Imagine learning to operate a piece of machinery you've never previously touched, not through a tutorial, but through your own hands electrically guided through the right motions. That's the core idea behind an AI-powered suit created by researchers from the University of Chicago.
Category: AI and Humanoids, Technology
Tags: Artificial Intelligence, University of Chicago, Control, Learning, wearable electronics
Last year, we had the opportunity to tour Canon's lens factory in Utsunomiya, to get a look at how the company produces its optics. This year at CP+, we had the chance to talk to some of the people who play a part in designing the lenses made there: Satoshi Maetaki, general manager of the Optics Technology R&D Center and Yutaka Nakamura, assistant manager at the IMG Products Planning Center.
Our conversation largely centered around two of the company's latest releases, the RF 14mm F1.4 L VCM and the RF 7-14mm F2.8-3.5 L Fisheye STM, but we also got to talk about some of the things the engineers consider when designing a lens, some of the tools and tech that helps them with that process and how they decide which lenses to work on.
Considering what lenses to make nextNakamura says the process for deciding what lens to make next is a holistic one, based on several factors. "We always consider: 'what is the ideal lens lineup?' That’s always in our mind," he says. "It’s not just the market environment or the user’s feedback. We also have to consider the possible future advancement of our core technologies, and how consumers’ shooting styles will change."
"We always consider: 'what is the ideal lens lineup?'"While many of Canon's recent lenses have been full-frame designs, in our interview with Canon's top executives, Go Tokura, Executive Vice President and Head of Canon's Imaging Group, said the company is still interested in crop systems. "We won't stop exploring the field of APS-C lenses," he says. "Our principle is both full-frame and APS-C. We will continue to explore."
Advanced materials, corrections and simulationsOnce they determine what lens to make, the engineers and planners have to figure out how to actually build it. According to Maetaki, the decision on whether to use digital distortion correction is made at the very beginning of the process, as was the case for the 14mm F1.4 L VCM. "We developed this lens under the precondition that distortion correction is to be done on the camera side," he says. "Because some of the correction can be done by the body, the lens can be smaller."
"We developed this lens under the precondition that distortion correction is to be done on the camera side"As with many other lens makers we've talked to, Maetaki said special elements like Canon's BR and fluorite lenses are especially important when it comes to making a high-performance lens that's still relatively compact.
He also says that Canon is taking advantage of recent advancements in simulation tech for lens designs. "At the time of development, we have a better idea of how it’s going to be post-correction. Thanks to the development of the simulation technology, we can select the optimal design." As the company designs the lens, it can run simulations in tandem with the physical design work it's doing.
AF motorsFor modern mirrorless lenses, choosing which kind of actuator to use for the autofocus is also an essential part of the process. According to Maetaki, the decision is made on a case-by-case basis; sometimes the company will choose an autofocus technology based on the optical design, other times the type of autofocus actuator may influence the lens' construction.
"Simply put, we select the motor depending on the concept of each lens," says Nakamura. "Is it for professionals, for high-end amateurs, entry-level? Or is it specialized for still images, or a hybrid between stills and video? Also, price range is important for us to consider. And focal length, the maximum aperture… Based on all these elements, we’ll decide which motor or actuator is most suitable."
In the case of the 14mm F1.4 L VCM, the company went with the namesake voice coil motors because of their ability to move the lens's relatively large and heavy elements. And even though the RF 7-14mm F2.8-3.5 L Fisheye STM is a modern version of the DSLR-era EF 8-15mm F4L Fisheye USM, Canon decided not to go with the ring-type USM motor again. According to Nakamura, this was a lesson it applied from a previous lens, the RF 10-20mm F4 L IS STM, from 2023.
"That was an ultra-wide lens that had the STM as well," he says. "That let it be compact with quiet, speedy, smooth autofocus. We took that lesson and applied it to this model."
Making a line of lenses the same sizeThe lenses in Canon's VCM lineup have very similar dimensions to make it easier to swap between them if you're using a gimbal or other video setup.
Image: Canon
One notable aspect of Canon's F1.4 VCM lineup is how all the lenses are all very similarly-sized, from 14mm to 85mm. Nakamura says this is so video shooters can use all the same accessories, such as ND filters, follow focus units and rigs, even when switching between lenses. "That’s why we stick with the same barrel size or diameter, so those accessory changes don’t become a burden. So this is one of the determining factors when we’re deciding to add a lens to the lineup. We have to consider all this, including the shooting styles of our users."
According to Maetaki, achieving this isn't actually as difficult an engineering challenge as it might seem. "With current focal lengths, it’s not much of a problem," he says. "If the focal length becomes even longer, the difficulty level goes way up. Because when that happens, the diameter of the glass becomes larger, so it’s harder to fit." He says that from 14mm to 85mm it's fine, but perhaps that means we shouldn't hold our breath for something like a 100mm entry in the F1.4 VCM lineup.
