Two concerned fathers temporarily lost their children – one in a parade crowd and the other in a crowd of shoppers. Both created a wearable tracking device to prevent this from happening again. The products are amazingly similar and are competing for attention at CES 2015 and on Indiegogo.

The companies sit on two sides of the world. Child Angel is out of Staffordshire in the UK. Kiband is out of Utah in the US. The companies base their technology on two different approaches. Child Angel tracks a child’s movements by combining GPS, GSM (Global System for Mobiles) and Wi-Fi hot-spot triangulation technologies. Kiband uses Bluetooth 4.1 and an audible alarm approach.

Kiband, named for the CEO’s four year old child Kimball, argues that coverage, accuracy, and cost of GPS are questionable. Their smartband technology covers 5 to almost 200 feet in any direction and you don’t need to interpret a map on your cell phone to locate a child who wanders too far. Kiband lets out an 85 decibel alarm alerting the parent and those around the child until it and the child are back with the parent. The band displays contact information for do-gooders trying to return the child to his parents.

Kiband smartphone display of child’s proximity.

Child Angel, on the other hand, has no distance limitations. It notifies parents via its cell phone app and displays the child’s location on a GPS map. The battle has begun with Child Angel adding comments on its project site regarding the limitations of Bluetooth … as we’ve noted is used by their competitor, Kiband.

Its exact pinpoint location is sent by Child Angel wrist band to smartphone.

Another differentiation is the ability to remove the band from the child’s arm. Child Angel sends an alarm to the parent if the band is removed and marks its location, whereas the Kiband cannot be removed until unlocked by the parent via their cell phone.

The free downloadable Child Angel app is compatible with Android, Samsung, Apple iPhone, and iPad. The band’s rechargeable battery can last for 48 hours. The band is “splash, sand, and sticky proof” and geared to those 3-13 years. Kiband is fashioned for children from 18 months to 7 years. Child-friendly Child Angel can be customized with a click-on image. It can also be imprinted with a licensed business partner’s logo.

Both provide boundary settings such as Geo Fencing on Child Angel. If your child goes beyond your pre-set safe zone an automatic alert goes to your cell phone. Kiband differentiates itself by claiming to alert you to your child’s location before they disappear, not after. Its goal is to prevent a lost child, rather than trying to find one after they go missing. The band involves the child in their own safety by vibrating when they wander too close to the perimeter set by their parents. It is not only water resistant, but if submerged will put out an alarm.

Child Angel’s wrist band design.

Spencer Behrend, Founder and CEO of KiLife Tech, claims a background in entrepreneurship, technology of an unspecified nature, finance, and corporate leadership. Heather Palmer has the unique title of CMO – Chief Mommy Officer – bringing a mother’s touch to the company. None of the bios of the rest of the team mentions any technology experience, leaning on backgrounds in operations, finance, and social media. However, the company profile claims to be “a diverse collection of tech entrepreneurs.”Andrew Purcell is the father and CEO behind Child Angel. His team consists of persons with financial, organizational, and sales skills. No one mentions having technology expertise, but their project site shows how the device was developed. Child Angel’s Indiegogo project has raised $2,572 USD towards its more aggressive $100,000 goal with 24 days left.

Kiband reveals its electronic composition.

Kiband on Indiegogo has raised $10,754 USD towards its $25,000 goal with 10 days left. Its sale price is pegged at $110.

As a parent, you have choices to make regarding your child’s safety. Child Angel and Kiband offer two slightly differing ways to keep track of a busy and mobile kid. Which would you choose?

The post Two Lost Kids; Two New Wearable Tracking Devices at CES 2015 appeared first on VR World.

More than 1,900 applied, only 10 were chosen. The Extreme Tech Challenge  finalists vying to pitch their company to Sir Richard Branson on Necker, his private island, includes Skully, a smart motorcycle helmet. Skully combines the latest in technology in one extreme helmet.

To begin with let’s cover the basics. The streamlined helmet is water and dust proof with a comfortable NASA originated Outlast lining that is removable and washable. It comes in black or white and gives you a Darth Vadar appearance. Now, on to the technology.

