Briefs: Wearables

Stretchable Micro-Supercapacitors Self-Power Wearable Devices

A stretchable system can harvest energy from human breathing and motion.

Articles: Electronics & Computers

Greater Precision for EV Battery Leak Testing

Inficon’s lithium-ion battery cell test can detect a leak many times smaller than current methods identify.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

New Approach Makes Lighter, Safer Lithium-Ion Batteries

Adding polymers and fireproofing to a battery’s current collectors makes it lighter, safer, and about 20% more efficient.

Articles: Automotive

New SAE Wireless Charging Standard is EV Game-Changer

SAE J2954 paves the way for electric vehicle charging without a plug and enables alignment for manual/autonomous parking.

Briefs: Test & Measurement

Method Tracks What Happens Inside Batteries

The method could be key to designing more efficient batteries for specific uses such as electric cars and airplanes.

Briefs: Transportation

Design Enables Safe Storage of Lithium Ions

This technology charges lithium batteries faster and reduces the risk of device explosions.

Briefs: Materials

Flexible, Thin-Film Battery

Computers or smartphones with folding screens, smart clothing, and wearable sensors all require an energy source, which is usually a lithium-ion battery. These are typically heavy and rigid, making them...

Products: Energy

New Products: February 2021 Battery Technology

Board-to-board connectors, supercapacitors, li-ion batteries, and more.

Articles: Electronics & Computers

Modeling & Simulation for Battery Development

When it comes to the research and development of batteries, modeling and simulation (M&S) provide an efficient and low-cost approach.

Briefs: Transportation

Using Electric Vehicle Batteries for Solar Energy Farms

Battery reuse systems could be profitable for both electric vehicle companies and grid-scale solar operations.

Articles: Robotics, Automation & Control

Multipurpose Batteries Make it Easier to Get Around on Mars

NASA-funded research by Clemson University scientists could lead to the creation of lighter, faster-charging batteries suitable for powering a spacesuit or even a Mars rover.

Articles: Internet of Things

Nano Diamond Battery Provides Universal Applicability

Energy is absorbed in the diamond through a process called inelastic scattering, which is used to generate electricity.

Briefs: Test & Measurement

Compact Infrared Spectrometer

This device fits on a computer chip but can analyze infrared light in the same way as a conventional spectrometer.

Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing

3D Printing with Wood-Based Ink

By emulating the natural cellular architecture of wood, green products such as clothes, packaging, and furniture can be manufactured with unique properties.

Briefs: Software

Damage Simulation Tool for Composite Laminates

This tool provides faster and more detailed composite damage simulation results.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Metamaterial Morphs into New Shapes and Takes on New Properties

A newly developed architected metamaterial has the ability to change shape in a tunable fashion.

Facility Focus: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Facility Focus: University of Texas Cockrell School of Engineering

Some of the technologies coming from the UT labs include COVID antibody tests, self-watering soil, and the "DRACO" robot.

Articles: Data Acquisition

Integrating QC Measurement Data into Manufacturing Systems

Learn about the kinds of wireless meters that can provide precise test data.

Briefs: Energy

Flexible Material Helps Buildings Withstand Energy Waves

The material could help protect both civilian and military personnel in earthquakes.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Intuitive Programming Language for Quantum Computers

This quantum language is the first of its kind that is as elegant, simple, and safe as classical computer languages.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Chemical Identification by Magneto-Elastic Sensing (ChIMES)

The sensor is suitable for both overt and covert applications, and can detect multiple and variable targets.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Printable Chemical Nanosensor

This integrated nanosensor is printed on a daughter board using 3D printing techniques.

Briefs: Materials

New Materials Boost Efficiency and Stability of Optical Rectennas

The improved rectennas could operate low-power devices such as temperature sensors.

Briefs: Materials

Technology Remedies 3D Printing’s “Weak Spot”

The technology welds adjacent 3D-printed layers more effectively, thereby increasing the reliability of the final part.

Articles: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Executive Roundtable: Facility & Network Security

Tech Briefs asks industry experts about cybersecurity, the cloud, wireless devices, and securing a remote workforce.

Briefs: Photonics/Optics

Manufacturing Ultra-Thin Camera Lenses

Ultra-thin and flexible metalenses could replace traditional camera lenses.

Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Kodiak 3D LiDAR

This system provides low-cost, reliable 3D LiDAR images in nearly any lighting condition.

Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Ultra-Thin, Battery-Free Strain Sensors for Industrial Robotic Arms

These nanomaterial strain sensors are ten times more sensitive when measuring minute movements compared to existing technology.

Briefs: Automotive

3D-Printed Composites for High-Temperature Uses

The polyimide composites have uses in aerospace, automotive, construction, electronics, mechanical systems, and industrial machinery.

Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

4D Printing of Morphing Structures

A new method manufactures complex shapeshifters for soft robots and biomedical implants.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Niobium Titanium Nitride Thin Film Coating

Applications include terahertz medical imaging and communications.

NASA Spinoff: Manufacturing & Prototyping

NASA Brain-Training Technology Makes Smart Glasses

With a technique first used at NASA, researchers are making glasses that can improve your concentration.

Briefs: Imaging

A Near-Perfect Blackbody Calibration Target

This rapid and cost-effective technique yields a uniform etched surface with 99.5 percent emissivity.

5 Ws: Manufacturing & Prototyping

5 Ws of the Screen-Printed Battery

The battery can be used in flexible, stretchable electronics for wearables as well as soft robotics.

Briefs: Photonics/Optics

Photoreceptor System for Melatonin Regulation and Phototherapy

This system treats light-responsive disorders or deficits such as eating disorders, sleep problems, hormone-sensitive cancers, and cardiovascular disorders.

Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Linking Materials May Transform Robots Made of Robots

A new method of linking materials with unique mechanical properties could enable robots made of robots.

Briefs: Software

AI Improves Performance of Lithium-Ion Batteries and Fuel Cells

A new machine learning algorithm could make smartphones charge faster and increase the time between charges for electric vehicles.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Sensitive Optical Receivers for Space

This concept could help break through the present-day data-return bottleneck in deep space missions.

Q&A: Energy

Q&A: Oil and Gas Wells for Energy Storage

USC researchers found a way to use idle oil and gas wells for energy storage.

Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition

New on the Market: February 2021

Disconnect terminal blocks, oscillioscope probes, test modules, and more.

Application Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Innovation on a Larger Scale: Robotic Fiber Placement and 3D Printing

“The disruption promised by Industry 4.0 has already begun,” says Jason Melcher from the aerospace manufacturing company Ingersoll.

Briefs: Materials

Wearable, Stretchable Gas Sensor

The stretchable sensor has applications in environmental monitoring and healthcare.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Split-Ring Torque Sensor

This optical-based device measures position, velocity, and torque.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Smart Fabric Detects and Collects Space Dust

A smart fiber being tested on the International Space Station could be used to develop space dust telescopes and allow astronauts to feel through their pressurized suits.

Briefs: Nanotechnology

Low-Energy Nanolaser Shines in all Directions

Compared to a LED, the omnidirectional laser light is much brighter and better defined.

Briefs: Materials

Sensing Magnetic Fields

Applications include detection of explosives, navigation, and aerospace altitude sensing.

Briefs: Lighting

Compound for Organic Light-Emitting Diodes (OLEDs)

The material could enable cheaper and more environmentally friendly displays and large-area lighting.

Products: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

New Products: February 2021 Motion Design

Industrial robots, motor disconnect switches, position sensors, and more.

Articles: Software

Modern HMI Software Propels Industry 4.0

Once confined to the role of machine visualization, modern unified HMI software now delivers better user interfaces, containerization, and remote device management.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Miniscule Robots of Metal and Plastic

A technique enables manufacturing of minuscule robots by interlocking multiple materials in a complex way.

Application Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Online Tools Reduce Time and Expense in Selecting, Configuring, and Ordering Motion Control Components

New online tools — coupled with online libraries of pre-selected and tested component specifications — simplify machine design.

Briefs: Motion Control

Electronic Skin Sensor Decodes Human Motion

This system can track the motion of the entire body with a small sensory network.

Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Locking Side Pull Hoist Ring

The integrated tool eliminates the need for manual operators or additional custom fixtures.

Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Direct Drive Servo Motors: Key Terms and Trends

When specifying servo motors for applications like a new machine or CNC retrofit, there are many considerations regarding servo motor performance and sizing.

Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Electronic Device Manufacturers Shouldn’t Fear Custom Connector Solutions — They Should Embrace Them

As 5G arrives, devices will need to expand I/O counts at the controller, as well as overall networking capabilities.

