Latest Stories
Articles Unmanned Systems
'Road Race' for AV Testing May Be Slowing
Chris Hoyle, Technical Director of software specialist rFpro, believes the race by auto and technology companies to be ahead of competitor programs involving autonomous vehicle (AV) testing on...
What We’re Driving Transportation
2019 Ford Ranger XL STX
America needs more midsized pickups. The case for the new Ford Ranger is made by increasingly strong sales of GM’s models and the perennial fan base of the Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier. And now Jeep’s back in the game.
Articles Transportation
Steel Stands Tall
In 2014, just before Ford shook the industry with the introduction of its aluminum-intensive F-150, Ducker Worldwide released a study for the aluminum industry. The report predicted that the light metal would dominate the North American light-truck segment in the next new-model development cycle.
Articles Transportation
The Economics of Materials Selection
At the 2019 Society of Plastics Engineers’ ANTEC conference, Dr. Taub, formerly GM’s head of R&D, presented a review of the three major materials groups—steel, aluminum, and composites—that he expects will predominate in vehicle body structures going forward.
Articles Manufacturing & Prototyping
A Step-change in the Cost of CFRP
A joke in the auto industry about CFRP is that the “C” stands for “costly.” So, any manufacturing process that solves this significant drawback of the ultra-lightweight material’s use outside of Formula One racing and exotic supercars, could change the vehicle-production game.
Articles Transportation
Aluminum: Toward 50% Body Content
As experts have noted, the mixed-materials trend is becoming an enduring one, as evidenced across the landscape of recent new-vehicle introductions.
Articles Power
F1 Streamlines for Closer Racing
Ongoing aerodynamic development of Formula 1 racecars has the most obvious goals of increasing the cars’ downforce and reducing their drag to produce the fastest speeds and quickest lap times.
Articles Design
Unlocking DfAM’s Potential
A new field-based design software is supporting more widespread use of Additive Manufacturing, for faster product development times with less rework and risk.
Application Briefs Sensors/Data Acquisition
UAV Ground Control Station
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.San Diego, CA858-762-6700www.ga-asi.com The U.S. Air Force’s new Block 50 Ground Control Station (GCS) – developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI)...
Articles Motion Control
Underwater Drone Technology
Finding ways to overcome physical limitations so that humans can dive deeper and stay underwater longer has been an ongoing quest. Back in the 15th century, Leonardo Da Vinci drew sketches of a submarine and a robot....
Briefs Aerospace
Geospatial Accuracy of Small Unmanned Airborne System Data in the Coastal Environment
The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of commonly available COTS software to produce geometrically accurate orthometric mosaics and terrain...
Articles Robotics, Automation & Control
Eyes In the Sky
Drones (i.e. quadrotors) are a popular and increasingly widespread product used by consumers as well as in a diversity of industrial, military and other applications. Historically under the control of human operators on the...
Application Briefs Aerospace
Surface to Surface Missile
MBDALe Plessis-Robinson, France+33 1 71 54 10 00www.mbda-systems.com At the end of 2018, MBDA successfully demonstrated the use of the Mistral missile against fast boats such as FIACs (Fast Inshore Attack Craft). A...
Application Briefs Defense
Vehicle Active Protection System
Northrop Grumman CorporationFalls Church, VA703-280-2900news.northropgrumman.com Northrop Grumman Corporation successfully demonstrated advanced Vehicle Active Protection System technologies against Anti-Tank...
Briefs Test & Measurement
Developing Knowledge and Understanding for Autonomous Systems for Analysis and Assessment Events and Campaigns
There are many challenges in developing complete performance ontologies and test methodologies to define and evaluate the performance...
Articles Photonics/Optics
Hydraulic Cylinder Position Sensor Technology
As the demand for greater control and functionality increases, position-sensor-instrumented hydraulic cylinders are becoming more important in the heavy industry, mobile equipment, and subsea...
