Inventor James Bruton has done it again, creating a machine that challenges our perceptions of balance and motion. His latest creation rolls on a single huge ball, maintains its upright position with an endless stream of computer corrections, and cruises in whatever direction the rider chooses.

People who enjoy engineering and experimenting with devices are familiar with Bruton’s never-ending search for unusual vehicles. A year ago, he showed us a version that used two large red balance balls, similar to those used by circus artists, along with wheels that could spin in any direction. This allowed the rider to move their weight in any direction. Now that he has reduced it to a single ball, he must deal with stability in two axes at the same time.

Sale

Segway Ninebot S2 Electric Self-Balancing Scooter – Master Your Commute w/t 11.2 mph Max. Speed, 21.7 Mi…

• Speed & Range: Experience exhilarating rides with the Ninebot S2’s impressive top speed of 11.2 mph and range of 21.7 miles.
• Beginner-Friendly: Perfect for riders aged 16-50, the Segway S2 features a user-friendly learning mode, providing a smooth and gradual introduction.
• Adjustable & Supportive: Enjoy a customized fit tailored to your needs, as the Segway S2 accommodates heights ranging from 4’3″ to 6’6″ and supports…

Three custom-made omni-wheels cradle the ball in a compact triangular frame. Each has an aluminum core encased in two rows of teeny-tiny rollers for a total of 216 bearings, which are covered with gripping 3D printed TPU tires. Commercial omni-wheels failed in earlier experiments due to overheating and excessive drag, so Bruton attempted to create his own for more strength and less friction. The wheels are crammed in vertically as a deliberate choice to prevent them from colliding at high speeds.

ODrive’s powerful motors, rated at 2kW each, spin the wheels directly via 1:1 belt drives. Six 6S lithium batteries provide 50 volts, with separate batteries for the electronics to ensure everything runs properly. A robust chassis composed of 40/40 aluminum extrusion is what holds everything together. It must to support the rider’s weight while also keeping the ball in the center.

To keep the machine upright, it utilizes a Teensy 4.1 microprocessor and a BNO086 IMU. That IMU tracks pitch and roll in real time, and a PID control loop uses those angles to modify the speed of the wheels, pushing back against any lean and keeping the rider steady as a rock. There are also twist grips on the handlebars that allow the rider to shift the balance point roughly 10 degrees and send it off in any direction they like.

Once you get started, the movement begins to seem natural. Lean slightly, and the system responds by sending the ball in that direction. The single-ball design ultimately allows the machine to move in all directions, as there is no requirement for differential speeds like in the two-ball version.

Steering is the major puzzle here, as with only one ball and straight up and down wheels, you lose all of the natural balance control that comes in handy when steering a bike, but leaning the bike helps a lot when you need to change direction while in motion; it’s the best way to do so. The difficulty arises while attempting to spin or do extremely tight turns. For the time being, Bruton has devised a temporary solution: a large foam wing attached directly behind the rider. As the bike accelerates, the wing begins to generate drag, which helps pull the bike into a turn as the rider leans, and curiously enough, it appears to perform well in tests. He describes it as a temporary solution, yet it works remarkably effectively.

There were also some teething issues with the electronics, particularly the ball. It was producing a lot of static electricity, causing the entire bike to misbehave at random. However, the problem was easily resolved with a short layer of nickel shielding spray on the electronics box. Now you’ve got a bike that is just begging for you to try and balance on it at high speed, and for which a lot of skill and experimentation are going to be rewarded. Bruton has also uploaded all of the code and CAD files on GitHub, allowing anyone to join in and try their hand at it.
[Source]

Photo credit: Barny Dillarstone
Barny Dillarstone is an adventurer who enjoys traveling to distant bodies of water and placing baited camera systems in places that most don’t even think of. He chose a location near Nusa Penida, a small Indonesian island nicknamed the “Black Magic Island” due to its murky legend and hazardous tides. Over the course of a few days, he was able to get his beloved Insta360 Ace Pro 2 down to about 170 metrers / 600 feet, where the water is so forceful that only the most desperate life can cling to the bottom.

Using squid as bait, which allegedly smells like the dinner bell for these animals, as well as some lights and weights to attract anything in the vicinity, Dillarstone was surprised to snag a western highfin spurdog right immediately. This is a shark with a serious expression on its face, a short snout, large dorsal fins, long spines, and a stunning tail with white edges. They’ve developed enormous eyes to cope with the lack of light, which is essentially what you need to exist in this pitch dark planet. What’s even more astounding is that, unlike certain predators found in shallower water, these creatures can locate their prey using their sense of smell before pouncing on it. Unsurprisingly, and perhaps unexpectedly, they didn’t take off when they noticed the light. That might differ from a few species you encounter at shallower waters.