This article is based on an interview by Mitchell Clark at CP+ 2026. It has been edited for clarity and flow. You can read our interview covering Canon's camera business by clicking the link below.
After Polish architecture firm KWK Promes won a competition in 2016 to design a luxury single-family home in suburban Vilnius, Lithuania, a law slashed the allowable building footprint in half. While the client saw this as a reason to move the project to another site, KWK Promes saw the problem from the unique view of architects – where constraints aren’t obstacles but essential drivers of innovation. Thus, the striking triangular form that would be known as the Trim House was born.
Category: Architecture, Engineering
Tags: House, Building and Construction, Home
From wildfires to our wars on nature and each other, the subjects captured in the winning 42 images of the 69th World Press Photo Contest are not the easiest to view – but it's what makes this annual competition such a prestigious and powerful one.
Category: Photography, Consumer Tech, Technology
Tags: Media, Journalism, Conservation, Climate Crisis, World-wide, Photography, News
If the average RV company said it was hard at work on the "most robust, self-sufficient and luxurious camper van" it's ever built, we might dismiss it as hollow marketing hype. But Dutch converter Tonke isn't the average RV company. It has a yearslong history of bringing camper innovations to market, from truck-back wood cabins, to sleek, high-quality electric camper vans, to expandable side-popping roofs. So we're excited to see what it has in store for Volkswagen's newest Transporter.
Category: Campervans, Adventure Vehicles, Outdoors
Tags: Campervan, Tonke, RV, Volkswagen, electric-camper, PHEV, Camping, Outdoors and Camping, Plug-in Hybrid
Imagine it’s a regular Tuesday morning and you’re in Antarctica. Your eyes meet the sky, and the blue is so vivid it feels electric. The air is so clean you can just about taste it. Now, picture a dust storm over the Himalayas; you squint, trying to catch a hint of that crisp blue, but all you see is a fuzzy white. Why are the skies in some parts of the world bluer than those in other parts?
Category: Environment, Science
Tags: Pollution, Air pollution, Light, Climate Crisis, Himalayas
While the ebike market has been under fire lately with regulatory stuffs, the stand-up scooter market remains pretty much untouched. I'm not sure why, exactly, as these things just keep getting more and more powerful.
Category: Urban Transport, Transport
Tags: Scooter, Reviews, Segway, Electric Motorcycles
Shooting down a drone with a fighter jet is as cost effective as wrapping sandwiches in gold foil, but BAE Systems has cut the price by firing an economy anti-drone Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) missile from a Typhoon Eurofighter.
Category: Military, Engineering
Tags: Typhoons, BAE Systems, drones, Missile Defense
Measuring just 130 sq ft (12 sq m), the Shoji is definitely smaller than the average tiny house. However, it makes up for its modest size with a space-saving multifunctional design.
Category: Tiny Houses, Outdoors
Tags: Building and Construction, Tiny Footprint, Micro-House, House, Home
Around the world, over two billion daily cups of coffee are consumed. That means there are a staggering amount of coffee grounds getting tossed away every day. Researchers now have a plan to turn all that waste into eco-friendly insulation.
Category: Materials, Engineering
Tags: Biochar, Insulation, Coffee, Green+Technology, Recycling
Perhaps the "Eject" button on the Nikon D5 was aptly named...
Image: NASA (via r/ArtemisProgram)
It's an experience most photographers will be familiar with: you go to insert or eject your camera's card, fumble slightly, and the spring or ejection mechanism sends the card shooting out. If you're lucky, you catch it in time; otherwise, it tumbles to the ground.
It turns out that even astronauts aren't immune from this kind of gaff... but when it happens to them, the lack of gravity makes it all the more exciting. This week, a clip taken from NASA's livestream of the Artemis II mission around the moon has gone viral, showing what appears to be astronaut Christina Koch chasing after a card that shot out of her camera.
The moment is at 3 hours and 25 minutes.Unfortunately, you can only scroll so far back in NASA's official livestream (as it's still being broadcast), but the moment has been captured in several GIFs. You can also see it with the surrounding context on CBS News' archive, though it's only in a small part of the frame. Unfortunately, none of the clips currently available have audio of the moment.
Anyone who's been following the mission and looking at the photos taken during it will know that the crew is mostly using Nikon D5s, so the card is likely a CFexpress, XQD or CompactFlash model. (I'd guess the former, based on clips I found of another astronaut handling theirs relatively close up.) While I typically wouldn't expect this kind of slot to eject a card with much force at all, how things work on Earth isn't always a great indication of how they'll work in space without any gravity.
Thankfully, the Orion capsule is relatively small, so she was able to keep track of it and grab it within a few seconds and continue taking pictures. But it's a funny reminder of how things that are easy, or, at worst, little inconveniences on earth, can be much more difficult in a zero-gravity environment. Thankfully, Koch and her crewmates have been willing to put up with the camera-related difficulties they've encountered, because the photos produced by the mission have been incredible.
Fans crowd around a rookie baseball player who, an hour earlier, had broken the tie in overtime, winning the game. Kids offer him hats and baseballs to sign.
