Mercedes-Benz F500 Concept Car

The F 500 Mind showcases the very latest technology

At the Tokyo Motor Show 2003, Mercedes-Benz presented the latest in a string of research vehicles which have attracted much interest and attention over the years and which provide fascinating insights into the automotive technology of tomorrow and beyond. Packaged as a modern four-door fastback saloon, the F 500 Mind mobile research lab showcases more than a dozen ideas for enhancing the safety, drive technology and comfort of future Mercedes passenger cars.

The DaimlerChrysler researchers will be using this vehicle to conduct the first practical tests of these innovative systems and pave the way for their commercialisation. The raft of innovations extends all the way from the night vision system with infrared laser headlamps to two-way doors and a programmable multivision display in the cockpit. Electronic accelerator and brake pedals, an interior pillar which provides structural rigidity and an ultrasound driver information system are further features being tested by Mercedes-Benz in the F 500 Mind.

For the powertrain, the DaimlerChrysler researchers have developed a high-performance diesel hybrid unit whose NEDC fuel consumption is up to 20 per cent lower than that of a comparable CDI engine. The state-of-the-art V8 diesel engine (184 kW/250 hp) from the S-Class has been combined with a powerful electric motor (50 kW) which is switched on and off by an electronic controller in response to traffic conditions and driving style. The electric motor can take over for example when moving off from rest, in stop-go conditions or in other situations where an internal combustion engine does not operate at optimal efficiency. When the driver demands more power, the V8 internal combustion engine cuts in to provide sharp acceleration. The 300 V battery for the electric motor is located under the passenger cell and is recharged during braking.

With a body length of 5092 millimetres and a wheelbase of 2965 mm, the F 500 Mind offers a significant gain in legroom in the rear compared with a conventional present-day saloon in this class. This was made possible by using innovative-design electronic accelerator and brake pedals which take the form of pressure-sensitive surfaces. Sensors in these “pedals” transmit the driver’s commands to the engine and SBCô brake system by means of electrical impulses. The technology takes up much less room than conventional mechanical pedals, increasing the length of the front footwell by 120 millimetres. The driver’s and front passenger’s seats can therefore be positioned further forward, so providing more space for the rear passengers. The steering, too, is controlled electronically.

Intelligent door-opening technology allows the doors to be opened in two different ways: either conventionally (both doors open forwards) or from the centre (centre-opening). In the latter mode, the B-pillar stump moves backwards with the rear door to provide a 1900 mm-wide opening for occupant entry and exit.

In the absence of full-size B-pillars, which would normally provide the all-important structural rigidity and side impact protection, the Stuttgart engineers came up with an innovative interior pillar which provides exemplary rigidity and typical Mercedes standards of occupant safety. The pillar is located in the middle of the vehicle towards the rear, and connects the reinforced floor pan to the roof structure. It also houses the air-conditioning ducts and interior lighting units.

The multivision display in the cockpit of the F 500 Mind forms the centrepiece of an innovative instrumentation and control system which offers the driver more flexible information delivery and at the same time reduces fatigue. The dials and displays in the instrument cluster are programmable and their images can be optically superposed or combined with the aid of a semitransparent mirror. In this way the driver can call up a wide range of information at the push of a button on the steering wheel. The information is always displayed directly in the driver’s field of vision where it can be seen easily and will not distract him. A further display, the central display unit, is situated above the centre console. It is linked to a touchpad whose surface is divided up in exactly the same way as the surface of the central display. By briefly touching it, the driver can control the navigation system, radio, air conditioning, telephone and other systems.

Further switches and keys in the vehicle are equipped with special sensors which can detect the driver’s approaching hand even at a distance of several centimetres. They then immediately call up the relevant function in the central display, for more convenient operation.

An advanced-design voice control system and an ultrasound-based driver information system take convenience even further. The ultrasound technology targets the sound at the driver so that only he or she can hear the information from the navigation system, the traffic news and other sound-based information sources, while the front passenger and rear passengers remain undisturbed.

