If learning is fun, it takes less time to get extensive knowledge for the younger generations. Therefore, educators have to rely on children’s natural curiosity towards technology and use it for teaching. A Hungarian team called Innobie have developed an application, Eddie, that is based on this concept, as Microsoft.com reports.
Using a smartphone is natural for the children today, but the usage of these devices is not included in education. What is more, most of the Hungarian schools forbid using them. However,
modern technology could help teachers a lot, because experience-based learning is more effective.
Including technology in education is a key, since it has to be the priority of the educational system to give in-depth knowledge to the learners. Modern developments such as Eddie support this concept.
Eddie is a hybrid of the traditional workbooks and modern technology. The application reads special signs in the work book’s pictures. Then, it uses a modern way to introduce the material. This is how teaching becomes cheaper, easier, more modern and more efficient according to Innobie.
The team won the national ImagineCup competition that means they get to go to the regional round.
About the competition
Microsoft ImagineCup is a technological competition where participants can introduce their ideas to experts and the press. They receive valuable pieces of advice that help them develop their ideas and business plans. The most important feature of these ideas is that they are innovative. Furthermore, these conceptions can help people in some way.
Further inventions
Are you interested in another great Hungarian invention that makes life easier for people? Read our article about the team that made it to the finals during the latest ImagineCup with their groundbreaking idea, Gloveye.
Photo: www.facebook.com/gloveyeofficial
Featured image and photos: www.facebook.com/eddieapp/
Is it possible for pálinka to gain international fame besides being the national drink Hungarians are proud of? There are attempts to sell it mixed in cocktails, and it seems like a good idea so far. Napi.hu writes about the details.
Being a short drink, the market of pálinka is very limited. Even though Hungarians consider this drink national pride, it is definitely not the favourite short liquor, not even in Hungary. It is less popular than vodka and whiskey, according to the statistics. There are many theories connected. Some say that Hungarian people do not drink high-quality pálinka. They prefer the homemade versions that are cheaper and also more popular due to cultural reasons. Others believe that none of the other spirits became popular consumed by themselves. Vodka Soda, Screwdriver, and Cuba Libre are all perfect examples for that. On the other hand, no cocktails have pálinka as an ingredient.
Photo: www.facebook.com/NobilisPálinka
Cocktails with pálinka
Péter Bárány, the owner of Forrás Pálinka and operator of many bars in the city centre of Budapest, discovered this deficiency. He has already tried mixing pálinka in cocktails. As he told Napi.hu, he even invited a mixer who made excellent cocktails. However, they did not succeed that time. Péter realised, however, that the root of the problem was the non-availability of the ingredients. Therefore, he created a simple cocktail this time. All he needs is either quince or raspberries. He mixes two centilitres pálinka with soda, ice, and lime. Additionally, there are mint leaves in the raspberry version. As he describes making this cocktail, it is as easy as making a packet soup.
Photo: www.facebook.com/NobilisPálinka
New target groups
There are two main target groups: foreigners and those who do not like pálinka. Péter believes that most of the tourists taste pálinka either because of their hosts’ request or only out of curiosity. However, after tasting it, they only try to survive and forget about it for good. Péter’s long drink will be a pleasant memory for them, though. The new pálinka cocktails have advantages for the catering industry as well. It is cheap to produce but can be sold for a high profit.
Photo: www.facebook.com/NobilisPálinka
Cheerful expectations
Some Erasmus students have already tasted these new pálinka cocktails, and they absolutely liked them. Furthermore, Péter stated that their selling statistics have improved a lot since they have been selling the cocktails. Finally, it is sure that there is going to be at least 13 festivals at summer where you can taste these innovations.
See below MTI’s main business and financial news from the previous week (completed with further DNH news):
HUNGARIAN COMPANY WOULD CREATE AN ENCRYPTED “FACEBOOK”
Tresorit’s new idea, the Prevaat is a groundbreaking conception because it would encrypt data end-to-end. This means that not even the site operators could see anything of it, not to mention selling the information, as Facebook does. Tresorit already started a public funding. Read more HERE!
NEW BATTERY PRODUCTION PLANT TO BE CONSTRUCTED IN MISKOLC
Japanese battery manufacturing specialist GS Yuasa is constructing its first factory in Europe in Miskolc’s southern industrial park; the foundation stone of the new facility, which will be completed by 2019, was laid on Wednesday. Read more HERE!
MODINE INAUGURATES EUR 19.8 M EXPANSION IN NORTH-EASTERN HUNGARY
The Hungarian unit of US-based automotive company Modine Manufacturing inaugurated a 6.2 billion forint (EUR 19.8m) expansion at its base in Mezőkövesd, in north-eastern Hungary, on Tuesday. Read more HERE!
MOL INAUGURATES USD 15 M GAS PROCESSING PLANT IN PAKISTAN
Hungarian oil and gas company MOL’s Pakistani unit inaugurated a 15 million dollar gas processing plant near Kohat, in the north of the country. The plant was commissioned in December to process gas from the Tolanj X-1 and Tolanj West-1 gas wells. The wells are in the TAL block, which MOL operates. Read more about MOL’s investments HERE!
STADLER TO SPEND EUR 32 M ON CAPACITY EXPANSION IN EAST HUNGARY
Swiss rolling stock maker Stadler announced plans to double capacity at its train body and bogie plant in Szolnok, in eastern Hungary, with a 10 billion forint (EUR 32m) investment. The expansion will be implemented at the site of a former sugar refinery in the city.
OPUS GROUP AGREES TO BUY OUT CZECH PARTNER FROM MÁTRAI ERŐMŰ
Listed holding company Opus Global said it agreed to buy out its Czech partner EPH in power plant company Mátrai Erőmű. Opus will buy out EPH’s stake in two steps, acquiring 35 percent of the 50-50 JV that made the acquisition by June 20, 2019 and the remaining 15 percent stake on June 20, 2019.
