Inventions Of The Future That Will Soon Be Available To Everyone

Summary

The video script explores groundbreaking inventions on the brink of transforming daily life, from zoom-enhanced contact lenses to exoskeletons that augment human strength. It delves into futuristic vehicles with AR displays and smart fridges that track food inventory. The script also touches on personal air purifiers, 3D-printed shoes, and self-powered heart devices that connect to smartphones. The segment on robots, including a butler bot and a child-like robot, raises questions about their integration into homes. Lastly, it introduces graphene, a material with immense potential to revolutionize technology, despite current production challenges.

Takeaways

• 👓 Scientists at the University of California San Diego invented contact lenses that can zoom in when you blink twice, using electrical signals from eye movements and responsive polymers.
• 🦾 The Guardian XO is a full-body exoskeleton that enhances human strength, allowing wearers to lift up to 200 pounds effortlessly, but is currently costly and more suited for industrial use.
• 🚶‍♂️ The ReWalk exoskeleton is designed to help paraplegic individuals walk again, with some models now covered by medical insurance, aiming to become more affordable.
• 🍳 Moley Robotics developed a robotic kitchen system that can cook meals with precision, programmed with recipes from award-winning chefs, although it currently lacks the ability to prep ingredients.
• 🚗 Augmented reality displays in cars are predicted to become widespread, offering features like hazard detection and interactive driving experiences, with companies like WayRay pioneering this technology.
• 💉 Implantable microchips are enabling people to perform tasks like unlocking doors or making payments with a simple hand gesture, but raise concerns about privacy and surveillance.
• 👁️ Individuals have customized their prosthetics with USB drives and cameras, showcasing the potential for personalized cybernetic enhancements.
• 🎮 The Emerge Home device uses ultrasonic waves to simulate touch in VR, enhancing realism, while the Omni One treadmill allows for physical movement in virtual environments.
• 🤚 Scientists at the University of Tokyo created an adhesive strip with LEDs that can display information on the skin, also capable of monitoring health vitals like heart rate and blood pressure.
• 😷 The Air Ring is a personal air purifier that filters out pollutants before releasing clean air, addressing the growing concern of air pollution in urban areas.
• 👟 Sintratex's Cryptide sneaker is a fully 3D-printed shoe made from a single polymer material, while the Flux Snowshoe adapts its shape for comfort on snowy terrain.
• 🧊 Smart fridges from companies like LG, Samsung, and Amazon are being developed with features to track contents, recommend recipes, and reorder groceries, using RFID tags in food packaging.
• ♻️ A biopolymer gel fridge concept proposes a non-electric, oxygen-deprived environment to preserve food, although its practicality and feasibility are questioned.
• 💔 A metallic mesh heart sleeve can both monitor heart conditions and generate electricity from heartbeats, potentially replacing pacemakers and allowing early detection of heart attacks through a smartphone app.
• 🤖 Tesla's Optimus robot aims to perform household chores, with plans to be available by 2027, although its development timeline is met with skepticism.
• 🧠 The CB2 robot, designed with the capabilities of a two-year-old, is being used to study AI development of social skills through human interaction.
• 📈 Graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms, is the strongest and most conductive material known, with potential to revolutionize various industries once manufacturing challenges are overcome.

Q & A

What is the primary function of the contact lenses developed by scientists from the University of California San Diego?

The contact lenses developed by scientists from the University of California San Diego have the ability to zoom in when the wearer blinks twice. They contain electrodes that track eye movements and respond by slightly changing the shape of the polymer lenses to increase magnification by 32%.

What material challenge are researchers trying to overcome with the zooming contact lenses?

Researchers are trying to figure out how to make the zooming contact lenses out of gas-permeable plastic, which is used in regular contacts and allows oxygen to reach the wearer's eye, ensuring they can be worn safely all day without damaging eyesight.

How much weight can the Guardian XO exoskeleton help a wearer lift?

The Guardian XO exoskeleton can increase the wearer's strength, allowing them to lift up to 200 pounds without straining.

What is the ReWalk exoskeleton designed to do?

The ReWalk exoskeleton is designed to allow people with paraplegia to stand upright, walk, and climb stairs. It has four powerful motors at the hip and knee joints that are activated when the user tilts their upper body in different directions.

What is the approximate cost of the ReWalk exoskeleton?

The ReWalk exoskeleton currently costs up to $85,000 per unit, but the team behind it is working to make it more affordable and available through certain medical insurance plans.

How does Moley Robotics' robot cook meals?

Moley Robotics' robot comes pre-programmed with thousands of recipes and uses its two mechanical arms to cook meals. It can pour, stir, and sizzle its way to culinary perfection, although it currently cannot prep ingredients and its creators are reluctant to give it a knife.

What is the cost of the most expensive variant of Moley Robotics' cooking robot?

The most expensive variant of Moley Robotics' cooking robot costs $340,000.

How does the augmented reality display in cars work?

The augmented reality display in cars works by projecting a bunch of information onto the car's windscreen. It uses built-in cameras to scan the road ahead, builds a digital image, and then a laser and optical fiber system projects images onto the windscreen at an ideal angle for the driver.

What is the primary function of the microchips implanted into humans as described in the script?

The microchips implanted into humans allow them to perform tasks such as buying groceries, opening doors, and accessing public transport with a simple wave of their hand, similar to the functionality of digital house keys, bank cards, and E-tickets.

What are some of the privacy concerns associated with the implanted microchips?

Privacy concerns with implanted microchips include the potential for companies that produce the chips to track the user's every move and location, keeping a log of almost everything they do, which could be a serious invasion of privacy.

What is the Emerge Home and how does it enhance the virtual reality experience?

The Emerge Home is a device that allows users to physically feel things they touch in VR by using ultrasonic waves to simulate the feeling of touch. It enhances the VR experience by making it more immersive and realistic.