Ignition Achievement Gives US New Opportunity to Lead World's IFE Research

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)’s historic achievement of fusion ignition Dec. 5 at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) positions the United States...

NASA Targets 2026 for Launch of Israel's First Space Telescope

NASA will launch Israel’s first space telescope mission, the Ultraviolet Transient Astronomy Satellite (ULTRASAT). ULTRASAT, an ultraviolet observatory with a large field of...

AI Image Analysis, Li-Fi and Quantum Processor Among 2023 PRISM Awards Winners

Photonics West 2023 featured the 15th annual gathering of the Prism Awards, a ceremony hosted by SPIE that honors and recognizes industrial innovation in...

Refining Automotive Battery Management Systems with Lumped-Approach Thermal Modeling

India is a fast-growing market for electric vehicles, with one study predicting that over 30 percent of the vehicles sold in India will be electric by 2030.

Building Out the EV Battery-Recycling Ecosystem

A robust EV battery-recycling industry has moved to a necessity as automakers, and their suppliers, transition away from internal combustion.

Advancing Higher Speeds and New Techniques for EV Recharging

The ability to charge electric vehicles at a very fast rate is a key to electrifying mobility across the U.S.

Anode-Free Lithium Batteries with Maximized Energy Density

The newly developed anode-free battery has a volumetric energy density of 977 Wh/L which is 40 percent higher than the conventional batteries (700 wh/L).

Simplifying the Production of Lithium-ion Batteries

24M Technologies has simplified Li-ion battery production with a new design that requires fewer materials and steps to manufacture each cell.

New Hybrid Electrolyte for High-Performance Lithium-ion Batteries

The polymeric solid electrolyte realized a wide potential window, a high Li-ion conductivity, and a high Li-ion transference number.

Using Nano-Engineering Techniques to Develop a Safer Battery

A research team has developed technology that could prevent electric vehicle fires, like those caused by saltwater flooding from Hurricane Ian.

A Sodium-Aluminum Battery Aims to Integrate Renewables for Grid Resiliency

A new battery design could help ease integration of renewable energy into the nation's electrical grid at lower cost, using Earth-abundant metals.

New Products

New products for March 2023, including a battery interconnect system, silicon nitride bearing balls, and more.

Laser Beam Shaping Increases Welding Speed of EV Battery Coolers

Cooling plates provide leak-free coolant flow that improves battery performance and extends battery life.

Products of Tomorrow

To learn more about each technology, see the contact information provided for that innovation.

Videos of the Month

Videos of the month for March 2023.

Leveraging Machine Data to Improve the Bottom Line

Industry has developed from break/fix to preventative maintenance, to predictive maintenance, which relies on smart components to detect out-of-spec conditions.

Artificial Intelligence in Design Engineering

In the age of industry digital transformation, visual data has received minimal focus yet can have significant impacts on a company's success.

SAE WCX™ 2023 Preview: Paving the Future of Mobility

SAE's WCX World Congress Experience, will be held from April 18-20, in Detroit, MI.

Shark Skin Inspires Functional Surface Film for Aircraft

Following nature's example, Lufthansa Technik and BASF have jointly developed the functional surface film AeroSHARK for commercial aircraft.

Using Small Drones to Monitor Volcanoes

A team at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has recently been assessing the potential for using a small, portable observation drone in remote regions.

Aerospace Vehicle Entry Flightpath Control

This novel flightpath control system exploits the dihedral effect to control the bank angle of the vehicle by modulating sideslip.

Serial Arrayed Waveguide Grating

The technology has several applications including optical communications, remote sensing/LiDAR, and beam steering.

Health Monitoring with Skin-Like Electronics

Flexible, wearable electronics could be used for precision medical sensors attached to the skin, designed to perform health monitoring and diagnosis.

Wearable Electronics for Continuous Cardiac, Respiratory Monitoring

A highly sensitive wearable sensor for cardiorespiratory monitoring could potentially be worn continuously by cardiac patients or others who require constant monitoring.

Bioelectronic Devices Enable Real-Time Sensing

If a chemical spill in a river goes unnoticed for 20 minutes, it might be too late to remediate. Living bioelectronic sensors developed at Rice University can help.

Impact and Trajectory Detection System

The system can indicate the time and location of an impact and the trajectory of that projectile using piezoelectric polymer film and sensors.

Sensor Can Detect Scarred or Fatty Liver Tissue

Diagnosing liver damage earlier could help to prevent liver failure in many patients.

Suture of the Future Fights Infection

The smart bandage can dispense antibiotic, monitor wound-healing biomarkers, and report important data directly to doctors.

Room Temperature Oxygen Sensors

Traditional oxygen sensors have significant drawbacks and suffer from high power consumption.

Lunar Surface Navigation System

Scientists have developed a novel concept for a lunar navigation system based on the reverse-ephemeris technique.

Electronic Skin Sensor Decodes Human Motion

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

Motion Control Using Micro Controllers

Accomplishing motion control with digitally commanded electric motors is a responsive, precise, and energy-efficient approach suitable for a wide range of applications.

Conductive Cellulose Thread Shows Promise for Healthcare Applications

The thermoelectric textile produces a small amount of electricity when heated on one side.