Essentially, the Skully AR-1 eliminates blind spots. The helmet sports a 180 degree rear view camera with a fisheye lens that projects revamped, dewarped images of what’s happening behind you onto a cube at the front of the helmet. This rearview mirror is not the only information displayed. The cube is transparent so it does not impair your front vision while providing dashboard-like data.

A small gasoline icon notifies you when fuel is low.

Other information you can see includes a tachometer, speed readout, gear position, and incoming calls. The helmet provides a blue tooth GPS with worldwide mapping. The visual information displayed is augmented by audio directions. The stereo speakers provide clear phone conversations and good music enjoyment, as well as route indications.

Worldwide maps provide GPS assistance as you cruise along.

Looking to the future, at the rear of the helmet you will find RGB LED lights in place that can light up as turn signals or to indicate braking. They also will help with diagnostics. The system runs on two individual rechargeable batteries reloaded via micro USB.

The helmet was designed for comfort. The informative cube is set to eliminate eye strain. Your eyes don’t have to refocus from distance viewing down the road to close-up to read gauges previously mounted on the dashboard. Material for the wide-angle-view visor is anti-glare, anti-fog, with a button you can push for bright light correction. To prevent you from becoming a hot headed motorcyclist, the helmet has vents on the front, top, and both sides to air cool your skull.

The transparent informational cube is designed and placed to eliminate eye strain while driving and checking data.

Speaking of heads, the helmet comes in S, M, L, XL, and XXL. A chart gives dimensions in hat size, centimeters and inches. For example, a Large fits hat size 7 1/8 – 7 1/ 4. Additionally, if it still doesn’t fit, the company promises to send another premium padding set at no charge.

This company put out an Indiegogo project with a goal of $250,000. Instead, in less than two months, they closed the fund October 9, 2014 with $2,445,425 USD. During and since, videos have been posted that have gleaned positive and negative comments regarding the approach, cost, safety, sturdiness, and the usefulness of this new technology aimed at the motorcycle enthusiast.

The company says the Skully AR-1 is DOT/ECE (US Department of Transportation / Economic Commission for Europe) certified and is currently pending AS/NZS 1698:2006 certification. As to damage during an accident, they suggest checking your insurance policy to see if you are covered for Custom Parts and Equipment (CPE) coverage.

Skully’s Vice President of Design Joshua Bloom produced a very detailed look at the streamlined helmet in a YouTube video.

Skully VP of Design Joshua Bloom proudly displays the AR-1.

One viewer commented: Looks interesting, but cost is prohibitive. It is currently listed as $1,499 plus $99.99 shipping. Another person summed it up thus: When it comes to pricing think about it in this manner. You’re buying the equivalent of 1) a decent helmet 2) a GoPro camera 3) a Google glass 3) a communication system 4) a photo chromatic face shield. Does it really seem that expensive??

You can judge for yourself at CES in Las Vegas. Skully and the other nine finalists will vie to become the top three winners on stage January 8, 2015 at 2pm in the Marco Polo room at The Venetian. If you want to buy the product, the company website’s store is your only option. You can place a pre-order and hope shipment happens by the promised July, 2015 date.

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Whether the company name was intentional or not, EHang paints a picture of what its product does. China-based EHang creates unmanned aerial vehicles that hang in the air taking video or photos of what’s below. Ghost, one of the company’s drones, is an Indiegogo crowd funding success story. The company has far surpassed its original goal of $100,000 by raising $596,702 with 26 days to go.

Ghost landing gear sets the drone down gently.

Ghost does not require a cumbersome RC controller. You guide it with your iOS or Android smartphone and a small G-Box with 2.4GHz 80mw standard Bluetooth communicator. Auto Mode points the drone head first towards its destination and allows you to concentrate on the visuals you want to capture instead of worrying about piloting. You’ll want to use the micro control mode to pinpoint a specific location by simply sliding it in the direction you want to drone to go. It can get there tail first if necessary.

A simple finger tap points your drone to its destination.