Briefs Test & Measurement
Monitoring a Nearshore Beneficial Use Site: Application of a Benthic Sled and Video Annotation
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Portland Districts (NWP) maintains safe and navigable waterways in Oregon through a variety of dredging...
Briefs Sensors/Data Acquisition
Sound Attenuation of Neoprene Wetsuit Hoods as a Function of Dive Depth and Acoustic Frequency: Hyperbaric Chamber Trials
The U.S. Navy is interested in strategies that divers could employ to protect them from loud underwater sounds. Sonar...
Products Software
New Products
Ultra-Low Temperature Elastomer Greene Tweed’s (Kulpsville, PA) Fusion™ FKM 665, a new generation, ultra-low-temperature and chemical-resistant elastomer, was specifically formulated to meet and exceed the requirements of...
Application Briefs Aerospace
Intelligent Parachute Rescue System
Drone Rescue GmbH Graz, Austria+43 660 140 80 55www.dronerescue.com Drone Rescue Systems GmbH has developed a fast, efficient parachute safety solution for drones that can reduce the risk of harming people on...
Briefs Photonics/Optics
Localization and Mapping of Unknown Locations with Unmanned Ground Vehicles
The main goals of this research are to enhance a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software platform to support unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) exploring the complex...
Application Briefs Materials
Lithium-Ion Batteries
Amprius, Inc.Sunnyvale, CA800-425-8803www.amprius.com Amprius, Inc., a manufacturer and developer of high-energy and high-capacity lithium-ion batteries, announced recently that it is supplying advanced lithium ion cells...
News Unmanned Systems
Waymo, GM and Ford Pegged as Autonomous “Leaders” by Latest Navigant Report
According to a new report from Navigant research, Waymo (Google), GM and Ford have earned the title of “leaders” in regards to their progress in developing...
Application Briefs Aerospace
Parcel Delivery Drone
Airbus HelicoptersMarignane Cedex, France+33 (0)4 42 85 60 51http://helicopters.airbus.com Airbus has begun shore-to-ship trials in Singapore with its Skyways parcel delivery drone. This marks the first time drone...
Articles Transportation
The CAN Bus: Driving the Future of Autonomous Military Vehicles
It’s a crisp November day in Michigan, and a convoy of British and American resupply vehicles are rumbling along at a comfortable 25 miles per hour. In the lead is a British Army...
Articles Communications
Autonomous “Wingman” Vehicles
The US Army’s Futures Command is the most important administrative reorganization of the modern Army. Responding to the world’s changing priorities— especially the “near peer” threat of ascendant...
News Manned Systems
AAA Studies Thermal Effects on EV Range
It’s been a tough winter in much of the U.S. When the Midwest hasn’t been dealing with a Polar Vortex it been smacked by a “bombogenesis.” But even normally temperate seasonal regions like...
News Materials
For Bonding Dissimilar Materials, Adhesives Can Be a Sticking Point—or Lack of It
As the auto industry adopts an increasingly wide mix of materials in its pursuit of constantly tougher weight-saving and service-longevity targets, joining...
Technology Report Power
Ford Demos Latest Digital Tools at Flagship Transmission Plant
Ford recently provided media with a look at some of its latest digital manufacturing tools, opening up the floor at one of the world’s largest transmission plants to showcase...
Technology Report Energy
Why JLR Is Giving Its Newest Range Rover Straight-6 Power
The market may have been surprised by Jaguar Land Rover’s decision to offer the latest Range Rover with an I-6 gasoline engine, but it’s been on the company’s development list...
News Automotive
Novelis Creates First Aluminum Sheet Battery Enclosure for Mass Electric Vehicle Production
Battery weight and power density is a major design consideration when it comes to electric and hybrid-electric vehicles. To reduce platform weight...
News Manned Systems
Dassault Falcon 8X Breaks U.S. Coast-To-Coast Record
Paris-based Dassault Aviation SA (Dassault) just broke the coast-to-coast speed record with the company’s new ultra-long range, trijet Dassault Falcon 8X business jet. The flagship...
