Topic

Hall Thrusters Could Be Key to Mars Exploration

With NASA’s renewed interest in returning to Mars, the need for advanced technologies has increased. Now, a team at U-M has discovered that Hall thrusters can generate more thrust at smaller...

PACE Yourself: U.S. Marine Band Tries to Match Spacecraft’s Acoustic Levels

The Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission Systems Engineer Gary Davis has enlisted the help of the U.S. Marine Band to see if the musicians can...

How Much Do You Know About Additive Manufacturing?

How much do you know about additive manufacturing? Test yourself with this quiz.

Application Spotlight: Plasma Cutting Rivals Laser Precision, Thanks to Servo Smoothness

The Accu-Kut High-Definition Plasma Cutting System is attracting industry attention for the outstanding smoothness and precision of its finished parts....

Volta’s Electric Truck Is U.S. Bound

Volta Trucks has been operating its all-electric Volta Zero delivery trucks in Europe for three years. Now, the map is expanding. Fleet operators soon will be able to get behind the wheel of a Class 6...

Volkswagen Plants Autonomous-Testing Flag in Austin

Volkswagen Group of America announced on July 6 that it would launch an autonomous test fleet of ID.Buzz EVs in Austin, Texas. The company said that the three-year program would...

5Ws of ‘Talking’ Concrete

A new technology allows concrete to “talk,” decreases construction time and how often concrete pavement needs repairs while also improving the road’s sustainability and cutting its carbon footprint.

Rational Design of Drug Delivery Systems

Many drugs must overcome biological barriers and find their way to diseased tissues to be therapeutically effective. A new technology uses a natural ligand called gambogic acid that avoids competition...

Interviews from 2023 International Microwave Symposium

During the 2023 International Microwave Symposium, Tech Briefs conducted interviews with several exhibitors about the new RF and microwave technologies they're launching.

Compound Reverses Effects of Potentially Deadly Drugs

Drug overdoses in the United States have risen sharply in the last two decades. To identify a more universal treatment for drug overdose, a team of scientists tested a chemical compound as...

Biodegradable Millirobot Releases Targeted Drugs

Millirobots have the potential for controlled release of drugs in targeted positions in the intestines. “We named this nanofiber-based soft millirobot ‘Fibot’. It can be used for...

Mars: Past, Present, Future

Since the dawn of the space race, the idea of sending humans to Mars has been the subject of aerospace engineering and scientific studies. From the successful flyby of NASA’s Mariner 4 in 1964 to the Perseverance rover in 2020, the missions to Mars have come a long way.

NASA’s New, Resilient Approach to Moon, Mars Exploration

As NASA builds a blueprint for exploration throughout the solar system, the agency is doing it with staying power in mind. The agency's new analysis process is designed to align its Moon to Mars exploration strategy and codify the supporting architecture.

Robotic Exploration of Caves on Mars

University of Arizona engineers have developed a system that allows autonomous vehicles to scout out underground habitats for astronauts. Their robust platform could allow robotic explorers to operate underground or even submerged in liquid environments.

Inside Story: Selecting and Implementing Automation Solutions

To find out more about selecting and implementing automation solutions, MDB recently spoke with Dave McMorrow, Technical Director, MMT Automation and Michael Wall, Technical Director, Somex Automation, an MMT company.

Developing High-Fidelity Martian Regolith Simulants

Researchers at the Exolith Lab, University of Central Florida, are simulating realistic materials to be used for testing a range of technologies for Martian surface interactions and operations.

Innovations Drive Improved Orthopedic Prosthetic Implants

The first ever bone plate that was implanted in a human body is reported to be in the 1560s, centuries before the advent of anesthesia.

Enchanted Tools: Revolutionizing Robotics with Mirokai

How can we fully integrate robots into our daily lives in the near future? This challenge is currently being addressed by French startup Enchanted Tools.

Astronaut Smart Glove for Mars EVA Spacesuits

One of the most demanding needs for dexterous and sustained subtle control inputs during EVA could be the operation of drones as robotic assistants. The Astronaut Smart Glove amplifies the effects of subtle finger, hand, and wrist gestures while wearing existing rigid pressurized spacesuit gloves.

Linear Motion Design Considerations for Medical Device OEMs

Linear actuators — in particular, electromechanical linear actuators — have become integral components of modern medical devices because of their high precision, accuracy, and ability to deliver repeatable motion control.

Earthly Twin Offers Test Bed for NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover

OPTIMISM, the full-scale engineering model of Perseverance, on Earth is helping NASA assess the risk of potential driving hazards on the surface of the Red Planet.

From the Editor - How 3D Printing Could Improve Spinal Surgery

Medical device company Mighty Oak Medical recently announced a technical partnership with HP for 3D printed healthcare applications to improve pedicle screw placement in spinal procedures.

New Class of Microrobots Could Travel in the Body

A team of engineers has designed a new class of tiny, self-propelled robots that can zip through liquid at incredible speeds — and may one day even deliver prescription drugs to hard-to-reach...

3D Imaging Sensor Offers High Angular Resolution

A research team has developed a 3D imaging sensor that has an extremely high angular resolution, which is the capacity of an optical instrument to distinguish points of an object separated by a...

3D-Printed Mars Habitat Simulated on Earth

CHAPEA is a series of analog missions that will simulate year-long stays on the surface of Mars. Insights from these missions will help NASA make informed decisions to design and plan for a successful human mission to Mars.

Deployable Electrodes for Minimally Invasive Craniosurgery

Scientists have developed electrode arrays that can be funneled through a small hole in the skull and deployed over a relatively large surface over the brain’s cortex. The technology...

Bioinspired Imaging Sensor Advances FGS

There is a high risk of cancer recurrence if even a small number of cancerous cells are left behind after surgical resection. To prevent this, researchers have developed fluorescence-guided surgery...