Applications
Test leads assess lightning protection in wind turbine blades
May 14, 2013 4:03 pm | Product Releases | CommentsMegger now offer a new series of test leads for use with wind turbines. The unique KC series are long enough to be used for assessing the continuity of lightning protection conductors in wind turbine blades. Developed and designed in conjunction with key wind turbine manufacturers, the KC series is the first commercially available product of its kind to have been specifically designed for wind turbine applications.
PCAP LCDS ideal for rugged industrial-strength applications
May 14, 2013 2:55 pm | Product Releases | CommentsSharp Microelectronics of the Americas (SMA) announced the addition of multi-touch PCAP (Projective Capacitive Touch) displays to its all-LED backlit TFT LCD line up. The two new panels are 7.0-inch and 10.4-inch diagonal, with additional sizes expected in the future, including a 4.3-inch (diagonal).
50 watt dimmable LED power supplies feature a universal 100- 277VAC input
May 14, 2013 2:28 pm | Calex Mfg | Product Releases | CommentsGreen Watt Power announces the introduction of the GLCD 50 Watt constant current dimmable LED power supplies. The dimming options for the GLCD 50 include 0-10V, PWM and external potentiometer. All models feature a universal 100-277VAC input with nominal output current values of 500mA, 700mA, 1.05A, 1.4A, 1.75A, 2.1A and 2.8A.
Controller designed for aerospace, industrial, and laboratory applications
May 14, 2013 10:44 am | Highland Technology | Product Releases | CommentsHighland Technology announces the release of the V120 VME PCI Express Crate Controller for aerospace, industrial, and laboratory application. The V120 is a VME bus master crate controller, usable as a crate slot 0 arbiter or as a secondary controller. Each PCI Express cable driver board, in a PC backplane, can drive one or two V120s over standard, flexible PCI Express cable assemblies....
Astronaut exits space station with music video
May 14, 2013 9:27 am | by Marcia Dunn, AP Aerospace Writer | News | CommentsIn a high-flying, perfectly pitched first, an astronaut on the International Space Station is bowing out of orbit with a musical video: his own custom version of David Bowie's "Space Oddity." It's believed to be the first music video made in space, according to NASA. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield's personalized rendition of "Space Oddity" was posted on YouTube on Sunday....
Big 4 cellphone carriers unite on anti-texting ads
May 14, 2013 9:18 am | by PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsThe country's four biggest cellphone companies are set to launch their first joint advertising campaign against texting while driving, uniting behind AT&T's "It Can Wait" slogan to blanket TV and radio this summer. AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile will be joined by 200 other organizations backing the multi-million dollar ad campaign.
Combo MEMS inertial sensors motor their way to brisk growth in the automotive market
May 13, 2013 3:55 pm | News | CommentsCombo microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors for automotive applications are off to another exhilarating ride this year as revenue continues to climb, spurred by rapidly accelerating use in car safety systems, according to an IHS iSuppli MEMS & Sensors Report from information and analytics provider IHS
Universal, digital sensor output driver includes 3.3-V sensor supply
May 13, 2013 3:22 pm | Product Releases | CommentsThe icHaus universal digital output driver iC-DX3/DXC3 enables compact sensors to be equipped with NPN, PNP, push-pull, and IO link-compatible output driver options. From an input voltage of 8 V to 30 V an integrated linear regulator provides the sensor electronics with a stable +3.3 V voltage and 10 mA
SMT advanced bus converter promises to save board space
May 13, 2013 2:34 pm | Ericsson Power Modules | Product Releases | CommentsEricsson introduced a new surface-mounted version of its second generation of digital Advanced Bus Converter (ABC) products, called the BMR456-SI. This high-efficiency, digitally controlled DC/DC converter is compliant to full surface-mount manufacturing processes, and
Project aims to track big city carbon footprints
May 13, 2013 10:45 am | by ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsEvery time Los Angeles exhales, odd-looking gadgets anchored in the mountains above the city trace the invisible puffs of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases that waft skyward. Halfway around the globe, similar contraptions atop the Eiffel Tower and elsewhere around Paris keep a pulse on emissions from smokestacks and automobile tailpipes.
Engineering Newswire 37: Boeing makes hypersonic history
May 13, 2013 9:24 am | Videos | CommentsThe Boeing X-51A WaveRider unmanned hypersonic vehicle has achieved the longest air-breathing, scramjet-powered hypersonic flight in history. Last summer, an infestation took control of the Harvard robotics laboratory. The situation posed no need to call an exterminator, for this demonstration featured the first controlled flight of an insect-sized robot inspired by the biology of a fly.
New technique to improve quality control of lithium-ion batteries
May 10, 2013 12:44 pm | by Purdue University | News | CommentsResearchers have created a new tool to detect flaws in lithium-ion batteries as they are being manufactured, a step toward reducing defects and inconsistencies in the thickness of electrodes that affect battery life and reliability. The electrodes, called anodes and cathodes, are the building blocks of powerful battery arrays...