Q&A Transportation
Returning Jeep to the Midsize-pickup Market
SAE editorial director Bill Visnic spoke with Elizabeth Krear, Gladiator Model Responsible - Jeep Engineering and Pete Milosavlevski, Chief Engineer, about the program’s development targets and priorities, the importance of the Gladiator’s connection to the iconic Wrangler.
Articles Design
Designs to Dye for: Autonomy’s New-Materials Revolution
Evolving vehicle engineering constantly reshapes vehicle architectures. But along with electrified drive-trains and autonomous capabilities is the need for a mindset shift in materials, opening the way for new sustainable solutions in color, materials and finish (CMF).
Articles Manufacturing & Prototyping
Dining on Data
Every year, NVIDIA hosts its GPU Technology Conference, a multi-day news conference/ expo to highlight the advances the tech company has made in the past 12 months.
Articles Sensors/Data Acquisition
New Performance Metrics for Lidar
How do you measure the effectiveness of an intelligent, lidar-based perception system for autonomous vehicles? Conventional evaluation metrics favor frame rate and resolution as the ideal criteria. However, certain experts believe that these criteria are inadequate.
Articles Transportation
First Smile, Last Smile
May Mobility is building a unique business model around AV shuttle services. The young Ann Arbor-based company’s shuttles currently are servicing routes in Detroit; Columbus, Ohio, and Providence, Rhode Island. A service in Grand Rapids, Michigan, launches this summer.
Articles Robotics, Automation & Control
Can Autonomous Vehicles Make the Right ‘Decision?’
Experience would suggest we seek to incorporate many types of diversity into our designs. We need to understand the ethical issues, even if the Trolley Problem is merely a diversion away from seeking a design that makes the best decisions based on information available at the time.
Articles Defense
Supersonic Spy Drone
The D-21 was intended to answer a question that was driving U.S. national security officials mad: How was the Chinese military progressing in its effort to build and test nuclear weapons?
News Transportation
The Inside Story on Unmanned Vehicle Signal Recorder Technology
Pentek Vice President Rodger Hosking explains how signal recorder technology is being implemented in military unmanned vehicles.
Blog Propulsion
AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2019: Air Force Technology
As always, the Air Force Research Laboratory had a huge presence at AUVSI’s XPONENTIAL show in Chicago.
News Aerospace
AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2019: A Flying Sea Glider
A Navy Sea Glider can look for a target in mid-air or underwater.
Blog Aerospace
AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2019: Helicopter Drones
Three new unmanned helicopters were unveiled at AUVSI’s XPONENTIAL show in Chicago.
News Defense
UAV Turbines Designs Purpose-Built Microturbine Engine for Class 3 and 4 UAVs
UAV Turbines, Inc. has developed a new microturbine, turboprop engine designed for defense and commercial Group 3 and 4 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or...
News Defense
Astro’s Elroy Urban Air Mobility Vehicle to Get a New Stablemate This Summer
Astro’s Elroy urban air mobility vehicle to get a new stablemate this summer
News Connectivity
GE Aviation’s AiRXOS Launches New Air Mobility Portfolio and Management Tools Purpose Built for the Urban Air Mobility Market
AiRXOS, part of Evendale, Ohio-based GE Aviation, has unveiled an “Air Mobility” portfolio of autonomous...
News Defense
CityAirbus Urban Air Mobility Vehicle Completes First Flight
Airbus SE’s (Airbus’) “CityAirbus” electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) urban air mobility (UAM) vehicle successfully completed its first flight. The brief...
News Materials
EMBATT Technology Could Double the Driving Range of EVs
An in-development chassis-integrated sandwich structure of solid electrolytes is projected to deliver all-electric driving ranges that far out-distance today’s typical 200-mile (320...
News Electronics & Computers
Lockheed Martin Validates Heatshield for the Mars 2020 Rover Mission
Lockheed Martin Corporation (Lockheed Martin) successfully completed development and testing for the heatshield that will protect NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)...