In the dark or in poor visibility, the innovative night vision system projects its images onto the right-hand display. The night vision system consists of two infrared laser headlights on the front of the vehicle which “illuminate” the road with their invisible light over a range of up to 150 metres. The light reflected back from other vehicles, cyclists or pedestrians to a camera mounted on the front windscreen of the F 500 Mind is projected in black and white onto the multivision display. This allows the driver to spot hazards much earlier than in a vehicle operating on conventional dipped headlamps, which have a range of only about 40 metres. Thus Night Vision offers further opportunities for making night driving safer.

As a mobile research lab, the F 500 Mind is equipped with a special “laboratory bench” which folds out towards the rear. This allows a researcher sitting in the back of the vehicle to monitor and control the vehicle systems during testing on the proving grounds and to carry out measurements. For example the researchers are planning to use this fascinating vehicle for intensive user acceptance-testing of the innovative instrumentation and control system and for further practical testing of the diesel hybrid drive system and the Night Vision system.

Mercedes-Benz creates bizarre concept car that looks like a 19th century carriage

It bears more than a passing resemblance to an old-fashioned carriage, but Mercedes-Benz claims this roadster could be the car of the future.

Built by 150 trainees, the car combines traditional design features with the latest technology.

Mercedes-Benz

So while it has large spoked wheels that hark back to the first Benz Motor Car of 1886, it is powered by a hybrid drive system using an emission-free fuel cell.

It can reach a top speed of 15.5miles an hour and has a range of 220miles.

The students from Daimler AG have worked on the overall concept, development, assembly, and completion of the F-CELL Roadster for a year. The project was created to train the junior employees in alternative drive systems.

The car has a top speed of 15.5miles an hour

The car is operated by a joystick and powered by an electric motor

They included carbon-fiber bucket seats with hand-stitched leather covers and a distinctively styled fiberglass front section, inspired by Formula One racing cars.

The roadster is controlled with drive-by-wire technology, and a joystick takes the place of a conventional steering wheel.

'I am delighted to see how much initiative and creativity the young people have put into this project,' Labor Relations Manager Günther Fleig said.

The Mercedes-Benz F-CELL Roadster has similar spoked wheels to the first Benz Motor Car

ResMed Releases New High-Performance H4i™ Humidification System for S8™ Series II and Premium Bilevel Devices

ResMed announces the launch of the new H4i™ heated humidifier, the latest technology in heated humidification which integrates seamlessly with the revolutionary S8™ Series II positive airway pressure and premium bilevel devices.

ResMed's latest in airflow dynamics and heating technology ensures that the H4i heated humidifier delivers the most humidity output of any integrated device with pressure relief. The 30% higher humidity output and 60ml greater water capacity is an added advantage for patients on very high pressures, particularly with bilevel therapy.

Benefits of humidification

Humidification helps patients feel more comfortable and therefore improves compliance. Up to 40% of nasal CPAP users experience nasal congestion and dryness of the nose and throat. Research proves that the warm, moist air that humidification provides can relieve symptoms of dryness and make therapy more comfortable. In fact, compliance gains may be realized sooner if patients start with heated humidity at CPAP initiation.1-4

“We view humidification as an essential component of comfortable therapy and critical to achieving maximum patient compliance. The new H4i heated humidifier is the highest humidity output and the quietest pressure relief device available on the market, delivering 30% more humidity than earlier generation humidifiers,” stated Simon Johnson, Director of Product Management. “The H4i will set a new standard for exceptional quality, patient ease of use and superior comfort in humidification systems. The high humidity output is especially valuable for patients who previously may have faced challenges in achieving adequate humidification. Additionally, the low cost replacement chambers address the financial challenges of customers seeking reimbursement for these accessories.”

ResMed's H4i is a fully integrated humidifier, which clicks easily into place and supports ResMed's full S8 Series II platform – from entry-level CPAP/APAP to premium VPAP™ bilevel devices. The compact design is unobtrusive in the bedroom and easily packed for travel.

Featuring user-friendly dials and a convenient flip-top lid design, it is easy for patients to use and clean.

The high-volume humidification chamber has a water capacity of 390ml, allowing for optimal humidification throughout the night. It is also available with an optional cleanable water chamber which can be easily opened for cleaning by hand or in a dishwasher.

