We've been taking a closer look at some of the standout blue-sky concepts presented by the likes of Mercedes and Cadillac at the recent LA Design Challenge – here's Volvo's take on the lightweight car of the future. The clamshell-inspired Volvo Air Motion Concept Canyon Carver uses fewer and lighter components than in traditional cars and compressed air engines to achieve a weight estimated at under 1000 lbs (454 kg).
Sublime or ridiculous? John Baltazar's Astrum Meera concept car is probably a little bit of both. The beautifully rendered four-seater design combines smooth lines and sporty, low-down fatness with some very ambitious future-tech ideas such as wheels that use magnetic levitation rather than bearings to improve smoothness of ride and fuel efficiency.
The Astrum Meera would also employ carbon dioxide sensors built into the twin rear exhausts for constant real time monitoring of engine emissions, plus retractable side rear-view mirrors armed with cameras coupled with an in-cockpit display.
We're not sure that this idea will ever float, but with the fantastic 3D renderings by Hussain and Ali Almossawi it's almost possible to imagine the Astrum Meera levitating in your garage.
If there's one place you don't want to be caught wandering around right now, it's the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea. Especially since South Korean military hardware manufacturer DoDAMM used the recent Korea Robot World 2010 expo to display its new Super aEgis 2, an automated gun turret that can detect and lock onto human targets from kilometers away, day or night and in any weather conditions, and deliver some heavy firepower.