News Data Acquisition
Europe’s Blockchain-Based Smart E-Mobility Challenge Will Conclude This May in Germany
To advance development of Internet of things (IoT) mobility solutions like cryptography, distributed ledger technology (DLT) – also known as...
News Manufacturing & Prototyping
Forward-Looking Lidar Can Revolutionize Driver-Assistance Systems
Part I of this multipart series cast a spotlight on vehicle crashes, a majority of which are forward-facing and result from driver error. Automakers are striving to develop...
News Defense
Bell V-280 Valor, V-247 Vigilant Will Be Engined by Rolls-Royce
Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. subsidiary based in Fort Worth, Texas, will partner with Rolls-Royce plc to develop an optimized propulsion system for the Bell V-280 Valor and...
INSIDER Aerospace
How Flying Cars Could Change the Aerospace Industry
A new study of the environmental sustainability impacts of flying cars (electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, or VTOLs) finds that they wouldn’t be suitable for a short commute...
INSIDER Aerospace
Insect-Inspired Arm Improve Drones
Most drones are not able to withstand wind because of their fixed-arm design. But a new drone design works in windy conditions, is more energy-efficient, and can handle a larger payload. It was inspired by...
News Aerospace
Apollo Fusion Will Supply NASA JPL with MaSMi Hall Thrusters as Sole Licensed Manufacturer
Apollo Fusion, Inc. (Apollo), headquarter in Mountain View, California, has received an exclusive, worldwide license to the NASA Jet Propulsion...
News Manned Systems
Hybrid Air Vehicles, Collins Aerospace, and University of Nottingham to Develop Electric Propulsion for Airlander 10
The United Kingdom (UK) Aerospace Research and Technology Programme has awarded grant funding in excess of £1m ($1.3m) to...
Technology Report Energy
Engine Researchers: 50% Gasoline-Engine Efficiency in Sight
Speaking at the SAE High-Efficiency IC Engine Symposium preceding this week’s WCX19 conference in Detroit, the lead researcher for a long-running, Delphi Technologies-directed...
News AR/AI
Rolls-Royce Deploys Virtual Reality Training for Maintainers
To meet the aerospace industry’s future demand for maintainers, Rolls-Royce plc (Rolls-Royce) has included virtual reality (VR) technology into its engineering training...
News Automotive
Aitech Defense Will Provide Data Interface Technology for Boeing’s Unmanned MQ-25 Refueling Platform
Aitech Defense Systems, Inc. (Aitech Defense), a subsidiary of Aitech Group based in of Chatswick, California, will supply key mission...
News Materials
NASA Highlights Material and Coating Technology Ready for Commercial Applications
Innovations in materials and coatings have enabled countless NASA missions since the agency’s inception. The research that goes into developing these...
News Connectivity
DARPA’s Latest Drone Swarm Sprint Focuses on Virtual Environments
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has kicked off the fourth ‘sprint’ for its OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics (OFFSET) program. Through OFFSET, DARPA...
News Propulsion
Jeff Bezos Lays out Blue Origin’s Moon Shot, Debuts Lunar Lander
During a special presentation, Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos announced the company’s vision for the future of space travel and revealed a large, new, reconfigurable lunar...
INSIDER Sensors/Data Acquisition
Wearable Sensors Could Monitor Personal, Environmental Data
In an effort to enhance soldier lethality, Army researchers are developing biorecognition receptors capable of consistent performance in multi-domain environments with the ability...
INSIDER Defense
Projection System to Study Insect Vision Could Lead to New Navigational Aids
Development of a virtual reality-like projection system to study insect vision could eventually provide the U.S. Air Force with a new type of navigation system.
INSIDER Materials
US and Japanese Scientists Conduct Joint Composites Study
Dr. Keisuke Umezawa of the Air Systems Research Center in the Japanese Ministry of Defense (JMoD) recently joined the Air Force Research Laboratory on an engineers and scientists...
