Body-heat powered flashlight

We had featured in our previous blog about a water-powered invention that can generate electricity. Now, we will tackle another record-breaking and world-changing invention - a flashlight than can be powered solely by body’s heat. Imagine that it will produce light by just holding it. No batteries. Not solar-powered. It’s such an incredible invention!

The inventor of this amazing flashlight is a Filipino-Canadian 15-year old student, Ann Makosinsk. Her project was inspired by a friend from Mindanao whose family could not afford to pay for electricity. Without light at night, her friend could not study properly. She failed an entire school year because she could not read her lessons.

After a few prototypes, she unveiled her “hollow flashlight,” so named because it has a hollow aluminum tube at its core that cools the sides of the peltier tiles attached to the flashlight’s cylinder. The other side is warmed by heat from a hand gripping the flashlight. 

Ann Makosinsk holding her invention, the "Hollow Flashlight" 

Ann spent several months designing the flashlight and figuring out its voltage conversion. Much has been written online about powering a flashlight with peltier tiles, but those devices used heat from candles and blow torches. Ann’s patent-pending prototype relies on hand warmth only and required that she make her own transformer, among other difference-making factors. She said that her invention needs at least 3 to 5 degrees Celsius temperature difference to work. She added that the flashlight is ideal for cold temperature because the larger the temperature differential, the greater the light produced. 

Though her invention is not yet ready for commercialization and need to be improved, it was good enough for her to win the 2013 Google Science Fair in the 15-16 years old category beating out thousands of other students from over 120 countries and earned praises by many. Her story has been shared several times in social media and has caught the interest of several people, including American TV host Jimmy Fallon.

Makosinski says her flashlight can produce up to 5-foot “candles of brightness”—below the commercial standard—but she says she is working to make the light brighter. It produced roughly 24 lumens compared to dozens or even hundreds of lumens of light produced by commercial flashlights. She says several companies have voiced interest in her flashlight. But she is adamant that until her flashlight achieves higher brightness at a lower cost, she will not agree to produce it for the public.

Driven by a very noble objective, she said, “I want to make sure my flashlight is available to those who really need it.”

Source:

CBC News

Global Nation

Yahoo News

Photo:
CBC News

Special Operations Assault Rifle (SOAR): A Filipino innovative assault rifle

Development

Fascination for guns and a dream of once joining the military are what led the Filipino twin brothers (Ferdinand and Francis Sy) to the arms industry. But it was a controversial armed robbery in the Philippines in the 90's wherein robbers outgunned police that made Ferdinand and Francis pursue their passion. They wanted to come up with a modern firearm that is accurate, easy to use and durable.

“The mission of FERFRANS way back in 1994 was to really give an edge to the Philippine National Police-Special Action Force. To give them the edge in combat through weaponry,” said Francis as interviwed by ABS-CBN.

The FERFRANS logo 

FERFRANS started in 1998 developing specialized equipment for law enforcement and military. Although all products were manufactured or sourced in the United States, it was the operational requirements of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) and specialized military units in the United States that motivated FERFRANS to design and develop its products.

The challenges of the PNP-SAF during that time and in the present became very complex. They have to deal with multiple threats from, the communist New Peoples Army (NPA), the muslim insurgents (MILF and MNLF), terrorist groups (Abu Sayyaf, Jemaah Islamiyah), and organize crime. Also, in this day and age of terrorism, the line between conventional and unconventional warfare has diminished as well as the grey line between military and law enforcement operations. Special operating units in urban centers today, conducting hostage rescue will be the same troops that will battle insurgents in the jungles tomorrow. Unconventional warfare has evolved to irregular warfare so a new breed of warriors are created and together with it a new weapon system.

FERFRANS SOAR

The FERFRANS SOAR

The main feature of the FERFRANS SOAR is its patented Delayed Sear Activation System. It is a me- chanical device that reduces the cyclic rate of full-auto fire of the M16 / M4A1 type rifles from 850-900 rpm to 550-680 rpm. This system does not only reduce the cyclic rate of fire but also reduces the velocity (Impact Stress) of the bolt carrier assembly as it goes into battery making the rifle very controllable and smooth in full-auto fire. Reliability is increased because impact stress is reduced considerably and heat is reduced. Burst controlled fire can be achieved with just a simple squeeze of the trigger as the time between shots are slower and the tempo is constant. The effect is immediate Controllable Accurate Full Auto Fire. Another advantage of the RRS is for short barreled rifles and the use of suppressors.