WAMSLER LAUNCHES EUR 11.5 M EXPANSION
Hungary’s Wamsler, Central Europe’s biggest maker of fireplaces and stoves, laid the cornerstone of a 3.6 billion forint (EUR 11.5m) expansion at its base in Salgótarján, in northern Hungary. The construction of a 5,400 square metre production hall and the installation of automated equipment will raise capacity at the base by about 50 percent to 150,000-160,000 units a year.
NBH PROJECTS HIGHER GROWTH BUT STANDS BY INFLATION FORECASTS
The National Bank of Hungary said it is standing by its inflation forecast for this year in spite of making a higher projection for economic growth. In its quarterly Inflation Report, the NBH left its projection for average annual inflation in 2018 at 2.5 percent. At the same time, the central bank raised its forecast for GDP growth this year to 4.2 percent from 3.9 percent in the December Inflation report. Read more HERE!
NBH TO INTRODUCE 30 PC CAP ON INTERBANK FUNDING
The National Bank of Hungary said it decided to introduce a 30 percent cap on interbank funding for lenders from July 1, 2018. “Based on available data, the [threshold] will not require adjustment for the overwhelming majority of institutions; it will nevertheless act as a barrier to the build-up of excessive reliance on wholesale funding,” The NBH said.
Gloveye is a successful Hungarian startup that makes it possible for the blind people to read typed texts. They won the national Microsoft Imagine Cup and got invited to the final in Seattle as well. Now, they are about to travel to Amsterdam. Forbes.hu writes about this amazing team.
The team
Ádám Fülöp and Krisztián Klinkó are the founders of Gloveye. They are making music, and they have a band called Fadi&Klinko. They were travelling to Cologne when Krisztián told his idea to Ádám. As he was travelling by tram in Budapest, he saw a blind person making a screenshot on his mobile so that a programme could read the text out loud. It did not seem like a good solution, for Ádám not only because of the loud noises that made the phone hard to hear but also because the person had a hard time holding the handrails. This was when the idea popped up in his mind:
a gadget that transfers typed words into Braille signs in gloves could be a solution.
Ádám and Krisztián applied for Microsoft’s international innovational competition the ImagineCup. Teams with three members could join the event. Therefore Bogi Zemkó joined them representing the business line. This time, the guys had already been attending the master degree programme at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics. Bogi had been studying at Corvinus University, and she knows Ádám from Mathias Corvinus Dormitory.
Getting started
Krisz was responsible for the hardware and Ádám was the programmer theoretically. However, everyone was dealing with everything in reality. It had always been the team’s priority to help those in need; this is why they contacted many organisations. They invented something, showed it to the experts and if it did not work, they tried again. For the sixth time, they managed to develop gloves that really worked.
How does it work?
Gloveye produces smart gloves that help the visually impaired people read. The users scan the whole text with their phones, the application warns them if not the full page is about to be scanned, then they can go forwards and backwards with scrolling up and down with the gloves.The phone communicates with the Braille cells in the gloves via Bluetooth.
As the users touch a word on the screen, the programme formes that given word into Braille signs that the users can feel them in the gloves.
ImagineCup’s final
Gloveye won the national ImagineCup competition in Hungary and made it to the final.
They made it to the top 32 out of 54 teams at the finals in Seattle.
At the first round, they just had to stand by their booths and introduce their inventions. They were so successful that they are one of those three teams who are in the event’s promo video.
At the second round, teams were separated into groups of four and the best ones qualified for the best 32. Here, they were in one group with a Canadian team. They invented an Xbox Kinect camera that can tell whether the subject has Parkinson disease. Gloveye felt that everything went smoothly, but the Canadian group made it further. The Hungarian team members were very disappointed, and as Ádám remembers, the saddest thing about it was that they did not get any justification or evaluation. The competition was a good experience, though, not to mention the fact that Gloveye got introduced to the press.
Today
Currently, only Ádám is the member of Goveye from the original trio. His friend, Péter Szombathelyi and Ábel Csató joined the team. Ábel introduced Zsófia Tillinger, who is now the speaker of the company. According to Zsófi, there are many gadgets available today that makes the blind people’s life easier. However, these gadgets are very expensive on the contrary of Gloveye.
The team estimates 100,000 forints (about 323 euros) for the smart gloves’ price.
They also want it to be medically accepted so that users can buy it with health support.
The last competition
Even though Ádám did not want to take part in any competitions after ImagineCup, he finds Design Terminal and Chivas good opportunities to support the start of his company. The team has already issued a patent, but legally no company exists yet. According to their estimations, they will need about 60 million forints (200,000 dollars) to kick off their business. If they do not get the first prizes at the competitions, they will start searching for investors. They do not find that a challenge since they got many requests since ImagineCup. Preparations have already started in March in Oxford, and the competition will continue in Amsterdam in May.
Featured image and photos: www.facebook.com/gloveyeofficial
Tresorit’s new idea, the Prevaat is a groundbreaking conception because it would encrypt data end-to-end. This means that not even the site operators could see anything of it, not to mention selling the information, as Facebook does. Tresorit started a public funding, as Forbes.hu reports.
The big idea
Hungarian Tresorit, that deals with encrypted file sharing, would create a new encrypted social network. Their idea is based on Facebook‘s and Cambridge Analytica’s scandal because of whom 50 million people’s private data got shared with unauthorised personnel. The name of this new social network would be Prevaat.
Its main advantage would be that not even the site operators could have access to anyone’s data due to the encryption between users.
