White Papers: Medical
Current Trends in Medical Kit Packaging
In days of yore, when house calls were common, physicians used black leather bags to tote instruments from appointment to appointment. Those medical bags are long gone, but the logic behind them - a...
White Papers: Power
Analyzing Li-ion Battery Components
The global lithium-ion battery market is expected to reach 93.1 billion USD by 2025. This is largely driven by increased usage in electric vehicles, grid storage, and portable consumer electronics where...
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Answering Your Questions: What's Better for Extrusion? Aluminum 6000 or 7000 Series?
INSIDER: Government
NASA Program Opens “Pathways” to Careers
NASA Pathways Programs provide opportunities for students and recent graduates to be considered for federal employment. The NASA Pathways Intern Employment Program (IEP) is open to current...
INSIDER: Materials
Double-Sided Tape Rapidly Seals Tissues Together
Inspired by a sticky substance that spiders use to catch their prey, a double-sided tape was developed that can rapidly seal tissues together within five seconds. The tape works much...
INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Sensor Saves Children and Pets Left in Cars
A device, developed by grad students at the University of Waterloo, combines radar technology with artificial intelligence (AI) to detect unattended children or animals left in cars. Small...
Tech Talks: Electronics & Computers
How to Achieve Traceable Measurements of Opto-Electronic Devices
With the advancements in electro-optical communication systems to meet the ever-increasing demands for higher data speeds, coupled with the market moving toward lowering the effective cost per bit per mile, component designers are struggling to keep costs low and still...
Question of the Week: Robotics, Automation & Control
Would You Own a Robot Pet?
At the CES Unveiled kickoff event last week, Sony demonstrated Aibo, a social robotic pet. The technology, which will make the trip to CES 2020 in Las Vegas, makes dog noises, responds to commands, and uses cameras to recognize specific owners and their patterns. Take a look at Aibo on our Tech Briefs Instagram.
Tech Talks: Medical
The Finishing Process: Preparing Advanced Medical Textiles for Implantation
Implantable medical textiles undergo a rigorous finishing process before becoming viable medical device components used in stents, hernia mesh, or synthetic ligaments. Suppliers employ a variety of finishing techniques such as scouring, heat treatment, coating,...
INSIDER: Nanotechnology
New Metasurface Design Can Control Optical Fields in Three Dimensions
A team led by scientists at the University of Washington has designed and tested a 3D-printed metamaterial that can manipulate light with nanoscale precision. As...
INSIDER Product: Photonics/Optics
New Products: November 2019 Photonics & Imaging Insider
The LDTC LAB series instruments from Wavelength Electronics (Bozeman, MT) combine low noise, high-end digital control laser diode driver technology with an...
Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have reported a new mechanism to speed up the charging of lithium-ion batteries...
INSIDER: Photonics/Optics
DESI Points 5,000 Robotic ‘Eyes’ at the Sky to Explore Dark Energy
A new instrument mounted on a telescope in Arizona aimed its robotic array of 5,000 fiber-optic “eyes” at the night sky on Oct. 22 to capture the first images...
White Papers: Aerospace
Design Tips for Large Plastic Reusable Containers
The standard size of a reusable plastic case would seem to preclude its use to package large, heavy items. However, just because a part is big and bulky doesn’t mean that it cannot utilize...
White Papers: Test & Measurement
Confocal Sensor Systems for Displacement, Distance, Position and Thickness
Confocal chromatic sensors provide the latest modern technology for displacement, distance, position and thickness measurements combined with maximum precision and...
White Papers: Aerospace
Urban Air Mobility Industry Study
Ensuring the safety of people on the ground and in the aircraft is the top concern for urban air mobility manufacturers and operators, a new industry study shows. But choosing the right standards and...
Question of the Week: Robotics, Automation & Control
Will Entire Planes Be Built By 'Assembler Robots?'
Commercial aircraft are typically manufactured in sections, often in different locations, and then flown to a central plant for final assembly. Researchers at MIT are hoping to change that.
White Papers: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
White Paper: Why Electromechanical Actuators are Increasingly Replacing Hydraulic Actuators
Hydraulic actuation has traditionally provided much of the muscle for the industrial revolution, but that functionality has come with a cost....
Special Reports: Robotics, Automation & Control
Robotics & Machine Vision - November 2019
Advances in robotics and machine vision are transforming the factory floor. To help you keep pace with the latest developments in industrial automation, we present this compendium of recent articles...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Robots Can Pick Up Any Object After Inspecting It
For decades, robots in controlled environments like assembly lines have been able to pick up the same object over and over again. More recently, breakthroughs in computer vision have enabled...
Articles: Semiconductors & ICs
2019 'Create the Future' Aerospace & Defense Category Winner: A Morphing, Foldable Drone
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Undercooled Metal Technology for Flexible Electronics
Undercooled metal technology was developed that features liquid metal (in this case, Field's metal, an alloy of bismuth, indium, and tin) trapped below its melting point in polished,...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
New Class of Two-Dimensional Materials
A process was developed for producing oxide perovskite crystals in flexible, free-standing layers. A two-dimensional rendition of this substance is intriguing because 2D materials have been shown to...
Briefs: Nanotechnology
Camera Enables Surgeons to More Easily Identify Cancerous Tissue
Many surgeons rely on sight and touch to find cancerous tissue during surgery. Large hospitals or cancer treatment centers may also use experimental near-infrared fluorescent agents that bind to tumors so surgeons can see them on specialized displays. These machines are costly,...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Method Enables Robots to Exchange Directed Messages
A novel approach was developed to improve communications range and allow for covert behavior using a team of robots for future multi-domain operations. Specifically, researchers...
Briefs: Materials
Motion-Powered, Fireproof Sensor
Researchers have created a motion-powered, fireproof sensor that can track the movements of firefighters, steelworkers, miners, and others who work in high-risk environments where they cannot always be seen....
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Soft Robotics Perception System
A perception system for soft robots was developed that is inspired by the way humans process information about their own bodies in space and in relation to other objects and people. The system includes a...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Flying Robot Mimics Rapid Insect Flight
Flying animals both power and control flight by flapping their wings. This enables small natural flyers such as insects to hover close to a flower but also to rapidly escape danger. Animal flight has...
Top Stories
Blog: Energy
A Solar Alternative: How to Power Devices with Indoor Light
Blog: Electronics & Computers
'Soil Fuel Cells' Support Water Treatment in Brazil
Blog: Software
Stanford Computer Model Predicts How COVID-19 Spreads in Cities
Blog: Software
Woodworking, Simplified: New Software Aids in Design
INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Printing Paper Structures for Mechatronics
Blog: RF & Microwave Electronics
Question of the Week
Will Indoor Light Someday Power Our Smart Devices?
Webcasts
On-Demand Webinars: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Machine Vision for Industrial Inspection
Upcoming Webinars: Materials
Protecting Power Electronics from EM and RF Interference
Upcoming Webinars: Electronics & Computers
Upcoming Webinars: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Upcoming Webinars: Software
Next-Gen Vehicle Architectures and the Role of HPCs
Tech Talks: Medical
Trending Stories
Podcasts: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Here's an Idea: A Bug-Inspired Building Material for Mars
Articles: Robotics, Automation & Control
The Modern Industrial Workhorse: PID Controllers
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Woodworking, Simplified: New Software Aids in Design