Features:

• Reduced Cyclic Rate of Fire
• Rail Handguard with Rail Covers
• Removable Carry Handle
• 6 Position Retractable Stock
• Machine Gun Chrome Bore Heavy Barrel
• Slidable Independent Sear Disconnector
• Muzzle Brake
• Side Tactical Sling Attachment
• Aluminum or Stainless Steel Magazine with Non- Tilting Follower

Specifications:

FERFRANS SOAR specs taken from its website

FERFRANS SOAR P

The SOAR P (Piston version of the soar) was developed as early as 2008. This further increase the benefits of the SOAR by changing the gas system with a short stroke piston system with the independent sear disconnector enhancing the capability of the rifle to fire without draining the water in “over the beach” operations.

Features: 

• Operates in almost any environment
• Sustained Full-Auto Fire w/ Low Chamber Heat
• Full Control of Accurate Full-Auto Fire
• Reduces Possibility of Cook-Off
• Increases Parts Longevity
• “Over the Beach” Operations Capable

Specifications:

FERFRANS SOAR P specs taken from its website

Other FERFRANS products include the SCW (Sub-Compact Weapon), HVLAR (High Volume Light Automatic Rifle, SOACR (Special Operations Adaptable Combat Rifle), and the RMGL 403 (40mm Rail Mounted Grenade Launcher). We will discuss these weapons on the next blog entries.

Source: 
FERFRANS
ABS-CBN

Photo: 
FERFRANS

FSPMI Light Sport Aircraft (RP-S512): First Filipino-made Operational Aircraft

It has been making headlines in various local publications including internet blogs about what is now considered as the “first Filipino-made aircraft”. It is the two-seater light sport aircraft with tail number RP-S512. However, is it really the “first Filipino-made aircraft”? No, it’s not. We had already built several aircrafts (Defiant 300 is one of them) in the past including a helicopter as what I had discussed in my previous blogs.

Maybe, it’s better to re-brand it as the “first Filipino-made operational aircraft” or “first Filipino-made aircraft in-production”. This aircraft was built by Famous Secret Precision Machining, Inc. (FSPMI) based in Cavite, Philippines. The company is a supplier of aircraft components especially parts of the flight control mechanism of airplanes of various aerospace companies including Boeing and Airbus. 

The RP-S512 Light Sport Aircraft

According to the report by 24 Oras (GMA News), the company had already produced two operational light sport aircrafts. The RP-S512 which was already sold to a costumer in Batangas and the other one which was sold to a customer in Florida, USA and already flying.

Captain Bill Wright, private consultant for the RP-S512 project, said that local use of the aircraft is constrained at present pending clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). Wright said that the plane’s category, which is a light sports aircraft, has yet to be recognized by the CAAP.

The plane costs about $100,000 (approximately P4.4 million) and has reached Cavite or Pangasinan and back on test flights. According to Wright, the plane is mostly used by aviation schools for flight instruction and for recreational purposes.

As reported by News 5, the plane has detachable wings that enables its owner to save a parking space not needing a hangar anymore. It can even be parked in a car garage. It has a safety feature, a sensor found in its control panel that can detect whether the wings are tightly and safely attached before take-off. The plane utilizes an unleaded fuel. (Editor's comment: The term "gasolina" in the report may refer to an unleaded gasoline or a common unleaded kerosene-type jet fuel such as Jet A and Jet A-1. Thus, the editor uses a general term "unleaded fuel".)

In a separate interview by Interaksyon (TV5), Jun Ramos (FSPMI marketing head) is confident and hoping that the Philippines will become the next aerospace manufacturing hub in the region at least in the next two to three years. He added that aside from their company, various big players in the industry have recently formed the Aerospace Association of the Philippines due to the growing potential of the business. For their company alone, Ramos said that they are expecting to grow their manufacturing capacity by 50 percent in the next five years due to high demand.

Until recently, the Philippine aerospace industry was largely limited to maintenance, repair and overhaul operations, which covers assembly and maintenance services of aircraft manufactured in other countries, primarily in the United States.

At present, the DOST – Metals and Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC) is providing support to other local aviation manufacturers in achieving quality assurance standards including training program as confirmed by Lina Afable, DOST-MIRDC chief of the technology information section. She also added that the industry has a potential to generate jobs.

