Scientists Turn Cell Phones Into Two Way Radios

In any emergency situation, the ability to communicate and call for help can often mean the difference between surviving or not.

With this in mind, scientists in Sydney, Australia have developed new technology that can be incorporated into cell phones, and thereby turns any two or more cell phones into walkie-talkies.

The system has been designed to be especially useful in emergency situations where cell phone coverage may be compromised due a remote location, or even due to a complete breakdown of for example cell phone towers.

Researches from Flinders University in South Australia have built the software that allows a cell phone to also become a lifeline in emergency situations where network coverage may have been compromised. The way they have gone about doing this, was to actually build a type of cell phone tower into the phone itself. The system works by using a WiFi interface to communicate directly with other cell phones with the same capability, without the need to relay the signal first to a central network tower. Phones can essentially communicate directly with each other, without first going through a traditional network tower.

The system is still in development phase, but has already been successfully tested in a remote location in Australia. At the moment, the system is effective up to a few hundred meters, but scientists are working to increase the range capabilities and sound quality. Now you may be wondering about how effective reception is between phones, and according to the initial reports, it seems the system may work very well even in situations where the is no line of sight between the devices.

The tests were reportedly carried out in an area filled with deep valleys and mountainous terrains in South Australia. I can just hear the many ideas coming to mind in which this technology may eventually be used, so go ahead and tell me what you think below. Should be interesting to hear your thoughts on this ;)

Rex – The World’s First Production Bionic Legs

Approximately seven years ago an engineer by the name of Richard Little was inspired to build a mobility aid for people who were confined to a wheelchair.
After some discussions and throwing ideas around, Richard managed to gather a team of six qualified engineers to make this vision a reality. Today, Rex Bionics is responsible for creating the first set of bionic legs for disabled individuals. This device literally empowers people that were once confined to a wheelchair, to once again enjoy the freedom of walking and mobility.
And so a company called ‘Smart Orthotics’ was formed, with the developers contributing from different locations using information technology to collaborate and ultimately birth the product today known as Rex. Development of this product was not cheap either, costing abpproximately $10 million during a seven year development stage. Rex is a robotic exoskeleton, powered by batteries.
The device fits around a person’s waist and legs, and enables the person to stand and walk upright, even to climb steps and slopes. Besides the obvious benefits of mobility, the device also has a positive knock-on effect in that it increases blood circulation. Richard Little and Robert Irving are Scottish-born Kiwi engineers, and were responsible for the birth of this idea.
It was an idea birthed literally in a bar, conceptualised on the back of a beer coaster and four years later the first prototype rolled out of their garage workshop. The company has since changed their name to Rex Bionics, ‘Rex’ an abbreviation referring to the words ‘Robotic Exoskeleton’. Rex weighs a little less than 40 kilograms, and is joy-stick operated. From its humble beginnings in a garage a few years ago, Rex Bionics now employs 25 software and mechatronic engineers. It is believed that demand will be very high for this product for the next few years.
The first Rex centre is currently based in Auckland’s North Shore, and prospecctive customers are invited to visit the facility to get a better understanding of Rex.