HANKOOK i-Flex airless pull

JAN 2022

Hankook showed the first airless tire at Ces 2022 in Las Vegas: it is called i-Flex and, thanks to the collaboration with Hyundai, it was mounted on the modular Plug & Drive (PnD) platform of the South Korean manufacturer that allows the mobility of normally inanimate objects, robots and robotic concepts I-Flex is characterized by a biomimetic design, the result of science (biomimicry in fact) that studies and imitates the biological and biomechanical processes of nature and living beings as a source of inspiration for the improvement of human activities and technologies. It allows excellent shock absorption and considerable vertical load capacity, while the fact of not having air inside increases safety while reducing maintenance costs: having no air inside, it is not subject to punctures or leaks of pressure. Important qualities with a view to the mobility of the future with autonomous driving.

As for dimensions, the model seen at Ces is small, with a diameter of 400 mm and a width of 105 mm. As for the structure, to absorb the shocks of the road and be able to carry heavy loads, the Hankook technicians were inspired by the cellular structure of living organisms, with multilayer interconnections to connect the myriad of small hexagonal and tetragonal structures, of different stiffness for a more stable load support. In addition, the concave C-shaped tread profile ensures maximum contact patch on the road, maximizing safety. The tread - designed for the multidirectional movement of the vehicle - adopts the same characteristic honeycomb pattern of the inside of the tire.


auto123.com :

Revolutionary technology
Recently, Hankook tyres launched a brand new futuristic, even revolutionary tyre; the iFlex. These new wheels, which are made from synthetic polyurethane, are 95% recyclable. The sound comfort is said to be increased compared to a regular tyre and even the fuel consumption is said to be significantly reduced. In addition to being puncture resistant, the "airless", which is inspired by the tracks used on tanks and snowmobiles, has several advantages. 

Incomparable advantages 
Lighter than a regular tyre, the iFlex offers maximum shock absorption thanks to the notches in its structure. With no rims, this tyre is made up of a single component, maximising your safety. Such a tyre would be able to adapt to changes in the car and different types of road surfaces. In fact, when speed increases, the central band of the tyre sags, leaving a larger contact area with the ground, which favours grip. On the contrary, at low speeds, the central band retracts, limiting the surface of contact with the ground to the edges of the tyre, with the aim of reducing fuel consumption. This new technology is therefore simpler, more economical and environmentally friendly. For the time being, no date has been given by Hankook Tyres for the launch. 



ASSOCIATED TALENTS

Nature as a partner in transforming the world

We are a very small company with two partners and consultants. We offer skills assessments and training to support business leaders and their teams. One particular training course connects entrepreneurs with Nature in the broadest sense of the term. Our teachers are horses, wolves, trees, plants etc.


Website


Contact:

Sophie Marty Elissagaray

smarty@talents-associes.com

MYCOPHYTO

MYCOPHYTO, a Deep Tech start-up, is inventing tomorrow's agriculture with its mycorrhizal fungi, natural plant biostimulants


MYCOPHYTO was co-founded in 2017 by Justine LIPUMA, a doctor in microbiology, and Christine PONCET, an agricultural engineer. Spin off INRAE (INRA) and UCA (Université Côte d'Azur), it has received more than 12 awards since its creation.

MYCOPHYTO is to develop, produce and propose to agricultural professionals effective biological solutions by adapting scientific knowledge concerning mycorrhizal symbiosis.


A look back at the intervention of Mathilde Clément, R&D Manager, on the Biomim'expo stage in Marseille during the IUCN World Conservation Congress:


Website


Contact:

Jean-Nicolas Detourbet

jeannicolas.detourbet@mycophyto.fr

SIGNS

SIGNS laboratories: innovative solutions for animal welfare

Products that improve the living conditions and emotional state of production animals, laboratory animals, zoo animals and even humans.

SIGNS (Semiochemicals for Innovation Gathering Novelty and Sustainability), created in 2018, is the patent valorisation agency of Group-IRSEA, a world leader in semiochemical research. The two entities have developed a range of products based on synthetic pheromones copying nature, thus reproducing the beneficial effects for the animal.

Created in 1995, the IRSEA research institute isolated and reproduced the first pheromone in cats (Feliway), thus opening up new ways of understanding and communicating between and within species. Since then, numerous applications have been developed, notably in dogs (Adaptil) and horses (ConfidenceEQ / Equanimity) as well as in livestock (pigs, poultry, rabbits, sheep, goats, cattle, etc.).

The SIGNS laboratories are responsible for the development and marketing of products resulting from IRSEA research

IRSEA holds more than 300 patents and SIGNS Laboratories are in charge of developing and marketing the products resulting from this research. Today, SIGNS Laboratories market these pheromones and bring you natural and environmentally friendly products that meet the criteria of well-being and productivity.


