Explore the latest developments in motion control and automation. Discover innovative advances from NASA and major research labs in robotics, autonomous vehicles, industrial automation, PID controller applications, motor drives and power transmissions.
Learn how to use capacitive sensors in various measurement tasks and profit from unsurpassed stability and nanometer resolution — also in industrial applications. Capacitive sensors...
As generative AI continues to evolve, we are seeing many new applications emerge across industries. How much do you know about generative AI? Take this quiz to test your knowledge.
Encoders are often used in harsh industrial environments where they’re exposed to the same contaminants other machinery is, like dust, moisture, caustic chemicals,...
With the growing demand for items such as fruits, dairy products, and other resources in the food and beverage industry, the requirement for increased production...
What are the opportunities and risks AI offers in manufacturing? How can manufacturers successfully implement AI and prepare their workforce to integrate it into their processes? What’s its future outlook? Tech Briefs asked four industry experts in this roundtable.
Videos of the Month: Robotics, Automation & Control
See the videos of the month, including one on Purdue University researchers teaching robots how to navigate the swaying deck of a boat, one on a Carnegie Mellon-led team developing a soft robot to better understand an organism — the pleurocystitid — that existed 450 million years ago, and more.
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed a simplified, tool-less automated tow/tape placement (ATP) system. This invention enables several benefits that mitigate limitations associated with conventional ATP systems. Read on to learn more.
See the products of tomorrow, including the University of Maryland's "cooling glass"; the Reconfigurable Robotics Lab's sensor that can perceive combinations of bending, stretching, compression, and temperature changes using color; Tufts' tiny biological robots; and more.
Modern tooling machines comprise numerous sensors. Faster, more precise, higher productivity - these are the key requirements when developing new machine tools....
As smart factories become commonplace, standard ethernet cables are struggling to meet the increased requirements of industrial applications. igus® has developed continuous-flex Single Pair...
An inspection design method and procedure by which mobile robots can inspect large pipe structures has been demonstrated with the successful inspection of...
People who received gentle electric currents on the back of their heads learned to maneuver a robotic surgery tool in virtual reality and then in a real...
Engineers at Princeton University and Google have come up with a new way to teach robots to know when they don’t know. The technique involves quantifying the...
This white paper describes new and improved technology that offers engineers specific advantages in speed, accuracy and reliability over previous linear position...
Software is a key component of automation, and with AI, software developers will be able to create more customized and optimized solutions for various tasks and challenges.
Photoelectric (PE) sensors represent a discrete sensor technology widely used throughout industry. They use the presence or absence of light to provide an on/off output to supervisory automation and monitoring systems, and are often the better choice for sensing manufacturing products.
Called EELS (Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor), the self-propelled, autonomous robot was inspired by a desire to look for signs of life in the ocean hiding below the icy crust of Saturn's moon Enceladus by descending narrow vents in the surface that spew geysers into space.
Using a new type of dual-polymer material capable of responding dynamically to its environment, researchers have developed a set of modular hydrogel components that could be useful in a variety of soft robotic and biomedical applications.
A research team has developed a robotic system that can be unobtrusively built into the frame of a standard honeybee hive. Composed of an array of thermal sensors and actuators, the system measures and modulates honeybee behavior through localized temperature variations.
A team at ETH Zurich has developed an ultrasonically actuated glass needle that can be attached to a robotic arm. This lets them pump and mix minuscule amounts of liquid and trap particles.
Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) are used around the world to conduct difficult environmental, remote, oceanic, defense, and rescue missions in often unpredictable and harsh conditions.
Imagine you want to carry a large, heavy box up a flight of stairs. You might spread your fingers and lift the box with both hands, then hold it on top of your forearms and...
Passive thermal control systems have been developed over years of research and product development and will serve as enabling technology for NASA’s VIPER and future missions.
Surgical robots allow doctors to perform complex procedures with more precision, flexibility, and control than possible with traditional techniques. Surgical robots are also sometimes used in conventional open surgical procedures.