The Innovation Report
Human Smugglers Now Using Drones To Surveil U.S. Border Patrol
At approximately 11 p.m. on Jan. 30, two Border Patrol agents encountered approximately 30 migrants crossing illegally into the U.S. through the cargo truck lanes at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. After they apprehended two migrants inside the port, additional agents...
Hubble Telescope Faces Threat From Commercial Satellites
Scientists found that an increasing number of pictures made by the iconic orbital observatory are being disrupted by passing satellites. The Hubble Space Telescope, known for recording awe-inspiring images of the cosmos while advancing the field of astronomy, is under...
Grasshopping Robots Made Possible With New, Improved Latch Control
If animals and insects can jump across grass and sand, why can't robots? Sarah Bergbreiter, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, has found that researchers don't have to look far to enable this in robots. Existing latch mechanisms that were once thought of as an 'on'...
Ford Patents AV Repossession
Ford is trying to patent technology that would allow cars to repossess themselves. As first spotted by The Drive, a Ford patent application titled "Systems and Methods to Repossess a Vehicle" was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)...
Michigan: $10K Scholarships For Students Who Join EV Sector
Michigan is dangling a $10,000 carrot in front of tech students, incentivizing them to stay in state and build the electric vehicle sector. The state announced the Michigander EV Scholars program, its latest incentive to boost its electric vehicle workforce....
USPS Buying 9,250 Ford E-Transit EVs And 14,000 EV Chargers
The US Postal Service is buying 9,250 Ford E-Transit battery-electric vehicles and 14,000 EV charging stations from three different suppliers as part of its plans to electrify a large portion of its mail delivery fleet. In an announcement post on Tuesday, the agency...
Countries Meet To Halt Wide-ranging Ocean Threats
The world's oceans and the multiple threats they face, from climate change and pollution to overfishing and mining, will be the focus of a global conference in Panama this week. Some 600 leaders of government, the business sector, green groups and academics will...
How Robots Can Help In The Fight Against Toxic Algae
Harmful algae blooms in lakes are a major environmental problem, producing extremely dangerous toxins that can taint water supplies or harm other organic life—including people. Biologists can test water safety by collecting samples off the side of a boat, but getting...
Microsoft Researchers Are Using ChatGPT To Instruct Robots And Drones
OpenAI's ChatGPT isn't just good at generating coherent text responses to natural language prompts -- it can also play a role in human-to-robot interactions and use sensor feedback to write code for robot actions. Microsoft recently conducted research to "see if...
University of Michigan ‘Smart’ AV Bolstered By $15M Grant
The U.S. Department of Transportation grant supports nine colleges and universities, developing new technologies and training the workforce for the future of mobility The University of Michigan will continue to lead regional efforts aimed at transitioning the nation...
