2011 EyesOn Design Awards

The 2011 EyesOn Design Awards, held at the NAIAS in Detroit last week, commemorated the late Chuck Jordan, a Founding Chairman of the annual EyesOn Design event, which celebrates its 25th recurrence this summer. Dr. Philip Hessburg, President of the Detroit Institute of Ophalmology – a non-profit internationally recognized organization that presents the awards every year – opened the ceremony by stating that Jordan was the "unwavering internal advocate" at GM.

Reproducing reality – X-Rite’s Total Appearance Capture

Total Appearance Capture isn't some sinister new form of identity theft but a revolutionary method of digitizing physical models using a new scanning technology, with the ability to capture extraordinary detail and all input and output light. The system, from coatings color measurement experts X-Rite, combines color, texture, gloss and other surface characteristics into a digital material ‘description' that can be imported directly to computer-aided design programs. What sets it apart from previously available methods is its ability to collect information on complex materials such as textiles, leather, basketwork, stone, coatings and plated finishes, in a 3D scene lit by a virtual studio environment.

One Lap of the Web: Cop-car guide, an inside look at Morgan Motors and the best hybrid cars

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. -- Just when we think everything is going smoothly when we're driving, those flashing lights pull up behind us.