Tech Universe: Monday 12 March

A dentist from Hong Kong is helping to explore still unknown parts of the Egyptian pyramids. He created an insect-sized robot with grips on the top inspired by dental forceps. At the moment two doors block the entrance to Pharaoh Cheops's tomb. The doors lie behind two narrow shafts only big enough for the tiny robot to fit. The robot, equipped with a camera, will drill through the doors to discover what lies behind them. Checking the inside of a pyramid has to be better than peering inside a person's mouth. More details here. SPEAK LIKE A COMPUTER: We've heard computers speak with better or worse 'computer' voices, but Microsoft's new software can give the computer your voice, even in another language, handle by machine translation. The system first has to be trained to learn your voice. Then the sounds of the voice are tweaked to be able to speak in the new target language. The project is still just a part of some research work, but is promising for applications in tourism, language learning and perhaps GPS navigation systems. Klingon anyone? Technology Review. WALKING ON AIR: We know about airbags in cars protecting the passengers, but Volvo claim a world first with their new airbag that protects pedestrians. Sensors in the car warn the driver and even automatically put on the brakes if a pedestrian steps out into the road in front of the car. But if the car still hits the pedestrian then sensors in the front bumper register the physical contact and an airbag is released under the bonnet. The inflated airbag covers the area under the raised bonnet and around a third of the windscreen. I wonder if the airbag deploys if you hit a pole or nudge the car in front when parking? ALL THUMBS: While you're pressing the buttons on your game controller stuff may happen on screen, but even if the controller vibrates you don't really feel the action. Engineers from the University of Utah want to change that by pulling and stretching the player's thumb tips. For example, the controller could help the player really feel the pull and tug of a fishing line, the recoil of a gun or the feeling of ocean waves. The new device replaces thumb sticks on a controller with a tactor that provides feedback to the player. The push back makes it that much more fun. More at University of Utah and video here. GOING UP: A higher vantage point always gives a better view, but isn't always easy to achieve from a ground or water-based vehicle. The Sky Sapience HoverMast handles that problem nicely. The craft is tethered to a vehicle by a combination power and wideband data cable but it flies 50 metres above it. It can carry 9kg of equipment such as cameras, hyperspectral sensors or radar. The craft automatically maintains position above its launch vehicle, even if it's moving. That'd be handy for checking out a traffic jam ahead. SkySapience has details here and there's video here.