I'm wondering, where does AI come into play? Isn't this achievable with just basic geometry.
I wouldn't call closed control loop "AI", but you need some control to deal with unpredictable ground heave/subsidence.
Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
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Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#72Am I missing the breakthrough? This just reads like boilerplate tech marketing, replete with questionable ai usage. I suspect without its well known backer anyone would notice.
If you watch the interview, the founder of the company never uses the word AI. He uses the words "software" and "computer controlled". However, he does say "yes" when the interviewer asks "So you use AI?".
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#73I think the article is overplaying the promise of CO reductions. Around 60% of CO2 (see 1) emissions during cement manufacturing are just a byproduct of the chemical process converting calcium carbonate to lime (see 2) - nothing that solar power can help with. 1) https://precast.org/2013/05/concrete-and-co2/ 2) https://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/gp/bgp/3_1_Cement_P...
Cement is 8% of global CO2 emission. 40% of that is still greater than air travel (about 2.5%).
I thought that the problem with air travel is not (just) the amount of CO2 emitted, but also the altitude, which makes the green house effect bigger per ton of CO2.
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#74Is the company backed by Bill Gross or Bill Gates or both?
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#75Again, we've been able to do this with four photodiodes for something like 30 years. Of course it worked the first time they turned it on - they were using 4 photodiodes. The "AI" and "computer vision" is just to get funding and hype. I'm going to start taking solved problems and applying BS "AI" to them to get funding, sheesh.
I tried to ask this the last time Heliogen was on HN, but still don't understand the solution, so I'll ask again:
You have four photodiodes surrounding the target, and 1000 mirrors aligned to reflect the sun toward that target. One of the 1000 mirrors goes out of alignment, and your photodiodes tell you so. How do you know which mirror needs to be adjusted?
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#76Earlier quoted context omitted.
Add similar software to a swarm of drones each carrying mylar film stretched on a lightweight rigid frame with a vertical tilt actuator, and you have a seriously dangerous weapon system on sunny days.
It's hard to point what's basically a giant sail on an airborne drone.
sunny calm days
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#77Just how much AI is required to keep a mirror aligned with a target. If I see another article on AI, cloud or blockchain then I'll eat my keyboard :]
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#78Just how much AI is required to keep a mirror aligned with a target. If I see another article on AI, cloud or blockchain then I'll eat my keyboard :]
Just barely enough so it can make it into the marketing material without seeming like a total scam.
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
How does this compare to, for example, https://www.promes.cnrs.fr/index.php?page=concentrateurs-sol... (3000°C)? I personally visited one such site in Southern France more than 30 years ago.
That's a research/materials testing facility. Heliogen is aiming for industrial applications which means it has to scale more cheaply than a bespoke installation.
So the breakthrough is really in production methods of the facilities?
Re: Heliogen, backed by Gates, says it has achieved a solar breakthrough
#80Earlier quoted context omitted.
Add similar software to a swarm of drones each carrying mylar film stretched on a lightweight rigid frame with a vertical tilt actuator, and you have a seriously dangerous weapon system on sunny days.
It's hard to point what's basically a giant sail on an airborne drone.
Add a second sail and use the AI magic to move it to roughly counter the force on the first one, helped with the rotors for fine control.
I don't really know if this would be possible, but sailing ships can rig their sails to propel them against the wind.