News Defense
NASA Budget Amendment to Help Send Americans to Moon by 2024, Then Mars
An amended NASA budget for fiscal year 2020 would add $1.6 billion to a $21 billion initial budget request and fund deep space exploration, science, and technology...
News Power
Automated Vehicles Not an 'If' but a 'When'
The automotive industry once questioned whether electric motors would replace the internal combustion engine (ICE) as the primary powertrain option for consumers. Today, the industry is facing a...
News Data Acquisition
Leading Vehicle Prognostics Toward the AV Future
Predicting a likely future failure in vehicle components and systems in advance of the occurrence is important today, and will be even more critical for autonomous vehicles, perhaps far from...
News Defense
Next-Generation Crash Recorders Integral to Aviation Cybersecurity
On the cybersecurity front, EASA has issued a new notice of proposed amendment (NPA) related to an earlier RTCA document, DO-326A, which came out in 2014. Because DO-326A...
INSIDER Aerospace
Hydraulic Propulsion an Alternative to Drone Batteries
Drones require heavy batteries or lots of electrical components, which leaves little room for the actual payload. A Purdue University team came up with a method to use fluid power...
INSIDER Aerospace
NASA’s New UAV is 80% 3D-Printed
One of the keys to Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is exploring how different technologies and configurations of aircraft will perform in the urban environment. NASA’s newest modular unmanned aerial system, the...
News Manufacturing & Prototyping
NASA High-Temp Materials, Coatings Enhance Commercial Products
NASA officials are announcing the availability of eight disruptive NASA materials and coatings technologies ready for commercialization.
Technology Report Transportation
Ford Amped for New Phase of Hybrid-Electric Offensive
With the persistent auto-industry question of how soon battery electric vehicles will become mainstream options, Ford is preparing to widely deploy its fourth-generation hybrid-electric...
News Photonics/Optics
SAE International, GM, and Students Gear up for AutoDrive Challenge Year 2 at Mcity
SAE International® and General Motors are prepping for the AutoDrive Challenge™ Year 2 Competition May 29 through June 4, 2019, at the Mcity Test Facility,...
News Aerospace
New University-Led Air Force Center of Excellence Focuses on Securing Autonomous Systems Operating in Contested Environments
A new United States Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) Center of Excellence (COE), led by the...
News Manned Systems
BlackBird to Purchase 110 All-Electric Bye Aerospace EFlyer Aircraft
San Francisco-based BlackBird Air Inc., the United States’ largest aviation marketplace, has committed to buying 100 four-seat eFlyer 4 and 10 two-seat eFlyer 2 aircraft...
News Connectivity
Debating Data Monetization Vs. Privacy
The value of data generated by drivers and passengers in vehicles on the road has been apparent to those companies who see ways to monetize it. But is the public always willing to give up its privacy...
News Manned Systems
2019 World Traffic Safety Symposium Focuses on AV Regulation
How should automated vehicles (AV) avoid erroneous traffic tickets? How can highway work zones be standardized to enable safe AV use? Are bridges structurally sound enough to...
News Manned Systems
United Ups Commitment to Sustainable Aviation Biofuel, Extends Contract with World Energy
United Airlines officials in Chicago have strengthened their commitment to ensuring United is an environmentally conscious carrier by expanding its...
News RF & Microwave Electronics
USPS Tests Autonomous Semi-Trailers for Long-Haul Mail Logistics
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has partnered with San Diego-based TuSimple, Inc. to test the feasibility of using self-driving trucks to haul mail-laden USPS...
Articles Propulsion
A Brief History of Chevrolet Corvette Concepts
In the Spring of 1957, while pondering the demise of Chevrolet’s Corvette Super Sports racer at Sebring’s 12-hour endurance race, legendary Corvette godfather Zora Arkus-Duntov concluded,...
News Automotive
NASA Selects Power and Propulsion Module for Upcoming Lunar Gateway
The NASA lunar Gateway – a small lunar-orbit spaces station designed as a communications, science, and short-term habitation outpost – is part of the agency’s...
