Guys Upstairs - Tech

I remember as a kid making models of various objects using paper and glue, but Mcor Technologies has taken that a step further with their Mcor Matrix. The Mcor Matrix is a 3D printer that does not use lasers and plastics like most that are currently available. The core materials are paper, adhesive, and a cemented tungsten carbide blade. The adhesive is a special water based PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) adhesive that will be offered by Mcor Technologies along with the blades. The paper will be supplied by the user and can be as low cost as 20 lb paper. The vertical resolution is based on the paper thickness and will be 0.1mm with 20lb paper although thicker paper will allow the process to be faster at the cost of reduced resolution.

There is also the option to make colored parts with colored paper. The machine reduces waste by selectively putting more adhesive only on the cross-section. The part profile is then cut with the blade. The finished parts appear similar to wood and post processing can include hardening with cyanoacrylate adhesive, sanding, and painting. The cost of producing parts is drastically reduced by up to 40 times less than current methods due to the use of low cost materials. The Mcor Matrix is scheduled to be released in Q1 2009 in the US. The maximum build (316.33 oz.) of the printer costs under $135.

[Hack a Day]

Kodak has been a pioneer in the OLED field, and has just announced another breakthrough. The new material will enable full color displays that are more energy efficient and longer lifespans. Dubbed Kodak OLED Material EK-GD403, it uses green dopant technology to control the color output and increase efficiency.

When EK-GD403 is combined with other Kodak OLED materials, it can produce low-voltage green OLEDs with high efficiency and lifetime in excess of 65,000 hours. The luminance efficiency is 31 cd/A, and Kodak has been working to increase this number by over 50 percent every year.

Just two months ago, Kodak released the world’s first wireless picture frame using an OLED display. The display is even capable of automatically adjusting the brightness based on surrounding light. OLEDs are starting to become more widespread with advances such as flexible displays.

[Digital Trends]

Google touted the Android would be the most open mobile platform and they are finally keeping their word. The Mountain View, California based company released the Android platform source code via the Android Open Source Project. Google’s adherence to open-source ideals has resulted in the release of the code a day before consumers can get their hands on the T-Mobile G1.

There is hope from Google that Android can develop a large community similar to Linux. They even cited Linux to alleviate concerns that making Android open source could lead to potential security risks. While Google will be concentrating on developing Android for mobile phones, they hope that people will also be able to apply it to other devices. The ultimate hope from the Android team is that it will be so widespread that it could affect the future of mobile devices and not just phones.

[Forbes]

GE has announced a new radio frequency identification (RFID) which can draw power wirelessly from an external reader. These RFIDs use traditional RFID tags with biological or chemically sensitive films, allowing many new potential applications. The new sensors could potentially be used to detect biological threats as well as check the freshness of foods in the grocery store. GE’s sensors are very small and will be able to be used in a wide variety of low cost uses. Passive RFIDs are nothing new, but the inclusion of the chemical and biological sensing ability allows for the possibility of RFIDs having a much greater prevalence in daily life.

[gizmag]