May 2020

Stories

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Technology Leaders: Aerospace
To reduce the increasing frequency of attacks, the ground-based Laser Aircraft Strike Suppression Optical System (LASSOS) has been developed by researchers from the MIT Lincoln Laboratory.
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Technology Leaders: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Ever since Henry Ford introduced the first moving production line to the industry in 1913, automotive manufacturers have been constantly striving to streamline their processes,...
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Technology Leaders: Photonics/Optics
Laser technology will remain at the forefront of tomorrow’s digital manufacturing processes.
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Special Reports: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
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Medical Manufacturing and Outsourcing - May 2020
How are advances in automation/robotics, welding, 3D printing, and other fabrication technologies shaping the future of medical device manufacturing? Find out in this Special Report – a...

Special Reports: Electronics & Computers
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Electronics Design & Assembly - May 2020
The latest advances in chip and board-level design and manufacturing are spotlighted in this compendium of recent articles from the editors of Tech Briefs and Aerospace & Defense Technology...

Briefs: Test & Measurement
A new method could enable vehicles and equipment to better withstand high temperatures, loads, and speeds.
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Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Next-generation devices made with a “peel and stack” method could include electronic chips worn on the skin.
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Bandages with integrated pH and temperature sensors, and electronically triggered drug release, improve healing.
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Facility Focus: Aerospace
This NASA center hosts the world’s greatest collection of wind tunnels and flight simulation facilities
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Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
This method uses fiber optic probes for measurement of semiconductors, optical coatings, magnetic read/write heads, and precision machines.
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Briefs: Energy
This fast, flexible tool allows researchers to quickly compare and prioritize strategies for converting biomass to fuels and products.
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Q&A: Materials
A new process will reduce the cost of manufacturing graphene by a factor of more than 100.
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Application Briefs: Imaging
With the recent boom in touch-based, polymer display substrates must be fingerprint-resistant.
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Articles: Photonics/Optics
Xilinx is now applying AI to the in-cabin environment.
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The nonlinear camera captures high-resolution images of the interior of solid objects using terahertz (THz) radiation.
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Briefs: Imaging
Engineers have developed a new scanning technique inspired by the natural world that can detect corroding metals in oil and gas pipelines.
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Products: Test & Measurement
Photodetectors, ultrafast lasers, energy sensors, and more.
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Briefs: Communications
A team is exploring new materials for telecommunications and LIDAR applications.
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Articles: Electronics & Computers
The last thing you probably do when a fly buzzes toward you is marvel at its graceful wing and body kinematics. But that’s exactly what researchers at Cornell University’s Itai Cohen Group do...
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Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Researchers described a new strategy of designing metamolecules.
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Application Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Aspheric lenses greatly improve the performance and efficiency of a wide range of optical applications.
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Products: Test & Measurement
The ADISRA SmartView 4.0 HMI allows builders to see what's going on in their machines.
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Briefs: Aerospace
This diffuser provides double the pumping efficiency in one-quarter the space.
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Briefs: Energy
The capacitor could enable a new generation of electronics that will require less power and generate less heat.
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Briefs: Software
This program generates a mesh that conforms to a complex model without clipping.
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Briefs: Materials
This passive device relies on a layer of material that blocks incoming sunlight but lets heat radiate away.
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Briefs: Medical
An inexpensive 3D-printed microfluidics device could be used to personalize cancer treatment.
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Briefs: Tubing & Extrusion
The material consists solely of components that have already been shown to work well in the body.
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Briefs: Aerospace
A ceramic sensor could be embedded into structures such as bridges and aircraft to monitor their health.
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Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
The AI system can help shorten the time required for 2D material-based electronics to be ready for consumer devices.
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
This instrument has applications in medical equipment, robotics, and satellites.
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Briefs: Software
Computational Model Predicts Human Behavior
This analytic model shows how groups of people influence individual behavior.
Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
This device could enable rapid, inexpensive liquid biopsies to help detect cancer and develop targeted treatment plans.
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Products: Test & Measurement
Sealing connection tools, oscilloscopes, snap-action switches, and more...
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Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Applications include optical data transfer, infrared and night-vision systems, environmental sensors, and breath analysis for medical diagnosis.
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Articles: Aerospace
Tech Briefs posed questions to 3D printing/AM industry execs, to get their views on issues like metal printing, new materials, and environmental sustainability.
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Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Mobile, Wearable EEG Device with Nanowire Sensors
This low-cost electroencephalogram (EEG) device provides research-grade signal quality.
Briefs: Software
Applications include distributed computer systems, computer security, and commercial satellite systems.
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Briefs: Medical
Applications include emergency medicine, combat casualty care, and sports injuries.
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Briefs: Nanotechnology
Applications include imaging, sensing, wireless communications, and medical treatments.
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Landers to small bodies such as comets and asteroids can use this program to estimate the terrain richness of the previously unmapped small body.
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Briefs: Communications