The problem with Facebook
The root of the problem with Facebook is not that it could not encrypt the data, it is that it does not want to do so. Their reason is that they are earning money from selling the users data.
Today, every Facebook users data is accessible for the site operators, not to mention various applications and other users.
According to Eszter Szilva, PR manager of Tresorit, the company wants to solve this problem with the help of technology instead of setting limitations. She also stated that accessibility of the users’ data for unauthorised personnel must be inhibited.
Encrypting end-to-end would be a solution for the situation.
Financial issues
To make their dream come true, they started an IndieGoGo campaign and their aim is to collect a million dollars to start programming the site. They had 2535 dollars from 83 backers as for 30/03/2018.
First, it would be free for anyone to join the site until there is a good amount of users. After that, people would need to pay for the service. There would be also commercials after a while but only without sharing the users’ personal data, of course. Additionally, there would be an option to pay for getting rid of the commercials.
Views of Tresorit
According to Eszter, the problem does not lie in the commercials but the in the way Facebook handles them.
The system is not clear for most of the users, there is not any specific agreement to sign, and the microtargeting is too intensive. Facebook, as well as the advertisers, know too much about the users.
What is more, all of the information concentrates on one company who handles advertising.
Previous attempts
There had been many attempts to create user-friendlier social networks but none of these has succeeded yet. However, Tresorit stays optimistic because as far as they know, none of those used encrypting end-to-end. Tresorit’s advantage is that they have a six-year experience in encrypting, though. They are prepared for failure as well but besides backers, they are also discussing with potential investors. Tresorit is one of the tops in encrypting technology around the world. Its team began from BME (Budapest University of Technology and Economics). Márton Anka, the founder of Logmein, has recently joined them.
Photos and featured image: www.facebook.com/tresorit
According to Infostart.hu, a new phone line has been launched in Hungary that provides the perfect solution for those being afraid of walking home alone at night. By dialling the number, and paying the regular price, people can feel more secure talking with someone while walking home. Here is the Hungarian person behind the realisation of this great idea in Hungary.
It can be terrifying to walk home alone at night from a workplace or a party especially if the individual is a woman. This is why a new phone line has been launched in Hungary by Maren Csiki Molnár who would like to make the service free and available throughout the week so that everyone can easily find an interlocutor while walking home. To make all these possible, the inventor of this service recruits enthusiastic volunteers to join her team.
In fact, it was not her who invented this service because it has been in operation in Berlin for several years now. It was here that Maren Csiki Molnár heard about this service and decided to launch it in Budapest as well. She started the service without advertising it, but the news of it has spread quickly.
The service is quite simple: the individual dials the phone number and tells Maren where he is at present and where he wants to go. Then, they start a conversation in Hungarian, English or German that can take even an hour. As Maren Csiki Molnár reports, she tries to figure out what the person is interested in and if the individual is devoid of prejudice, the conversation can go on smoothly.
However, the service is not yet available anytime. It is only on Fridays and Saturdays between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. that it can be called and the initial reactions of Hungarians are very positive. The service has been used by a dozen of people so far, and interestingly, they were mostly men. As the inventor believes, they mainly called out of curiosity and not because of being afraid of walking home alone.
The service can be a breakthrough in investigations since, if a crime happens to the person on the other end of the line, Maren Molnár can immediately alert the police or the ambulance and she also knows where the person in question might be. Of course, this does not mean that in case of an incident it is not the police who should be the first to alert.
To use the Guiding Telephone Service, just call 06-30-899-3465 or 06-30-664-7981. If you want to feel safe, a Hungarian will guide you all your way home 🙂
Hungarian incubator Design Terminal on Tuesday announced the six participants in its next mentoring programme.
The six startups — three from Hungary, and one apiece from Israel, the UK and Latvia — were picked from 125 applicants from 25 countries around the world.
LearnIT, from Latvia, organises coding clubs in primary schools; Israel’s FabriXense makes a wearable biometric sensor; and Studyx, from the UK, writes software that helps students study.
The three-month mentoring programme is the sixth one Design Terminal has organised. So far, 38 teams have participated, of whom 34 were Hungarian.
Design Terminal counts businesses such as E.ON, MOL, Knorr-Bremse and BlackRock Budapest among its partners in the programme.
As we previously reported, a Hungarian enterprise has started to produce solar collecting pavement blocks from recycled plastic. As of now, even the international press caught attention. Forbes.hu states that the invention made it to the list of New Europe 100, that ranks the most promising startups.
The beginning
Imre Sziszák and József Cseh, founders of the enterprise, attended the University of Debrecen. They are both engineers, Imi is a mechanic while Józsi is a chemical- and electrical engineer. Miklós Illyés, a friend of theirs, is a landscape architect and it was his idea that brought the two boys back to the world of business after they have finished their studies. He found it annoying that every public place got covered with the same ugly and boring concrete paving-blocks. Instead,
Miklós was dreaming about recycled materials producing energy.
He asked Imi and Józsi whether the idea was realistic and the answer was yes. This is how Platio was founded.
The easiest way to picture the Platio-panels is to think about LEGO pieces. However, they are 34 centimetres wide squares that weigh 8,5 kilos. The recycled plastic base has little modules with which the pieces can be connected. Momentarily, 90 percent of the base is made from recycled material, but the guys aim to improve it to a hundred percent.
“The recycled materials are not just a marketing catch, with them we can also keep the prices low.” – as they said.
According to Miklós, the product can be used in many different ways from phone chargers to pavements or public furniture.
Achievements
The trio has already accomplished four projects out of which two happened to be abroad.
Firstly, they introduced themselves in Kazakhstan with an amazing 80 m2 solar cell pavement. Then, they created a solar pontoon-bridge in Sweden, In Budapest, they got an order from an electric car charging station. Finally, they succeeded in their project with Hellowood at Városház tér, where they built public furniture with built-in solar panels that can charge mobile phones.
