The idea is to develop a disposable organic sensor that will alert parents and caregivers when it is time to change a wet diaper. The flexible, integrated system will be printed with inkjet technology using organic materials and will be able to send information and receive its power wirelessly. While most healthcare sensors rely on silicon and other stiff materials, the new sensor will be printed on a thin piece of film, and so will be more comfortable to wear. And while there are...

The sign language ring concept will track the signing motions made by the user and translate them into audio and written text. The system will consist of a bracelet and six rings, which will be stored on the bracelet when not in use. The ring will detect the hand motions and send the data to the bracelet, where the signs will then be translated into spoken word as well as displayed as text on the bracelet's screen.

The bee-powered sensor will be made up of pair of chambers: a smaller one, called the diagnosis space, and a larger chamber that will hold the trained bees. The patient will breathe into the smaller chamber, and the bees taught to connect certain smells with a food reward, will move toward the person's breath if they detect their trigger smell. Bees can be trained to respond to certain smells in only ten minutes. Once the bee has been captured, trained and performed its duty, it...

The multi-modal vehicle concept drone can fly, swim and hop through various terrains by shedding and transforming parts of itself as needed. The transforming drone will travel by land, sea and air either under the control of a remote operator or semi-autonomously. As it adjusts itself to the conditions, the wings will become fins for underwater travel, for example, and then swapped for wheels for on-land travel. Currently, carrying out a drone mission on such different...

A new, sustainable lamp design will use algae to illuminate a room while consuming carbon dioxide, potentially scrubbing as much as a ton carbon from the air in one year. The tube-shaped lamps will be filled with algae, which will grow well inside the structure and use photosynthesis to emit a green glow. The lamps will also store the energy created during photosynthesis for later use, such as at night or in low-light settings. A single light will be able to absorb about a ton of...

The ring concept will translate ordinary text to Braille that can be felt with a fingertip. The ring will be equipped with a scanner and an array of six bumps able to raise or lower according to the letter read by the scanner. It will be worn like a regular ring, and then slipped onto the fingertip to allow the user to feel the Braille bumps as they change in response to the scanner moving across the text. The ring will also be able to convert the text to spoken words, which will...

Using gold nano particles on top of a PVC substrate, I suggest building a new type of cheap, flexible sensor that will simultaneously detect pressure, humidity and temperature with surprising accuracy. While current kinds of e-skin detect only touch, the invention can simultaneously sense touch, humidity, and temperature, as real skin can do. Additionally, the new system will be at least 10 times more sensitive in touch than the currently existing touch-based e-skin systems. ...

Using injections of gold nanorods subjected to UV light, it is possible to come a step closer to a non-surgical, reversible, male contraceptive. The technique will be based upon the well-known fact that heat will kill sperm cells. The method will involve injecting a mixture containing nanorods of gold, which will then be heated from the outside by an infrared laser. This will heat the rods up enough to kill the sperm cells, but not enough to kill the cell that make new sperm. ...

A proposed 'vitamin authentication' pill could allow people to access their password protected systems by turning their whole body into a security pass. The idea will feature a small pill containing an electronic chip that will be powered by the acids inside the stomach. Once swallowed the chip will activate and create "an 18-bit ECG-like signal in the body so essentially your entire body will become your authentication token."

By building a power plant deep beneath the ocean, researchers hope to generate energy by harnessing the pressure of the ocean water. The plan would involve placing large tanks in the water at depths between 1300 and 2600 feet. Valves on the tanks would allow them to be opened, exposing the connected turbines to the pressure of the water as it rushes into the tanks. When full, the turbines could pump the water to the surface as saved as a sort of battery, a method known as 'pumped...