Color Blindness-Correcting Contact Lenses

Infused lenses create a safer way to see colors.

Bioprinted 3D Cardiac Patches Could Reverse Scar Formation After Heart Attacks

The system promotes myocardial regeneration after a cardiac event.

New on the Market: Readers Select 2022 Products of the Year

Last December, Tech Briefs readers were asked to select one product from 2022 to be named Readers’ Choice Product of the Year. See what took home the honors.

Product of the Month

The product of the month for March 2023.

Test Your Knowledge of AR/VR

AR/VR is being used by engineers through the product development process. Test how much you really know about these two technologies with this quiz.

5 Ws of a Wearable Haptic Glove

A haptic device provides finger tracking as well as textures, forces, heat, and cold in extended or mixed reality.

Testing the Thermal Limits of BNNTs

The first study on how purified boron nitride nanotubes remain stable in extreme temperatures in inert environments.

The Future of AI and Machine Learning in Avionics Systems

Luuk van Dijk, co-founder and CEO of Daedalean, joins the podcast.

Expediting Search and Rescue After Earthquakes

NASA-designed technology helps detect people trapped under several feet of rubble after earthquakes.

3D-Printed AUV Aims to Thwart Climate Change

The Yonder Deep team installed an entire suite of sensors in its AUV, versatile enough to withstand the frigid Arctic waters as well as the coastal waters of Southern California.

Custom, 3D-Printed Robotic Hearts

The soft robotic models are patient-specific and could help clinicians zero in on the best implant for an individual.

Autonomous Robots to Help Modernize Grape, Wine Industry

This spring, a small army of Cornell University-developed PhytoPatholoBots (PPB) will be deployed to four grape breeding programs across the U.S. on a mission to guide the global...

Soft Robotic Wearable Restores Arm Function for People with ALS

Some 30,000 people in the U.S. are affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition that damages cells in...

Metal 3D Printing Provides Design Freedom in Geothermal Energy Application

Houston-based startup Downhole Emerging Technologies used direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) as the additive solution to 3D print durable materials necessary for geothermal energy applications.

How Much Do You Know About Desalination?

Desalination is an important source of good-quality water in many parts of the world. How much do you know about it? Take this quiz to find out.

Tapping into Wave Energy

A technology developed by Ocean-Based Climate Solutions is converting carbon dioxide to fish food using wave energy.

New Nanogenerator Harnesses the Energy of the Ocean

Zhiqun (Daniel) Deng and a team of researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) are working to develop a nanogenerator that harnesses the renewable energy of open ocean waves to power observation platforms, and more, in the middle of the ocean.

Viscosity Enables Complex Motions for Soft Robots

Untethered soft robots are poised to become even more agile and controlled.

Test Your Knowledge About the Artemis Generation

Do you know the Artemis generation? Test your knowledge about performance and crew-related aspects of the Artemis generation.

A Chat with an AI CAD Designer via ChatGPT

The release of OpenAi's ChatGPT has unleashed a wave of renewed interest in AI. How will this language-based AI affect 3D CAD design and 3D printing?

7 Questions with Astronaut Eileen Collins

The first female pilot and first female commander of a space shuttle, Eileen Collins, shares leadership lessons for women in aerospace.

Mech Suit Gives Humans 50X Strength

The all-terrain walking mech’s aim is to give humans the size and strength of giants. It does just that — times 50.

Are Agricultural Robots the Future of Farming?

Labor shortages have caused farmers and food manufacturers to increasingly utilize agricultural robots for farming. Take this quiz to learn more.

New Compound Withstands Extreme Heat and Electricity for Next-Generation Energy Storage

Flexible polymers made with a new generation of the Nobel-winning “click chemistry” reaction find use in capacitors and other applications.

Reused car batteries rev up electric grid

When aging vehicle batteries lack the juice to power your car anymore, they may still hold energy. Yet it’s tough to find new uses for lithium-ion batteries with different makers, ages, and sizes....

New Battery Aims to Integrate Renewables for Grid Resiliency

A new battery design could help ease integration of renewable energy into the nation’s electrical grid at lower cost, using Earth-abundant metals, according to a study just...

When Engineers and Technicians Collide

Engineers and technicians can use their differences to help each other solve technical problems.

5 Questions with DART's Dr. Cambioni

A Tech Briefs interview with DART team member Dr. Saverio Cambioni.

3D-Printed Revolving Devices Can Sense How They Are Moving

A new system enables makers to incorporate sensors into gears and other rotational mechanisms with just one pass in a 3D printer.

Feathered Robotic Wing Paves Way for Flapping Drones

Birds fly more efficiently by folding their wings during the upstroke, according to a recent study led by Lund University in Sweden. The results could mean that wing-folding is the next...

Simulated Terrible Drivers Cut the Time and Cost of AV Testing by a Factor of One Thousand

A new virtual testing environment breaks the ‘curse of rarity’ for autonomous vehicle emergency decision-making.

The Rise of Electric Vehicles

Did you know that electric vehicles have been around for over a century? Test your knowledge about the history of EVs in this quiz.