Where No-one has Gone Before
Nathan Skalsky takes a two-inch plastic cube and waves it around over his head. At the same time, his Palm Pilot shows how fast his hand is accelerating and even registers the cube's temperature change from being held in his hand.
Skalsky, a computer science student, led a team of undergraduate students who created this plug-and-play device that might someday do anything from track local weather to measure the gas mileage on your car.
Dubbed the TRIcorder for short in honor of Star Trek's universal diagnostic tool, the Transportable Research Instrument System includes the cube that gathers data and the Palm Pilot hand-held computer that processes and displays data.
Members of Michigan Tech's Integrated Microsystems Enterprise, which developed the device, had the opportunity to travel to Taiwan for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers conference to present and demonstrate their invention.
"Eight people placed orders, or tried to, which is a bit premature but encouraging nonetheless," Skalsky laughed. The device is not yet in production.
If you want an opportunity to learn, pursue your ideas, and create your future, join Skalsky and other creative students at Michigan Tech.