Access the latest developments used in sensor-related technologies. Learn more about essential applications for specialized sensors and durable designs for extreme conditions.
Precision agriculture uses sensors to monitor soil and help farmers improve yields. However, powering these sensors with continuous, uninterrupted power is challenging due to limited battery capacity and limited development of renewable power. To help address farmers' power needs, Northwestern University researchers have developed a fuel cell the size of a paperback that captures energy as microbes break down organic matter, powering underground sensors for agriculture and environmental monitoring.
Researchers at Saarland University created AI-powered smart wheels that sense user intent to provide smoother acceleration, braking, and steering. The technology could make carts, beds, wheelchairs, and other wheeled systems easier and safer to use. Read on to learn more.
Explore how Alliance Sensors Group’s LVIT linear position sensors deliver long life, high reliability, and cost efficiency in demanding environments. Learn how they reduce maintenance...
A team at Carnegie Mellon University is innovating statistical analysis and data science to revolutionize the world of sports. Read on to learn more about it.
Physical AI may have been the dominant keyword at CES 2026, but behind all the hype around that, there were still plenty of companies on hand in Las Vegas focused on less flashy headlines. Read on for some examples of companies working on the power electronics required behind the scenes to make our potential artificial intelligence future possible.
See the new products, including Flexxbotics' enhanced MQTT connector driver within the Flexxbotics open-source project on GitHub; IKO International's LCRB series — an ultra-lightweight crossed roller bearing series with a unique inner and outer ring construction; Bosch Sensortec's BMI5 platform, a new generation of inertial sensors designed to provide consistent, high-precision performance across multiple device classes; and more.
See the products of tomorrow, including Chalmers University of Technology's new sensor that is well suited to humid environments — and actually performs better the more humid it gets; a new fabrication technique that can produce multifunctional “smart synthetic skin” from a research team at Penn State; and RMIT University researchers' flexible nylon-film device that generates electricity from compression and keeps working even after being run over by a car multiple times.
Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed an Earthbound robotic training system called “ARGOS” for short. It can actively simulate an astronaut’s weightlessness in space by using an overhead runway and bridge drive system to partially or fully offload their weight using attached cables, effectively suspending them off the ground. Read on to learn more.
By folding AI algorithms into a camera’s sensor itself, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have now eliminated a data-processing bottleneck that has long plagued the performance of spectral imaging technology. The result is an intelligent sensor capable of identifying chemicals and characterizing materials quickly and efficiently. Read on to learn more.
Stony Brook University researchers led a new study published in Physical Review Letters that overturns long-standing assumptions about how capacitors operate when engineered at the nanoscale, offering a clearer scientific foundation for future nanoscale electronic devices. Read on to learn more.
Cornell researchers have used high-resolution 3D imaging to detect, for the first time, the atomic-scale defects in computer chips that can sabotage their performance. Read on to learn more.
Laser invention to steer the next generation of moon landers…why Mars rovers keep getting stuck in the sand…are nuclear micro reactors the future of spacecraft propulsion? Read all about it in this compendium...
How smart actuators are revolutionizing vehicle technology…Qualcomm's superbrains are here to help with automated driving…building smarter safety systems through sensor collaboration. Read...
Researchers at Penn State have designed a new type of field-effect transistor that can facilitate responsive and versatile sensing, even in liquid-rich environments like the human body. Read on to learn more.
Read about innovations in smart sensors, super‐resolution microscopy, ultra high‐temperature measurement, and more in this compendium of articles from the editors of Tech Briefs and Aerospace and Defense...
See what's new on the market, including Aerotech's PICAlignTM architecture, a new active alignment solution designed to overcome the manufacturing challenges of high-volume Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) production; PI's 6-axis piezo alignment platform: the P-616.65S Nano-Cube® 6-DOF piezo-flexure nano positioning system; a high-impedance miniaturized ferrite-core wire wound inductor from Coilcraft; and more.
Last December, Tech Briefs readers were asked to select one product from our 2025 Products of the Month to be named Readers’ Choice Product of the Year. Thanks to all of our readers who cast their votes. Read on for the three 2025 winners.
Engineering the next generation of surgical robots...conductive skin gives robots the human touch...how vision integration is transforming collaborative robotics. Read about these innovations and more...
Achieving accurate representations of the interactions at play in MEMS devices requires multiphysics simulation. Check out the following ebook, MEMS Device R&D, for four stories on how organizations around the world are...
Building on her experience volunteering at retirement homes, Carnegie Mellon researcher Jasmine Li decided to focus her research on assistive robotics that help people with everyday tasks....
Sea stars are creatures whose movements involve the coordination of hundreds of tiny tube feet to navigate complex environments — despite the lack of a central brain. In other words, it’s as though...
Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a next-generation wearable system that enables people to control machines using everyday gestures — even...
One of the 2026 CES Innovation Awards honorees in the robotics category is AEON — a humanoid robot developed to address labor shortages as industries adapt to ageing populations and shifting workforce demands.
A major challenge in self-powered wearable sensors for health care monitoring is distinguishing different signals when they occur at the same time. Researchers from Penn State and China’s Hebei University of Technology addressed this issue by uncovering a new property of a sensor material, enabling the team to develop a new type of flexible sensor that can accurately measure both temperature and physical strain simultaneously but separately to more precisely pinpoint various signals.
When it comes to haptic feedback, most technologies are limited to simple vibrations. But our skin is loaded with tiny sensors that detect pressure, vibration, stretching and more. Now, Northwestern University engineers have unveiled a new technology that creates precise movements to mimic these complex sensations. Read on to learn more.
A new study from NC State University combines three-dimensional embroidery techniques with machine learning to create a fabric-based sensor that can control electronic devices through touch. Read on to learn more.
