Breakthrough Awards

For the eighth straight year, "Popular Mechanics" editors have selected a group of products and innovators on whom to bestow the magazine's annual Breakthrough Awards.

Leading the way this year is Elon Musk, founder of both SpaceX and Tesla Motors, and clearly one of the people bringing the future to us -- right now.

The award-winning products range from a revolutionary hands-free motion control system to a do-it-yourself 3D modeling software suite to shingles that double as solar panels.

In the following slides, take a look at six of the award winning products.