2019 'Create the Future' Automotive/Transportation Category Winner: A Standalone AC Battery

A prototype of the AC 'Biode' battery has been developed at 20W.

Products of Tomorrow

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 innovation.

Robots Track Moving Objects with Sub-Centimeter Accuracy

A system was developed that uses radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to help robots target moving objects with unprecedented speed and accuracy. The system could enable greater...

The 6 Most Important Parts of a Temperature Monitoring System

Make the best selection for your hospital, clinic, or life science organization.

Form-Fitting Nanoscale Sensors

A method was developed to make atom-flat sensors that seamlessly integrate with devices to report on what they perceive. Electronically active 2D materials, touted for their strength, are difficult to move to...

Passive Smart Container

Although Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is being used widely for pallet and box-level tracking in the commercial sector, significant technology gaps remain for tracking dense quantities at the item...

2019 Create the Future Design Contest Special Awards Section

See the eight winners of the 2019 "Create the Future" Design Contest

2019 'Create the Future' Consumer Products Category Winner: Livox

Through Livox, non-verbal people can speak, learn how to read and write, and understand abstract concepts.

Method Makes Transistors and Electronic Devices from Thread

A transistor has been made from linen thread, enabling the creation of electronic devices made entirely of thin threads that could be woven into fabric, worn on the skin, or implanted...

Quantitative Analysis of Raw Milk Using Spectral Sensors

Measuring milk components has become very crucial for the dairy industry.

A Vision-Based Lunar Navigator for Next-Generation Landers

Learn about the Draper Multi-Environment Navigator.

Researchers Turn off Backscattering, Aim to Improve Optical Data Transmission

Engineers at the University of Illinois have found a way to redirect misfit light waves to reduce energy loss during optical data transmission. In a study,...

New Products

LIDAR Systems, Smart Cameras, Optical Communications, and more.

Expanding Traditional Machine Vision With High-Speed Digital Imaging

Machine vision systems shed light on processes too small or too fast to see with the human eye.

Bringing Precision Anamorphic Micro-Optics to Consumer-Level Laser Applications

Laser illumination is scaling in a new direction.

Tiny Lensless Endoscope Captures 3D Images of Objects Smaller Than a Cell

Researchers have developed a new self-calibrating endoscope that produces 3D images of objects smaller than a single cell without a lens or any optical, electrical, or...

Shaping Light with a Smartlens

High quality camera performance on mobile devices has proven to be one of the features that most end-users aim for. The importance of optical image quality improvement and the trend to have thinner and thinner...

Recovering Color Images from Scattered Light

A new imaging method extracts a color image from a single exposure of light scattered through a mostly opaque material.

Optical Neural Network Could Lead to Intelligent Cameras

UCLA engineers have made major improvements on their design of an optical neural network — a device inspired by how the human brain works — that can identify objects or process...

Mathematical Technique Quickly Tunes Next-Generation Lenses

Most of us know optical lenses as curved, transparent pieces of plastic or glass, designed to focus light for microscopes, spectacles, cameras, and more. For the most part, a lens’...

2019 Create the Future Design Contest Grand Prize Winner: ULiSSES

Learn more about ULISSES, an organ-preserving device that received top honors in the "Create the Future" Design Contest.

2019 'Create the Future' Medical Category Winner: Cervical Stabilization Device

Learn more about the how "CSD" offers a cost-effective, non-invasive way of saving the lives of infants.

Product of the Month

OnLogic has introduced the Karbon 700 high-performance rugged computer.

Creating the Future: Livox Simplifies Communication for People with Disabilities

Livox uses machine learning to ease communication.

“Pushy” Robots Learn How to Move Objects

MIT researchers have compiled a dataset that captures the detailed behavior of a robotic system physically pushing hundreds of different objects. Using the dataset, robots “learn” pushing...

Acting Like Bees, Tiny Drones Find Their Way Through Unknown Environments

A minimal, map-less approach to drone navigation takes after the bee.

A Standalone AC Battery Begins with a Cathode, an Anode, and a 'Biode'

The 'Biode' saves power by eliminating the need for AC/DC conversion.