The RP-S512 aircraft was displayed during the Department of Science and Technology Science Nation Exhibit last July 24, 2014 and ran until July 28 in Pasay City.

"Everybody will be surprised that we could be a winner. The aerospace industry is, to me, the next big potential export winner," said DOST Secretary Mario Montejo. 

Source:

GMA Network

Interaksyon

Philstar

YouTube-24 Oras
YouTube-Interaksyon

Photo credit:

Interaksyon

Philippine-made Concept Supercars

This is what a couple of Philippine-made concept supercars look like
                           Patrick Everett Tadeo

                           TopGear,  23 May 2014

If you're dropping by the 2014 Trans Sport Show this weekend, among the displays you absolutely have to check out are the two cars entered by Factor Aurelio Automobile. Factor Aurelio Automobile is a fledgling car manufacturer based in San Pedro, Laguna. The company takes its name after the surnames of Kevin Factor, an engineering student at Adamson University and the designer of the still-unnamed car, and Brendan Aurelio, the owner of Pacita Fibertech and the vehicles' architect and builder.

 First prototype and is powered by a Honda B16A engine

The two cars on display look similar but are slightly different from one another. The yellow one is actually the very first prototype and is powered by a Honda B16A engine. The orange one is supposedly closer to production and has a Mitsubishi 4G63T turbocharged engine. Both vehicles are made of fiberglass and carbon fiber, and utilize VR4 front and rear suspensions and 18-inch Rota wheels.

We asked Factor how close the orange car is to completion, and it's reportedly 80% finished. "We just need to finish the interior and complete some of the exterior items," he pointed out. As to why Factor Aurelio Automobile chose to run an in-line-four engine, it was a matter of cost. "It's easier to fix since there's an abundance of spare parts, but depending on the customer, we can put their choice of engine inside," Factor shared.

A close to production prototype
with Mitsubishi 4G63T turbocharged engine

The company hopes to have a production-model unit ready before the end of the year, with a price tag in the range of P1.5 to P1.6 million. "We only plan to make 10 units; that way, the cars can retain their value," added Factor. "If we make more than that, the cars will lose their value because they won’t be unique anymore." 

So, would you buy a locally manufactured, P1.6-million "supercar" if it went on sale today?

Source:
TopGear

Photo credit: 
TopGear

Air Cleaning Device with Ionizer (Nature's Air Room Ionizer)

A breath of fresh air

Nature's Air air cleaning device with ionizer

Air pollution may well be dubbed as the silent killer for it harms the unsuspecting individual who inhales its harmful micro-components. Through the years, the quality of air in many parts of the world has been deteriorated continuously and beyond acceptable standards. There are several types of air pollutants but the most common are particulate matters, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and total oxidants. Other equally harmful air pollutants are hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides. Medical experts discovered 18 species of pathogenic fungi and 20 types of bacteria in the circulating dust.

Metro Manila's surrounding air has no cleaner. A study done by the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) found that pollution level in the metropolis is three times the normal level with particulate matter of nearly 600 exceeding the WHO safe dust level of 120 micrograms per cubic meter of air.

Now, we are introducing our latest technology, an air cleaning device with ionizer that will eventually removes smoke, dust particle, odors and even air-borne micro-organisms that spread diseases inside your room and your office. 

Benefits of Nature's Air

• It will remove airborne contaminants.
• Activated carbon filter will remove odors/fumes emitted from closets, household cleaners, paints varnishes, personal care products, cigarettes and cooking smoke.
• Negative ions revitalized the air just like the natures after the storm, near a waterfall or near the seashore. Studies show that the negative ions beneficially affect human biochemistry both physically and mentally.

Description

Nature's Air, an environmental friendly invention, is a perfect solution for this kind of environment that we suffer from odors and microorganisms. This latest Filipino technology helps eliminate harmful dust particles, smoke and airborne microorganism that spread diseases in children and elderly.

The properly-designed modern ion emitter produces a combination of negative and positive ions in a ratio of 4:3. This ratio helps the dust particles and carbon monoxide settle to the dust collector inside the unit, rather than on other surfaces. The excess of negative ions also helps to restore nature’s ion balance and enhance natural health and well being of the user.

Technical specifications

A new and improved air ionizer, the NATURES AIRE is available for purchase. Go to our online store for contact details.

Source:
Rodolfo Biescas Sr.