Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Modular Fixturing for Assembly and Welding Applications
Researchers at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed new modular fixtures for holding metal in place during the assembly and welding of cylindrical and conical sections...
Briefs: Aerospace
Portable Runway Intersection Display and Monitoring System
Developed at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, the subject technology is a portable airport runway/taxiway intersection lighting system and signage designed to prevent incursions. This proposed runway incursion prevention solution aids in the management and prevention of airport...
Modernization of the National Airspace System (NAS) will involve future air traffic management (ATM) concepts of operation and technology frameworks that rely on...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Handheld Spectral Analyzer for Point-of-Care Diagnostics
A spectral transmission-reflectance-intensity (TRI) analyzer was developed that attaches to a smartphone and analyzes patient blood, urine, or saliva samples as reliably as...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
On-line Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing (PAUT) System for Friction Stir Welding (FSW)
Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a relatively new solid-state welding process, and many industries are now relying on this technique to produce advanced structures. Industries employing this technique include, but are not limited to, aeronautical, motor vehicle,...
Briefs: Materials
Sequential/Simultaneous Multi-Metallized Nanocomposites (S2M2N)
NASA Langley Research Center has developed a method to create Sequential/Simultaneous Multi-Metallized Nanocomposites (S2M2N) via supercritical fluid (SCF) sequential or...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Low-Cost, Long-Lasting Valve Seal
This technology is designed to protect against leaks in solenoid, check, manual, and relief valves, as well as disconnects and regulators.
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center has developed a new,...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Non-Collinear Valve Actuation System
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center scientists have invented a novel valve actuator where the primary actuating system and return spring system are arranged non-collinearly. In the past, valve actuators...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Novel Vent Design Features Variable Flow Control and Rain Protection
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center scientists have designed a vent that can be useful for purging closed compartments, while preventing backflow and foreign object entry. The technology uses a system of configurable devices to provide variable flow control and prevent water,...
Briefs: Aerospace
Three-Dimensional Radiation Ray-Tracing for Hypersonic Entry Vehicles
Shock layer radiation is a form of aerodynamic heating that becomes significant at some entry velocities, depending on the vehicle trajectory and the planet’s atmosphere. Radiation heating is commonly computed with an appropriate method known as the tangent slab approximate...
Articles: Electronics & Computers
Vote for Tech Briefs 23rd Annual Readers' Choice Awards
Briefs: Aerospace
Flap Edge Noise Reduction Fins
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed aircraft flap tip modifications that reduce noise produced during approach and landing. The modifications are rigid open lattice (honeycomblike) and fin structures...
Briefs: Aerospace
Separation Assurance Framework for ACES Simulation
National Airspace (NAS)-wide simulations provide modeling to emulate tens of thousands of flights for full days of traffic in the U.S. They allow system-level research to be conducted for the simulated airspace, and are currently being used by NASA, FAA, and industry to study interactions,...
Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Innovators Recognized for "Creating the Future" 2017
The Create the Future Design Contest has helped stimulate and reward engineering innovation over the past 16 years, drawing more than 14,000 product designs from engineers, students, and...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Novel Design of an Orifice Control Element
An orifice element is commonly used in liquid rocket engine test facilities either as a flow metering device, a damper for acoustic resonance, or to provide a large reduction in pressure over a very...
Articles: Medical
Products of Tomorrow: December 2017
This column presents technologies that have applications in commercial areas, possibly creating the products of tomorrow. To learn more about each technology, see the contact information provided for that...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Forward Voltage Short-Pulse Technique for Measuring High-Power Laser Diode Array Junction Temperature
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed a new technology for measuring the junction temperature of laser diode arrays (LDAs) that...
Articles: Software
How Multiphysics Simulation and App Deployment Boost Product Design
As new concepts need to be investigated, and a wide range of operating conditions has to be considered, the design of new products and processes must push the limits of...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Apparatus and Method to Test Abrasion Resistance of Material Using Airborne Particulate
Prior art techniques for testing abrasion resistance, such as the Taber test and the Bayer test, typically use a rubbing or scratching mechanism to test materials for abrasion resistance; specifically, either an abrasive material is rubbed across the test...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Electrochemically Enhanced Mechanical Polishing of Optics
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center astrophysicists are developing better instruments to measure high-energy X-rays zipping about space when viewed from above the Earth’s atmosphere. Scientists at MSFC adapted a novel method for material removal and super-polishing to the mandrel...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Miniature Airborne Particle Mass Monitor
Particulate matter (PM) exposure and health effects have become top U.S. environmental research agenda items over the past decade. Environmental epidemiological studies rely on information from both...
