Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
2020 Create the Future Design Contest: Consumer Product Design Category Winner — The Ring Prosthetic Leg
The conceptual Ring prosthetic leg ensures that individuals do not need an entirely new device every time they have a growth spurt.
Articles: Test & Measurement
2020 Create the Future Design Contest: Automotive/Transportation Category Winner — Low-Noise Laser for Lidar
Compact lasers now offer precise colors.
Briefs: Lighting
Atomically Thin Light-Emitting Device for Invisible Displays
Invisible displays on walls and windows would be bright when turned on but invisible when turned off.
Briefs: RF & Microwave Electronics
Vortex Radiometer for Wireless Communications
Any high-performance communication systems operating in RF or optical frequencies may benefit from this system.
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Glove-Like Device Mimics Sense of Touch
The soft, wearable device simulates the sense of touch and has wide potential in medical and industrial applications.
Articles: Electronics & Computers
Facility Focus: Jacobs School of Engineering, University of California San Diego
Jacobs' scientists are helping to make contract-tracing apps, emergency-use ventilators, and even squid-bots.
Briefs: Nanotechnology
Nanoscale Thermal Switches
These switches are key to thermal management of nanoscale devices, refrigeration, data storage, thermal computing, and heat management of buildings.
Briefs: Software
Using Computer Tomography Images to Simulate Heart Function
Rather than using supecomputers, heart function simulation can be performed at the CT scanner.
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
3D X-Ray Imager for 3D Object Retrieval
Applications include characterizing additively manufactured components and baggage screening.
Briefs: Materials
Device Camouflages Wearer from Heat-Detecting Sensors

Researchers developed a wearable technology that can hide its wearer from heat-detecting sensors such as night vision goggles, even when the ambient temperature changes. The technology...

Briefs: Electronics & Computers
SpaceCube 2.0 Flight Card Mechanical System
Applications include mechanical aerospace manufacturing and thermal structure manufacturing.
Briefs: Materials
Programmable Balloons for Shape-Morphing Devices
Kirigami balloons could be used in shape-changing actuators for soft robots, minimally invasive surgical devices, and macro structures for space exploration.
Briefs: Unmanned Systems
Modular, In-Air, Multi-UAV Docking
This system can be used for long-range or high-payload deliveries as well as search and rescue.
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Miniature Antenna Enables Robotic Teaming in Complex Environments
A low-frequency antenna with enhanced bandwidth will enable robust networking among compact, mobile robots.
Articles: Sensors/Data Acquisition
2020 Create the Future Design Contest: Electronics/Sensors/IoT Category Winner – PrintIC Flexible Circuits
With PrintIC technology, sensors, actuators, energy supplies, and ICs can be printed on the same substrate, avoiding assembly cost.
Application Briefs: Aerospace
Wave Energy Modeling for Safer Space Travel
What does wave energy have to do with space exploration? Plenty, it turns out.
Products: Software
Product of the Month: December 2020 Tech Briefs
COMSOL Multiphysics® version 5.6 simulation software features four new products.
Question of the Week: Materials
Should We Use Chitin to Build on Mars?

In the latest episode of our Tech Briefs podcast series Here's an Idea™, researcher Javier Gomez Fernandez talks about his idea for making habitats on Mars. Fernandez envisions using chitin from insects – and combining the substance with the Martian soil – to create a kind of sustainable building...

White Papers: Materials
Highly Engineered Optical Films for Mobile Electronics and Display Systems

This downloadable article from Boyd & 3M covers optical films that have been engineered to augment display performance and enable integrated displays for mobile...

White Papers: Software
Comparison of Connector Performance for Automotive EMI Bundle Shielding Cables

This whitepaper will focus on a common disturbance point where EMI is generated: The Connector. Through a series of tests simulating ground vehicle performance...

On-Demand Webinars: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Machine Vision for Industrial Inspection

Machine vision removes the physical contact between a test system and the parts being tested, preventing part damage and offering safety and operational benefits by reducing human involvement in a manufacturing process. Machine vision systems also easily inspect object details too small to be seen...

White Papers: Design
The Product Innovation Imperative: A Leader’s Guide for Using Cloud-Based Product Development Tools to Drive Teamwork and Innovation

The Product Innovation Imperative is a practical guide for engineering and manufacturing leaders to...

Blog: Aerospace
Will Electric Aircraft Reach the Speeds of Commercial Jets?
An Israel-based company called Eviation is working on an all-electric aircraft known as "Alice." Will it match the speeds of a jet?
Blog: Sensors/Data Acquisition
With a 50-Million-Electron Jolt, Sensors Power Themselves
By jumpstarting electrons, a team at Washington University in St. Louis has developed sensors that can power themselves for more than a year.
Question of the Week: Energy
Will Indoor Light Someday Power Our Smart Devices?

Our lead INSIDER story today looks at “perovskite-inspired” materials that can absorb indoor light at higher efficiencies than ever before.

INSIDER: Motion Control
Printing Paper Structures for Mechatronics

Natural motion in plants occurs because of cellulose fibers absorbing and releasing water. Scientists developed a simple method to produce self-folding origami structures based on this concept....

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control
Robotic “Snake” Grips and Picks Up Objects

An invention similar to an elephant’s trunk has potential benefits for many industries where handling delicate objects is essential. UNSW Sydney developed a soft fabric robotic gripper...

White Papers: AR/AI
AI for Embedded Defense is Here

An armed Humvee is moving at night thru a smoke-filled, urban battlefield. Using multiple displays, the crew has a 360˚ view that is daylight clear, delivered by an imaging system fusing data from several...

On-Demand Webinars: Materials
Achieving Dimensional Stability of Lightweight Thermoplastic Automotive Parts

Use of thermoplastics can contribute to weight savings for exterior components such as body panels, spoilers, and exterior trim. Some applications present...

Top Stories

Blog: Electronics & Computers

A 'Charging Room' Powers Devices Through the Air

Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping

A 3D-Printed 'Fish Fin' Offers New Ideas for Morphing Aircraft

INSIDER: Energy

More Efficient Electricity Distribution Thanks to New Insulation Material

Blog: Propulsion

A New Way to Launch Rockets: Microwave Power

Blog: Aerospace

Go for Launch: Scientists Explore Radiation Risks to Mars-Bound Astronauts

INSIDER: Energy

Better Batteries for Grid-Scale Energy Storage

Question of the Week
Will Stretchable Smartphones Catch On?

Webcasts

On-Demand Webinars: RF & Microwave Electronics

Advanced High-Peak-Power Semiconductor Laser Transmitter Solutions for LiDAR

Upcoming Webinars: Automotive

Software Reuse in Automotive Engineering

Upcoming Webinars: Automotive

Don’t Let the Future of High-Voltage Cables Shock You

Upcoming Webinars: Aerospace

Artemis: Back to the Moon

Upcoming Webinars: Automotive

Managing the Complexity of Sealing Battery Housings in Electric...

Upcoming Webinars: Automotive

Engineered Fillers for Vehicle Lightweighting: Doing More With...

Trending Stories

Technology Leaders: Internet of Things

Optimizing 5G Fiber Optic Filament Production

INSIDER: Energy

More Efficient Electricity Distribution Thanks to New Insulation Material

INSIDER: Energy

Better Batteries for Grid-Scale Energy Storage

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Magic-T Junction Using Microstrip/Slotline Transitions

Briefs: Motion Control

Sustainable 3D-Printed Magnets

NASA Spinoff: Propulsion

Nanotechnology Repairs Engine Damage in Cars

Videos