Back to Alessandro Cozzi's intervention on the Biomim'expo stage in Marseille during the IUCN World Conservation Congress:


Website


Contact:

Manon FELICIAN

Head of the Communication Department Group-IRSEA

(+33) 4 90 75 06 12

m.felician@group-irsea.com

ECOCEAN

Marine restoration solutions

ECOCEAN, INNOVATION FOR AQUATIC BIODIVERSITY

Ecocean is a pioneering French company that acts and innovates in favour of aquatic biodiversity. Riparian and coastal areas are increasingly affected by human activities and many young fish in shallow areas are faced with a lack of natural habitats. In the life cycle of coastal marine fish, post-larvae (newborns) return to the shoreline and look for a suitable habitat for their development (nursery). However, this habitat is often degraded by human constructions: it is therefore necessary to act!

The origin: in 2003, ECOCEAN developed a unique know-how, that of the collection and breeding of post-larvae (PCC) for the sustainable development of marine resources and the conservation of the biodiversity of marine ecosystems. Ecocean has become the world leader in the PCC technique and has been granted Young Innovative Company status since its creation. It is also supported by the BPI. Our various experiences in the marine environment have enabled us to develop various exclusive applications in post-larvae capture and rearing techniques. Today, these applications are based on 4 areas of expertise: sustainable breeding, ecological restoration, the sale of fishing and breeding gear, and diagnosis.


LE MONITEUR / SEPT 2021

Ecocean keeps a tight rein on marine biodiversity


Website


Contact:

Sabrina PALMIERI sabrina.palmieri@ecocean.fr

ALEXANDRA HOUSSAYE

Alexandra Houssaye is a Palaeontologist at the National Museum of Natural HistoryShe is director of research at the CNRS, in the MECADEV laboratory (adaptive mechanisms and evolution) at the MNHN. A palaeontologist by training, she is a researcher in functional morphology and studies the adaptations of the skeleton during the evolutionary history of amniotes.

A bone specialist, she focuses on the biomechanical adaptations of external and internal bone structures. Her goal is to better understand the form/function link in present-day organisms in order to make inferences from fossil organisms and thus to better understand how the skeleton, and thus organisms, adapted to significant changes in biomechanical constraints during their evolution.

She is one of 46 researchers and teacher-researchers at the Centre de recherche en paléontologie in Paris. It is a laboratory entirely dedicated to palaeontology. It is under the triple supervision of the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), Sorbonne University and the CNRS (INEE). 

Alexandra Houssaye is the author of a thesis

  • Pachyostosis' in Late Cretaceous squamates: phylogenetic, morphofunctional and paleoecological implications 

He is currently leading 3 theses

  • Internal and external structure of limb bones in dinosaurs and their cousins in relation to posture 
  • Morphological and microanatomical adaptation of long bones to graviportality in Rhinocerotoidea
  • Towards extreme gigantism - Internal and external adaptations of long bones in sub-podomorphic dinosaurs

Radio programme : https://www.franceinter.fr/personnes/alexandra-houssaye

Article : https://theconversation.com/ces-reptiles-marins-pondaient-de-tres-gros-bebes-du-nouveau-chez-les-plesiosaures-114575

Article :  https://theconversation.com/enquete-chez-le-seul-mammifere-herbivore-devenu-aquatique-une-sirene-prehistorique-124049


Website

Twitter


NICOLAS GILSOUL

Nicolas Gilsoul is Grand Prix de Rome. He is an architect, a doctor of science and a landscape designer. He is the founder and president of the agency in Paris.

Since 1996, his work has received numerous international awards. Since 1997, he has combined an operational practice with a consulting activity in more than 18 countries in the field of architecture, urban landscape and exceptional gardens.

His precise know-how as a craftsman and his scientific knowledge of the living world are at the service of dreams. Combining creative methods from the cinema and a prospective analysis of the future of cities, his vision is now sought after in Europe, India and the Middle East.

He is a professor at the Beaux Arts de Bruxelles, the Ecole d'Architecture Paris Malaquais and the Ecole Nationale Supérieure du Paysage de Versailles.


His latest book:

The architect Nicolas Gilsoul offers an erudite and original bestiary of the animals that inhabit our cities. He invites us to reconnect with the living, to draw new perspectives on the art of designing the city of tomorrow with animal genius.


Website

BIOINSPIR

Creator of biosourced 100% molecules of interest for the cosmetics and fine chemicals sectors

After 15 years of research in ecological chemistry within the ChimEco laboratory, Prof. Claude Grison joined forces with Technofounders to create BioInspir in 2020, with the aim of commercialising the production of biosourced and natural molecules for the cosmetics and fine chemicals sectors.

