Wild, Weird & Wacky Inventions

[Andy X]

Malawi man builds a helicopter and is advised not to fly it yet until it's been tested for safety ..

https://gossip.naij.com/1079746-man-builds-metal-helicopter-malawi-photos.html

Technically speaking, a helicopter that doesn't work isn't really an invention. Fair play to him for having a go though.

 

[Swifty]

Technically speaking, a helicopter that doesn't work isn't really an invention. Fair play to him for having a go though.

Too true although we don't know yet if it doesn't work .. I wouldn't want to be the test pilot though ..

 

[birdy]

Very good live act that I'd recommend seeing if he's gigging anywhere near you... uses a mechanical drum machine he built himself from a cadillac wheel:

I saw him perform a few years ago, it really was very impressive! Looked a bit like the venue in the video actually, wonder where this was filmed?

 

[Andy X]

Tbh I don't think you'd be in much danger of crashing...unless the thing was dropped from a mothership. Or pushed off a cliff.

 

[OneWingedBird]

I saw him perform a few years ago, it really was very impressive! Looked a bit like the venue in the video actually, wonder where this was filmed?

Dunno, about all I can tell you is that it doesn't look anything like the cellar at the Royal Park in Leeds which I think is where I saw him.

He was trying out a Johnny Cash cover for the first time, the one where the guy steals the car One Piece at a Time.

 

[birdy]

Dunno, about all I can tell you is that it doesn't look anything like the cellar at the Royal Park in Leeds which I think is where I saw him.

He was trying out a Johnny Cash cover for the first time, the one where the guy steals the car One Piece at a Time.

Ah I did some research (like a good little fortean) and this wasn't the same venue, where I saw him they had a painted red wall. Not that you needed to know!

 

[Analogue Boy]

It's not April 1st yet.....

Madcap inventor turns Iron Man with real-life flying suit

Meet the madcap inventor who wants to turn his dream of a suit for human flight from sci-fi fantasy into reality.

British entrepreneur Richard Browning has created a real-life Iron Man suit, by attaching miniature jet engines to his limbs.

He has just founded Gravity, a tech start-up who have built and filed patents for the human propulsion technology that could re-imagine manned flight.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolo...nventor-turns-iron-man-real-life-flying-suit/

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's an illustrative diagram for the components of Browning's apparatus ...

Image Source: https://wi-images.condecdn.net/image/rg7067Xa8qK/crop/1620/landscape

Article Source: http://www.wired.co.uk/article/real-life-iron-man-richard-browning

 

[Mythopoeika]

Mad. And awesome.

 

[Swifty]

A bit more weird and wonderful musical machine madness from Mr Wintegaten ..

 

[Swifty]

A multi drone powered slightly crap chopper

 

[Mythopoeika]

I wouldn't like to sit so close to those rotating blades...
Why is he wearing no trousers? Did the first test make him 'leak' a bit?

 

[Swifty]

Wintergatan's marvelous marble music machine ...

Just over a year later, mad scientist Mr Wintergaden graciously reacts to fan submitted covers of his marble machine ..

 

[Swifty]

The Jetfoiler seems OK if you only want to go in straight lines on flat water ..

 

[Swifty]

This man normally sculpts naked lady statues, he's also made an almost perpetual motion machine .. NSFW for naked lady statues if your boss is a prude

 

[Mythopoeika]

Genius.

 

[Swifty]

Genius.

AND he's got mad scientist hair

 

[Mythopoeika]

AND he's got mad scientist hair

Yes! When I saw him, my first thought was 'mad professor'.
I like that.

 

[Swifty]

A pendulum wave demonstration

 

[Swifty]

Drill powered walking machine

 

[Mythopoeika]

That drill has a lot of torque. Fun project.

 

[Swifty]

Aha's Take On Me performed on the 'Floppotron' .. I love that name !... Floppotron

edit: bonus Floppotron video

 

[Mythopoeika]

Awesome.

 

[Coal]

Awesome.

^this^

 

[EnolaGaia]

Full Article with Photos: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-36961433

And now it's apparently abandoned ...

China's 'straddling bus' hits its final roadblock

It seemed like a glimpse into the city of tomorrow - but China's "straddling bus" was riddled by doubts early on and now is headed for the scrap yard.

The futuristic idea was a bus that would drive above traffic, allowing other commuter cars to pass underneath.

The project was announced last summer to much acclaim but soon ran into feasibility and investment problems. ...

The project faced strong headwinds from the very beginning and according to Chinese media, the test site is now being demolished entirely.

Reports are saying that workers have already begun dismantling and removing the test track in Qinhuangdao.

The idea of a traffic-straddling bus first appeared in China in 2010, but it didn't make much impact until the model was presented at the 2016 Beijing International High-Tech Expo.

The so-called Transit Elevated Bus was touted as a revolution in public ground transportation, able to glide over traffic, literally lifting commuters from the daily grind of being stuck in their cars for hours.

Yet only a few days after its much-lauded test-run in Qinhuangdao city, Hebei province, all test-runs had been halted and doubts began to emerge.

Many doubted the vehicle would be able to manage curves or fit under footbridges in Beijing, and critics have asked how it will turn corners, whether it is strong enough to bear its own and passengers' weight and how long its battery would last.

There was also confusion about whether the project had ever been approved by the local authorities and there was even suspicion it could be an investment scam. ...

SOURCE: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-40365161

 

[Swifty]

How to build a self driving potato ..

 

[rynner2]

Meet the Cornwall doctor hoping to solve the world's rats problems with an electric RatMat
By Oli_Vergnault | Posted: June 24, 2017

Meet the A&E doctor behind the smallest vacuum cleaner in the world now hoping to bring rat-catching into the 21st century with a humane electric pest control innovation.
Dr Toby Bateson, an emergency doctor at Royal Cornwall Hospital, has designed RatMat which he describes as the world's first humane electrified rodent repellent flooring.

The local inventor and entrepreneur is aiming to raise £65,000 through the New York-based global project fundraising platform Kickstarter to manufacturer the first RatMat order.

Video: 2m 57s.

RatMat, which uses similar principles to an electric fence, is designed to safely and humanely protect cars and bikes and other valuable property from rodent damage.
The scalable floor device, which gives rodents an unpleasant shock to deter them, was developed with renowned Cornwall-based industrial design consultants Dufort Associates.

The GP and founder of Hammer Technologies Ltd said: "I have a prototype and evidence that it works, but now I need help to raise the initial funds to help make this long-term, humane pest control a reality.
"I am really excited that the project has reached this stage and hope the Kickstarter generates the interest we need to bring this to market."

Dr Bateson previously made headlines for achieving a Guinness World Record in 2016 for his smallest vacuum cleaner on earth and also successfully brought ZenPlugs Moulded Ear Plug Kit to market in 2009.

etc...

http://www.cornwalllive.com/meet-th...ctric-ratmat/story-30397814-detail/story.html

 

[Swifty]

Using turntables as zoetropes

 

[Swifty]

The Breakfast Machine

 

[Swifty]

Track fart development in real time on your phone ..

https://arstechnica.com/science/201...-fart-development-in-real-time-on-your-phone/