Windows Soon To Become TV's

Lead investigator Kenneth Chau develops new glass technology by coating small pieces of glass with extremely thin layers of metal. 

Researchers discover new glass technology: Imagine if the picture window in your living room could double as a giant thermostat or big screen TV. A discovery by researchers at the University of British Columbia has brought us one step closer to this becoming a reality.

Researchers at UBC's Okanagan campus in Kelowna found that coating small pieces of glass with extremely thin layers of metal like silver makes it possible to enhance the amount of light coming through the glass. This, coupled with the fact that metals naturally conduct electricity, may make it possible to add advanced technologies to windowpanes and other glass objects.

"Engineers are constantly trying to expand the scope of materials that they can use for display technologies, and having thin, inexpensive, see-through components that conduct electricity will be huge," said UBC Associate Professor and lead investigator Kenneth Chau. "I think one of the most important implications of this research is the potential to integrate electronic capabilities into windows and make them smart."

The next phase of this research, added Chau, will be to incorporate their invention onto windows with an aim to selectively filter light and heat waves depending on the season or time of day.

Kenneth Chau (left) and and Loïc Markley (right) coated small pieces of glass with extremely thin layers of metal. 

The theory underlying the research was developed by Chau and collaborator Loïc Markley, an assistant professor of engineering at UBC. Chau and Markley questioned what would happen if they reversed the practice of applying glass over metal—a typical method used in the creation of energy efficient window coatings.

"It's been known for quite a while that you could put glass on metal to make metal more transparent, but people have never put metal on top of glass to make glass more transparent," said Markley. "It's counter-intuitive to think that metal could be used to enhance light transmission, but we saw that this was actually possible, and our experiments are the first to prove it."

Will Smith Lookalike Washes Windows In Vancouver

Canada has it's own Will Smith.

Will Smith Lookalike Washes Windows In Vancouver: Well, this is the best selfie we've seen in a while. Two Vancouver women snapped a photo of themselves with the window washer working outside the highrise they were in — and the man just so happens to look exactly like Will Smith.

Kelly Kong (right) was at her friend's Yaletown apartment in downtown Vancouver when the duo noticed the worker and couldn't resist getting him to pose for them. The combination of Vancouver Will Smith's thumbs up and goofy grin results in what we consider to be pretty much the perfect selfie. Job well done by all. They Are Legend, Pursuit Of Happyness achieved, etc. etc.  Can you say Fresh Prince of Vancity? 

Will the real Will Smith stand up?

Water Fed Pole - Man Electrocuted in Canada

Victoria, B.C. Canada - A window washer was hospitalized Tuesday after the metal pole he was using touched a live power line. “The electricity transferred right through the rod that he was carrying,” said Victoria police Sgt. Grant Hamilton.

He said the man was on the ground and using an extension device about 10:50 a.m. to reach the top windows at the Royal Scot Hotel & Suites on Quebec Street, about half a block from the legislature. He was working for an independent contractor.

Two hotel workers in the area saw what was happening and ran to help, Hamilton said. “They dragged him out of harm’s way because the brush and the pole were still sparking, there was arcing. They immediately started CPR because he wasn’t breathing. “The quick action and quick thinking on their part could quite possibly have saved his life.”

The man, in his early 60s, was taken to Royal Jubilee Hospital, Hamilton said. At last report he was listed in critical condition in the intensive-care unit. Emergency crews responding to the incident were joined by B.C. Hydro, which shut down power. The road was blocked for about an hour. “There are several layers of review and investigation that initiate now,” Hamilton said.

Megan Johnston of WorkSafe B.C. said her agency is looking into the circumstances of what took place. She described the extender the window washer was using as a 10.5-metre-long tool that has water running through it. “It appears that he lost control of the pole and it hit a 120-volt power line that was running to a streetlight,” Johnston said.

Tucker Pole?

Window washer in hospital after being electrocuted on the job: A window-washer is in hospital after being electrocuted on the job Tuesday morning. Philip Howe, owner of ACME Building Maintenance, was washing the windows of the Royal Scot Hotel on Quebec Street near the Inner Harbour when his 30-foot metal window-washing wand touched electrical lines.
At this point it is unsure if he suffered cardiac arrest before losing control of the wand or if touching his wand to the electrical line caused the cardiac arrest. When firefighters arrived, a person on the scene was trying to resuscitate Howe. “We were dispatched for a medical aid for a window washer that was injured and while en-route we were told there was a possibility of wires down,” said acting Lieutenant Oscar Pohl of the Victoria Fire Department . “When we arrived we found what we perceived to be an apparent electrocution. You could see his window-washing wand had contacted the lines and he was down on the ground and people were performing CPR.”
BC Hydro was called to the scene where they de-energized the line. Howe was then taken to Royal Jubilee Hospital. “We are not too sure if it was electrocution, or if he had a heart attack and dropped his pole which made it look like it was an electrocution,” ACME manager Jean-Paul Meek said. “He is breathing in hospital by himself with the help of some devices, but he is not conscious yet.” Howe was an experienced window washer and the company has been in his family for over 46 years.