BioInspir selects certain plant species capable of biosorbing metals contained in natural or industrial effluents. The use of these plants makes it possible to create filters to capture the metals, and from these, to design ecocatalysts used for the soft synthesis of high added value products.

Today, the company has a library of molecules that evolves day by day. New molecules are developed every week, either on a contract basis for clients or on molecules with a high stake for numerous companies.

After securing nearly €1 million in funding in September 2020, BioInspir is developing its molecule library and preparing to scale up to kilo-lab size.


Press release:

BIOINSPIR accelerates its growth and secures nearly €1 million in financingMontpellier, 9 September 2020 - The result of 15 years of research by Claude Grison and the ChimEco laboratory, Bioinspir synthesises molecules for fine chemistry from its unique ecocatalysis platform. Only a few months after its creation, the deeptech start-up has secured nearly €1 million in funding to support its first commercial phase. In recent weeks, the start-up has completed a financing round with TechnoFounders Participations, was a winner of the i-Nov innovation competition and was awarded the French Tech Emergence grant. All announcements and information from the press release here


LES ECHOS / SEPT 2020 / Bioinspir invents a plant filter to clean up contaminated water

A spin-off from the ChimEco laboratory at the University of Montpellier, the start-up Bioinspir has developed a plant-based filter to capture metals in polluted water. Designed from invasive aquatic plants, it can then be reused for other applications. Discussions are underway with chemical companies. Suite.

Ecocatalysis, an ecological revolution and green economy ? Claude Grison | TEDxParisSalon
Claude Grison explains Bioinspir at the Biomim'expo digital week 2020

Website


Contact:

contact@bioinspir.com

Paris Agricultural Expo

Urban agriculture is invading our cities, in various and sometimes surprising forms. The photographer Giovanni Del Brenna offers us here his travel diary, meeting the "Parisculteurs" of the capital, illustrating these new urban landscapes which are also human landscapes. The city is once again becoming a source of food, but also of social links, biodiversity, knowledge and reconnection.

A few plates from this collection:

The Urban Shepherds grazing in the Lumière des 4000 residence with the ewes of the Clinamen association for the social landlord Plaine Commune Habitat. La Courneuve. November 2018

Installation of planting boxes to test technosols (soils constructed from green waste from the city). AgroParisTech roof, Paris Ve. May 2017

Harvesting pastries on the roof of the Opéra Bastille. 1000 square meters of vegetable garden designed and operated by Topager. Paris XIIe. September 2018

Houdan's chickens at RATP headquarters are fed with leftovers from the canteen. Paris XII. June 2017

Les Houblonnières, a project designed and built by Topager and Mattia Paco Rizzi on a Keys Properties roof in Levallois. July 2017

Cultivation of organic chicory by the urban micro-farm La Caverne in the disused Raymond Queneau car park. Paris XVIIIth. November 2018

Production of organic oyster mushrooms in the urban farm La Caverne in the disused Raymond Queneau car park. Paris XVIIIe. November 2018

Vertical vegetable garden installed by METRO France and INFARM in the METRO warehouse in Nanterre, in hydroponics. April 2019

The RECYCLERY, located in a former railway station on the "petite ceinture" in Paris. Collaborative work and rehabilitation. April 2017.

Biodiversiterre 2017. A plant installation on 10,000 m2 Avenue Foch in Paris. Designed by the artist Gad Weil. Public awareness operation organised by the Mairie de Paris. June 2017


All the photos can be found on the photographer's website.



For more information on urban agriculture:

All the information on the specialised website :  www.agri-city.info

Les Parisculteurs, official website

HORIZONS / JANUARY 2020 / Urban agriculture

CERDD / MAY 2019 / Characteristics of urban agriculture (forms & services)

FUTURA SCIENCES / MARCH 2019 / What is urban agriculture?

REPORTERRE / APRIL 2018 / Urban agriculture could feed 10 % of city populations

AGROPARISTECH / JANUARY 2017 / Urban agriculture


IEB

Institute for Bio-animated Business (IEB)


Taking inspiration from life to manage people


The IEB is a consultancy and research centre for companies. It is run by specialists in organisations and management whose combined skills offer a vast field of expertise covering the whole of the social domain, QWL, agile operations and operational excellence.

Our value proposition is to develop the art of managing people through the most effective principles of adaptability, organisation and functioning in life.

To do this, we identify and study the virtuous, efficient and sustainable development patterns developed by nature, provided by microbiology, neurobiology, paleoanthropology, genetics and neuroscience. We select those that prove to be suitable for transposition into business.

We work alongside senior management to help them integrate the principles of bio-animation. Our constant objective is to enable companies to become the employer of reference in their sector of activity.

Jean-Mary Pierre's presentation at the Biomim'expo digital week 2020

Website


Contact:

Jean-Mary PIERRE

06-85-10-89-09

contact@bio-inspiration.fr