high-tech bolts and latches, which can be operated without being touched
 

This is a creative invention. I don't even understand how it works. How does a fastner fasten itself?


Avant-garde thinkers from Australia who last year moved to Chicago have devised whole families of intelligent fasteners smart enough to foretell a day when hammers, screwdrivers and wrenches will go the way of buggy whips. BlackBerries and laptop computers may be the only tools needed to put together and take apart just about everything.


"I wondered what's to prevent some nut using a garage door opener from pushing the right buttons to make your airplane fall apart," said Harrison. "But everything is locked down with codes, and the radio signals are scrambled, so this is fully secured against hackers."

source http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/n...ck=1&cset=true

Picture an auto repair shop where you want to replace a body panel like a fender," posits Seshu Seshasai, executive vice president of technology, Textron Fastening System.

"You simply point a remote control at the body panel, click the button deactivating the fasteners and remove the panel. Replace the panel and click again. The fasteners reactivate and hold the new panel back in place."

Notice there weren't any tools involved? Now think about the auto assembly process. With such technology parts can just be nested together and then joined on remote electronic command. The era of point and joint is upon us.

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...4/ai_112680867


picture >> http://www.designnews.com/article/CA328003.html

Flying Cars
 

Hummmm... how comfortable would I feel driving around in a car I knew that, if someone had the right codes, could tell my car to disassemble itself - while in motion?

I don't think I'll live long enough to see such technology deployed, but it is interesting.

I could see uses for it, but holding your fender on isn't one of them. The average bolt is a few cents and I don't think the price of the fastener will ever rival that.