Detectors

Carbon-Based Air Quality Sensor

This affordable, scalable sensor could be a vital tool in the fight against air pollution and its associated health risks.

5 Ws of Robot Healthcare Helpers

A research team programmed two robots — a humanoid figure and a robotic arm — to measure human physiological signals.

Ultra-Sensitive Flow Microsensors

The sensors could be used in medical applications such as neuroscience and metabolism processes.

System Helps Drones Detect and Avoid Power Lines

This technology provides drones sufficient time and distance to react, avoid wires, and navigate follow-on maneuvers.

Disease-Sniffing Device Rivals a Dog's Nose

The miniaturized detector mimics the process dogs use to detect cancer and other diseases by smell.

Extreme Low-Frequency Hydrophone

Applications include monitoring of earthquakes and tsunamis as well as manmade infrasonic sources such as boats.

Chip Delivers COVID-19 Test Results on a Smartphone

Programmed magnetic nanobeads are used to detect the virus in 55 minutes or less.

Device Measures Toxic Lead in Minutes

The portable lab-on-a-chip detects many contaminants in water supplies.

Product of the Month

A smart temperature transmitter delivers measurements via Bluetooth.

Wearable Sensor Detects Toxic Gases, With a Hologram

Wearable gas sensors being developed at the Pohang University of Science & Technology (POSTECH) display an instantaneous visual holographic alarm.

A Warning System for Self-Driving Cars Learns from Failures

The A.I. system learns from thousands of real-traffic situations, when a self-driving car stopped unexpectedly.

Smartphone-Based Diabetes Detector

This technology could be a low-cost, in-home alternative to blood draws and clinic-based screening tools.

Products of Tomorrow

NASA's graphene composites, textile pressure sensors, and a better kind of glass.

High-Power, Portable Terahertz Laser

The instrument could bring powerful sensing and imaging capabilities into hospitals, airports, or other settings.

Would You Wear On-Body Sensors?

This month’s Here’s an Idea episode highlighted a number of on-body sensors. Penn State professor Larry Cheng, for example, found a way to 3D-print a sensor directly on the skin (shown in the above image),...

With A.I., Robotic Exoskeletons Gain Self-Control

Robotics researchers are developing exoskeleton legs capable of thinking and making control decisions on their own using sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

As Vehicles Becomes More Complex, What Should Be Tested First?

Software and electrical engineering is converging in today’s vehicles. A reader asks our expert: “How do you decide which items to test first?”

A Robot ‘Hears,’ Using Ear from a Locust

A robot being developed at Tel Aviv University "hears" electrical signals, thanks to a natural sensor: the ear of a dead locust.

Hyperspectral Cameras and Data Quality

Any hyperspectral system needs to maintain a stable and accurate radiometric and spectral calibration.

Add LiDAR to ADAS for Pedestrian Safety

While ADAS has improved freeway and high-speed driving, the basic need for collision mitigation with pedestrians and bicyclists has mostly remained unaddressed.

New Products

Rain detectors, beacons, flow meters, and more.

The Sensing Systems That Make ADAS Work

See what kinds of sensors are supporting self-driving vehicles.

Integrated Building Systems for Healthcare Facilities

A "smart building" platform incorporates hardware, software, and cloud analytics to form a digital "backbone."

Perseverance on Mars: The Journey Begins

Perseverance is the first leg of a round trip to Mars.

Facility Focus: NASA Langley Research Center

See how NASA Langley tests a variety of advanced aircraft concepts. including ways to make flying both cleaner and quieter.

Quantum-Limit-Approaching Chemical Sensing Chip

Study shows improvements to chemical sensing chip that aims to quickly and accurately identify drugs and other trace chemicals.

Researchers Acquire 3D Images with LED Room Lighting and a Smartphone

Researchers are tapping into dynamically controlled LEDs to create a simple illumination system for 3D imaging.