For ordering convenience, the H4i Humidification System is also offered in Resmed's ever popular “co-packaging,” which includes a CPAP/APAP or VPAP flow generator in the same shipping carton.

To learn more about ResMed's H4i or other premium sleep apnea treatment products, call Customer Service at 800.424.0737.

About ResMed

ResMed is a global leader in medical equipment for the screening, treatment and management of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and other respiratory disorders, selling a comprehensive range of products through direct offices in the United States and more than 70 other countries.

ResMed provides reliable products, quality systems and complete solutions for its customers and their patients.

Top 10 Smartest Pens Among the Latest Gadgets in Technology

1. Signal Pen
We placed the Signal Pen on the last position because even if it has a smart design, it has only one main functionality in addition to writing. It sports an ergonomic shape for comfortable writing, but what differentiates it among the latest gadgets in technology is the ability to alert the user when to relax the hand and fingers.

Signal Pen is one of the best ergonomical tools for writing and was designed in such a way to register the excessive tension of your muscles, based on the Tensor concept, which states that restricted mobility of hands during gripping and pinching causes tension in the deep neck muscles, leading to psychological stress, pain in the neck and shoulders, as well as swelling of arms and hands.
You can find it at EUR 16.77.



2. Perfect Office Mate
This elegant pen is a great office companion, providing a few useful tools for everyday use, such as portable flash storage of 8GB, USB 2.0 high-speed connectivity for file transfers between the pen and your computer, a laser module for presentations, and replaceable ink cartridge.

It costs 17.71 EUR.



3. One Battery Mobile Charger Pen
The $19 smart pen uses one AA or Ni-Mh battery and every time you need a power backup tool you can connect your cell phone to the pen and wait about 100 minutes for charging. This will provide you with up to 2 hours of battery life or 20 hours of standby in case of emergency.
In addition, it comes with 5 different cell phone adapters matching the most popular models on the market like Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson.



4. Wireless Spy Camera Pen
This pen is different than other models you’re discovering in this article, in that it’s a wireless Spy Pen with a built-in digital camera that records images with sound and transmits them in real-time to the 2.5-inch TFT LCD display of the MP4 receiver located at up to 20 meters away.
Practically, you can keep the pen inside your shirt’s pocket and spy on people at the restaurant, while you’re taking lunch, and your pal sees everything live, from a near location.

The pen works with the 2.4GHz technology and the receiver supports multiple cameras, having 64MB memory expandable up to 2GB via a memory card.
You can charge it with the included solar charger, while the MP4 player uses a rechargeable Li-Ion battery.

The spy kit is available at 220.06 EUR.




5.DocuPen RC800
This is one of the smartest pens available. It has an advanced scanning functionality enabled in a very small form factor that allows you to carry it with you wherever you go, inside a pocket or laptop bag.

DocuPen RC800 is a wireless color scanner introduced by the Canadian company called Planon, as the world’s smallest full page, full color 24 bit portable scanner, which stores hundreds of pages in its 8MB internal flash memory expandable up to 1GB via a microSD card.
It allows you to scan color graphics or black/white sketches at up to 24-bit color with 400 dpi resolution.

It powers from a rechargeable Li-Ion battery and uses optical timing to scan 205 mm width in 4-8 seconds per page. After finishing your work you can connect it to the computer via USB to transfer the scanned images and prepare them for printing.

Watch it in action:


DocuPen RC800 ‘s price is of $300.



6. Livescribe
The closer we get to the first position in our top smarter pens we encounter, and one of the most spectacular from all the latest gadgets in technology is this high-end model from Livescribe, measuring 14 x 16 mm at 36 grams.

Inside the pen, Livescribe added several modules each providing a special functionality.
First, there is a Samsung ARM 9 32-bit processor of 150MHz, a 96 x 18 OLED display, a high-speed built-in camera with infrared technology for recording 70 images per second, NAND storage, a 300 mAh rechargeable lithium battery, dual microphones, built-in speaker, USB charging cradle, and support for the following software: Page Viewer, Pen & Application, as well as the access to an online community of Pulse Smart Pen users, where you have the possibility to store up to 250MB of data.

