As the holidays fade and the New Year unfolds, it’s back to business for most of us. For NASA Tech Briefs, that includes a bunch of trade shows and conferences our editors will attend over the next few months.

One show I plan to attend is the Pacific Design & Manufacturing Show, taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif., from February 9 through 11. The show will feature the latest design and manufacturing solutions from hundreds of companies. The diverse array of products and services include adhesives, CAD/CAM/CAE software and services, electrical and electronic components, fluid handling media and controls, instruments and controls, materials, mechanical components, motors and motion controls, testing and inspection products and services, and valves, switches, and controls.

No less than seven other shows are co-located with the Pacific Design & Manufacturing Show. Three of the more significant shows are the Medical Design & Manufacturing Show West, Electronics West, and Green Manufacturing Expo. The Medical Design & Manufacturing Show West and Green Manufacturing Expo represent the burgeoning fields of medical technology and “green” technology – sectors that held their own during the economic downturn and are increasingly important to design engineers.

In coming weeks, I hope to get more details on some of the products and technologies being shown. If your company plans to exhibit, drop me a line and let me know what you’ll be showing. Hopefully, we can meet during the show to discuss what’s new and exciting.

Fastening Technology & Bolted Joint Design Seminar
February 27-28, 2007
Detroit, Michigan USA

This two-day seminar gives engineers and technical personnel current specifications for, and a better understanding of, the complexities of mechanical joining with fasteners. Featured topics include bolted/screwed joints, elastic interactions and preload stress, loosening causalities, tightening methods, calculating safety factors and limitations, selecting optimal fasteners for your design, evaluating dissimilar materials for thermal expansion and galvanic properties, and insights into materials, threads, and product standards.

For full details and to register click here, or call 1-877-755-2272 (USA) or 973-560-9092, or contact info@SeminarsForEngineers.com.

Engineers at Lehigh and Carnegie Mellon universities, working with Green Lane, PA-based Freedom Lift Corp., have integrated robotics, laser, and wireless technologies into a new system that promises to make it safer for wheelchair users to drive a car.

Current solutions for wheelchair users who desire independent mobility require operators to sit in their chairs while driving. Because they are often poorly secured and not crash-test-approved, wheelchairs provide far less protection than standard seats. The new Automatic Transport and Retrieval System (ATRS) allows wheelchair users to get in and out of their vehicles, stow and retrieve their chairs, and drive while sitting in standard automobile seats.

The ATRS contains three key components: an articulated power seat that extends outside the vehicle to facilitate wheelchair-to-seat transfers, a power lift platform, and a “smart” wheelchair system. ATRS makes it possible for a limited mobility individual to safely transport their wheelchair into and out of a motor vehicle without the assistance of a caregiver.

For more information, click here.

Smart Materials with Precisely Controlled Constriction Properties A multi-billion-dollar electronics company seeks proposals describing responsive materials having controllable planar constriction.
http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20061113A3

Testing of Pressurized Hydrogen Storage Devices and Systems General Motors Corporation/Opel FCA is globally seeking proposals for the testing of pressurized hydrogen storage devices and systems for fuel cell vehicles.
http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20061113A4

The Technology Business Needs portray technology acquisition profiles intermediated by NextTechs Technology Exchange.

NextTechs Technologies, LLC is a Global Technology Investment Bank engaged in technology offers and needs intermediation in over 41 industries and 141 research disciplines. Search NextTechs’ Technology Portfolio at http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20061113A15.

ATK Launch Systems is the world’s leading manufacturer of solid rocket motor systems for space launch vehicles. We are looking for experienced engineers and project managers to work with us on Ares I, the successor to the space shuttle. Open house for qualified candidates will be held November 13 and 14 at the Crowne Plaza Los Angeles International Airport from 3:00 – 8:00 PM.

Please click here to learn more about ATK.