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Blog: Green Design & Manufacturing
Have you heard of "fatbergs?" Researcher Asha Srinivasan explains how her team is turning masses of fat, oil, and grease into biofuel.
Question of the Week: Green Design & Manufacturing
Would You Use Carl Yee’s ‘Disappearing Ink?’
Our second INSIDER story today features a purposefully “lousy ink” – one that slowly fades after being printed. The gradual disappearance of the ink allows the paper to be used again and again.
Read the article, and let us know what you think.
This week's Question: Would You Use Carl...
Blog: Aerospace
Now Deploying from the ISS: A Harpoon, A Net, and Other Ideas for Cleaning Up Space Debris
Richard Duke spoke with Tech Briefs about the nature of the space-junk problem — and how his team plans to fix it.
INSIDER: Motion Control
An unexpected source recently identified a global Martian dust storm. The source was an actuator, or motor, that powers a lid to a funnel that takes in samples of powdered Martian...
INSIDER: Medical
An MIT-developed technology monitors blood glucose levels without needles or a finger prick. Early results show that the noninvasive technology measures blood glucose levels as...
Blog: Green Design & Manufacturing
Carl Yee invented a new kind of "Invisible Ink," so he could print paper without the guilt.
Question of the Week: Materials
Will Paint-On coatings Become a Popular Way to Cool Down Buildings?
Our lead INSIDER story today featured a paint-on polymer that cools down buildings, through a process known as passive daytime radiative cooling.
Read the article, and let us know what you think.
This week’s Question: Will Paint-On coatings Become a Popular Way to Cool Down...
Blog: Imaging
How Will VR and AR Impact Automotive Manufacturers?
How will the use of AR and virtual prototypes impact the role of automotive parts manufacturers? A reader asks our expert.
Blog: Materials
A new solution, applied like paint, cools down rooftops, buildings, water tanks, vehicles, and even spacecraft.
Question of the Week: Defense
What NASA Spin-Off Stands Out to You?
NASA technologies have led to many of the commercial products and innovative solutions we use every day, from memory foam and freeze-dried foods to exercise equipment and water purifiers. The October issue of Tech Briefs showcased a number of these NASA spinoffs.
Read the Tech Briefs feature article, and share...
Podcasts: Aerospace
To spot asteroids requires a community — one made up of everyone from NASA professionals to amateur astronomers to engineers at government labs.
Blog: Imaging
Robert Holmes spoke with Tech Briefs about his path from "amateur" astronomer to NASA pro.
News: Materials
The grand-prize-winning nanotechnology coating imparts anti-reflection and water-repellency capabilities to surfaces made of silicon, glass ,and some plastics, including Teflon.
Question of the Week: Medical
Can Digital-Health Apps Reliably Change Patient Behavior?
Last week on TechBriefs.com, a reader had the following question for our medical-device expert:
Blog: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Rivers Ingersoll spoke with Tech Briefs about why it is so important to have an up-close understanding of the hummingbird and nectar bat.
Question of the Week: Materials
Are You Currently Using Mechanical Test Equipment to Measure Strain?
One way to measure strain and deformation in a material is through digital image correlation and non-contact sensors. Next week, in a live webinar presentation, speakers from Trilion Quality Systems and MTS Systems Corp. will review how customers have used their imaging and...
Articles: Motion Control
The need for Ethernet-based communication within the factory has grown over the past 10 years. Detailed information about the tasks and performance of machines at every stage is critical...
Briefs: Data Acquisition
A technique was developed to quickly teach robots novel traversal behaviors with minimal human oversight. The technique allows mobile robot platforms to navigate autonomously in...
Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
In today’s fast-paced industrial settings, speed and efficiency are key. Reducing time spent on sourcing, installing, and testing motion control systems can play a big role...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
When heated, popcorn can expand more than 10 times in size, change its viscosity by a factor of 10, and transition from regular to highly irregular granules with surprising force. These unique qualities can...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Given the exact parameters of the task at hand, a robot can assemble a car door or pack a box faster and more efficiently than a human, but such purpose-built machines are not suited...
Application Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), under construction atop 8,737-foot El Peñón peak in northern Chile, is a partnership project of the National Science...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Multi-Voltage Motors
Simotics SD Pro low-voltage motors from Siemens (Munich, Germany) are suited for mains-fed operation or with a converter for voltages up to 690 volts. There is generally no need to use special filters at the...
Technology Leaders: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Electronics industry trends develop and change, technologies emerge and improve, and new applications bring new requirements and challenges. While this obviously has an impact on the...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Researchers have developed a method to simultaneously control diverse optical properties of dielectric waveguides by using a two-layer coating, each layer with a...
Q&A: Medical
A team led by UCSD has built a stretchable electronic patch that can be worn on the skin like a bandage and used to wirelessly monitor a variety of physical and electrical...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Researchers have 3D-printed an array of light receptors on a hemispherical surface. This discovery could lead to a “bionic eye” that could someday help blind people see or sighted...
Products: Test & Measurement
Temperature Transmitters
The Sitrans TH320/420 and TR320/420 WirelessHART (Highway Addressable Remote Transducer Protocol) temperature transmitters from Siemens, Erlangen, Germany, are available for a range of...
Articles: Sensors/Data Acquisition
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.
Top Stories
Blog: Power
My Opinion: We Need More Power Soon — Is Nuclear the Answer?
Blog: AR/AI
Aerial Microrobots That Can Match a Bumblebee's Speed
News: Energy
Blog: Electronics & Computers
Turning Edible Fungi into Organic Memristors
Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control
Microscopic Swimming Machines that Can Sense, Respond to Surroundings
INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: Transportation
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
Advantages of Smart Power Distribution Unit Design for Automotive...
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
Quiet, Please: NVH Improvement Opportunities in the Early Design...
Upcoming Webinars: Test & Measurement
From Spreadsheets to Insights: Fast Data Analysis Without Complex...
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
Battery Abuse Testing: Pushing to Failure
Upcoming Webinars: Connectivity
