A Pennsylvania team called Pipistrel-USA has won $1.35 million from NASA after taking first place in the aviation and space agency’s CAFE Green Flight Challenge with an electric-powered plane called the Taurus G4.
The competition, which was sponsored by Google, was aimed at spurring development of more efficient aircraft designs and sparking growth of an electric-airplane industry. Numerous companies have been quietly working on electric and hybrid-powered aircraft for years, but the contest results hint at the practical possibilities of electric power in aviation. It also makes the mass marketing of electric cars seem relatively easy.
Transportation Department officials said engine electronics were not the cause in cases of unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles. The much-awaited conclusion comes after a 10-month investigation that included NASA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The report says the only known causes of acceleration problems in Toyota cars are defective pedals or floor mats that interfered with pedals. The car maker had previously identified these causes and long contended the vehicles’ electronics were not at fault.
Even a space robot needs an understudy. While Robonaut 2 or R2, a humanoid robot developed by NASA and General Motors Co. engineers, prepares for a trip to the International Space Station, a second R2 is making the rounds in Detroit.
General Motors says R2 will appear for the first time today at 10:30 a.m. EST to demonstrate its abilities at the company’s technical center in Warren, Mich. The robot, which consists of a torso, arms and head, uses sensors to “see” and can perform surprisingly delicate tasks with its hands. R2′s movements often seem startlingly human.
You can see a video of R2 in action after the jump.
When the space shuttle Discovery lifts off Wednesday, General Motors Co.’s Robonaut 2, better known as R2, will be on board, bound for his first assignment on the International Space Station. R2 is the result of a partnership between the car maker and NASA to develop advanced robotics that began in 2007.
Engineers and scientists from GM and NASA worked together at the Johnson Space Center in Houston to develop R2. The robot is designed to use its vision technology, sensors and controls to help astronauts with their everyday work aboard the space station. Robotics are important to GM for a number of reasons, and R2 space-station work can help the company develop its next generation of automotive safety features including crash-avoidance systems. It can also help with automated manufacturing systems in GM assembly plants.
Engineers from General Motors Corp. and NASA are testing a robot that will fly to the International Space Station in November to perform tasks too risky for humans to try. They are also testing safety technology that could wind up in your next car.
The car maker and the space agency have been working on the “humanoid” robot named R2 since 2007. R2 uses sensors to determine its position and coordinate movements. General Motors says it plans to use similar sensor technology in coming generations of its safety systems including lane-departure and blind-spot warnings, and parking-assist devices.
Driver’s Seat is a blog featuring news, views, and advice about cars, auto safety, driving, and transportation. Driver’s Seat is written by Jonathan Welsh with contributions from auto critic Dan Neil, columnist Joe White and Wall Street Journal staffers and others.