Photo: Mitchell Clark
Our April Editors' photo challenge theme is "Film Photography."
This month, we're returning to the analog roots of photography. The challenge is simple: show us your best photos shot on film. Any era, any format, any subject. Color or black and white. It's all fair game as long as it's an authentic film capture. If you can remember, please let us know which film stock you used! Our favorites will be featured on the DPReview homepage later this month!
This challenge is about the look of film, so please keep post-processing to a minimum. Technical corrections for scanning or color balancing aged film are welcome. We reserve the right to disqualify entries that appear over-processed.
Photos can be submitted between Sunday, April 12, and Saturday, April 18 (GMT). The challenge is open to photos captured at any time.
Important: Images MUST include a title and a caption of at least 25 words to be eligible. We need to be able to share the story behind your photo. We will consider both photos and captions when selecting our winners, so make sure to tell us that story!
Visit the challenge page to read the full rules and to submit your photos for consideration as soon as the challenge opens.
Submit your "Film Photography" photos to our April photo challenge
I like where Pebblebee's head is at with its newest product. Unlike most item trackers that only help you find your stuff a la AirTags, this one is also a personal safety device designed for quick access in an emergency.
Category: Consumer Tech, Technology
Tags: Object Tracker, Safety
Samsung gave us a glimpse of a couple of seriously desirable lifestyle speakers for 2026 a couple of months ago, and I'm happy to report you can now get your hands on them.
Category: Home Entertainment, Consumer Tech, Technology
Tags: Speakers, home theater, Samsung
During the last ice age, when glaciers spread across the northern world, ancient humans had some serious adapting to do; our species wouldn't survive without developing new ways to keep warm. We got there by improving the ways we clothed ourselves using new tools, such as bone needles, traps, snares, and wooden artifacts - and these creations mark a crucial point in human evolution, as they helped our ancestors endure diverse conditions across different latitudes.
Category: Archaeology, Science
The British Army and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) have completed a multi-week test in Essex using drones, advanced sensors, and AI to speed up and make safer the hunt for deadly mines and munitions scattered on battlefields.
Category: Military, Engineering
Tags: British Army, Land Mines, drones, Artificial Intelligence
This tiny house keeps things simple with a single-level layout that sleeps up to two people. Named the Audrey, the home's compact but comfortable interior is well-suited for use as a vacation home or a guest house or similar.
Category: Tiny Houses, Outdoors
Tags: Building and Construction, Tiny Footprint, Micro-House, House, Home
After nine days of journeying around the moon, the Artemis II mission has come to a successful conclusion with the crew landing safely in the Pacific Ocean on the evening of April 10. The lunar flyby portion of the trip lasted roughly seven hours, and the crew said they took over 10,000 images during that time alone, so there are an untold number of images from the entire mission.
While NASA hasn't uploaded anywhere near that many, the organization has been sharing plenty across various platforms, including its own website. We've been keeping our eyes on those photographs and have compiled a selection of our favorites from pre-launch through splashdown, which you can see at the bottom of this article.
The photographs are absolutely stunning simply for what they are, but the crew wasn't only taking them to create pretty images. They were also intended for scientific purposes, and there's a lot you can learn from them as a result. I'm no scientist, though, so I've really been enjoying listening to those who know more explain some of what's going on.
One such example is a video by Hank Green, a popular YouTuber and science communicator. In the video, Green walks through some of the photographs taken by the Artemis II crew, explaining in depth what we are looking at and providing additional context behind the photographs. For example, in one of the images of the Earth, Green points out the sodium line that goes all the way around the planet, explaining what it is and what its importance is.
Green also covers some things we photographers already know, such as why Earth looks so big in some shots (telephoto focal lengths), and some things caused by factors inherent to space, such as the surreal lighting in some shots. In his words: "Pictures are often worth a thousand words, but sometimes they are worth considerably more than that." It's a fantastic video, well worth watching all the way through.
CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut and Artemis II Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen is seen taking images through the Orion spacecraft window during the Artemis II lunar flyby.
Photo: NASA
Artemis II pilot Victor Glover summed it up nicely when witnessing the eclipse from the spacecraft: "It is truly hard to describe." We can't wait to see even more from NASA once they are able to go through the enormous number of images and videos from these inspiring astronauts.
Sample galleryThis widget is not optimized for RSS feed readers. Click here to open it in a new browser window / tab.Here I am, talking about a scooter that is more powerful than most motorcycles that some people will ever own. And it doesn’t even come from the likes of Honda, Yamaha, or any other usual suspects. Rather, it comes from Kymco, a scooter manufacturer from Taiwan.
Category: Motorcycles, Transport
Beyond the rather low efficiency of today’s solar panels in converting the power of the sun into electricity, the transformational potential of solar energy is presently held back by battery storage technology.
Category: Energy, Engineering
Tags: Chemistry, Solar Power, UC Santa Barbara, Battery Technology