The technique could be used to improve navigation for robots, drones, or pedestrians.
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
This on-skin electronic device provides a personal air conditioner without electricity.
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Briefs: AR/AI
This device could give doctors a new therapeutic option for treating patients with conditions such as heart failure.
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Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
The material combines two polymers with different properties.
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
This diagnostic device allows doctors to detect cancer quickly from a droplet of blood or plasma.
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Protocol Improves Storage Efficiency and Output Speed of Computer Systems
This approach enables computer systems to retrieve data much faster.
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
A highly sensitive, CMOS-compatible, broadband photodetector was created by tailoring material defects.
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Briefs: RF & Microwave Electronics
The material could enable applications such as antennas that change frequencies on the fly or gripper arms for delicate or heavy objects.
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5 Ws: Sensors/Data Acquisition
A smart jumpsuit accurately measures the spontaneous and voluntary movement of infants
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Briefs: Materials
A liquid crystal elastomer can be programmed to exhibit controllable, dynamic behavior without the need for complex electronic components.
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Briefs: Energy
This lightweight and efficient mechanism enables retention, release, and deployment of solar arrays and antennas.
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Briefs: Energy
The method slashes battery testing times — a key barrier to longer-lasting, faster-charging batteries for electric vehicles.
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Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
A new way of making polymers adhere to surfaces may enable better biomedical sensors and implants.
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Briefs: Aerospace
The domino effect is used to design deployable systems that expand quickly with a small push and are stable and locked into place after deployment.
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NASA Spinoff: Manufacturing & Prototyping
NASA’s LED lighting system enables food and other crops to be grown indoors in places like skyscrapers.
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Briefs: Materials
This new design could conserve energy used for defrosting airplanes, appliances, and more.
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
It can be used both in small, portable devices for field inspections and in very large detectors that use arrays of crystals.
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Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
These “developable mechanisms” are built into the surfaces of structures.
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Briefs: Software
This framework determines regional landslide probability in near real time.
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Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
This gel releases short gene sequences into the heart muscle to heal it following a heart attack.
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Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A cryptographic ID tag, a high-reliability NASA switch, and a stretchable thermoelectric generator...
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Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A low-cost, low-complexity ventilator developed by NASA engineers at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week.
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Blog: Aerospace
See how NASA engineer Mike Buttigieg is creating a device that will free up ventilators for patients with COVID-19
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INSIDER Product: Imaging
Low-Power Sealed Laser Luxinar (Kingston Upon Hull, UK) has introduced the SR 08s for marking, scribing and kiss cutting applications requiring average rather than peak power. The new low-power sealed CO2 laser source targets...
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Question of the Week: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Will Biosensors Be Used Effectively in Crowded Environments?
A team used to making pollutant-detection systems is adapting their technologies to spot coronavirus.
INSIDER: Photonics/Optics
A research team has used the Molecular Foundry, a Department of Energy Office of Science user facility, to create miniature lasers. These lasers are stable and work continuously. What...
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INSIDER: Software
Stanford University researchers created an inverse design codebase called SPINS that can help researchers explore different design methodologies to find...
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INSIDER: Imaging
The future’s getting brighter for solar power. Researchers from CU Boulder have created a low-cost solar cell with one of the highest power-conversion efficiencies to date...
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Blog: Test & Measurement
An empty airport tells you more than you might think.
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Question of the Week: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Will ‘Flexoskeletons’ Catch On?
Engineers at the University of California San Diego have found a new way to make soft, flexible, 3D-printed robots. The “flexoskeletons” are both made of a rigid material and a thin sheet of polycarbonate that acts as a flexible base. Watch the demo on Tech Briefs TV. What do you think? Will...
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
A proof-of-concept soft robot has a cheetah-like gait that avoids the usual crawl.
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Blog: Materials
A team at Georgia Tech has discovered a Velcro-like way of mass-producing gecko-inspired adhesives.
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Question of the Week: Robotics, Automation & Control
Will Soft Robots Reach Cheetah-Like Speeds?
Our lead INSIDER story today featured a proof-of-concept robot that moves at almost 3 body lengths a second.
Blog: Electronics & Computers
The Los Angeles, CA-based company Nanotech Energy is using graphene to prevent thermal runaway and create a non-flammable battery.
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News: Imaging
Researchers have tested a new imaging method to understand the brain as an individual develops Alzheimer's disease.
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News: Test & Measurement
Simon Fraser University researchers will use their pioneering imaging technology – called Mango, for its bright color – to develop coronavirus testing kits.
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News: Imaging
A new tool for medical professionals may help shed light on tumors.
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News: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Novel biosensors allow the simultaneous study of both neuronal activity and transcription factor dynamics.
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Question of the Week: Materials
How Would You Use Gecko-Inspired Adhesion?
A team at Georgia Tech has discovered a Velcro-like way of mass-producing gecko-inspired adhesives. Principal investigator Prof. Michael Varenberg believes his team’s technology can someday be used on pick-and-place industrial machines, wall-scaling cleaners, and even small repair robots that travel on...
Blog: AR/AI
New software sets the stage for A.I.-enabled robotic prostheses that predict user terrain and initiate mechanical changes accordingly.
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