Plans for the future
2018 is going to be very busy for these guys. According to their calculations, they are on the right way to triple their income from the previous year. In order to fulfil their orders this year, they needed financial support, and fortunately, they won the EU applications as well.
From Horizon 2020 and GINOP, they receive 70 million forints (230 thousand euros).
They did not want to share any details in connection with their future projects until they are settled, but they gave a hint that they have international and national orders as well.
Alza is a special so-called ‘future store’ in the Czech Republic, that is open 7/24 and operates without cashiers. Mno.hu reports that Jan Moudrík, expansion and facility director of Alza said that they are planning on opening stores like this in Hungary next year.
How does this store work?
Even though the Alza store in Prague was built from about 200 thousand euros, its maintenance cost is half of the regular stores’ cost. It is open every hour on every day whether it is weekend or holidays.
It is a self-serving store, which means there are no cashiers working in the facility.
Therefore, it rather looks like a corridor with big cupboards. Customers can choose products on a digital screen and pay for them with their credit or debit cards. After a successful transaction, they can follow the LED lights lighting up on the floor that lead them to their box. There, they can find all the items they bought. These boxes exist in several sizes so that they can be suitable for all the products no matter how small or big they are. In case customers need help, they can talk to an assistant through video chat anytime.
Alza today
Today, there is one Alza store open in the Czech Republic. It has 40 machines and boxes in more than a hundred different sizes.
It can serve more than a thousand customers per day.
Because it is nonstop, it is open every hour on every day. For the time being, it is yet unknown how popular the store will be. There are a lot of customers who like touching the products, according to György Vámos, general secretary of OKSZ (National Trading Association). On the other hand, if someone does not need to touch the products physically, they can shop online. One thing is for sure, if this shopping method turns out to be successful, it can be expanded for any shopping, even for stores like Spar, Tesco or IKEA.
Current modern solutions
These days, the latest digital methods in supermarkets are the self-service cash desks. They exist in Spar, Tesco and IKEA stores as well. There, people can scan the products and pay for them. Nóra Hevesi, communication director of Tesco, said that Tesco has about 550 cash desks of this type nationally. These cash desks are getting more and more popular.
Tesco’s brand new idea is the so-called scan&shop.
With its help, customers can scan the products they put in their shopping cart. As they get to the cash desk, they just hand the scanner over and pay for the items without unpacking them from the trolley.
Plans for the future
First of all, Alza’s management is developing and testing their new method. Furthermore, they want to open two or three more Alza stores in the Czech Republic. Finally, if the stores are successful,
they want to bring their system to Budapest.
Hopefully, we will be able to try this brand new idea here in Hungary next year.
Here is a list of other unusual Hungarian stores as well.
Albert Szent-Györgyi is a worldwide known scientist who discovered vitamin C. He had an adventurous life, and there are many legends connected to him. What do you think encouraged him to make his big discovery? Magyarországkúl‘s article will help you figure it out!
Was he a mastermind as a child?
Legend: People around him noticed how talented he was at an early age.
Truth: Szent-Györgyi was believed to be a slow-minded child. Because his family thought that talents could be noticed at an early age, they were worried that his abilities are below the average. As he said, he was seen as stupid at home. In middle school, he was one of the bad students. His parents even hired a private teacher so that he wouldn’t fail.
He was going to become a proctologist
Legend: Albert Szent-Györgyi wanted to become a proctologist because he found illnesses in the rectum interesting.
Truth: Already as a fifteen-year-old did he know that he wanted to become a scientist. After a while, his uncle, who was a known histologist, supported him as well. He didn’t think the little Albert could achieve anything, but as he was suffering from haemorrhoid, he let Albert deal with his problem. This is how Albert wrote his thesis about the rectum’s structure. He even made jokes about starting his career “on the wrong side”. However, he never became a proctologist.
Photo: www.facebook.com/365daysinHungary
He had an alibi to disarm from the military
Legend: He shot himself so that he can go home from the frontline during the war.
Truth: He was enlisted during World War I, and after about two years he decided that there was no point in staying in the frontline. He believed that no deaths were heroic, so he shot himself in the upper arm bone. Back home he continued his research.
His wife got on his nerves
Legend: His wife packed paprika sandwiches for him many times even though they were always arguing about the fact that he didn’t like paprika. His wife insisted on packing paprika because she believed it was healthy. Therefore, Szent-Györgyi examined the vegetable to prove his wife wrong, but he didn’t manage to.
Truth: The legend is true. Notably, vitamin C was known that time but just in very small proportions. Szent-Györgyi managed to extract it from the adrenal grand, but he managed to analyse it just when he discovered it in the paprika, at the University of Szeged. This was when he succeeded in appointing the exact chemical formula and rapid producing method.
Legend: Due to his excellent English knowledge, he got into trouble many times during the war.
Truth: His English knowledge was excellent, indeed, what is more, he had good relations in the Anglo-Saxon world. Therefore, he travelled to Istambul during World War II to use his relationships to make Hungary’s situation better. However, the German secret service discovered his plans, so he was hiding in the Swedish Embassy under the Swedish name, Mr Swenson.
A good sportsman
Legend: He loved motorcycling so much that ones he arrived at a city hall celebration by motorbike, and he changed his clothes to his suit in the bathroom.
Truth: He loved sports such as horse riding, tennis, swimming, and gliding. He was one of the first candidates in Hungary to learn how to drive the car and the motorbike. He went on trips around Szeged by his Buick with his colleagues frequently. Moreover, he travelled across Europe by his BSA. There is no evidence for the legend mentioned above, but based on his lifestyle, it could be true. Allegedly, he learnt how to surf at the age of 70!
