UbiSlate 7+ (Upgraded Aakash)

New Delhi: Disappointed, that you missed the booking of Aakash tab? This piece of news can cheer you up. 

Makers of Aakash tablet, Datawind is ready with their new tablet Ubislate 7+ at an expected price of Rs 2999. Unlike Aakash (Ubislate7) which is a student version tab, Ubislate 7+ will be available everywhere and to everyone.

The upgraded version of Aakash, Ubislate 7+ tab will be available in the Indian market by last week of January, 2012.

Pre-order booking have already started from their website -  ubislate.com/
Interested buyers can also call on a Toll Free No: 1800.180.2180 for more information.
Check out its configuration below:


The UbiSlate7+ is an Android 2.3 touch screen tablet that has a HD video co-processor for a high-quality multimedia experience and core graphics accelerator for faster application support.  The Aakash tablet is the only Android device in the market to offer DataWind’s UbiSurfer browser, based on 18 international patents.  The UbiSurfer browser accelerates web pages by factors of 10x to 30x, allowing for a web experience who’s speed is unrivalled.

The device includes WiFi connectivity and support for optional 3G modems.  Two full-sized USB ports are integrated into the unit allowing pen-drives, external keyboards, web-cams, dongles and other inexpensive peripherals to be attached.  “Pen drives are a common medium for storing and sharing content in India.  They are even used by people that are not computer savvy, for access to music and videos.  A full sized USB ports allowing regular pen-drives to be plugged-in is also available as an added advantage over other Tablets.

Pricing Rs.2,999
Microprocessor Cortex A8 – 700 Mhz
Battery 3200 mAh
OS         Android 2.3
Network WiFi & GPRS (SIM & Phone functionality)


Specification 

UbiSlate 7+ (Upgraded Aakash) Specification

Electronic Tattoo - Epidermal Electronics

When doctors need to keep watch on somebody's bodily systems, from the heart beat to the brain's activity, they have to use bulky electronic devices and attach electrodes to the skin with sticky gel.

This bulky process can be replaced by a new invention called Epidermal Electronic Systems (EES). It is also known as Electronic tattoo.

This is developed by the researchers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Image Source: John Rogers, University of Illinois.

This device uses micro-electronics technology called an epidermal electronic system (EES) and is said to be a development that will change medical sensing technology, computer gaming and even spy operations.

The small chip is less than 50 micrometers thick, which is thinner in diameter than a human hair. It is being marketed as a safe and easy way to temporarily monitor the heart and brain in patients while replacing bulky medical equipment currently being used in hospitals.

It can be applied to skin like a temporary tattoo with the help of water, that’s why it is called electronic tattoo. It is made of water soluble plastics.

These tattoos stay on just by the attractive forces between the atoms of the tattoo and the atoms of the skin. These attractive adhesion forces are also responsible for things like lizards and bugs walking on walls and ceilings.

Image Source: John Rogers, University of Illinois.

Because the tattoos don’t need tape, gel or wires, they’re much less bulky and much more comfortable for patients.

The circuit bends, wrinkles, and stretches with the mechanical properties of skin.

The wireless device is almost weightless and requires so little power that it can fuel itself with miniature solar collectors or by picking up stray or transmitted electromagnetic radiation.

The researchers took continuous measurements successfully for 6 hours and found that there was no irritation or degradation caused when keeping the device on for 24 hours.

"Our goal was to develop an electronic technology that could integrate with the skin in a way that is mechanically and physiologically invisible to the user." Said by John Rogers, professor in material science and engineering at the University of Illinois.

When the tattoo was attached to the throat, it was able to detect differences in words such as up, down, left, right, go and stop. So it can be used to control simple computer games also.

The government can use these tattoos to keep eye on suspicious citizens.

John Rogers : “It's a technology that blurs the distinction between electronics and biology."

Smart Fabrics - Intelligent Textiles

Humans are more closer to textiles than anything. The last few decades have shown enormous growth in the development of wireless communication technologies, nanoengineering, information technologies, and miniaturization of electronic devices. We can see this development in textiles or fabrics too.

You can see people talking about smart or intelligent textiles. But there is a difference between the terms, ‘Smart’ and ‘Intelligent’. Smart materials or textiles can be defined as the materials and structures which have sense or can sense the environmental conditions or stimuli. While intelligent textiles can be defined as textile structures which not only can sense but also can react and respond to environmental conditions or stimuli. These stimuli and response can be thermal, mechanical, chemical, magnetic, electric or from other source.



According to the way of reaction, they can be divided into passive smart, active smart and very smart materials:

1. Passive smart materials can only sense the environmental conditions or stimuli, they are only sensors, they can't react.
    
2. Active smart materials can sense and also react to the conditions or stimuli.
    
3. Very smart materials can sense, react and adapt themselves according to the environment.

WORKING

There are different circuits embedded with fabric like busses, microcontrollers, Keyboards and touchpads. As you can see in the figure, the microcontroller is directly connected to the square of the fabric. The keypad shown here has been mass-produced using ordinary embroidery techniques and mildly conductive thread.

There is all-fabric capacitive keyboard awailable too. Keyboards can also be made in a single layer of fabric using capacitive sensing, where an array of embroidered or silk-screened electrodes make up the points of contact.

Applications

• Temperature Sensitive Fabrics
  Temperature sensitive fabrics act according to the temperature body. There are many techniques for making such clothes, and one of it is treating the fabric with paraffins. As the body gets hot, the paraffins get more liquid to pass the heat out and as the body gets cold, it gets more solid to keep back heat with the wearer. 

• Health Monitoring Fabrics
  
  Many people have to get regular visits to monitor their health. There are health monitoring fabrics to help them! Wear the Health Monitoring Electronic Wearables and stay free of worries. The clothings enriched with substances like vitamins, algae or nutrients along with other substances to delay ageing or for improving blood circulation or other such benefits are fast becoming popular with the masses.
  
  These life vests can track heart rate, ECG and body temperature. Now the research results are claiming to have developed a smart fabric that could warn its wearer of allergens, by glowing in response. Some of them can even dial emergency number if they detect a problem! It's called super smart!!

• Sports Jacket
  
  It is used to measure the movement of the arm of the sportsman. If you are a cricket fan then you would have known that a bowler can bend his arm upto 15 degrees. So to measure this angle, this kind of jacket is used.

• Self Cleaning Clothes
  
  Self cleaning clothes can clean the stains of food, dirt and even the red wine by itself! Well this can definitely decrease the use of water, energy and detergents. This kind of clothes uses the invisible and thin layer of titanium dioxide nano particles. It cleans the clothes under the sunlight.

• Comfort Seat
  
  Comfort seat is a kind of seat which adjusts itself according to body movements. This sensitive fabric continually monitors body movement at the vehicle occupant’s back and under the legs to achieve optimum comfort and ergonomics.

• Smart Shirts

 

Smart Shirts are made of soft, washable fabric, woven with optical and electrical fibres into it, the ‘Smart shirt’ monitors the wearer’s heart rate, body temperature, respiration and a host of other vital functions. The information can be relayed wirelessly to doctors or personal trainers.

Future applications include shirts for parental use to monitor babies and for military use to provide a trapped soldier’s exact location and give support units exact information about wounds.