Articles

2023 Create the Future Design Contest: Sustainable Technology Finalist

Learn about the 2023 Create the Future Design Contest's Sustainable Technology Finalist: Maui Innovation Group Inc.'s leakproof valve.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including NASA Ames Research Center's artificial gravity modules, the Compliant Legged Articulated Robotic Insect, and injection-free diabetes control.

Microelectronics for Smarter Industrial Automation

Moving to a smarter manufacturing industry requires new technologies, including initiatives such as TSN for using Ethernet in real-time control applications.

Optimizing Multi-Robot Workcell Performance

One way to try to improve performance is to use multiple robots in the same workcell. In a multi-robot workcell, the tasks can be divvied up among the robots, with the expectation that the robots can perform their work concurrently and thus shorten the cycle time.

Optimize Charging for Maximum Solar Energy Harvesting

There is no one-size-fits-all answer. If you need the least expensive option, direct charging works. If you can spend more, you can opt for a PWM circuit. If the price is secondary and you need the absolute best performance, a true MPPT may be the best solution for your application.

Wireless Networking Expanding the Reach of Healthcare

Devices to remotely monitor patients’ health have been around for more than 20 years, but their use is rapidly expanding now. As networking technologies such as LoRaWAN are maturing, and artificial intelligence is being embedded in “smart” sensors, the medical device industry is motivated to take advantage.

Executive Roundtable: Autonomous Mobile Robots

Autonomous mobile robots are one of the most exciting technologies in the robotics and automation sector. How important is the integration between the hardware and software? How will AI influence the next generation of AMRs? Tech Briefs posed these questions to five industry experts to garner their views on the current status and future outlook for AMRs.

AI-Based Generative Engineering for Hybrid Vehicle Design

The future of transportation is shifting toward hybrid and electric vehicles (xEV), making the development of powertrain systems more intricate. Meeting stringent development timelines adds to the challenges faced by the industry.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including quantum rods, crack-resistant glass, and lunar landing pads.

Emerging Plasma FIB-SEM Techniques Advancing Battery Innovation

PFIB-SEM is a valuable technique that neatly complements other analytical and imaging methods, providing high-resolution 2D and 3D information for larger areas, as compared to traditional gallium FIB-SEM.

The Road to Net-Zero EV Development Labs

As the automotive sector continues to transition to a significant portion of their portfolio being electric, they must either build the needed test facilities to support this transition or update their current facilities.

GM Readies Fuel Cells for Commercial Deployment

After decades of concentrated development work, GM’s fuel-cell R&D unit Hydrotec is poised to deploy “the first applications that will be going commercial” of its hydrogen fuel-cell technology.

Advanced Electrical Architectures Demand New Developmental Strategies

As the need for sophisticated functionality increases, high-performance computers and zone controllers could be the heart of next-generation vehicle electrical platforms.

Pratt & Whitney, Virginia Tech Pioneer Laser-Optical Approach for Turbofan Engine Thrust Measurement

A longstanding partnership between Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) and Pratt & Whitney has resulted in a new laser-optical technology that aims to revolutionize in-flight thrust measurement.

Photonic Integrated Circuit Testing: Accelerating R&D From Lab to Fab

While the promise of smaller, better, faster, lighter devices enabled by integrated photonics technologies is indeed the ultimate goal for AIM Photonics, the actual path to high-volume manufacturing isn’t necessarily a smooth ride for PIC designers, developers, and engineers.

Infrared Technology for Chamber Clean Endpoint Detection

Efficient and complete chamber cleaning processes are critical for the success of CVD/ALD processes.

Leveraging Virtual Twins for Manufacturing Excellence

CenterLine’s successful adoption of the virtual twin showcases the technology’s tremendous potential for the automation industry. As virtual twin technology continues to evolve, it will disrupt industries even further.

An Effective Roadmap to Mobile Automation

To achieve the numerous benefits of mobile automation, manufacturers must take some key implementation considerations into account and follow essential guidelines. Doing so ensures that they apply the right mobile automation solution.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including microscale robots, LOTUS coating, and a wearable e-tattoo.

Advancing Battery Technology: The 2023 Battery Show Preview

The largest battery and electric vehicle technologies trade show in North America.

Revolutionizing Motion Control with Linear Motors

As the demand grows for increased productivity, higher product quality, rapid development time, and lower engineering costs, adopting linear motor technology is increasingly popular by leveraging modular linear motor designs.

How to Select the Right Cobot for Your Application

Capitalizing on the benefits cobots, of course, requires choosing the right cobot for the job. This article discusses five key considerations for selecting a cobot for your manufacturing application.

Direct Drive Motors: Delivering Reliability, Precision, and Performance

Direct drive motors have a long-standing history as a technology that has continually evolved and improved. This article introduces the technology behind direct drive motors, explores their advantages, and discusses example applications.

Six Considerations When Choosing Machine Vision in Collaborative Applications

Machine vision dates back to the beginning of the modern industrial robot age in the 1980s. Augmenting cobots with vision allows them to perform with higher precision, flexibility, and intelligence. However, integration is not a one-size-fits-all process.

Generative Design Puts Hydrogen Fuel Cell Development in High Gear

Toyota Research Institute of North America has developed a simulation-driven generative design method and applied it to the design of flow field microchannel plates, which direct the movement of fluid reactants in microreactors like hydrogen — oxygen fuel cells.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including a spoofing device, a deployable electrode, and a snake robot.

Mars: Past, Present, Future

Since the dawn of the space race, the idea of sending humans to Mars has been the subject of aerospace engineering and scientific studies. From the successful flyby of NASA’s Mariner 4 in 1964 to the Perseverance rover in 2020, the missions to Mars have come a long way.

Developing High-Fidelity Martian Regolith Simulants

Researchers at the Exolith Lab, University of Central Florida, are simulating realistic materials to be used for testing a range of technologies for Martian surface interactions and operations.

NASA’s New, Resilient Approach to Moon, Mars Exploration

As NASA builds a blueprint for exploration throughout the solar system, the agency is doing it with staying power in mind. The agency's new analysis process is designed to align its Moon to Mars exploration strategy and codify the supporting architecture.