Photo: www.facebook.com/regiszeged
He was murdered
Legend: Szent-Györgyi discovered the cure for cancer, but because he didn’t want to sell it, the American government killed him pretending it to be a car accident.
Truth: It is true that in his late life he realised that the mixture of wheat and vitamin C could destroy cancer in animals, but this legend is nothing more than a widespread conspiracy theory. He died of renal failure at the age of 93.
If you want to read more about vitamin C, click here.
Featured image: Wikicommons Pesti Napló képes melléklet, 1937. október 31.
The automotive industry is developing rapidly, and some of the Hungarian companies are figuring out brand-new ideas as well. According to mno.hu, one of them is Aimotive. It caught attention at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas with its sensors developed for its autonomous cars. Most noteworthy is that their drive-itself technology is not only less complicated but also cheaper than the current systems with their radar technology.
László Kishonti, the founder of the company, believes that we can teach cars how to drive themselves. For that, we need to use the cameras so that the vehicles can see with their “eyes” and decide with their “brains”.
Testing the autonomous cars
Self-driving cars are being tested in California and France but also worldwide-known companies such as
PSA Peugeot Citroën, SAIC, Volvo, Intel, and Samsung are partners of the Hungarian AImotive.
What is more, testing will continue in Japan, China and more stated in the USA this year.
The crew
The globally running company has 170 employees from which 150 work in Szépvölgyi Street, Budapest. This is where research and developing take place. Also, working here is far-reaching:
artificial intelligence researchers, robotics specialists, software developers and testers and a simulation group are among the employees.
Photo: www.facebook.com/AImotive
Current developments
It is essential to develop this solution based on using cameras and supported by artificial intelligence further. Therefore, financial investors have already given 38 million dollars (about 10 milliard forints) to Aimotive.
Wired.com recognised the hard work of Aimotives because it listed the Hungarian startup company as
one of the most influential automotive companies in the world.
Finally, there are more Hungarian innovations that the motor industry can use in the future! A firm from Szigetszentmiklós is trying to accomplish their newest plan. Draspó-Tempo Kft. is developing an intelligent power-steering wheel for big-sized commercial vehicles. First of all, it warns the driver if the vehicle goes out of the lane and it can drive it back. Furthermore, it is monitoring the drivers as well. When they are not active enough, the system warns them first, then if it doesn’t notice any changes, it interferes. The smart-wheel can be built in trucks, tow-trucks, and busses.
As Forbes.hu reports, the incredible invention of the anti-theft phone case designed by 3 Hungarian youngsters was inspired by their own unlucky adventures. Instead of complaining, however, they turned their bad luck into good by inventing Safeskin, the unhackable accessory of iPhones. The team only works with Hungarian suppliers, and they aim to conquer the USA and Europe, too. Here is how the new invention may revolutionise our lives.
Have you ever been frightened when you reached into your pocket in search for your mobile phone, but it was not there? Then, you probably tried to look for it in all your pockets and your bag. This is the horror of the 21st century, and it is what happened to the inventors of the new gadget not once, but six times right after the other.
Invention inspired by real incidents
Júlia Sohajda and her two brothers, Csongor and Ábel, experienced what it is like to lose an iPhone 6 times in Budapest, Los Angeles, München, Cancun and Cabob. This is an exemplary achievement, but their parents did not praise them for it. The youngsters, however, used the unfortunate incidents for launching their project about the anti-theft phone case. As they report:
“Every time we lost our phone, we realised that the thieves immediately switched them off no matter where the incident happened in the world. Once it is done, the GPS-based tracking service does not work, so it is impossible to track them down.”
How does it work?
These days, smartphones are necessary parts of our lives because we are very much accustomed to them and dependent on them. Therefore, to prevent further prospective incidents, the siblings and two technical experts formed a team of 5 and started to experiment with prototypes.
The team/facebook/The Safeskin/
The invention consists of a case that you can put on your phone with a particular lock that cannot be removed without a key and a passcode. The key, which you should keep with yourself, is similar to a car key. It is in contact with the phone via Bluetooth, and it alerts you when your phone is out of the safety range.
Furthermore, an application also makes it possible to personalise the settings including the distance allowed or the safety zones. This also means that if you want, you can set not to be alerted at your workplace when you go from one office to another.
However, if someone tries to steal your phone, the device immediately alerts you, and since its sound is between 100-110 decibels, no matter if you are at a festival or in a crowded place, you will undoubtedly perceive if someone tries to steal your phone. Of course, 100% protection is not guaranteed especially if your phone is in your bag. And of course, the alarm does not sound forever. But if the battery is full, the device will send the GPS information to the application that you can see from other electronic devices, too.
During the process of production, the inventors took into consideration three aspects:
to create a case that protects the device, that is safe and is aesthetically pleasing for the eyes
to create a tool that immediately alerts the owner when the phone gets stolen
The reason why the brand Apple was chosen is a practical decision since based on statistics, this is the brand which is the victim of most thefts. The youngsters did not think about producing the pieces in China due to financial reasons. As they report, “if we worked with Chinese partners, the process of production would be longer, and if there were problems with the quality, we would lose much time with contacting the partners and transporting the new pieces. In the end, production would be more expensive.” Meanwhile, everything can be produced in Hungary in good quality.
How much is it?
Their initial capital was around 4 million forints (13,333 euros), which meanÍt their own savings together with the financial support given by family members and friends.
In 2017, this sum was supplemented with the investment of the Hiventures, altogether with 140 million forints (466,666 euros).
