Motion Control/​Automation

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

New Capabilities for Grasp-Assisting Gloves

Applications include aiding patients with impaired hand muscle strength and in manufacturing for operating tools for extended periods of time.

Articles: Data Acquisition

Executive Roundtable: Facility & Network Security

Tech Briefs asks industry experts about cybersecurity, the cloud, wireless devices, and securing a remote workforce.

Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Ultra-Thin, Battery-Free Strain Sensors for Industrial Robotic Arms

These nanomaterial strain sensors are ten times more sensitive when measuring minute movements compared to existing technology.

NASA Spinoff: Wearables

NASA Brain-Training Technology Makes Smart Glasses

With a technique first used at NASA, researchers are making glasses that can improve your concentration.

Articles: Aerospace

Multipurpose Batteries Make it Easier to Get Around on Mars

NASA-funded research by Clemson University scientists could lead to the creation of lighter, faster-charging batteries suitable for powering a spacesuit or even a Mars rover.

Facility Focus: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Facility Focus: University of Texas Cockrell School of Engineering

Some of the technologies coming from the UT labs include COVID antibody tests, self-watering soil, and the "DRACO" robot.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

4D Printing of Morphing Structures

A new method manufactures complex shapeshifters for soft robots and biomedical implants.

5 Ws: Manufacturing & Prototyping

5 Ws of the Screen-Printed Battery

The battery can be used in flexible, stretchable electronics for wearables as well as soft robotics.

Briefs: Materials

Linking Materials May Transform Robots Made of Robots

A new method of linking materials with unique mechanical properties could enable robots made of robots.

Briefs: Aerospace

Split-Ring Torque Sensor

This optical-based device measures position, velocity, and torque.

INSIDER: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Chemically Driven Wheels “Morph” Into Gears

University of Pittsburgh researchers have utilized a catalytic reaction that causes a two-dimensional, chemically coated sheet to spontaneously “morph” into a three-dimensional...

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control

T-REX Rover Looks to the Dark Side

The Tethered permanently shadowed Region EXplorer (T-REX) rover, designed and built by a team of Michigan Technological University students – is designed to provide reliable power and data to other...

Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control

Experts Weigh In: How Will a Robotic Future Impact Nature?

A survey of over 170 experts assessed the opportunities and challenges that drones, robots, and autonomous systems could have for urban nature and green spaces.

Products: Electronics & Computers

New on the Market: January 2021

Radar sensors, cameras, RF processing systems, and more.

Facility Focus: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Facility Focus: Stanford University School of Engineering

Stanford University’s School of Engineering has been at the forefront of innovation for nearly a century

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

New Method Makes Computer Memory from Titanium Oxide

The material, commonly found in house paint, can be used in a device to more efficiently process information.

Articles: Energy

Products of Tomorrow: January 2021

A malaria-test "bandage"; underwater navigation via sound; and a biodegrading, implantable sensor.

Blog: Robotics, Automation & Control

A Spiraling Robotic Gripper 'Twines' Like a Plant

As engineering professor Mable Fok saw how the pole beans in her garden wrapped tightly around any objects nearby, she had an idea:

What if a robotic gripper could do the same...

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control

Robots Learn to Drive a Car in a Few Easy Lessons

USC researchers have developed a method that could allow robots to learn complicated new tasks, like setting a table or driving a car, from observing a small number of demonstrations.

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control

Materials Transform Robots Made of Robots

Scientists from the U.S. Army and MIT created a new way to link materials with unique mechanical properties, opening up the possibility of future military robots made of robots. The method...

INSIDER: Robotics, Automation & Control

Laser Jolts Microscopic Robots into Motion

A Cornell University team has created microscopic robots that incorporate semiconductor components, allowing them to be controlled – and made to walk – with standard electronic signals. The...