Stories
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Articles: Motion Control
“Cobots” allow companies of almost any size to automate processes that were previously out of reach.
Articles: Electronics & Computers
Top prizes in the 2019 contest were awarded on November 8 in New York City.
Briefs: Automotive
Researchers have developed a self-contained wheel unit that combines a wheel and an electric motor.
Application Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Salty air the Dutch city of Harlingen causes exposed metal parts to corrode.
Briefs: Automotive
Stronger and flexible, polyimide aerogels provide insulation and structural support.
Blog: Sensors/Data Acquisition
New measurements could help experts guess the location and size of the next earthquake.
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Our expert examines the pros and cons of welding, adhesives, and other metal joining methods.
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
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: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
In the digital age, the measurement of rotation of a mechanical shaft on a motor or a rotating instrument knob needs to be done quickly and efficiently....
5 Ws: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Who
Anyone using standard, coated paper in conventional printers.
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A smartphone app was developed that allows a user to easily program any robot to perform a mundane activity such as picking up parts from one area and delivering them to another. The app, called VRa, uses...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A set of five tiny fundamental parts can be assembled into a wide variety of functional devices including a tiny “walking” motor that can move back and forth across a surface or...
Briefs: Internet of Things
Soft robots have a distinct advantage over rigid robots: they can adapt to complex environments, handle fragile objects, and interact safely with humans. Made from silicone, rubber, or other stretchable polymers, they...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
3D printers that build small parts layer by layer from melted plastic can take up to an hour to produce a pocket-sized piece. This process is far too slow for the mass-production of components...
NASA Spinoff: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Developing meals for long-duration missions is leading to personalized 3D-printed food.
Question of the Week: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Are You Encouraged by the Increasingly Sophisticated Capabilities of Today’s Robots?
Researchers from Boston Dynamics have stuck the landing and created a robot that can perform a full gymnastics routine. Watch the performance on Tech Briefs TV.
Blog: Aerospace
A new NASA challenge asks university teams to find new ways to drill down to the ice on the Moon and Mars.
Q&A: Energy
Robert F. Shepherd is Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. He is leading a team exploring the use of hydraulic fluids in soft robots to also serve...
Products: Lighting
Micromachining Subsystem
SCANLAB GmbH (Puchheim, Germany) has introduced a new member of its precSYS product line. Five-axis precSYS subsystems enable industrial ultra-short-pulse (USP) laser micromachining of flexible, definable...
Briefs: Materials
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses magnetic fields and radio waves to create images of organs and tissues in the human body, helping doctors diagnose potential problems or diseases. Doctors use MRI to...
Articles: Internet of Things
Programmable automation controllers (PACs) play the primary role in IIoT systems. Also referred to as machine controllers, PACs provide a centralized architecture; they act as the central...
Articles: Semiconductors & ICs
Stepper motors and stepper-based linear actuators are often selected for open-loop motion control devices and equipment. These can be found in a wide range of products and systems...
Q&A: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Soon-Jo Chung is Bren Professor of Aerospace in the Division of Engineering and Applied Science (EAS) at Caltech and research scientist at Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He and his team...
Application Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Millions of gallons of crude oil were released into the Gulf of Mexico during the seabed oil drilling catastrophe of 2010. Numerous strategies to stop or stem the oil flow...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Innovators at NASA's Glenn Research Center have developed a new method for making small-diameter, high-grade ball bearings that are less than 0.25” in diameter thanks to the development of a new alloy made...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Even the smallest mechanical pumps have limitations, from the micro-fabrication techniques required to make them to the fact that there are limits on their size. A laser-driven photoacoustic microfluidic pump was...
Briefs: Energy
Two very challenging problems facing the U.S. and the world are energy security and global climate change, largely due to dependence on fossil fuels. Cost-effective technologies have been developed that are capable...
Briefs: Imaging
Automated Object Detection in an Image
Recent developments in machine vision have demonstrated remarkable improvements in the ability of computers to properly identify objects in a viewing field. Most of these advances rely on color-texture analyses that require target objects to possess one or more highly distinctive, local features that can be...
Top Stories
Blog: Software
Going for Gold in Winter Olympic Curling
Blog: Energy
Beyond Lithium: The Rise of Calcium-Ion Energy Storage
Blog: Electronics & Computers
The Kitchen Tech Hack Aiming to Revolutionize 3D Printing
Blog: Materials
A Shield for the Next Generation: Lithium Batteries Get a Major Upgrade
Blog: Energy
Batteries that Can Withstand the Cold
Q&A: Physical Sciences
Webcasts
Webinars: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
The Over-Engineering Trap: Aligning Custom Equipment Specs with Operational...
Webinars: Communications
Where Time and Frequency Converge: Multi-Channel RF Analysis for Radar and...
Webinars: Software
Driving Reliability: Simulation Driven EMI Techniques for Modern Vehicle...
Editorial Webinars: Software
Smarter Aerospace Manufacturing & Design with Digital Twins and Agentic AI
Summits: AR/AI
2026 Battery & Electrification Summit (Online)
Podcasts: Information Technology
Arm’s Agentic AI CPU: Engineering the Next Generation of AI Data Centers
