A childhood dream from The Rocketeer to Tomorrowland, the jet pack is now not only a reality but it just circled the most famous statue in the United States on an island in New York City.

JetPack Aviation chief David Mayman took his invention to the skies in a very successful publicity stunt aimed to help sell an upcoming commercially-available jetpack. While there are many other jetpacking attempts out there, this one is controlled, stable and sustainable for flight, as demonstrated in the video. They have done other tests and demos, mainly safely over bodies of water, but this one really shows what this thing is capable of.

“We believe a JetPack should be just that – a jet turbine powered backpack that is capable of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), is extremely light and small and can easily be carried around by the pilot. It should be powerful enough to lift the pilot quickly to thousands of feet above the ground but small enough to fit into the trunk of a car. Meet the JB-9 JetPack. The design of the airframe was helped by our earlier experience with rocketbelts but there were many changes needed related to the size, weight and shape of the engines as well as control systems and engine management systems. A jetpack on the other hand requires systems to start and cool engines, to manage fuel flow and to capture operating information for display to the pilot.”

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Why buy an entirely new computer along with your drone when you already carry a powerful device with a built-in camera right in your pocket?

The PhoneDrone lets you insert your smart device right into a quadcopter shell, then fly the resulting hybrid via defined flight plans, in ‘follow’ modes or remote-control (via a tablet, computer or another smartphone). The PhoneDrone will also automatically return to you when it is running low on batteries, then folds up for easy portability.

Beyond the obvious benefits, there are some subtle ones as well – no more need to transfer photos or videos back to your device, since they will be taken with that device to begin with.

And upgrades are much easier when you are already regularly upgrading your own personal portable computing gadgets and can just insert the next one in the same drone body. The interface, of course, will be familiar as well – you can use iPhone or Android devices.

From its makers: “The PhoneDrone returns when the batteries are running low, the integrated flight management tool in the app means that you can control altitude and location for your flight path, and you can even tether the phone on-board with another phone.”

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Ushering in future for cyclists where flats are a thing of the past, the Energy Return Wheel uses a system of rubber-in-tension to replace the need for variable firmness normally accomplished through air inflation.

A series of elastic cushions supported by a scaffold structure reacts to compression as you travel along uneven surfaces, turning trapped potential into kinetic energy that helps propel the rider forward while providing a smooth ride.

Designed originally for use in motorized vehicle, the application for bikes turned out to be a logical place to start since these two-wheeled contraptions are notorious for getting flats at the worst possible times.

Currently in development by BriTek, some design elements remain to be smoothed out, however, including how to keep the open-sided tires from becoming clogged with dirt and debris. Still, it has a lot of advantages too: “Airless, More Efficient, High Speed, In-Wheel Suspension, Light Weight, Durable, Puncture Proof, Improved Rolling Resistance, Precise Immediate Handling, Superior Acceleration, Lateral Displacement, Hill Clinbing Advantage, Anti-Bounce, Maintain Momentum , Fly Wheel Effect, De-weighting Effect, Return Against Gravity, Return Against Wind Resistance, No More Flats, Save Gas Save Money”

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