GoPro equipment is compatible with Ghost including the Hero 4 and is assisted by the 2D gimbal which keeps your shots stable. Flying at night is possible due to Night Mode with LED lights to visually keep track of its position. Ghost is wind resistant to 21 knots and waterproof so weather won’t ground the aerial vehicle. If anything goes awry, Ghost incorporates automatic return if the connection is lost.

You can still get in on the Indiegogo Ghost project. Support starts with a $5 fan club contribution and goes to $49,000 with a list of perks in between including a $355 DIY kit that includes parts for you to assembly the Ghost yourself. Cyber Monday offered the following:

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The campaign started November 10, 2014 and will close on January 9, 2015 at the end of CES. The company will be exhibiting in the Las Vegas Convention Center, LVCC South Hall 2. BSN* will be able to provide our readers with a hands-on opinion of this and other unmanned systems after the show. In the meantime, you can tell EHang what you want them to do to improve on their Ghost with the cash they have raised beyond their original goal. Vote at their survey site.  One option is to expand the white ghostly finish to other colors. Maybe one of these? Or ask for your favorite color – neon orange perhaps?

In addition to Ghost for recreational use, EHang also develops the larger Skyway for commercial use. The Chinese company also has offices in San Carlos, California.

The post Indiegogo Drone Project Raises Half A Million Dollars appeared first on VR World.

A Thai startup called Drivebot has launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise funds for its automotive diagnostic tool that interfaces directly with smartphones. Drivebot promises a stress-free driving and car maintenance experience, with smartphone alerts for engine problems, fuel efficiency tips and live monitoring from the car’s sensors.

For most people, driving just involves going from point A to point B, and not everyone is adept at actually looking under the hood to diagnose problems. Fortunately for motorists, virtually all new cars today come with On-Board Diagnostics (OBD-II), designed to output code to computers for monitoring and troubleshooting. Unfortunately, however, this requires a separate tool. This is why the “Check Engine Light” on the dashboard is called the “idiot light.” It shows there is an issue, but you don’t really know what it is.

In most cases, diagnostic tools only output a code that a trained mechanic will then have to interpret. Hence, even with cheap Bluetooth-enabled OBD tools that interface with smartphones, the best you can get are error codes or one-time reports.

Drivebot is like “Fitbit for cars” — it shows live monitoring of statistics and diagnostics, to ensure worry-free driving.

Drivebot promises to change this through its plug-in dongle, compatible with OBD-capable cars (which means anything from the mid-1990s). Drivebot interfaces with iOS an Android smartphones and will provide live monitoring of the various components managed by OBD, including fuel consumption, engine compression, transmission, air conditioning, braking system, and more. Going beyond simply alerting users for problems as the happen, Drivebot will alert drivers for potential upcoming issues and for regular maintenance checks.

The app also analyzes the user’s driving habits and will give tips to improve fuel efficiency. According to the creators, it will even offer alternate routes to prevent fuel wastage during heavy traffic.

Drivebot has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo earlier this week, targeting $35,000 to further develop the prototype and put the product out to market. $75 gets you a Drivebot dongle (the $60 early bird promo has run out), while $140 gets a two-pack. Interestingly, Drivebot’s campaign also makes way for entrepreneurs who wish to partner with the company, with a $1,300 “reseller” pack for 20 dongles. The startup plans to retail Drivebot for $150 apiece after the campaign.

As of writing, Drivebot has already received $14,819 or 42% of its goal with 36 days left. According to Atthaphong “Beam” Limsupanark, co-founder and CEO, the company already has a working prototype and is 80% into development of the iOS application. Drivebot was a finalist at the Echelon startup conference held in Thailand, and the startup was taken in by Dtac accelerator, run by the country’s second-largest telecoms provider. The team says it is also getting touch with garages and dealerships in Thailand, and is set to install 3,000 Drivebot dongles as part of these partnerships.

The team plans to begin mass production by November, with shipping targeted by February 2015. The iOS app will be launched by that time, followed by the Android app in March.

The post ‘Fitbit for Cars’ Launches Crowdfunding Campaign appeared first on VR World.

