Sensors/Data Acquisition

Sensors

Access the latest developments used in sensor-related technologies. Learn more about essential applications for specialized sensors and durable designs for extreme conditions.

Stories

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Polymer Mixture Creates Ultra-Sensitive Heat Sensor

An ultra-sensitive heat sensor was developed that is based on the fact that certain materials are thermoelectric. The electrons in a thermoelectric material move from the cold side to the warm...

INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Machine Intelligence to Build Soft Machines

Soft machines — a subcategory of robotics that uses deformable materials instead of rigid links — are an emerging technology commonly used in wearable robotics and biomimetics (e.g.,...

Question of the Week: Wearables

Would You Wear a Microgrid?

Our April issue of Tech Briefs highlighted a wearable microgrid that powers electronics by harvesting energy from the wearer’s body. The wearable (shown here) has three components: sweat-powered biofuel cells, motion-powered devices called triboelectric generators, and energy-storing supercapacitors. All parts are...

Blog: Connectivity

'Floating Sensors' Spread Like Dandelion Seeds

Dropped by a drone, the battery-free devices hover 100 meters in the air.

Videos: Materials

5 High-Tech Materials That Sense and Detect

A variety of electronics and sensors are being integrated into today’s materials to spot a variety of parameters: from damage to a product design to stress on your heart.

Question of the Week: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Do You See Valuable Uses for 'Floating Sensors?'

Researchers from the University of Washington want to send out sensors in the same way that a dandelion distributes seeds.

INSIDER: Medical

Fast Low-Cost Sensor Prototyping for Wearable Technology

Engineers at UC Berkeley have developed a new technique for making sensors for wearable technology that enables medical researchers to prototype-test new designs much faster and at a...

INSIDER: Nanotechnology

Atomic Scale Semiconductor Chips — Pushing the Limits

The information age created over nearly 60 years has given the world the internet, smart phones, and lightning-fast computers. Making this possible has been the doubling of the number...

INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Perovskite High-Performance Transistors Can Be Printed

A Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) research team has improved the performance of a p-type semiconductor transistor using inorganic metal halide perovskite. One of...

5 Ws: Materials

5 Ws of Floating Sensors

Wireless sensors inspired by Dandelions could be used to monitor climate change.

INSIDER: Medical

Piezoelectric Polymers

A Penn State-led team of interdisciplinary researchers have developed a polymer with robust piezoelectric effectiveness, resulting in 60% more efficient electricity generation than previous iterations.

Special Reports: Robotics, Automation & Control

Aerospace & Defense Sensing - April 2022

Designing the connected battlespace of the future...mobile robots that detect and alert soldiers to dangers in real time...'electronic skin' sensors capable of mimicking the dynamic process of human...

Special Reports: Motion Control

Medical Robotics - April 2022

Novel biosensors set to revolutionize brain-controlled robotics...micro-robots propelled by air bubbles...a smart artificial hand...major advances in exoskeleton technology. These are just a few of the medical...