Repelight, from Compact Impact of Japan, is a 26-watt compact fluorescent “bug light” that glows gold but acts green.
With tropical mosquito-borne diseases like West Nile Virus and Dengue Fever on the rise, it makes sense to bolster your backyard bug banishers before the pesky varmints put the bite on you and your family. Now you can do just that while at the same time save bucks – and the environment – with the Repelight CFL (compact fluorescent light) energy efficient bulb.
Last month, another all electric roadster called the Protoscar Lampo was partially unveiled to the public. Aside from a few pieces of information about the power train, Protoscar didn’t give out many details regarding their new sporty EV, however they did say it would be bowing at Geneva and more information would be available just before the show.
The name Lampo comes from the Italian word for lightning. It is supposed to represent power and reference where the Lampo gets its power; electricity. The logo of the vehicle was also designed to mimic the shape and flow of a bolt of lightning.
Power for the Lampo comes from two independent electric motors, one in the front and the other at the rear. Together, the two motors produce 268 horsepower and 325lb/ft of torque. As with all electric motors, that torque is available from 0 rpm. Power goes to all four wheels so there should be no problem getting that much torque to the ground.
Storage for all the power comes in the form of a 32kWh Lithium Ion battery pack. Thanks to the lightweight components used for the Lampo, those battery packs should provide a range of about 125 miles between charges. As with most new EVs, some additional miles can be squeezed out from a regenerative braking system.
Charging the Lampo takes about 12 hours on a 220 volt outlet, which can happen overnight for most people. If you want a faster charge time, Lampo has developed a special accessory that can convert the standard flow of electricity from 16amps to 32 amps, cutting the charge time back to about 6 hours. According to Lampo, such a system could be used to shift the charge time to the off-peak hours when electricity is most abundant.
Protoscar has also linked the Lampo to a solar power plant in Seggiano, Tuscany that is able to produce up to 16 kilowatts of electricity. According to Protoscar, this will help reduce the reliance on outside sources for energy.
Protoscar is also working on a system that uses GPS navigation to estimate how much farther you will be able to travel on the current charge. The system will take into account the topography of the surrounding terrain and incorporate a previously gathered data into the estimation.
More details about the Protoscar Lampo should be available after it is officially unveiled at the upcoming Geneva Auto.
Imagine walking into the room of tomorrow… no need to reach for a light switch; the walls are already gently glowing with scenes of an undersea paradise. Hit the remote and one wall transforms into a floor-to-ceiling TV screen or the backdrop to the newest video game.
Sound like a dream? Engineers at Japan’s Toshiba corporation are well on the way to making it reality.
The crux of the biscuit is the wallpaper. Not just ANY wallpaper, of course, this is a specially developed material that utilizes flexible OLED (organic electroluminescence) screen technology to emit light in a controlled manner.
Anything from a featureless glow that serves as room lighting to action-packed movies, TV programs and computer games is possible. Those impressed by the newest flat screen TV wall mounts are sure to do a neck-snapping double take.
Although OLEDs are not new, their low efficiency has been a roadblock to more widespread applications. Toshiba’s answer is nanotechnology.
According to Toshiba spokesman Kaori Hiraki, “The wallpaper uses light that has been redirected by an ultra-fine grating that is fabricated by self-assembled nano particles.” It would seem that the effect might be similar to that of a Fresnel lens like those used in traffic lights, amplifying the intensity without requiring additional energy.
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