They made the prototype with a 3D printer, but to start the mass production, they would need further equipment and tools costing around 20 million forints (66,667 euros). Therefore, they decided to launch a public campaign to find financial contributors on Indiegogo. During the campaign, the case can be purchased at early bird price. If you are interested in the invention that might mean a breakthrough in our lives, check it out here.
As szeretlekmagyarorszag.hu reports, researchers of University of Szeged (SZTE) have developed a defibrillator for patients suffering from epilepsy. The device uses just the right amount of electrical energy to stop epileptic attacks. It goes off only at the right time, and it adjusts to the dynamics of the illness.
There are many reasons why Szeged is one of the most famous cities in Hungary. It is not only exciting and beautiful, but it also has an excellent university, the University of Szeged. This institute has high-quality education in the field of medicine. As we previously reported, in 2017 SZTE has gained 68.7 million euros benefit from the Hungarian government. They improved their health care services and education infrastructure. 2018 also seems to be a year of success at this university!
Defibrillator in the brain? Whose idea is it?
Antal Berényi is a lecturer of the Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine. He leads the Lendület Programme of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and SZTE’s Oscillatory Neural Network Research Group. It aims to develop a new therapy procedure for patients with epilepsy, for whom medicine treatments do not work.
The main idea of the programme is that the defibrillator uses just the right amount of electrical energy to stop the attack. It goes off only at the right time.
Photo: Bobkó Anna/SZTE NKI
How does the defibrillator work?
Nature Communications, a prestigious newspaper, presented the world-class result of the five-year-long interdisciplinary work. The device works similarly to a pacemaker. According to the central idea, a lot of impulses reach the head in multiple places. When they follow each other with the right speed, nerve cells unite them into one stimulation. This way the side-effect is scattered by the scalp or the electrodes under it, but the effect inside of the brain is added up, so it stimulates the nerve cells.
Why is the method useful?
Zsigmond Tamás Kincses, a doctor of the SZTE Department of Neurology, explained that
the formation of an epileptic attack cannot be shown beforehand.
For one-third of the patients suffering from neuropsychological pathographies, like depression or epilepsy, medical treatment is not sufficient. This new method influences the brain only when it is the right time. It also adjusts to the dynamics of the illness; this is why it is so modern.
Photo: Bobkó Anna/SZTE NKI
When will the programme start?
According to www.u-szeged.hu, engineers have already started to create a prototype within the frameworks of a business research-developing project. The National Research, Development and Innovation Office sponsors the programme.
An implantable prototype is going to be created by 2020.
Plans for the future
Antal Berényi is now concentrating on this research. His plans for the next five years, however, contain developing a similar process for depression and post-traumatic stress disease. As a post-doctor, he studied in the United States. His mentor was the famous György Buzsáki. Coming back to Hungary, Berényi developed Hannibal’s attitude: “I shall either find a way or make one.”
József Galamb, along with Jenő Farkas, was a Hungarian engineer who got the chance of working for Henry Ford on his Model T, the most influential Ford Model.
Galamb was born in Makó, a Hungarian town famous for its onions. He received his diploma in mechanical engineering at the Budapest Industrial Technology Engineering Course, (the predecessor of the present-day Óbuda University Bánki Donát Polytechnical College) in 1899. Then he started working at the Steel Engineering Factory in Diósgyőr as a draftsman. He served one year in military service, and afterwards, Galamb worked at the Hungarian Automobile Co., where he won a postgraduate scholarship to Germany, where he ended up at Adler assembling engines.
Photo: Wikicommons
After finishing his services at the navy, he went to see the world;
he travelled to Vienna, Dresden, Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen.
In 1903 he worked in many German cities as a skilled worker, he got the best education at Adler in Frankfurt. He was hired to assemble automotive engines in a process in which each engine was built completely by one man.
When he found out about the 1904 American Auto World Fair in St. Louis, he decided to travel there.
He used his savings to travel to America by ship in October 1903.
After two months in New York, he found employment as a toolmaker at the Westinghouse Corporation in Pittsburgh. Although he planned to go back to Germany in 1904, instead, as his English was getting better, and he wanted to get into the car industry, he joined the Stearns Automobile Company in Cleveland as a carburettor maker.
He visited a friend in Detroit, and eventually, he decided to settle down there. Galamb applied for work at the Silent Northern plant, the reorganised Ford-Cadillac plant and the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant, but, at the same time, a colleague from Germany offered him a job at his factory. Cadillac also called him in for a practical test in order to get an $18 job, but by that time, Henry Ford got him for $20.
And so he joined the Ford Motor Company (twenty-four years old at that time) as a designer in December 1905.
The Ford Motor Company had 300 employees at the time assembling the Ford Model A from purchased parts. József Galamb redesigned the cooling system for the Model N, and subsequently, he became the chief designer of the company and devised many of the parts of the famous Model T. Also, Galamb was working together with C. Harold Wills, one of Ford’s first employees and shareholders, and creator of the blue oval logo.
In 1917, another Hungarian engineer, Jenő Farkas also started working at Ford. Progress sped up at the factory. It is hard to tell who invented which part of the Model T, since both of the Hungarian engineers took their part in the process. From 1915 Galamb worked on the Fordson tractor, which was meant to be operated by women.
In 1921 he founded a scholarship for the poor students of his native town who wished to take up higher education at trade school,
while Farkas helped with the Model A and the Ford V8.
During World War I he was busy designing military hardware, e. g. Anti-Submarine detection systems. He visited Hungary many times, lecturing at the Association of Hungarian Engineers and Architects. During World War II on Ford’s suggestion, he designed a small six-cylinder car, which was completed in 1942. On doctor’s orders, he retired from active work in 1944.
As the political situation was getting worse in Hungary, Galamb had to stop visiting his relatives back there. He died in 1955 in Detroit.