We don’t think it deserves a higher position because in order to use it you need special paper to write on, and it can’t transfer your sketches to the computer in real-time. You’ll need to connect it at a later time to the PC for managing your notes, or transfer data and applications onto the pen’s memory.
The main function of this pen model is to record audio sequences while you are writing, and play them whenever you need to recall specific aspects in your work.
Anyway, if you are interested in purchasing it, you need to know the prices. The 1GB model costs $149, while the 2GB version is available at $199.



7. Zpen
Zpen has a cool and high-tech look, while providing a portable solution for writing your notes.
Its main capability is to translate your handwriting into digital format on the computer it connects to via USB.
You can write on any type of paper as long as you keep the receiver clipped on the sheet, and store up to 1GB of data. More than that, if you use the software it comes with, you can search for keywords among handwriting notes – a rare characteristic of digital pens.



Similar pens include the IoGear Mobile Pen that displays your writing in real-time on a computer, and the io2 digital pen introduced by Logitech and transferred to Destiny Wireless. The latter is a handwriting data collector capable of transferring your work on the computer it connects to, either via the Bluetooth wireless connectivity or the USB cable.



8. Navisis’s Amazing Pens
Here we have a to mention the Laptop Pen designed to transform your portable computer into a the TabletMouse , wireless mouse the PhonePen and the EZ-Canvas.
Starting with the Laptop Pen, we can say it’s a great tool set consisting of a digital pen and a receiver that clips on your computer monitor, both enabling the touchscreen functionality for the laptop’s screen.
Of course, there is also a specially designed layer that applies on the display’s surface to protect it from scratches caused by the pen.



All these pen work wirelessly, including the TabletMouse pen that works on a table’s surface providing also mouse functionality. You can see what you’re writing directly on the monitor and in real-time.
The PhonePen works similar, but it was designed for smartphones’ displays. The receiver clips on the paper sheet and the sketches appear on the screen.
EZ-Canvas is for your desktop monitor, functioning like the Laptop Pen.



9. Papershow
It’s the first time we write about Papershow on TechPin, as we wanted to wait and gather all the details about these cool pens before including it too in an informative article.

Before starting to describe it we invite you to watch the following video that shows what determined SurvivingMeetings to develop such an intelligent writing tool destined to group presentations:



Oxford Papershow is a digital pen that recognizes your handwriting on a special interactive paper, sending the data to the Bluetooth receiver plugged into your laptop’s USB port. During presentations, such as focus groups, you can connect the laptop to a larger display and all your notes and graphics will be displayed in a larger format, so that every person in the room can see your ideas in real-time.
You can change colors, font size and other settings, while everybody will get a detailed picture of your plans. Also, the pen has 256 MB internal storage capacity.
The only condition you need to meet is to keep the pen in the 6-meter wireless range from the receiver and use one AAA battery that powers it for up to 5 hours.
The pen was launched on the worldwide market this year at a price of £117.

Why didn’t we place it on the top position? –Because we don’t like wireless pens that can’t write on any type of paper and because it has too many useful tools in the kit. We like to keep it simpler and after you’ll check the pen model on the first place you’ll understand what we mean.



10. dotpen pro
dotpen pro from Candle Dragon seems to have everything to be the perfect digital pen, meaning it allows you to write simple text, detailed sketches and draw anything you want, on any type of paper, sending all wirelessly, in real-time, to the design or office applications on the computer or your smartphone. It allows you to read on the display as you write and, more than that, you can use the dotpen pro as a mouse and stylus as well.



By comprising multiple computer accessories in a single unit, it saves space on your desktop and time for grabbing the mouse or stylus each time you need them.
It works by capturing your handwriting as vector graphics from up to 200 pages, from any paper of up to 11 x 17 inches, placed on a flat surface.

Dotpen pro is supported by Adobe, Corel, Flash, AutoCAD and other complex design software, offering 8 hours of continuous use. In addition, dotpen pro comes with an additional inkless tip for use without leaving marks, and registers 256 levels of pressure, recognizing pen tilt and rotation. It saves files in SVG, DXF, PDF, JPG, PNG as well as other popular formats.



We expect it to be available in stores by the end of this year, as Candle Dragon announced on the official website, and we’re curious about its retail price, which will be announced later this year.