High-power ultrasound, currently used for cell disruption, particle size reduction, welding and vaporization, has been shown to be 99.99 percent effective in killing bacterial spores after only 30 seconds of non contact exposure in experiments conducted by researchers at Penn State and Ultran Labs, Boalsburg, Pa.
In the experiments, bacterial spores contained in a paper envelope, were placed slightly (3mm) above the active area of a specially equipped source of inaudible, high frequency (70
Through precise control of the etching process, an inventor in Oxford University’s Photofabrication Unit has made the reliable production of High Resolution Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) with conductors down to 10 µm wide more of a cost-effective reality.
With increasing demands for greater miniaturisation and the use of flexible circuitry, the need for improved fabrication methods for high resolution printed circuit boards is becoming more important. PCBs currently include conductors with
Micro-sensors, developed by the CEIT Technology Centre with the help of Gas de Euskadi, operate by detecting gas leaks and reducing the risks of poisoning through the inhalation of carbon monoxide gas.
Through research involving help from Gas de Euskadi, CEIT has developed a system based on micro-sensors that can detect domestic gas leaks. The increasing use of natural gas in homes, the future regulations for carbon monoxide detection in domestic situations and the growing demand for
A unique University of Southern California design for self-organizing robots controlled by “hormonal” software is moving toward space.
At the Robosphere 2002 conference held at the NASA Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley November 14-15, Wei-Min Shen of the USC School of Engineering’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI) presented an overview of an audacious project to have pieces of the proposed half-mile-long Space Solar Power System satellite put themselves together–self-a
Penn State acousticians have achieved proof of concept for a compact ice cream freezer case based on “green” technology that substitutes sound waves for environment-damaging chemical refrigerants.
Dr. Steven Garrett, the United Technologies Corporation professor of acoustics at Penn State, leads the research team conducting the project with financial support from Ben & Jerry’s and its parent company, Unilever.
“In our proof-of-concept test system, there is no ’test freeze
The horse, a classic model of grace and speed on land, is now an unlikely source of inspiration for more efficient flight.
So says a group of University of Florida engineers who have recreated part of a unique bone in the horse’s leg with an eye toward lighter, stronger materials for planes and spacecraft.
The third metacarpus bone in the horse’s leg supports much of the force conveyed as the animal moves. One side of the cucumber-sized bone has a pea-sized hole whe
Process may lead to manufacture of nanoscale devices
A University at Buffalo engineer has developed a novel method for assembling nanoparticles into three-dimensional structures that one day may be used to produce new nanoscale tools and machines.
The work could be an important step in fulfilling the immense potential of nanotechnology because it gives scientists and engineers improved control and flexibility in the creation of materials for the manufacture of many nanoscale
Russian scientists of the Kovrov State Technology Academy have proposed a new technology for aluminium alloy welding based on using of two lasers. The first laser removes the oxide film by small portions from the surface of welded components, and the second laser executes the welding. Although the first phase lasts for about one millionth of a second, it is very important, since the refractory oxide film deteriorates the welding strength. The new method is also characterized by one more benefit: the
Airplane wings or railway rails are examples of mechanical components constantly submitted to stress. They consist of materials (metal alloys) with properties that may change under stress. To understand and improve such materials, it is essential to observe them on a microscopic scale. The ESRF and the ILL make today a step forward into looking deep inside engineering components. Thanks to the use of complementary neutron and synchrotron X-ray beams, these two centres offer a unique tool to measure s
Tethered Robotic Sub Helps Engineers Refine Computerized Navigation, Control Systems
In a new indoor tank filled with almost 43,000 gallons of water, Johns Hopkins engineers are developing and testing computer control systems to serve as the “brains” for some of the world’s leading deep sea robotic exploration vehicles. To promote advances in underwater robotics, the Whiting School of Engineering recently constructed the circular hydrodynamics tank, 14 feet deep and 25 feet in diamet
A research team of the Public University of Navarre (Basque Country), under the supervision of professors Jesus Zurita Gabasa and Jesus Mª Pintor Borobia, from the department of Mechanical, Energetic and Materials Engineering, is working in a project to improve and optimise vibrating tables that are used in the agri-foodstuffs sector. The project is being done by the request of the company Tecnologia Alimentaria Urtasun from Navarre (Basque Country) , manufacturer of this kind of machinery.
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are developing robotics technology that can aid in the cleanup of hazardous waste sites while helping to protect humans from serious injury in the process.
The telerobotic manipulation system enables cleanup efforts to be conducted remotely from a distant location, performing chores that would have to otherwise be done on site by humans.
Developed by the Department of Energy’s Robotics Crosscutting program, the system may be used in th
Phoning home from 93 billion miles away–only E.T. and other science fiction characters can do that. But with the help of National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) know-how, reality soon may catch up with imagination.
Conceptual designs for a “realistic interstellar explorer,” or RISE — a highly autonomous craft that would travel far beyond this solar system to collect scientific data — call for a laser-based communications link to Earth that relies in part on a recent NIST i
Mechanical engineers at Purdue University have discovered a simple and speedy method for pinpointing and fixing design flaws in new cars.
Douglas E. Adams, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue, said he stumbled across a mathematical solution to a design bottleneck in automotive engineering. Engineers now have to rely on complex, time-consuming mathematical models to solve design problems in new cars that are soon to begin rolling off the assembly line.
T
If you play pool, you`ll probably be familiar with that sinking feeling you get when you miss a pot, despite believing you`d lined up the perfect shot. But all that could change with the help of an interactive pool table and a virtual coach called James.
The table, invented by Lars Bo Larsen and his team at Aalborg University in Denmark, monitors the ball positions with a camera and uses the bright point from a moving laser beam to suggest which shots to play. It also shows you where
Scientists have developed and tested a new imaging technique that reveals the atomic structure of thin films with unprecedented resolution. For the first time, the technique has shown very precisely how the atoms of the first layers of a film rearrange under the action of the substrate on which the film is grown. The results of the study are reported as the cover story of the October issue of Nature Materials.
“This technique directly provides a very precise image of atomic positions within
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