Stories
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Products: Motion Control
Servo Controller IC
TRINAMIC Motion Control (Hamburg, Germany) announced the TMC-4671 fully integrated servo controller IC that provides field-oriented control for BLDC/PMSM and 2-phase stepper motors, as well as DC motors and...
Articles: Software
By 2028, virtually all major sensing and feedback systems benefiting from continuous monitoring will connect to devices currently known as the Internet of Things (IoT). As that...
Technology Leaders: Energy
Photovoltaic systems are continually evolving to improve their efficiency and financial viability. One trend is to move to larger strings of cells giving higher dc voltages to be...
Products: Electronics & Computers
Cable Carrier
igus, East Providence, RI, offers the E4.1L general-purpose energy chain (e-chain) cable carrier with high dynamics that includes a honeycomb strain relief block. It also includes separators for quick...
Briefs: Materials
The unique capabilities of soft robots are to bend, deform, stretch, twist, or squeeze in all the ways that conventional rigid robots cannot. Today, it is easy to envision a world in...
Briefs: Motion Control
Hydraulic-Based Spherical Robot
Current spherical robots rely upon rotating mechanical weights inside the sphere to change the center of gravity of the sphere, causing the robot to roll. The use of rotating mechanical weights is not optimal due to the reliance upon moving parts, which can present burdensome maintenance issues. It would be...
Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Microcontroller Altimeter (uCA)
Traditional altitude switch designs for harsh environments are mechanical in nature and operate by means of an inflatable bladder or bellows that mechanically depresses a pushbutton switch. The altitude trip point is set by mechanically adjusting the distance of the switch to the bellows. The mechanical action of the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
A method was developed for printing 3D structures composed entirely of liquids. Using a modified 3D printer, threads of water were injected into silicone oil, sculpting tubes made of one liquid within...
Application Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Worldwide, there are only a handful of manufacturers of electrical actuators for the process industry, and the Vienna, Austria-based company Schiebel Antriebstechnik GmbH is the smallest...
Articles: Test & Measurement
Presented by the Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT), the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) has been the premier manufacturing technology show in the Northern Hemisphere. IMTS is held every even...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
In the early years of manned flight, wing warping was used for lateral control of an aircraft. This technique consisted of a system of pulleys and cables used to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite...
Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
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.
Products: Photonics/Optics
DC Current Transducers
NK Technologies, San Jose, CA, introduced DT-FD Series DC current transducers that provide a large sensing window and the ability to safely monitor circuits with voltages up to 1500 VDC,...
Blog: Semiconductors & ICs
Researchers at Purdue University and the University of Virginia have designed peelable electronic films that can be cut and pasted onto any object, offering new sensing capabilities to...
Question of the Week: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Which Superpower Do You Want Most?
Our latest episode of “Here’s an Idea” showcased a variety of technologies designed to give the human user a kind of “superpower”: a Spider-Man-like adhesive; an Iron Man suit; a Jet Pack; and (thermal) invisibility.
Podcasts: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Engineers today are using their creativity to build a variety of superhero-like technologies that enhance our human capabilities, including exosuits, invisibility cloaks, and wall-scaling gloves.
What drives...
Blog: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
See five of the new products released this week at Sensors Expo 2018.
Articles: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Computers and software play a major role in force measurement and quality control. Whether in the engineering lab, quality control inspection area,...
Articles: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Life Alert's “I've fallen and I can't get up®!” became one of the most famous infomercial catchphrases in the late 1980s. The company's device, targeted at...
Products: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Coupled Inductors
Coilcraft, Cary, IL, offers LPD8035V Series miniature, high-voltage, 1:1 coupled inductors that provide 1500 Vrms and one-minute isolation (hipot) between windings. The inductors are available in...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A limitation of today's ultrasound devices is that they are difficult to use on objects that don't have perfectly flat surfaces. Conventional ultrasound probes have flat...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Blocking/Deblocking Resin Systems
Similar to resin systems currently used in composites for aerospace structural applications such as toughened epoxies, this innovation is a modification to traditional resin chemistry to prevent polymerization and crosslinking of the resin when heated and pressed in an autoclave or other common resin curing system....
Briefs: Aerospace
Polymer matrix composites are extremely attractive to researchers working on next-generation applications due to their lightweight properties and ability to withstand extreme conditions in...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Active Response Gravity Offload System
NASA has used two systems to train astronauts for weightlessness. The first is the Reduced Gravity Simulator that suspended the astronaut at an angle of 80.5 so that only 1/6th of his or her weight was supported by the ground, while the rest was supported by a pulley system. The other system, designed during...
Q&A: Semiconductors & ICs
Plastics are excellent thermal insulators — a quality that can be an advantage in some applications. But this property is less desirable in products such as plastic...
Products: Materials
Miniature IP68 Rated Data Recorder
The new SLICE IP68 data acquisition system from DTS (Seal Beach, CA) is designed to capture physical signals in challenging environments. Targeted at applications with size or mass...
Articles: Robotics, Automation & Control
Step motors are widely used in automation due to their high resolution, precision positioning, minimal control electronics, and low cost. As an open loop system, traditional...
Articles: Transportation
When engineer Mark Doyle started to put together plans for an exoskeleton to support surgeons in 2012, he wanted to develop a lightweight product that they could wear comfortably for...
Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Some species of sharks must constantly swim to keep water flowing over their gills to stay alive. That same concept also tends to apply to technology — once a technology stops evolving and moving forward, it's...
Top Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
2025 Holiday Gift Guide for Engineers: Tech, Tools, and Gadgets
INSIDER: Research Lab
Scientists Create Superconducting Semiconductor Material
Blog: Software
Quiz: Materials
Blog: Aerospace
Tech Briefs Wrapped 2025: Top 10 Technology Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: AR/AI
The Real Impact of AR and AI in the Industrial Equipment Industry
Upcoming Webinars: Motion Control
Next-Generation Linear and Rotary Stages: When Ultra Precision...
Upcoming Webinars: Energy
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Podcasts: Medical
How Wearables Are Enhancing Smart Drug Delivery
Podcasts: Power
SAE Automotive Podcast: Solid-State Batteries
Podcasts: Power
