Stories
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Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
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...
Application Briefs: Motion Control
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...
INSIDER: Motion Control
A new approach developed at MIT to building robots is based on a set of five millimeter-scale components, all of which can be attached to each other by a standard connector. Using this simple...
INSIDER: Motion Control
A high-sensitivity and low-noise MEMS accelerometer was developed using multi-layer metal structures composed of multiple metal layers. The accelerometer achieves 1 µG level...
Products: Imaging
Sensor Controller
The induSENSOR MSC7401 sensor controller from Micro-Epsilon, Ortenburg, Germany, is used for displacement and distance measurements and is operated with LVDT and LDR measuring gauges and...
Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
The population is aging and more people need healthcare support, which is having a big impact on the overall cost of medical care. As a result, authorities and health insurance companies are putting...
INSIDER: Motion Control
On a factory floor, robots are programmed to stop momentarily if a person passes by. The robot often freezes in place long before a person crosses its path. While robots can predict where a...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Researchers have developed a fundamentally new type of rotary electrical contact that addresses the two limitations of conventional brush/slip ring technology: 1) short operating lifetime due to sliding-contact wear,...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Improved Directed Flux Motor
Electromagnetic motors typically convert electrical energy into rotational mechanical energy and are employed across a wide array of applications. While motors represent relatively mature technology, practitioners continue to seek ways to enhance motor operation including a decrease in cost, drop in size/weight,...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Back pain is inevitable with constrained posture over a number of hours. Permanent damage such as premature spine wear is not uncommon in people who do not adopt proper ergonomic...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Double-Fed Induction Linear Alternator
This technology was developed to address the limitations of traditional, single-fed linear alternators that require permanent magnets, adhesive bonding organics, and heavy iron laminations for flux control. They experience eddy-current losses and require electromagnetic interference protection. Furthermore,...
Application Briefs: Materials
For wheelchair users, the feeling of uneven ground can seem all too familiar. Determined to make ride discomfort a thing of the past, Israel-based SoftWheel has completely reinvented the wheel for a...
Application Briefs: Communications
EMAG L.L.C. is the U.S. subsidiary of a major German machine tool builder that specializes in machine tools for the production of automotive, off-highway, agricultural, and oil field...
Briefs: Automotive
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center developed gear bearing technology that combines gear and bearing functions into a single unit that significantly improves gear drives for electrical, internal combustion, and turbine motors. The...
Articles: Photonics/Optics
There are a number of ways to extract data from a production line. In factory automation, sensors are used in work cells to gather data for inspection or to trigger other devices. These sensors fall into...
Briefs: Software
A new learning system improves a robot’s ability to mold materials into target shapes and make predictions about interacting with solid objects and liquids. The system, known as a...
Briefs: Motion Control
An ultra-low-power hybrid chip inspired by the brain could help give palm-sized robots the ability to collaborate and learn from their experiences. Combined with new generations of...
Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Employing fluid power to achieve mechanical motion can be implemented via hydraulics using uncompressible liquids or via pneumatics using compressible gasses; typically, air. The latter provides several distinct...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
In discussing fatigue life, it is important to distinguish between disc springs and conical spring washers, as they differ by design and intended usage. Conical spring washers are designed...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Researchers have developed a new and improved snake-inspired soft robot that is faster and more precise than its predecessor.
Products: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Rotary Ball Spline
NB Corporation of America (Hanover Park, IL) released a rotary ball spline that can be used for both rotational and linear motion. Applications include SCARA robots, the vertical shaft of assembly equipment,...
INSIDER: Motion Control
Researchers at Aalto University have discovered a surprising phenomenon that changes how we think about how sound can move particles. Their experiment is based on an experiment in which particles move on a...
INSIDER: Motion Control
Carnegie Mellon University researchers used computationally controlled knitting machines to create knitted objects that are actuated by tendons. The objects emerge from the knitting machines in their desired...
Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control
Doctoral Programs student Ayato Kanada came up with his leech-like robot in a place you’d least expect it: His bathroom.
INSIDER Product: Photonics/Optics
Software for Enhanced Laser Processing
Prima Power Laserdyne (Champlin, MN) released of the FASTTRIM™ CAD/CAM software for use with its multi-axis precision laser processing systems. The FASTTRIM all-in-one software enables...
News: Robotics, Automation & Control
Three new unmanned helicopters were unveiled at AUVSI’s XPONENTIAL show in Chicago.
Products: Test & Measurement
Position Sensors
Novotechnik, U.S., Southborough, MA, introduced Vert-X 2900 Series sensors that measure angular position and are available in single or redundant versions. Users can specify configurations including...
INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control
Recent advances in material science have enabled the fabrication of robots with deformable bodies or the ability to reshape when touched, but the complex design, fabrication, and control of soft robots...
Products: Test & Measurement
nanotron, Munich, Germany, introduced 360° Edge Analytics tools and location-aware wireless sensors for manufacturing and healthcare. The products automatically extract event information in real time. Position data is...
Top Stories
Blog: Design
Aerial Microrobots That Can Match a Bumblebee's Speed
Blog: Semiconductors & ICs
Revolutionizing the Production of Semiconductor Chips
News: Power
INSIDER: Unmanned Systems
World’s Smallest Programmable, Autonomous Robots
Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control
Tech Briefs Wrapped 2025: Top 10 Technology Stories
INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Webcasts
On-Demand Webinars: Power
Powering America’s EV Future: Connect, Collaborate, Innovate
Upcoming Webinars: Robotics, Automation & Control
Next-Generation Linear and Rotary Stages: When Ultra Precision...
Upcoming Webinars: Power
E/E Architecture Redefined: Building Smarter, Safer, and Scalable...
Upcoming Webinars: Energy
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Upcoming Webinars: Semiconductors & ICs
Advantages of Smart Power Distribution Unit Design for Automotive...
Upcoming Webinars: Automotive
Quiet, Please: NVH Improvement Opportunities in the Early Design...