Briefs: Aerospace
Autonomous Slat-Cove Filler Device
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed a deployable and stowable mechanical design for filling the cavity behind the leading-edge slat (i.e., slat cove) when it is extended upon landing an aircraft....
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Lower-Chatter Friction Pull Plug Welding (FPPW)
Friction Pull Plug Welding (FPPW) is the process necessary to plug the hole that is left behind as a friction stir weld (FSW) joint is completed and the pin tool of the welder retracts from the...
Facility Focus: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, WA, has been operated by Battelle and its predecessors since the lab’s inception in 1965. For more than 50...
NASA Spinoff: RF & Microwave Electronics
GPS Correction Technology Lets Tractors Drive Themselves
Spinoff is NASA’s annual publication featuring successfully commercialized NASA technology. This commercialization has contributed to the development of products and services in the...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Personal Air Sampler for Collecting Airborne Aerosol Particulates for Molecular Analysis by Size
Air sampling is used to collect samples of airborne particles present in an environment. Analyses of the air samples can provide information concerning potential exposure to harmful respirable agents. Bioaerosol sampling can be used to identify...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Wallops Arc-Second Pointer (WASP)
The Wallops Arc Second Pointer (WASP) is a balloon-borne attitude control system capable of pointing a telescope or instrument with accuracy and stability down to the arc second, or 1/3600 of a degree of angular measurement. When a high-powered telescope is integrated with WASP, it provides a highly precise...
Briefs: Aerospace
Orion Guidance, Navigation, and Control Flight Software
The Orion Spacecraft is NASA’s vehicle for manned exploration outside of low Earth orbit. At the center of the Guidance, Navigation & Control (GN&C) subsystem is the GN&C Flight Software (FSW) that executes on the Vehicle Management Computers (VMCs). This software receives...
Briefs: Motion Control
Vacuum System Powers Modular Soft Robot
Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) have created the first functional robot powered entirely by vacuum. It is made of soft building blocks that move by having air sucked...
Application Briefs: Motion Control
Pick-and-Place System Delivers Improved Productivity and Safety
Deciding between a gantry and a robot for your application isn’t always as clear-cut as it may seem. To automate a simple, yet time-consuming and potentially dangerous task in...
Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Trends in Hydraulic Filtration
Proper filtration plays an important role in ensuring that hydraulic systems operate trouble-free. High-performance filters maintain the cleanliness of the hydraulic fluid over its entire service life. In...
Application Briefs: Motion Control
Miniature Linear Bearings Help Prolong Curiosity’s Mars Mission
The launch, landing, and overall mission of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is arguably one of the most daring — and successful — space exploration endeavors ever...
Briefs: Motion Control
Soft Robotic Gripper Manipulates Objects Without Training
An engineering team at the University of California San Diego has designed and built a gripper that can pick up and manipulate objects without needing to see them and without being...
Briefs: Motion Control
Multi-Legged Robot Reconfigures in Real Time
Scientists at Disney Research have developed a modular, reconfigurable legged robot named Snapbot that can move forward, interact with its environment, and perform other tasks based on a number of...
Products: Electronics & Computers
New Products: December 2017 Motion Design
GF Piping Systems (Irvine, CA) introduced a corrosion-resistant pneumatic diaphragm valve for highly corrosive dosing and open/close applications. The Type 604/605...
Briefs: Motion Control
Paper-Folding Techniques Expand Compacted Spacecraft
Origami has once again inspired engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Besides aesthetic beauty, the Japanese tradition of paper-folding addresses a persistent problem...
Briefs: Motion Control
Webb Telescope Actuators Move with Microscopic Accuracy
The James Webb Space Telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. With a 21-foot diameter, the telescope’s primary mirror is six times larger than the one used by...
Articles: Robotics, Automation & Control
LEARNING TO CRAWL: Origami Robot Moves Like an Earthworm
A team of engineers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign built a new kind of crawler robot. The wheel-less design takes inspiration from two unconventional...
Briefs: Imaging
Device-Free Motion Tracing Using WiFi Signals
Fine-grained human motion tracing — the ability to trace the trajectory of a moving human hand or leg, or even the whole body — is a general capability that is useful in a wide variety of...
Briefs: Materials
Rubber Material Enables Scratch-Proof Surfaces
The slippery state caused by water or oil is called superlubricity — where there is basically no friction on a surface. In graphene, this superlubricity state comes from atomic orbitals that...
Briefs: Communications
Zero-Power Radio Receiver
There are several different types of wireless radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that are truly zero-power radios. Currently, most unpowered wireless RFID tags only have a range of a few meters. There are longrange, low-powered tags that draw energy either from a battery or some other form of localized power. A...
Briefs: Materials
Ultrathin Semiconductor Materials “Rust” to Insulate Circuitry
Silicon has several qualities that have led it to become the bedrock of electronics. One is that it features a very good “native” insulator — silicon dioxide, or...