News Materials
2020 GMC Sierra to Debut New Diesel Along with Expanded 10-Speed, Towing Tech and Carbon-Fiber-Bed Applications
The 2020 GMC Sierra will be the first model year to provide the light-duty truck the option for GM’s new 3.0L Duramax...
INSIDER Aerospace
High-Tech Bird Watching Could Lead to Shapeshifting Airplane Wings
An international team of engineers and biologists will gain unprecedented insights into how birds fly so efficiently and then use that knowledge to build unmanned aircraft with...
News Electronics & Computers
EOS Releases Four New Metal Materials for Series Additive Manufacturing
Global provider of industrial additive manufacturing (AM) metals and polymers, EOS GmbH, has released four news metal AM materials for 3D-printing. EOS StainlessSteel...
News Power
Breakthroughs in 3D-Printing Give Way for Promising Textile Lithium Battery Technology
At the convergence of 3D-printing and lithium battery technology, Hong Kong researchers develop a promising textile-based, foldable battery that may find...
News Test & Measurement
AGI and ANSYS Partner to Integrate Next-Gen Digital Modeling into Engineering Design
ANSYS – through a new partnership with global mission simulation leader, Analytical Graphics, Inc. (AGI) – has begun integrating mission analysis into its...
News Motion Control
Law Enforcement Agencies Used DroneSense’s UAS-Management Platform to Support Indy 500 Security Operations
During the 2019 Indianapolis 500 IndyCar race, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) pilots from the Speedway Police Department,...
News RF & Microwave Electronics
Part Two of the SAE International AutoDrive Challenge Kicks off Today
Mcity – the University of Michigan’s autonomous vehicle proving ground – will be the site of the SAE International AutoDrive Challenge’s college-level Year 2...
News Unmanned Systems
Audi Becomes First Automotive OEM to Join SEMI
German luxury automobile maker, Audi AG has joined SEMI (formerly Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International) as a full member – becoming the first automotive original equipment...
News Test & Measurement
Lockheed Martin’s “Non-Operational” Space Fence Detects Indian Anti-Satellite Operations While Still in Test Mode
A breakup field from a recent Indian anti-satellite test was detected by the Lockheed Martin-developed U.S. Air Force...
News AR/AI
Siemens Debuts Capital Load Analyzer Software to Accelerate Certification, Reduce Risk
Mentor, a Siemens business, in Wilsonville, Oregon, is introducing its Capital Load Analyzer software, intended to help simplify aircraft electrical...
News Automotive
AVL Joins the IAMTS to Develop Automated Vehicle Testing Solutions
Austrian-based automotive powertrain research institute, AVL List GmbH, has joined the ranks of SAE International, TÜV SÜD, and China Automotive Technology and Research...
News Power
OmegA Rocket Sustains Explosion During First Static Test, Northrop Grumman Maintains Test Was a Success
Northrop Grumman Corporation completed the first static or “stationary,” full-scale test of its next-generation OmegA space launch...
Top Stories
INSIDERRF & Microwave Electronics
FAA to Replace Aging Network of Ground-Based Radars
PodcastsDefense
A New Additive Manufacturing Accelerator for the U.S. Navy in Guam
NewsSoftware
Rewriting the Engineer’s Playbook: What OEMs Must Do to Spin the AI Flywheel
Road ReadyPower
2026 Toyota RAV4 Review: All Hybrid, All the Time
INSIDERDefense
F-22 Pilot Controls Drone With Tablet
INSIDERRF & Microwave Electronics
L3Harris Starts Low Rate Production Of New F-16 Viper Shield
Webcasts
Energy
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Energy
SAE Automotive Podcast: Solid-State Batteries
Power
SAE Automotive Engineering Podcast: Additive Manufacturing
Aerospace
A New Approach to Manufacturing Machine Connectivity for the Air Force
Software
Optimizing Production Processes with the Virtual Twin
