Domino's delivery drone

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11700291

Aerial pizza delivery may sound futuristic but Domino's has been given the green light to test New Zealand pizza delivery via drones.

The fast food chain has partnered with drone business Flirtey to launch the first commercial drone delivery service in the world, starting later this year.

Domino's Group chief executive and managing director, Don Meij said the company had been investigating innovative and new delivery methods as business had grown.

This included looking at robotic delivery, which the government is still considering.

Details around where the trial would be held have been kept under wraps - however Domino's said it would use drone delivery alongside its usual delivery methods - and only where it would be faster than the use of a car or scooter.

It will offer drone delivery specials at the launch of the trial with plans to extend the dimensions, weight and distance of the deliveries throughout the trial, based on results and customer feedback.

The company will not offer the full range of its products for drone delivery - and only those customers within a certain distance from a store will be served from the air.

"With the increased number of deliveries we make each year, we were faced with the challenge of ensuring our delivery times continue to decrease and that we strive to offer our customers new and progressive ways of ordering from us," Meij said.

"Research into different delivery methods led us to Flirtey. Their success within the airborne delivery space has been impressive and it's something we have wanted to offer our customers," he said.

New aviation rules which came into force on August 1 last year allowing and control the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) for recreational and commercial purposes in New Zealand.

Transport Minister Simon Bridges said the government was continuing to review the laws to ensure New Zealand was at the forefront of the industry.

"As Transport Minister I have been actively promoting New Zealand as a test bed for new transport technology trials," Bridges said. "Our enabling laws and regulation means we have the ideal environment to trial all forms of technology."

"The trial is also a valuable opportunity for the Civil Aviation Authority, who are making sure that appropriate safety precautions are taken," he said.

According to Meij, the company had been investigating delivery options for a while, saying that it didn't make sense to have a two tonne machine delivering a two kilogram order.

He said the use of drones offered a faster and safer option as well as removing barriers such as traffic and distance, meaning they could deliver further afield and faster in urban areas.

"Domino's is all about providing customers with choice and making customer's lives easier," Meij said. "Adding innovation such as drone deliveries means customers can experience cutting-edge technology and the convenience of having their Supreme pizza delivered via air to their door. This is the future."

If it is successful the company plans to extend the delivery method to six other markets - Australia, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Japan and Germany.

Read a Domino's supplied Frequently Asked Questions document on the drone delivery trial here:

VR improv

http://www.roadtovr.com/telling-stories-vr-improv-acting-mindshow/?utm_source=Road+to+VR+Daily+News+Roundup&utm_campaign=f8f67d61cc-RtoVR_RSS_Daily_Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e2e394ad33-f8f67d61cc-168175841

Intel Unveils Project Alloy 'Merged Reality' Wireless Headset

Intel Unveils Project Alloy 'Merged Reality' Wireless Headset (hothardware.com)37

Posted by BeauHD on Tuesday August 16, 2016 @07:40PM from the tangle-free dept.

MojoKid writes:Intel CEO Bryan Krzanich took to the stage at the Moscone Center in San Francisco today to kick off this year's Intel Developers Forum. Kyrzanich unveiled a number of new projects and products including a product code-named "Project Alloy." The device is an un-tethered, merged reality Head Mounted Device(HMD) that combines compute, graphics, multiple RealSense modules, various sensors, and batteries into a self-contained headset that offers a full six degrees of freedom. Unlike the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, Project Alloy does not need to be wired to a PC or other device and it does not require externally mounted sensors to define a virtual space. Instead, it uses RealSense cameras to map the actual physical world you're in while wearing the HMD. The RealSense cameras also allow the device to bring real-world objects into the virtual world, or vice versa. The cameras and sensors used in Project Alloy offer full depth sensing, so obstacles can be mapped, and people and objects within camera range -- like your hand, for example -- can be brought into the virtual world and accurately tracked. During a live, on-stage demo performed by Intel's Craig Raymond, Craig's hand was tracked and all five digits, complete with accurate bones and joint locations, were brought into the the VR/AR experience. Project Alloy will be supported by Microsoft's Windows Holographics Shell framework.

China Quantum Communications Satellite

China's quantum network could soon span two continents, thanks to a satellite launched earlier today. Launched at 1:40pm ET, the Quantum Science Satellite is designed to distribute quantum-encrypted keys between relay stations in China and Europe. When working as planned, the result could enable unprecedented levels of security between parties on different continents. China's new satellite would put that same fiber-based quantum communication system to work over the air, utilizing high-speed coherent lasers to connect with base stations on two different continents. The experimental satellite's payload also includes controllers and emitters related to quantum entanglement.The satellite will be the first device of its kind if the quantum equipment works as planned. According to the Wall Street Journal, the project was first proposed to the European Space Agency in 2001 but was unable to gain funding.

Apple augmented reality

http://bgr.com/2016/08/15/apple-tim-cook-augmented-reality/

Augmented reality is a ‘core’ technology for Tim Cook’s Apple

industrial robot tattoo

http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2016/8/4/12376760/industrial-robot-tattoo

hacking neural signals

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3722558/Hackers-inside-BRAIN-Experts-warn-growing-threat-monitoring-controlling-neural-signals.html