Latest Stories

Briefs
Materials

Solar and Thermal Energy Harvesting Textile Composites for Aerospace Applications

The proposed research focuses on developing novel energy harvesting devices that can be integrated with loadbearing structures in an air vehicle (e.g. a UAV)....

Feature Image

Application Briefs
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Fastener Inserts

Fastener Inserts Designed for Lightweight Aerospace Materials Reduce Risks, Costs Ongoing efforts to increase fuel efficiency, tactical mobility, and payload capacity in aerospace design have driven engineers to find numerous...

Feature Image

Application Briefs
Software

SWORD Simulation Software

MASA Group, a developer of Artificial Intelligence (AI)- based Modeling & Simulation (M&S) software for the defense, public safety, emergency management, and serious games markets, has launched SWORD 5.0, the...

Feature Image

Briefs
Sensors/Data Acquisition

Encapsulated Ball Bearings for Rotary Micro Machines

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)-fabricated silicon rotary elements for micro-motors, micro-generators, and micro-turbomachinery have received growing attention with applications in...

Feature Image

Briefs
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Thermal Analysis and Microhardness Mapping in Hybrid Laser Welds in a Structural Steel

The concept of combining a laser welding system with a conventional arc welding system (GTAW) was first proposed in order to improve the stability of the laser welding system and to allow greater flexibility in part fit-up. Prior research stated that using a YAG...

Briefs
Materials

Fundamentals of Metamaterials for High-Power RF Applications

Recent years have seen a burgeoning interest in the physics and applications of metamaterials. Briefly, metamaterials consist of a periodic array of subwavelength structures that...

Feature Image

Briefs
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Reverse Pressure Capable Finger Seal

Each finger seal consists of a number of multiple thin metal laminates, each with a multitude of flexible projections that are referred to as “fingers.” To form a functional seal, multiple laminates are...

Feature Image

Briefs
Manufacturing & Prototyping

Operation and On-Chip Integration of Cavity-QED-Based Detectors for Single Atoms and Molecules

A new experimental platform for studies of transport and quantumlimited measurements of cold, trapped atomic gases was constructed. Using microfabrication processes, a silicon wafer was micromachined to allow for deposition of micrometer-scale...

Briefs
Manufacturing & Prototyping

Direct-Write Polymer Nanolithography in Ultra-High Vacuum

The deposition of materials in vacuum is the foundational technology for creating modern electronic circuits; a vacuum being essential both to preserve the cleanliness of the substrate...

Feature Image

INSIDER
Defense

Researchers Build Robot Jellyfish

Researchers at The University of Texas at Dallas and Virginia Tech have created an undersea vehicle inspired by the common jellyfish that runs on renewable energy and could be used in ocean rescue and...

Feature Image

Products
Software

MIL-STD-1553 Development Kit

Data Device Corporation (Bohemia, NY) has released the Total-AceXtreme™ MILSTD- 1553 hardware/software development kit. The package includes design documentation, simulation models, and software so that users can...

Feature Image

Products
Materials

Copper Foam

Copper foam from Goodfellow (Oakdale, PA) combines the thermal conductivity of copper with the structural benefits of a metal foam. The matrix of cells and ligaments is repeatable, regular, and uniform throughout the material,...

Feature Image

Products
Materials

Hydrophobic Coatings

Boyd Coatings Research Co. (Hudson, MA) has developed the CRC 6000-line Hydrophobic Coating, a customized coating used primarily on radomes, satellite dishes and other communication installations to prevent water film from...

Feature Image

Products
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Wire Thread Insert

Spiralock (Madison Heights, WI) has introduced its 2-56 Drive Notch™ (DN™) tang-free wire thread insert. Spiralock’s Drive Notch inserts feature a patented 30-degree “wedge” ramp formed into a 5-sided wire. The...

Feature Image

Products
Sensors/Data Acquisition

Flow Switch

The Model 1100 from Thomas Products (Southington, CT) is an inline flow sensor that monitors insufficient or excessive flow rates of liquids. A magnet-equipped shuttle is displaced at the proper calibrated flow of liquid to actuate...

Feature Image

Products
Software

RF Design Software

Agilent Technologies (Santa Clara, CA) offers EMPro 2011.11 Electromagnetic Professional software, a 3D modeling and simulation platform that features enhancements to further speed and improve RF design and verification....

Feature Image

Application Briefs
Defense

AWACS Real-Time Operating System

LynuxWorks, Inc. announced recently that the Mission Systems and Sensors Division (MS2) of Lockheed Martin in Owego, NY, selected the LynxOS real-time operating system (RTOS) and Luminosity Integrated...

Feature Image

Application Briefs
Electronics & Computers

Silicone Cables: Silicone Encased Cables Make Military Robots More Reliable

Cicoil’s highly flexible and durable flat silicone cables are being used on unmanned ground based military robotic vehicles that require absolute reliability in mission critical and extreme environment conditions. Unlike bulky and stiffer round cables, flat silicone...

Briefs
Imaging

Computational Cameras

A computational camera uses a combination of optics and software to produce images that cannot be taken with traditional cameras. A variety of computational cameras has been demonstrated; some designed to achieve new...

Feature Image

Briefs
Materials

Size Scale and Defect Engineered Nanostructures for Optimal Strength and Toughness

Realistic combinations of ceramics and/or semiconductors have been developed that simultaneously achieve high hardness (>40 GPa) and toughness (>400 MPa*m1/2). To achieve this goal, there were three primary objectives: (1) the development of physically base...

Briefs
Materials

Investigation of Basalt Woven Fabrics for Military Applications

Basalt rock is a black or gray fine-grained rock in the family of igneous rocks, formed by cooling of molten lava. It is commonly found in the Earth’s crust, is abundant...

Feature Image

INSIDER
Defense

Wool Being Reevaluated for High-Performance Combat Clothing

Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center has contracted for several efforts with the American Sheep Industry Association and its subsidiary, Sheep Venture Company,...

Feature Image

Products
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

MEMS Gyroscope

Analog Devices (Norwood, MA) has released the ADIS16136 iSensor® digital MEMS gyroscope, which provides 3.50/hr typical bias stability in a module consuming less than 1 watt and weighing 25 grams. The tactical grade (below...

Feature Image

Products
Software

3D Modeling Software

VISTAGY (Waltham, MA) has released SyncroFIT® 2011, which allows airframe manufacturers to implement advanced manufacturing processes. CAD designers can use the software to define and manage fasteners, holes, joints, and...

Feature Image

Briefs
Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Reactive Structure and Smart Armor for Future Ground Vehicles

AReactive Structure Technology (RST) is a new class of smart structure that can react to external excitations (such as blast or ballistic impacts) in a carefully designed way using...

Feature Image

Briefs
Manufacturing & Prototyping

Fabrication of Carbon Nanotube Channels on Three- Dimensional Building Blocks

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are the most attractive material in the fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology due to their chemical, physical, and electrical...

Feature Image

Briefs
Materials

High-Temperature Silicon Carbide Power Module for Military Hybrid Electric Vehicles

The ever-increasing electrical power, power density, and cooling requirements of present and future military platforms are pushing silicon-based power...

Feature Image

INSIDER
Communications

Army Implements Vehicle-Based Common Operating Environment

On the dynamic and complex battlefield, the Common Operating Environment will streamline communications between Soldiers in vehicles and higher headquarters, creating seamless...

Feature Image

INSIDER
Defense

Atomic Weapons Defense Testers Mark Major Milestones

Two remarkable pulsed-power machines used to test the nation’s defenses against atomic weapons have surpassed milestones at Sandia National Laboratories: 4,000 firings, called ‘shots,’...

Feature Image