Now-retired smartphone leaker Evan “Evleaks” Blass is in a tussle with TK O’Connor of TK Tech News over claims that O’Connor has used Blass’ multiple sclerosis as a vehicle to line his own pockets from the proceeds of a crowdfunding campaign in Blass’ name.

Shortly after Evleaks announced his retirement in August, O’Connor proceeded to set up an Indiegogo campaign to help Blass with his medical bills to pay for his MS treatment. To date the campaign has raised $9,275 of its goal of $100,000.

But on Saturday things between Blass and O’Connor took a turn for the worse, with Blass posting on Twitter that he had been the victim of fraud by O’Connor as he said — providing a screencap of an email from Indiegogo — that the funds from all who paid by credit card were routed into the bank account of O’Connor’s wife.

The reply from IndieGoGo to my inquiry regarding the delay: pic.twitter.com/paflwTL3vf

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) October 12, 2014

For his part O’Connor denies the claims put forward by Blass and uploaded a video to Instagram purporting to show that he’s transferred the funds to Blass’ bank account. But in a tweet Blass claims that the video is fake.

.@tktechnews‘ “rebuttal video” is doctored; name is correct, but address traces to a “D K O’Connor” in Beverly Hills. pic.twitter.com/ZwKBEhPqcl

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) October 12, 2014

O’Connor denies any wrongdoing. It should not be presumed that O’Connor is in anyway guilty of fraud as this case has not been heard before a court.

The plot thickens

While on the surface this is a case of he said-he said, a recent expose posted by Phandroid’s Derek Ross on Medium adds a level of complexity to the issue. According to O’Connor’s bio he is a former professional hockey player that’s played in the NHL, IHL and Japan’s regional league. During his tenure in the NHL, O’Connor said that he played for the New Jersey Devils and the Anaheim Ducks. After his retirement, O’Connor said that he coached two professional junior league teams.

But if Ross’ expose is to be believed this isn’t the case. Ross went through team rosters and found that the only person that could fit the timeline presented by O’Connor is someone named Myles O’Connor. When asked by Ross, O’Connor said that he changed his name to Myles in 2007. Some Googling by Ross cast serious doubt to claims made by O’Connor. The real Myles O’Connor is a clothing store proprietor from Calgary, Canada that runs a family owned shop recently featured in Oilfield Pulse magazine.

(Screencap credit: Derek Ross/Medium)

According to whois results obtained from Ross digging through previous online properties connected to TK and his wife Patricia Pizer, TK Tech News is not owned by an O’Connor. From the records, TK’s real name is Thomas Connors and he appears to have no connection to professional hockey aside from being a fan.

Late Sunday Blass tweeted out an October 2012 press release from the Department of Homeland of Security which said that an individual named Thomas W. Connors from Winters Park, Florida, where Thomas “TK” Connors resides, was arrested for impersonating a DHS agent. The release also says that Connors was wanted on several felony probation violations in Florida including attempted murder of a police officer, felony assault, and felony fraud charges.

Same guy? http://t.co/nDvLSc8LOr is also registered out of Winter Park + date matches mugs. Alleged crimes are scary pic.twitter.com/RAivCFPV07 — Evan Blass (@evleaks) October 13, 2014

This matches a court docket from the website of Winter Park’s county, which lists court proceedings. A story published by an Atlantic Media property at the time said that Connors also outfit his car with emergency lights.

A case against Evleaks?

During exchanges on Twitter, Connors suggested in a YouTube video which has since been made private that Blass was facing an investigation by US authorities (the investigating agency was not named) for allegedly illegally accessing trade secrets (leaks). Though Blass has always maintained that his sources feed him information, he could be facing an uncomfortable legal situation if it’s found out that he has commissioned leaks or if he improperly accessed confidential information himself (for more, read this on a possible precedent Microsoft has set going after a leaker). Connors posted to Instagram screenshots of what appears to be Blass asking Connors for legal assistance.

The authenticity of these screenshots cannot be verified at the time. At the time there is no official evidence to suggest that Blass is facing an investigation, nor are there any related civil or criminal proceedings occurring against him at this time.

There will be more on this issue on Bright Side of News* as it no doubt develops throughout the week.

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