuiper Belt performing flybys Pluto system Kuiper Belt Objects KBOs New Horizons project Pluto 350 project Alan Stern Fran Bagenal Pluto Underground 1990 lightweight cost-effective spacecraft flyby Pluto construction several delays launch site New Horizons launched January 19, 2006, Cape Canaveral Earth-and-solar-escape trajectory Earth-relative speed 16.26 kilometers per second 58,536 km/h; 36,373 mph record highest launch speed of a human-made object from Earth brief encounter asteroid 132524 APL New Horizons Jupiter closest approach Jupiter flyby gravity assist New Horizons speed velocity general test returning data about its atmosphere moons magnetosphere post-Jupiter voyage hibernation mode preserve on-board systems brief annual checkouts first flyby of Pluto on July 14, 2015 /

After The Blast

Garth Callender
Credit: ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Garth Callender was the Australian Army's first serious casualty of the Iraq war. He has written a book about his experiences: “After The Blast: An Australian Officer In Iraq And Afghanistan”, published by Black Inc.

Recently, he told his story to Sarah Kanowski of the ABC.

“I recall reaching up & feeling over my head & was somewhat relieved to find I didn’t have a hole in my head.”

Podcast available at:
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2015/07/08/4269568.htm / patrol sniper car bomb light armoured vehicle armored type 1 gun car driver periscope Kevlar turret situationally aware threat level suicide vehicle gunner personnel carrier force munition fuse detonating cord artillery round remote control mortar high explosive survive attack first aid bandage traumatic amputation loss of blood Camp Victory Route Irish recovery Garth returned conflict zones Afghanistan suffered severe injuries armoured vehicle driving Iraq target roadside bomb IED improvised explosive device fully recovered returned to Baghdad second-in-command Australian Army's security detachment volunteered lead weapons intelligence team Afghanistan flown in blast zones helicopter attacks work identify insurgents responsible bombs wife Crystal return to danger After The Blast An Australian Officer In Iraq And Afghanistan Black Inc Garth Callender regular Australian Army distinguished career served Iraq Afghanistan rank of major weapons technical intelligence trained soldiers raw recruits deployment Australian technology company developing detect concealed explosives troops KAIA-N base Afghanistan body armour RAAF flight Kabul coalition troops Australians showered with twisted metal shrapnel fragments armored vehicle flats blast-proof ballistic goggles body armour armor Helmand /

Is this the next Toyota Prius? — leaked images

Credit: Julien JODRY/Twitter

If these images prove to be genuine, it looks like Toyota still doesn’t understand the impact of wheel height on efficiency.

Although it resembles the Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle in that respect


Credit: Green Car Reports

Claimed fuel consumption of 2.5 l/100km is extraordinary.

http://www.themotorreport.com.au/61892/toyota-prius-images-and-specs-for-all-new-model-leaked / Toyota’s all-new Prius hybrid range Tokyo Motor Show images may given the game away Japanese carmaker next generation next-gen Prius Toyota Taiwanese website Autonet published images reportedly scanned from official Toyota literature new Prius’ technical specifications green hero fuel consumption report claims official figure 2.5 l/100km 2.5 litres per 100 kilometres kilometers improved improve improvement fuel petrol gas gasoline gasolene current model of 1.4 l/100km based on its Australian figure 36 percent fuel consumption new plug-in hybrid PHEV version 1.42 l/100km all-electric range up to 50km Toyota two-tier approach styling next Prius PHEV version syling take cues new Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell Prius grow in size weight will drop power output 1.8 litre four-cylinder petrol engine 78kW constantly variable transmission CVT automatic development develop hybrid powertrain /

Pluto — best image to-date from NASA’s New Horizons

Credit: NASA

And there is more to come — the image above was taken on 07 July 2015, from just under 8 million kilometres — NASA’s New Horizons is getting closer to Pluto — closest approach will be at 11:50 UTC on Tuesday, July 14, 2015.

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-new-horizons-a-heart-from-pluto-as-flyby-begins

But — why is this necessary? Hubble can get detailed views of distant galaxies — why not Pluto?
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-lakdawalla/2013/02141014-hubble-galaxy-pluto.html?referrer=https://www.google.com.au/ / New Horizons interplanetary space probe launched NASA's New Frontiers program Applied Physics Laboratory Southwest Research Institute Alan Stern spacecraft launched study Pluto moons Kuiper Belt performing flybys Pluto system Kuiper Belt Objects KBOs New Horizons project Pluto 350 project Alan Stern Fran Bagenal Pluto Underground 1990 lightweight cost-effective spacecraft flyby Pluto construction several delays launch site New Horizons launched January 19, 2006, Cape Canaveral Earth-and-solar-escape trajectory Earth-relative speed 16.26 kilometers per second58,536 km/h; 36,373 mph record highest launch speed of a human-made object from Earth brief encounter asteroid 132524 APL New Horizons Jupiter closest approach Jupiter flyby gravity assist New Horizons speed velocity general test returning data about its atmosphere moons magnetosphere post-Jupiter voyage hibernation mode preserve on-board systems brief annual checkouts first flyby of Pluto on July 14, 2015 /