Ever since Sputnik 1 was launched into orbit in 1957, humanity has been eager to explore “what is out there” aka exploring space. Origo.hu assembled an article about how Hungary contributed to space research. Equipment was designed and produced, and meaningful research and developments were carried out by Hungarian scientists over the years.
The Moon Radar Experiment
A team of Hungarian engineers lead by Zoltán Bay carried out the first moon radar experiment in Europe in 1946. Their experiment successfully processed and detected radar signals bounced off the Moon.
Micrometeorite traps
In 1967, Hungary joined the Interkosmos, a Soviet space program. Within this program, the first micrometeorite traps were created by Hungarians. The traps left Earth’s orbit as part of the Vertikal-1 Aeronomy/Ionosphere/Solar mission in 1970, thus Hungary officially “reached” space. The tools needed to resist extreme fluctuations in temperature and cosmic radiation as well as extreme mechanical stress.
The first Hungarian cosmonaut and Pille
Farkas Bertalan was the first Hungarian cosmonaut. In 1978, he volunteered to become a cosmonaut and was selected as part of the fifth international programme for Interkosmos. Farkas, along with Soviet Valeri Kubasov, was launched into space on Soyuz 36 from Baikonur Cosmodrome on May 26, 1980.
Farkas Bertalan was also the first cosmonaut to use one of the most successful products of Hungarian space research: the Pille.
Pille Dosimeter System Photo: www.cocorad.kfki.hu
Pille [butterfly in Hungarian] was the first system designed specifically for astronauts to use while travelling in space. It was used to measure radiation exposure received by astronauts while outside the station. KFKI AEKI developed the original Pille system in the late 1970’s. The original Pille system continued to be used by Russian cosmonauts until 1983. There were many improvements and refinements to the Pille system throughout the years. The system is probably the longest used piece of spaceflight hardware in the history of human spaceflight. The Pille was used nearly for 20 years, and it never malfunctioned.
The Vega Program
Two Soviet space probes were launched as part of the Vega program in the 1980’s. Within the program, the Halley Mission’s purpose was to investigate the Halley Comet with the help of the space probes. The radiometers and solar wind analysers used during the mission, as well as the control electronics of the tv system were all developed by Hungarian engineers.
Philae lander
Philae is a robotic European Space Agency lander that accompanied the Rosetta spacecraft until it separated to land on comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, ten years and eight months after departing Earth. After bouncing off the comet’s surface twice, Philae achieved the first-ever “soft” (nondestructive) landing on a comet nucleus.
Depiction of Philae on Churyumov-Gerasimenko Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org By DLR, CC-BY 3.0
Despite the landing problems, the probe’s instruments obtained the first images from a comet’s surface. The lander’s brain, its electronics, software and power supply system were all developed by a team of Hungarian engineers.
Hungarian satellite
The first Hungarian satellite made it safely into Earth’s orbit in 2012, and it was a huge milestone in Hungarian space research history. The first Hungarian satellite was Masat-1, and it was constructed at Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME). The first Hungarian satellite, Masat-1 took four years to design, develop and build. Masat-1 was operating perfectly for 1062 days until its destruction. Masat-1 was a CubeSat which is a type of miniaturised satellite made up of multiples of 10×10×10 cm cubic units. CubeSats have a mass of no more than 1.33 kilograms per unit.
A Hungarian team developed a new dosimeter called Tritel RS. The new Tritel RS dosimeter has been operating at the International Space Station since 2013. It is not considered to be a direct successor of the original Pille, but it serves similar purposes.
Though there are numerous ways that technology can transform the lives of people around the world, there are few spaces where innovations are more significant than in the healthcare space. In healthcare, “adaptive” solutions allow those with disabilities to live an independent life without the constant presence of nurses and doctors.
While some forms of adaptive tech are relatively simple, such as the walking stick, others are becoming more incredible by the moment. Here, we’ll look at just some of the breakthroughs throughout the years that have transformed the landscape for people with disabilities, and helped them to lead more fulfilling lives.
1. The DynaVox EyeMax System
Cerebral Palsy sufferers, stroke victims, and those suffering from long-term paralysis can often feel trapped and isolated by their inability to communicate with friends and care providers. The DynaVox EyeMax system provides these individuals with an opportunity to participate in audio communication using an eye-tracking system. Like the technology you might have seen being used by Mr. Stephen Hawking, this system allows paralyzed people to input words and phrases into their devices, which are then spoken by a computer.
2. Kapten Plus
Visually impaired individuals often have trouble traveling alone. Whether they’re visiting friends in a different town, or simply crossing the street, countless threats abound. The good news is that the Kapten Plus system allows people with eye-sight problems to understand exactly where they’re going with the help of a real-time GPS service. The device announces direction and location while the person is walking, to help the user keep track of where they are.
3. The Stair-Climbing Wheelchair from iBot
The chances are you’ve heard of lift for wheelchair devices before today, but you probably haven’t seen anything as innovative as the iBot stair-climbing chair. This chair is a self-balancing device that allows physically disabled people to climb up and down stairs without risking their health or safety. Using technology like that of the Segway, the iBot gives wheelchair-bound patients the freedom to navigate a range of different terrains.
4. The Vehicle for the Blind
Although there might be a way to go before we can safely have blind people driving around on local roads, an engineer called Dennis Hong has already begun to design a car that can be driven by visually-impaired users. The system uses a range of computer inputs and sensors to observe the environment around the vehicle and provide different forms of sensory input for the blind user, including vibrations and sounds.
5. The Driverless Car from Google
Perhaps a simpler solution for those who want the freedom to drive, but might not have the ability to manage a car themselves, is the Google driverless vehicle. Designed by Sebastian Thrun, the man behind the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Library, the driverless car operates on a combination of artificial intelligence, and information from Google street view, to ensure that the user never has to touch the wheel.