NRL shatters endurance record for small electric UAV
May 10, 2013 12:40 pm | by U.S. Naval Research Laboratory | News | CommentsResearchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory flew their fuel cell powered Ion Tiger UAV for 48 hours and 1 minute on April 16-18 by using liquid hydrogen fuel in a new, NRL-developed, cryogenic fuel storage tank and delivery system. This flight shatters their previous record of 26 hours and 2 minutes set in 2009 using the same vehicle...
Kit helps developers gain fast entry into the world of embedded ARM processors
May 10, 2013 11:25 am | Kontron | Product Releases | CommentsKontron announced the ready-to-use SMARC Starterkit. The kit offers developers fast entry into the world of embedded ARM processors, which is now highly scalable owing to SMARC Computer-on-Modules. The kit comes in a sturdy transport case, has all the cables already connected and is
Tesla Model S gets Consumer Reports' top score
May 10, 2013 11:15 am | by TOM KRISHER, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsThe Tesla Motors Inc. Model S electric car has tied an older Lexus for the highest score ever recorded in Consumer Reports magazine's automotive testing. The Model S, which starts at $62,400 after a federal tax credit, scored 99 points on a scale of 100 in the magazine's battery of tests.
Encoders and inclinometers have J1939 interface
May 10, 2013 10:52 am | Fraba / Posital | Product Releases | CommentsPOSITAL announced its inclinometers and absolute rotary encoders are available with J1939 communications interfaces. (The J1939 protocol was developed by the Society of Automotive Engineers for use in heavy vehicles such as trucks, buses, fire trucks and construction machinery. The protocol
AT&T launches prepaid cellphone business
May 10, 2013 10:05 am | News | CommentsAT&T is launching a prepaid cellphone service - Aio Wireless. The new subsidiary will offer nationwide wireless service to value-conscious customers interested in unlimited talk, text and data plans without an annual contract. Aio launches Thursday in select stores in Houston, Orlando, Fla., and Tampa, Fla.
More than just a mother, now she's your 'friend'
May 10, 2013 9:48 am | by MARTHA MENDOZA, AP National Writer | News | CommentsJosh Knoller, a young professional in New York City, spent years refusing his mother's "Friend Request" on Facebook before, eventually, "caving in." Today they have an agreement: she'll try not to make embarrassing comments, and he can delete them if she does.
UK budget airline to test ash cloud detector
May 10, 2013 9:35 am | by SYLVIA HUI, Associated Press | News | CommentsA U.K. budget airline will create an artificial volcanic ash cloud over Europe this summer to test ash detection technology. The experiment aims to avoid the kind of chaos that paralyzed air traffic during eruptions three years ago. Thursday's announcement was made by easyJet....
Connector features 16 auxiliary positions & selective mate keys
May 9, 2013 4:23 pm | Anderson Power Products | Product Releases | CommentsAnderson Power Products announces a new addition to their multipole connector selection with the release of the new SB Smart connector. The SB Smart is designed to meet the connection needs for high power storage batteries which are integrated into a larger system or where batteries require monitoring & control circuits.
Benchtop power supply satisfies a wide range of applications between 60V/20A and 20V/50A
May 9, 2013 4:11 pm | Saelig Company, Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsSaelig Company has introduced the QPX1200SP - a 1.2kW DC bench-top power supply featuring PowerFlex regulation, designed to meet the need for flexibility in the choice of voltage and current. It offers voltage and current combinations for a very wide range of applications between 60V/20A and 20V/50A.
Hit a 90 mph baseball? Scientists pinpoint how we see it coming
May 9, 2013 3:47 pm | by EurekAlert! | News | CommentsHow does San Francisco Giants slugger Pablo Sandoval swat a 95 mph fastball, or tennis icon Venus Williams see the oncoming ball, let alone return her sister Serena's 120 mph serves? For the first time, vision scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have pinpointed how the brain tracks fast-moving objects.
Low noise power
May 9, 2013 3:28 pm | by M. Simon, Technical Contributor | Blogs | CommentsI recently designed a low power, low noise, power supply for digital work. The nominal output voltages as designed are +5 volts and +3.3 volts. One hundred and fifty milliamps each. With a lightly regulated five volt supply for powering LED back lights.
Mid-power LEDs achieve up to 140 lm/W efficacy
May 9, 2013 11:51 am | Philips Lumileds | Product Releases | CommentsPhilips Lumileds introduced the LUXEON 3535 2D, which combines two LED chips in a package to enable reduction in LED count and cost of designing retrofit lamps, consumer downlights and diffuse industrial lamps. Its efficacy of 140 lm/W is achieved for cool white light at 4000K and minimum 80 CRI. The new
Engineering Update #10: Smart home robots & the printable bionic ear
May 9, 2013 11:20 am | Videos | CommentsThis episode of Engineering Update from ECN is brought to you by Mouser Electronics. In this week's headlines: Honda has recently announced that it is teaming up with Japan's Sekisui to design model households using smart technologies. So far, the robotics program has created humanoid robots and a personal mobility vehicle.