Briefs: Communications
System Integrates High-Speed Data and Wireless Power Transfer
Sources of wireless power — such as wireless cellphone charging pads — require near-physical contact with the pad, limiting the usefulness of a truly wireless power source. Recent work has extended wireless power to mid-range, which can supply power at inches to feet of...
Briefs: Imaging
Detector System for High-Resolution Imaging
A large-area detector without any dead space capable of handling a large dynamic range does not currently exist. Current large-area detectors have dead zones created by abutting several modules...
Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing
KSC Weather Data Archive
The Spaceport Weather Data Archive provides a fully searchable database of weather data gathered at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Not only can the user easily retrieve data and download it, but the user can also view graphically the weather data on a map overlay. The data are...
Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing
BOPPERS: Autonomous Underwater Environmental Monitoring System
A device has been developed that is capable of relatively lengthy unattended operations and high sampling frequency of underwater environmental data anywhere in the world. The...
Briefs: Imaging
Method for Tracking Moving Targets
Moving target indication (MTI) methodologies are essential tools to detect, locate, recognize, and track the moving targets of interest in a movie or video sequence. Different MTI methodologies can be...
Briefs: Communications
Tunable, High-Isolation RF/Microwave Circulator
A new high-isolation RF circulator provides enhanced detection ranges (radar) and improved reception (communications) by reducing signal leakage and undesirable internal reflections between...
Briefs: Imaging
Method Uses Drones and WiFi to Enable 3D Through-Wall Imaging
WiFi signals are everywhere. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones) are expected to become a larger part of everyday life. A new methodology was developed for high-resolution,...
Briefs: Communications
Autonomous Positioning and Navigation Network
Engineers at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center have developed a machine-to-machine (M2M) network navigation protocol to enable spacecraft to perform autonomous navigation and positioning,...
Briefs: Materials
Aluminum Alloy for High-Temperature Applications
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center originally developed a high-performance piston alloy to meet U.S. legislative restrictions on vehicular exhaust hydrocarbon emissions. NASA 398 aluminum alloy exhibits excellent tensile and fatigue strength at elevated temperatures. NASA 398 alloy also offers...
Briefs: Materials
Strong, Self-Healing Rubber
Self-healing hydrogels rely on water to incorporate reversible bonds that can promote healing. Engineering self-healing properties in dry materials, such as rubber, has proven more challenging because rubber is...
Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing
Electromagnetic Mop (EMop) for Oil Spill Cleanup
The spillage of oil into the environment is an ongoing concern. Marine oil spills draw much attention because the oil harms marine animals and floral life. Current methods to aid in cleaning up the oil include containment booms, oil skimmers, and dispersants. Chemical dispersants are a tradeoff...
Application Briefs: Aerospace
Software Helps Optimize World’s Largest All-Composite Aircraft
Newport News, VA
HyperSizer.com
When the Stratolaunch aircraft rolled out of the Mojave, CA Air and Space Port hangar this spring in...
Briefs: Materials
Multi-Functional Yarns and Fabrics with Anti-Microbial, Anti-Static, and Anti-Odor Characteristics
Prior art fabrics used to manufacture military combat uniforms typically are made from yarns comprised of a blend of cotton and nylon fibers. This blend supports dyeing and printing techniques that use a combination of acid and vat dyes to impart a...
Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing
Detecting Low-Level Harmful Substances in a Large Volume of Fluid
There are many applications requiring the detection and concentration of harmful substances in a fluid; for example, detecting the presence and concentration of a microbial pathogen in a source of drinking water such as a lake, reservoir, river, stream, storage tank, water main,...
Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing
Flood Impact Analysis Tool
NASA Langley resides in an area prone to tidal flooding. During events that were expected to lead to flooding, there were requests for maps showing the predicted flood level and what infrastructure may be impacted,...
Briefs: Imaging
Image-Based User Authentication
In other user authentication systems, a user authenticates identity by selecting a particular image that is then matched to a previous choice. This invention enables greater security for access control systems by combining facial recognition technology with a user authentication question.
Briefs: Communications
Paper-Thin Device Acts as a Loudspeaker and Microphone
A paper-thin, flexible device was created that can generate energy from human motion, and can act as a loudspeaker and microphone. The transducer is ultrathin, flexible, scalable, and...
Application Briefs: Aerospace
Sensor Assists NASA with Wearable CO2 Monitor
UK
www.sstsensing.com
Studies show that heightened carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations can have an adverse effect on the human metabolism,...
News: Physical Sciences
Sound-Off: How Should Universities Prepare Tomorrow’s Vehicle Designers?
