Google Glass to help response and rescue

Firefighter Patrick Jackson developed a software that can push emergency calls to Google Glass and direct responders to its location and nearby hydrants with Google Maps. Currently, he’s working on being able to pull up floor plans and other relevant information about buildings before entry, as well as vehicle diagrams and instructions for aiding in-car rescues. […]

Rescue Tunnel

Air Rope - Inflatable Rescue Tunnel for Flood Situations by Lee Jee Won, Lee Yong Ho, Lee Juan

Air Rope is an inflatable rescue tunnel that can be deployed during flood situations. It is a safer option to the rope pulley system and is easier to use. Instead of braving the torrent and crossing the river to secure a pulley system, the inflatable air walk is used. Air is pumped into a doughnut-shaped […]

Solar Power and Light Kit

Voltaic Systems, manufacturer of solar chargers for smartphones, laptops and other electronic equipment, just launched a BOGO (Buy One Give One) campaign to help residents of Philippines whose lives were irrevocably changed by the devastating typhoon Haiyan. They’re selling a 3.4 Watt Solar Power and Light Kit that normally costs $85 for just $59, and another one will be […]

Helicopter Writes Words on Blades

The LED R/C Helicopter’s spinning blades have LEDs on them, which can be programmed to display dot-matrix text or icons which emerge while the blades spin, thanks to a persistence of vision illusion. Simply enter the text you want to display using the companion app (which appears to be Windows only), choose the animation pattern, […]

Microspine Rock-Climbing Robot from JPL

At ICRA 2012, JPL introduced its microspine gripper system, which uses hundreds of tiny little claws to grip rough surfaces. We saw some video of a robot hanging from one of these, but it was just being used as a passive anchor. At IROS this week, JPL researchers presented a new video showing an upgraded version […]

Habitat for Humanity Philippines

Habitat for Humanity International is a nonprofit, Christian organization that seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world and make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action worldwide. Habitat for Humanity is going to respond to this disaster in a significant way. Our initial target is to distribute 50,000 units of Clean-up/Hygiene […]