Manufacturing & Prototyping

Contact-Free 3D Hybrid Printing with New High-Performance Materials

Javier Ramos, CTO, and his team from Inkbit Corporation, Medford, MA, along with researchers from MIT and ETH Zurich, have developed a 3D inkjet printer that uses contact-free computer vision feedback to print hybrid objects with a broad range of new functional chemistries.

10 Tech-Savvy Holiday Gifts for Engineers

Choosing a present for an engineer is almost as daunting as performing the tasks of an engineer. With that in mind, we here at Tech Briefs aim to make your life easier with regards to the former.

Product of the Month

See the product of the month, Keysight Technologies' new compact, four-channel vector signal generator (VSG) capable of signal generation up to 8.5 GHz with 960 MHz of modulation bandwidth per channel.

New on the Market

See what's new on the market this month, including laser sensors from Micro-Epsilon, Coilcraft's isolation transformers, AXTAL's crystal oscillators, Endress+Hauser's 80 GHz radar sensors, Fairview Microwave's PIN-diode switches, and more.

Robust Serial Communications

Devices of all types are becoming more intelligent and may include native Ethernet. However, there are many opportunities where proven serial communications will remain the best choice for cost-effective communications.

Megawatt Motor Could Lead to Electrifying Large Aircraft

A team of MIT engineers is creating a one-megawatt motor that could be a key stepping-stone toward electrifying larger aircraft. The team has designed and tested the major components of the motor.

Novel Control Method in Tailless Aircraft

A research team at the Illinois Institute of Technology has for the first time demonstrated the use of a novel control method in a tailless aircraft. The technology allows an aircraft to be as smooth and sleek as possible — making it safer to fly in dangerous areas where radar scans the sky for sharp edges.

Best Practices When Selecting and Installing Surge Protection at Communications Sites

The digital transformation reshaping our world has made it easier to communicate with each other, but it has also made it costlier for companies to protect and maintain the equipment that makes that happen. Follow these sourcing tips and best practices.

Maximizing Flexibility in Distributed I/O and Valve Systems

The ability to mix modules and terminals together in the system means that machine builders can install I/O and valves in the physical locations and orientations that make most sense to the overall machine design.

Pump Considerations for Energy-Efficient Industrial Hydraulic Systems

Pump systems have advanced technically over many years. The recent innovations in demand-based variable speed hydraulic pump systems are the next step in lowering energy costs, reducing noise, and allowing for proactive maintenance opportunities.

Origami-Inspired Robot Uses Single Motor for Self-Folding and Movement

Centimeter-scale walking and crawling robots are in demand both for their ability to explore tight or cluttered environments and for their low fabrication costs. Pulling from origami-inspired construction, researchers have crafted a more simplified approach to the design and fabrication of these robots.

A Soft Robotic Gripper Mimics a Woven Structure

Dr. Song Kahye along with Professor Lee, Dae-Young have jointly developed a soft gripper with a woven structure that can grip objects weighing more than 100 kg with 130 g of material. To increase the loading capacity of the soft robot gripper, the team applied a new structure inspired by textiles.

A Combustion-Powered Quadrupedal Robot

Cornell researchers have combined soft microactuators with high-energy-density chemical fuel to create an insect-scale quadrupedal robot that is powered by combustion and can outrace, outlift, outflex, and outleap its electric-driven competitors.

AI-Powered Robot Control Optimizes a Challenging Handling Process

Like other small and medium-sized enterprises, HWL Löttechnik GmbH faces the realities of labor shortages, the ongoing energy crisis, and the intricate nature of production processes. To overcome these challenges, HWL adopted state-of-the-art technologies and the optimization of operational processes.

Modeling Considerations for Optimizing EV Motors

Optimizing EV motors before they hit the market is crucial. As the demand for clean energy vehicles grows, customers need assurance that their chosen vehicle is reliable and fulfills sustainability promises.

Zonal Electrical Architectures Cut Vehicle Wiring-System Cost, Complexity

Ultimately, zonal architectures require a fundamentally reorganized software structure that allows the OEM to independently, quickly, easily, and modularly adapt the control of the entire vehicle while minimizing the complexity in the wiring harness and the number of control devices.

New Products

See the new products this month, including Motor Stator Busbars for EVs; high-power, liquid-cooled configurable power solution; a compact, automated battery cycler and test system; and more.

Designing Solid-State Batteries with Mechanics in Mind

A team developed a framework for designing solid-state batteries (SSBs) with mechanics in mind. Their paper, published in Science, reviewed how these factors change SSBs during their cycling.

Improving Battery Performance with More Efficient Electrodes

To improve battery performance and production, Penn State researchers and collaborators have developed a new fabrication approach that could make for more efficient batteries that maintain energy and power levels.

Mistakes to Avoid When Integrating a Battery Test System

It’s not easy to configure a battery cycle test system for EV batteries and similar high-power batteries. This article covers the mistakes that engineers sometimes make when integrating a battery test system.

3D Printing a Robotic Hand with Bones, Ligaments, and Tendons

For the first time, researchers have succeeded in printing a robotic hand with bones, ligaments, and tendons made of different polymers using a new laser scanning technique.

Invertible Neural Network Tool Helps Optimize Airfoil Design

Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are building computational tools using artificial intelligence (AI) that can help optimize airfoil design for wind...

New Technique Helps Robots Pack Objects into a Tight Space

Anyone who has ever tried to pack a family-sized amount of luggage into a sedan-sized trunk knows this is a hard problem. Robots struggle with dense packing tasks, too.

5Ws of the Edible Battery

A team of researchers at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) has created a totally edible and rechargeable battery, starting from materials that are normally consumed as part of our daily diet.

Product of The Month

See the product of the month: Pickering Interfaces' new family of modular, flexible PXI/ PXIe microwave switches.