6. The Cochlear Implant
If you’ve been keeping up with technology in recent years, then you’ve probably seen the viral videos of children having their cochlear implant turned on for the first time. Originally perceived as little more than a sci-fi concept, the cochlear implant is now a commonplace solution for those with hearing issues. This device is incredibly innovative, and while it might not be new to the marketplace, the software and hardware involved continue to evolve to this day.
The cochlear implant works by picking up sounds from a microphone, which are transmitted to a computer behind the ear, before being delivered to the implant itself. The device directly stimulates the auditory nerve, to help deaf people hear again.
He never talked about his revolutionary activities; he avoided journalists, he only let his photo taken once – making it possible for us to know what his face looked like. It is János Irinyi, the inventor of the non-explosive and noiseless match.
János Irinyi was a Hungarian inventor and chemist, born on the 17th of May in 1817 in Albis, Erdély. Many people believe he was the inventor of the match. It is not true, but he did invent the non-explosive, noiseless match, indeed.
Irinyi came from a Calvinist noble family. His father, János Irinyi was an agronomist. He studied in Debrecen, Hungary, but he received most is his education regarding chemistry in the Politechnikum in Vienna. Pál Meisser, one of Irinyi’s teacher, conducted an unsuccessful experience,
which made János Irinyi think, and eventually find out the solution for the noiseless and non-explosive match.
Having researched for a long time, he took out a patent for the noiseless and non-explosive match in 1836. He achieved the final result by mixing the phosphorus with lead dioxide instead of the potassium chlorate used previously.
Photo: János Irinyi. Wikicommons by user: Daviis
Irinyi needed money for his studies abroad, so he decided to sell his invention. Eventually, he acquainted himself with a match manufacturer, called István Rómen, who was also one of the pioneers of general and special chemistry in Hungary. Despite the age difference, they became close friends. Irinyi even assumed to teach Rómer’s daughter Hungarian.
The actual price Rómer paid for Irinyi’s patent has not been recorded.
Some sources mention 60 forints, some know about 80, but the memoir of one of Irinyi’s fellow university students states 7000 forints.
The case was somewhat controversial since Rómer became wealthy from this purchase later on. At the same time, Irinyi must not have come off badly, since he was able to finance his studies at the University of Berlin and in the Agricultural Academy of Hohenheim.
In 1838 in Berlin he wrote a book on chemistry theory focussing especially on acids. He was the first one suggesting repairing Hungarian saline-sodic soils with gypsum. He was also the founder of the first Hungarian match factory in 1939.
He played a remarkable political role in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848.
Lajos Kossuth entrusted him with the controlling of the production of gunpowder and gun-founding. He was a major in the gunpowder factory of Nagyvárad. After the fall of the Revolution, he was imprisoned.
When he was released from prison, he refrained from the political stage and lived for his scientific work. In the common knowledge, only his work related to the match is known, but we must not forget that he was one of the first Hungarians to spread the new approach to chemistry and he had an essential role in shaping the technical language of chemistry.
As the legend states, he formulated and sent to Pest the famous 12 points, a list of demands written by the leaders of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848.
He went bankrupt because of his agricultural experiments. He had to take a job as an accountant.
He died on the 17th of December in 1895 in Vértes. Many secondary schools in Hungary bear his name.
Index.hu reports that a revolutionising idea of two Hungarian women might help overcome nomophobia, the anxiety caused by not having access to one’s phone. This is probably the 1st invention that wants to help quit mobile addiction that many suffer from. Here are the details!
An average adult spends around 3-4 hours a day on mobile devices that could also be devoted to one’s partner or kids. Furthermore, if people constantly engage their mind and attention with digital content, the mind cannot rest enough and therefore, the level of creativity also decreases. It is no surprise that many struggle with concentration problems, and needless to say that it can easily lead to relationship problems, too. But here is the solution to the long-standing problem!
The inventors
The new invention was made by 2 Hungarian women, Bori Kovács and Eszter Baur, who love technological gadgets.
For this reason, their innovation should not be considered an anti-mobile campaign, but more like a campaign that aims to develop a healthier relationship with smartphones.
They personally experienced that the time spent on phones is done to the detriment of personal contact with others. Since they are both fresh mothers, they want their children and the future generations to grow up in a society that is not full of phone addicts. This motivated them to come up with something new.
As they believe, we have to take control of our lives and be in charge of ourselves instead of letting online games and social media websites direct our life. Therefore, they came up with a new invention that is not really technology-dependent because there have been similar solutions before.
How does their idea work?
As indiegogo.com describes, Out OFF The BOX is a great self-development tool which can help individuals reduce the time spent on technological devices. When it comes to addiction, it does not always have the same form. Playing games, being glued to the TV, social media or the latest news are only a few forms of this illness.
Today, applications exist for all kinds of things, like for losing weight, calculating calories etc., but this is not an application. It is a physical toolset with tangible tools.
Badgers to motivate yourself
It is a 3-step program in which the stages are the following: KICK OFF, GO OFF and HOLD OFF. In the 1st phase, you have to fill in a survey and set down the goals you want to achieve. The 2nd phase consists of a 30-day OFF challenge with the use of functional, inspirational and recreational tools that constantly remind you of why you are doing the programme and motivate you in the process. And finally, the HOLD OFF stage is about celebrating your achievements by filling out the questionnaire again and sharing your experiences on a postcard.
Here is a video of the whole programme.
If you might wonder if it really works, try it out. The inventors made much work on designing this programme by talking to experts and reading the relevant literature. Pre-ordering has already started, but they are pleased to receive a contribution to launch the production. If you interested and want more detail, check out the website here. 🙂