Application Briefs: Motion Control

Improving Performance of Supercritical CO2 in Next-Generation Energy Applications with 3D Metal Printing

See why Mohawk Innovative Technology, Inc. is excited for the potential of additive manufacturing.

Briefs: Aerospace

New Capabilities for Grasp-Assisting Gloves

Applications include aiding patients with impaired hand muscle strength and in manufacturing for operating tools for extended periods of time.

Articles: Materials

Products of Tomorrow: February 2021

Next-generation solar panels, 3D-printed composites from NASA, and a new way to sterilize medical devices.

Products: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Product of the Month: February 2021 Tech Briefs

The Agile Engineering Design System® is an integrated suite of software modules for CAE/CAM of turbomachinery.

Products: Software

Vote for Tech Briefs’ 26th Annual Readers’ Choice Awards

These 12 products are the nominees for the 2020 Tech Briefs Readers’ Choice Product of the Year.

INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Ultra-Thin and Highly Sensitive Strain Sensors

A research team from National University of Singapore (NUS) has taken a first step towards improving the safety and precision of industrial robotic arms by developing a new range of...

INSIDER: Design

New Transistor Design Disguises Key Computer Chip Hardware to Protect Against Hackers

A hacker can reproduce a circuit on a chip by discovering what key transistors are doing in a circuit — but not if the transistor “type” is...

INSIDER: Photonics/Optics

This LED Can Be Integrated Directly Into Computer Chips

Light-emitting diodes — LEDs — are important in many more applications than just illumination. These light sources are useful in microelectronics too. Smartphones, for example,...

INSIDER: Wearables

Making Cheaper Biocompatible E-Skin Electrodes

Scientists around the world are working to develop electronic skins that attach to the body and monitor vital signs. These E-skins need to be comfortable, breathable, and flexible for...

Blog: Photonics/Optics

Answering Your Questions: Laser Radar...Or a CMM with a Laser Scanner?

Should you replace your big coordinate measurement machine with laser radar? Or should you just add a laser scanner with a CMM? A reader asks our expert.

Podcasts: Robotics, Automation & Control

Here's an Idea: Hospital Robots

In this episode of Here's an Idea, we look at a set of robots already helping out hospitals in the fight against COVID-19.

Blog: AR/AI

Q&A: For Engineers, Is Mixed Reality...A Reality?

Design engineers should be cautious in how they design and deploy mixed-reality technologies, says an industry expert.

On-Demand Webinars: Medical

The Critical Role of Fiber Optic Temperature Sensors in Medical and Industrial Applications

This 60-minute Webinar shows how medical device, industrial machine, and process control manufacturers and researchers are leveraging fiber...

On-Demand Webinars: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Zinc Die Casting Concepts to Achieve Precision, Performance, and Price Targets

The range of properties available across the family of zinc die casting alloys, combined with the multiple options for casting zinc, provides unparalleled...

Tech Talks: Materials

Carbon Fiber Rotor Encapsulation

As the aerospace and other high-tech industries continue to evolve toward more energy-efficient, power-dense systems, new technologies are emerging that place greater demands on motors in terms of...

Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control

Watch Live: Mars Perseverance Rover Touches Down on Jezero Crater

Watch as the Perseverance rover lands on Mars.

On-Demand Webinars: Test & Measurement

Radar Measurements: Triggering, Analysis, and Generation

Advanced instruments handle the wide bandwidth, high dynamic range needs of radar and electronic warfare specialists. Diverse pulse and modulation techniques are needed for...

Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

A New Kind of Soft Pump, The Size of a Credit Card

What can you do with a credit card sized pump? "Power clothing!" Prof. Jonathan Rossiter tells Tech Briefs?

Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control

A Former NASA Mission Manager Reflects on a 'Flawless' Mars Landing

Darin Skelly spoke with Tech Briefs about how he felt during the landing of the Perseverance rover, and what he's most looking forward to finding out about Mars.

Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

How to Build and Test a Robotic Remote-Control for Ventilators

Dr. Axel Krieger from Johns Hopkins University explains how he is getting a robotic system ready for the fight against COVID-19.

Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control

A Robot Walks — No Electronics Needed

To move, a new UCSD robot just needs a constant source of pressurized air.

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control

Perseverance Rover Safely Lands on Mars

Perseverance – the largest, most advanced rover NASA has sent to another world – touched down on Mars last week after a 203-day journey traversing 293 million miles. About the size of a car,...