The aperture ion source was conceived to eliminate distortion in measurements of angular distributions of neutral atoms and molecules that require electronimpact ion sources. The approach simplifies the coupling between ion source and spectrometer while providing virtually distortion-free angular distributions and improved...

Generic, object-oriented fault models, built according to causal-directed graph theory, have been integrated into an overall software architecture dedicated to monitoring and predicting the health of mission- critical systems. Processing over the generic fault...

Check out the newly redesigned Jan/Feb issue of Lighting Technology. Cutting-edge research news, industrial lighting application stories, feature articles, products, and new technologies for license help bring in the new year.

One day in 2010, a Rutgers physicist watched a store employee showcase a kitchen gadget that vacuum-seals food in plastic. The simple concept – an airtight seal around pieces of food – just might apply to his research: developing flexible electronics using lightweight organic semiconductors for...

A low-cost smart paint detects microscopic faults in wind turbines, mines, and bridges before structural damage occurs. The environmentally-friendly paint uses nanotechnology to detect movement in large structures, and could shape the future of safety monitoring.The paint is formed using a recycled waste...

According to a New York Times article, a band of astronomers recently restarted the search for extraterrestrial life, after an appeal for financing. Last spring, the University of California’s Hat Creek observatory, a collection of radio telescopes that listen for radio broadcasts of...

In the microgravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS), telling the difference between an actual fire and a false alarm may not be simple. To understand how to detect smoke in space, researchers from NASA's Glenn Research Center flew the Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment (SAME) aboard the...

A team of scientists from the University of Nevada, Reno, installed fiber-optic distributed temperature sensing equipment to conduct long-term monitoring of climate change effects on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica and its potential for collapse. The equipment continually...

A Battery Management System (BMS) manages Lithium-Ion (Li-ion) batteries in a storage system for pulsed power weapons aboard Naval vessels. The system charges the batteries with a buck converter and uses analog equipment to measure signals. It then digitally converts signals for...

A recent partnership between the University of Southern California Viterbi’s Center for Advanced Transportation Technologies (CATT) and Audi’s Electronics Research Lab has provided USC with an Audi A8 fully equipped with a broad sensor suite that includes radar, lidar (for light detection...

UT Arlington engineers working with Army surgeons are developing a pliable, polymer mask embedded with electrical, mechanical, and biological components that can speed healing from disfiguring facial burns and help rebuild the faces of injured soldiers.The Biomask will be embedded with arrays of...

Scientists from the University of Bristol have developed a soap, composed of iron rich salts dissolved in water, that responds to a magnetic field when placed in solution. The soap’s magnetic properties were proved with neutrons at the Institut Laue-Langevin, which result from tiny iron-rich clumps...

The RSM2800 magnetic encoder from Novotechnik (Southborough, MA) counts turns, measures angles exactly, and remembers shaft positions without power. The RSM2800 is based on Novotechnik’s patented non-contact multi-turn for absolute 5,760° (16 turns) measurement. The wear-free technology combines advanced capabilities with...

Galil Motion Control (Rocklin, CA) offers the DMC-300xx Pocket Motion Controller series single-axis Ethernet motion controller. It combines a high-performance motion controller and an 800-W sine drive in a low-cost, compact 3.9" x 5.0" x 1.5" package. The DMC-300xx is also available as a controller-only model...

The A3200 MotionPAC from Aerotech (Pittsburg, PA) is a software-based PLC that is integrated with Aerotech’s A3200 motion controller to increase programming efficiency and decrease development time. The MotionPAC can be used independently for full machine control or in conjunction with AeroBasic™ programs....

The majority of all-terrain, search-and-rescue robots require large amounts of energy and are prone to overheating. Georgia Tech researchers have designed a new machine by studying the locomotion of a certain type of flexible, efficient animal. “By using their scales to control frictional...

Senate and House leaders announced last week that they are postponing work on two controversial anti-piracy bills, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the (PIPA) Protect IP Act, in the wake of large online protests that spurred some...