A way is sought to allow consumers to connect and disconnect two rubber-impregnated cloth surfaces in a consistent manner that is easy to assemble and disassemble. The cloth surfaces are in close proximity; the length of the connection will be about two meters. The connection must exhibit longterm...

Georgia Tech researchers have developed a new protoype engine that uses up to 40% less fuel by running on solar power while in space and by fine-tuning exhaust velocity. The key to the engine improvements is the ability to optimize the use of available power. A traditional chemical rocket engine (attached to a satellite ready...

A company is looking for environmentally inert methods to change the moisture management properties of conventional apparel textiles. The moisture management effect changes the way in which water vapor, moisture, and other liquids move through textiles, and can be activated via pH, temperature,...

Nanotech Briefs(R) magazine is now accepting nominations for its third annual Nano 50 awards competition. The Nano 50 recognizes the top 50 technologies, innovators, and products with the greatest potential to advance the commercialization of nanotechnology. There is no cost to submit a nomination. All...

Researchers have created carbon briquettes with complex nanopores capable of storing natural gas at a density of 180 times their own volume and at one- seventh the pressure of conventional natural gas tanks. The briquettes are the first technology to meet the 180 to 1 storage to volume target set by the U.S. Department of Energy...

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a disposable sensor for detecting hazardous uranium ions, with sensitivity that rivals the performance of much more sophisticated laboratory instruments.According to the researchers, the sensor provides a fast, on-site test for assessing uranium...

A fluorescent coating is needed to alter emitted wavelength from UV LEDs. The goal of this project is to create a white light source with a uniform spectral output. Due to size and power constraints, LEDs are the preferred light source. To respond to this Tech Need, click here.

According to a recent report based on some of the first observations by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, fluids that flowed through cracks penetrating underground rock on ancient Mars may have produced conditions to support possible habitats for microbial life.

Researchers at the University of Michigan (U-M, Ann Arbor, MI) developed a robotic exoskeleton controlled by the wearer's own nervous system that could help users regain limb function. Healthy subjects first wore the exoskeleton to measure how the device affected ankle function before researchers tested the device on disabled...

Biologists at Yale University (New Haven, CT) are developing a process to trap viruses in habitats that force their extinction. Viruses are chemically lured into the wrong cells, thus preventing virus reproduction and alleviating disease. The research was conducted on phi-6 virus populations in environments containing different mixtures...

Three families of liquid-crystal polyester are available that can be used in the form of shaped articles, and can be prepared from the melt phase by extrusion, injection molding, compression molding, or other convenient means. View this technology here.

Engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have devised new analog circuits that will not drain power or create bottlenecks like previous models. The new class of analog circuits eliminates operational amplifiers while maintaining virtually all benefits of operational-amplifier-based circuits. The MIT circuits feature...

Case New Holland (CNH, Amsterdam, the Netherlands) has lessened the level of steering noise in the cabs of its 821 Case brand and LW190 brand wheel loaders by utilizing Char-Lynn Series 20 steering control unit from Eaton Hydraulics (Eden Prairie, MN). The cab noise issue was great enough to hold the assembly line while the matter was...

A joint effort between University of Washington (Seattle, WA) and Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, OH) researchers has revealed gyroscope-like structures in tobacco horn moth antennae that could lead to mechanical equivalents for miniature flying robots. The discovery allows the researchers to understand neural properties...

Nanotech Briefs magazine is now accepting nominations for its third annual Nano 50 awards competition. The Nano 50 recognizes the top 50 technologies, innovators, and products with the greatest potential to advance the commercialization of nanotechnology.

Free Webinar: Join us and other engineering professionals at the "Adobe and Alibre Technology Seminar" on Wednesday, February 28. Alibre, Inc. and Adobe Inc. are coming together to provide an informative online seminar that reviews how other leading-edge companies have used new and affordable technology to redefine their design...

The Air Force's Technology Horizons magazine is now Defense Tech Briefs (DTB),providing engineers with a one-stop source for the latest advances and tech transfer opportunities from Defense Department R&D programs. Commercially promising inventions resulting from this work are reported in DTB magazine, published bi-monthly...

Technologies are needed for the economical production of polymers that are based on today's generally accepted standards for "green" chemistry. Of particular interest are chemistries that produce safe chemicals, and/or that use safer solvents and auxiliaries, and/or that produce chemicals designed for degradation. Click here to respond...

Brown University researchers are creating a technology that will allow doctors and scientists to see inside living humans and animals, and watch their bones move in 3D as they run, fly, jump, swim, and slither. This high-resolution, high-speed imaging system will contribute to better treatments for knee, shoulder, wrist, and back...

The Board Design Test Vehicle is a method for objective evaluation and qualification of supplier capabilities for the fabrication of multilayer printed circuit boards. It is used to analyze and assess technical capability and reliability of products that are provided by a supplier, and provides a mechanism for supplier...

The clay film “Claist,” which comprises a natural or synthetic clay as a main component, exhibits uniform orientation of clay particle laminates. It is flexible, has a mechanical strength sufficient for use as a self-standing film, and has a structure in which laminates of clay particles are highly oriented. The...

A prototype wireless acoustic measurement system (WAMS) is one of two main subsystems of the Acoustic Prediction/ Measurement Tool, which comprises software, acoustic instrumentation, and electronic hardware combined to afford integrated capabilities for predicting and measuring noise emitted by rocket and jet...