Insta360 Ace Pro 2 Single Battery Bundle – 8K Waterproof Action Camera Co-Engineered with Leica…

• NEW 1/1.3″ 8K SENSOR & LEICA SUMMARIT LENS: Unparalleled imaging with 13.5 stops of dynamic range and 2.4μm equivalent pixel size. Legendary Leica…
• DUAL AI CHIP: The first action camera with a dedicated Pro Imaging Chip for noise reduction and image processing, plus a 5nm AI Chip for further…
• LOW LIGHT EXCELLENCE: PureVideo Mode redefines low light shooting in an action camera, now supported up to 4K60fps. AI noise reduction ensures crisp…

Dillarstone captured a number of western highfins in the area, some of which had suffered serious injuries but still showed up for the party, as well as a couple with gear that would not be spotted in deep water. He also saw a houndshark drifting by at a safe distance; later, he noticed an Indonesian wobbegong, a carpet shark with a flat body and mottled patterning that allows it to lie down and attack any unwary prey that passes by. Interestingly, this shows it prefers colder, deeper water than you might expect.

One of the absolute highlights he managed to record on camera was a stunning purple eagle ray that appeared. In gliding smoothly closer, he revealed a flat, mottled brown and purple body, a pretty standard eagle ray head and snout, a teeny little dorsal fin, and a pair of barbs on the end of its tail that were just as lethal as they appeared and ready to unleash at a moment’s notice. It flew by the rig a couple of times, doing these rapid bursts of speed that made it appear to be stumbling around for a second at a time – it appeared disoriented from where I was standing, and was this possible the first time this species had ever been seen on camera in the wild? Could be.

Other species were going about their daily activities all throughout the region. There were jobfish and deep water snappers that appeared to have legs inspecting the bait. Squat lobsters burst out on all sides, hot on the tails of the scraps, little urchins clinging to the sand, catching everything that came falling down, and the occasional sandperch would spring up, hanging around with its nose twisted up as if it was trying to figure something out. And just when you thought it was getting too much, schools of fusiliers would dart into view from above.
[Source]

The UK government announced new regulatory requirements that will bring major video-on-demand (VoD) platforms under tighter oversight by Ofcom, aligning them more closely with traditional television broadcasters.

The changes are part of implementing the Media Act 2024 and mark one of the most significant shifts in how online streaming services are governed in the UK.

Under plans laid out by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, VoD services with more than 500,000 average monthly UK users, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, ITVX and Channel 4’s on-demand service, will be designated as Tier 1 services and required to comply with a new VoD accessibility code.

The new accessibility code will introduce minimum standards around subtitles, audio description, and signing for content on these platforms. According to government guidance, services must ensure at least:

• 80 percent of their total catalogue is subtitled.
• 10 percent has audio description for viewers with sight loss.
• 5 percent includes sign language support.

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol’ founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

These thresholds mirror accessibility requirements that traditional UK broadcasters have long followed, helping ensure that visually impaired and deaf or hard-of-hearing audiences have better access to streamed content.

Platforms will have four years to meet the standards, with interim targets after two years.

Why this matters?

Streaming services have overtaken broadcast TV as the dominant way people consume video entertainment in the UK, with research showing that a large majority of households now subscribe to at least one major streaming platform.

Traditional broadcasters have long been subject to Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code, which includes accessibility and audience protection measures. The shift to extend similar rules to VoD services reflects how viewing habits have changed and aims to close a regulatory gap.

Until now, many of the biggest streaming platforms were either unregulated in the UK or faced only limited oversight.

The upcoming rules will also give Ofcom broader data-gathering powers and the responsibility to review audience protection tools, from age ratings to parental controls, used by these services.

The changes come as the broader regulatory framework for UK media is being updated. The Media Act 2024 amended parts of the Communications Act 2003 to allow the designation of Tier 1 VoD services and introduce codes that better reflect modern media consumption.

What comes next?

Ofcom will launch consultations on the new VoD standards, giving platforms, creators and audiences a chance to weigh in on the details before enforcement begins.

The government says the new rules are a step toward a more consistent media landscape in which streaming services are accountable for audience protection and accessibility just like traditional broadcasters.

If you’re looking to get a dog but have reservations about all the poop, pee, and chewed shoes that you’ll have to deal with, then how about getting a robot one instead?

Unitree has brought the idea a step closer with the launch on Tuesday of the impressive-looking As2 quadruped.

The Chinese robotics giant already has plenty of experience building robot dogs, but the newly unveiled As2 stands out from its other models as a lighter, more agile consumer-grade contraption with a superior runtime of more than 4 hours, a walking range of 8 miles, and a top speed of 11 mph. It even supports large AI models for embodied AI interaction and autonomous decision-making.

Features include a high-definition front camera, a built in mic and speaker, remote control and intelligent following modes, and a lighting system to aid night walks. It also has an IP54 rating, making it resistant to dust and rain.

A video (top) accompanying the launch positions the As2 as a companion pet, with clips showing it being taken for a walk and running to its owner. It also shows off the robot’s strength and balance, as the 18-kg machine is able to stay standing and remain steady with a 105-kg human standing on its back.

The As2 has a few tricks up its sleeve, too, taking it far beyond what a regular dog can do. Like play tennis. It’s true — if you attach the optional seven-axis robotic arm, you can stick a tennis racket in its gripper and have a knockabout.

It looks like a lot of fun, though if you think you might miss all of the cuteness, slobbering, and quirky behavior that comes with a regular flesh-and-blood mutt, then the As2 probably isn’t for you.

Unitree has yet to publicly reveal pricing for its new robot dog, asking interested folks to “contact sales.”