Q&A: Test & Measurement
Q&A: Georgia Tech's Dr. Raheem Beyah Develops a Way to Authenticate 3D-Printed Products
Dr. Beyah and a team of researchers from Georgia Tech and Rutgers University have developed a three-layer system to verify that components produced using...
Blog: Software
Will Ethics Training be Essential for Tomorrow's Design Engineers?
In our second INSIDER story, Patti Kreh demonstrated that colleges and universities will need to take an "interdisciplinary" approach to train the design engineers of the future.
"What we're seeing is the need for the blending of disciplines – a combination of...
News: Aerospace
How Model Rockets Launch Tomorrow’s Engineers
Question of the Week
Did You Ever Launch Model Rockets?
Our lead story today emphasized the inspirational role of the model rocket. What do you think? Did you ever launch model rockets?
Products
Product of the Month: December 2017
News: Aerospace
Lost in Space: Smart Spacesuits Feature 'Home' Button
During a routine spacewalk, astronauts can easily lose their sense of orientation and direction. Creators of a new kind of spacesuit aim to address the challenge — with the push of a...
News: Materials
Tough, Self-Healing Rubber Developed
Imagine a tire that could heal after being punctured or a rubber band that never snapped.
News: Medical
Artificial 'Skin' Gives Robotic Hand A Sense Of Touch
A team of researchers from the University of Houston has reported a breakthrough in stretchable electronics that can serve as an artificial skin, allowing a robotic hand to sense the...
Researchers from the University of Houston and China have reported a new type of electronic device that can be triggered to dissolve through exposure to water molecules in the...
News: Medical
Breakthrough Device Heals Organs With A Single Touch
Researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and Ohio State's College of Engineering have developed a new technology: Tissue Nanotransfection or TNT. It can generate any...
News: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Sound-Off: The Most ‘Startling’ Discovery in IoT? A Lack of Security
The “Internet of Things” links a variety of devices, from computers and industrial machines to heart monitors and robots. The interconnection also leads to some...
Blog: Sensors/Data Acquisition
A Giant Leap: Reconstructing NASA’s Moon-Mission Audio
Question of the Week
Would you use "Printed Wi-Fi?"
This week, Tech Briefs TV featured an additive-manufacturing technology from the University of Washington.
INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Printing a Better Actuator
One technology uses magnetic fields to generate mechanical work. The other enhances the magnetic properties of 3D-printed materials. Combined, they could lead to efficient, economical production of magnetic...
INSIDER: Materials
Taming Vortices – Polymers Ease Fluid Flow
A vortex in the atmosphere can churn with enough power to create a typhoon. But more subtle vortices form constantly in nature. Many of them are too small to be seen with the naked eye....
INSIDER: RF & Microwave Electronics
Radar Sees Through Walls – By Seeking Symmetry
Blog: Photonics/Optics
The Top Tech Briefs Stories of 2017
With another year of Tech Briefs almost in the books, it's time to look at our most-read news articles of 2017.
Top stories included a look back at the life of Robert Goddard, and a look forward to...
News: Photonics/Optics
A Real Engineering Feat: Two Holograms on One Surface
Top Stories
Blog: Unmanned Systems
Guided by Light, A Mini Robot Catches Particles Underwater
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Answering Your Questions: How Does the Mars Rover Camera Stay Clean?
Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control
Robotic Gripper Gets a Handle on a Challenging Object: Cables
Videos: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Autonomous Drones Learn Challenging Acrobatics
Podcasts: Aerospace
Here's an Idea: A Morphing Airplane Wing Built by Tiny Robots
Videos: Automotive
Stable Lithium Metal Battery Electrolyte for Electric Vehicles
Question of the Week
Will Electric Aircraft Take-Off in Everyday Aviation?
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: Test & Measurement
How Shapeable Desiccant Protects Missiles, Cameras, and Guidance...
Upcoming Webinars: Robotics, Automation & Control
Autonomous Bin Picking for Cobots: Is It Finally Here?
Upcoming Webinars: Electronics & Computers
OpenVPX Technology: The Future of Military Computing
Upcoming Webinars: Lighting
Driving Ahead of the Curve: Visionary Headlamp Concept
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
The New DIS ISO/SAE 21434: Road Vehicles – Cybersecurity...
Upcoming Webinars: Medical
Conformal Coating Protection of Critical Medical Technologies
Trending Stories
Application Briefs: Communications
Harness Wireless IoT Sensors for Integrated Building Management
Articles: Data Acquisition
High-Performance Data Acquisition on USB
Articles: Information Technology
Protecting Data Signals Through Isolation
Briefs: Wearables
Wearable Monitor Continuously Measures Breath Rate and Volume
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Biohybrid Can Turn Carbon Dioxide into New Products
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
