Tech Briefs

Tech Briefs TECH BRIEFS is where Design Engineers come for new ideas & actionable solutions to their toughest challenges. as well as top universities and companies.

As informed sources proliferate and compete for the attention of time-strapped engineers, Tech Briefs’ unique, compelling content ensures your marketing message will be seen and read. Our coverage includes NASA and major federal R&D labs (Department of Energy, Department of Defense, etc.) Our mission is to report "engineering solutions for design and manufacturing." Go to techbriefs.com for expand

ed editorial coverage. If it is an engineering breakthrough that will help to create great products, it’s reported in Tech Briefs.

5Ws of an All-Electric Delivery DroneWHAT: Co-founded in 2018 by Frank Noppel, CEO, and James McClearen, CTO, Michigan-b...
07/02/2025

5Ws of an All-Electric Delivery Drone

WHAT: Co-founded in 2018 by Frank Noppel, CEO, and James McClearen, CTO, Michigan-based cargo drone manufacturer Blueflite is shaping the future of mobility logistics. The company has developed a logistics platform for faster and more cost-effective deliveries. Blueflite primarily focuses on delivering consumer goods, medical products, and industrial supplies. Its drones — Slate and Cobalt — have an enclosed payload area and four tilting motor arms, eliminating the need to pitch the fuselage during the flight. Their tilt rotor technology enhances control in adverse weather and protects sensitive payloads.

Composed of 75 percent 3D-printed parts featuring HP’s multi-jet fusion technology providing weight optimization and better part quality, these drones have a modular design, applying the latest technologies in materials and manufacturing, including a rigid lightweight carbon airframe structure that enables high-stress, low bending for high load applications. The drones use advanced AI for precise spatial perception enabling extended field of view for comprehensive environmental perception. Blueflite also leverages cutting-edge design software for advanced engineering and streamlining workflows to reduce time for customization.

Learn the other four Ws: https://ow.ly/jsQO50WjAOo

A Robot with the ‘Brains’ to Morph Mid-AirThe new robot, dubbed ATMO (aerially transforming morphobot), uses four thrust...
07/01/2025

A Robot with the ‘Brains’ to Morph Mid-Air

The new robot, dubbed ATMO (aerially transforming morphobot), uses four thrusters to fly, but the shrouds that protect them become the system's wheels in an alternative driving configuration. The whole transformation relies on a single motor to move a central joint that lifts ATMO's thrusters up into drone mode or down into drive mode.

"The control algorithm works using a technique called Model Predictive Control. In this method the onboard computer uses a physics-based model of the robotic system and its interaction with the world to predict what will happen for a given time in the future. Using this information, and information about the task it is trying to accomplish e.g. landing on wheels, it can compute the actions it should take to achieve its goal."

Learn more: https://ow.ly/6S3L50WiZpC

Soft Robotics that Can ID, Self-Repair DamageEngineers have developed a systems-level approach for a soft robotics techn...
06/30/2025

Soft Robotics that Can ID, Self-Repair Damage

Engineers have developed a systems-level approach for a soft robotics technology that can identify damage from a puncture or extreme pressure, pinpoint its location, and autonomously initiate self-repair.

"We have a damage detection layer, which has liquid metal droplets embedded inside an elastomer matrix. When damage occurs, it draws an electrical trace in the material. We can electrically sense that the new trace has been formed by the damage. That trace also functions as a heating element. We can apply current to it so it locally heats around the damaged area.

"There's another layer that we've integrated in there — a thermal plastic elastomer that can be sealed through the application of heat. Once that has occurred, we can continue to ramp up the current and ultimately erase the electrical trace that was drawn in there by the damage, resetting the material back to its original state in terms of its mechanical properties and electrical configuration."

Learn more: https://ow.ly/96uU50Wiik7

How Much Do You Know About Radio Jamming?The deliberate blocking of or interference with wireless communications, radio ...
06/27/2025

How Much Do You Know About Radio Jamming?

The deliberate blocking of or interference with wireless communications, radio jamming has been around for decades. We’ve even seen it in pop-culture stalwarts such as the "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" franchises.

So, how much do you know about radio jamming? Find out with this quiz.

Take now: https://ow.ly/AzPm50Whn9q

As global demand for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage surges, so does the need for affordable and sustaina...
06/26/2025

As global demand for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage surges, so does the need for affordable and sustainable battery technologies. A new study led by researchers from the Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering at Rice University, along with collaborators from Baylor University and the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Thiruvananthapuram, has introduced an innovative solution that could impact electrochemical energy storage technologies. The research was recently published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.

Using an oil and gas industry’s byproduct, the team worked with uniquely shaped carbon materials — tiny cones and discs — with a pure graphitic structure. These unusual forms produced via scalable pyrolysis of hydrocarbons could help address a long-standing challenge for anodes in battery research: how to store energy with elements like sodium and potassium, which are far cheaper and more widely available than lithium.

“For years, we’ve known that sodium and potassium are attractive alternatives to lithium,” said Corresponding Author Pulickel Ajayan, Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor of Engineering at Rice. “But the challenge has always been finding carbon-based anode materials that can store these larger ions efficiently.”

Learn more: https://ow.ly/LyKi50WgHn7

My Opinion: Quantum Computing Is Coming But Has This Engineer Puzzled"As we celebrate 2025, the International Year of Qu...
06/25/2025

My Opinion: Quantum Computing Is Coming But Has This Engineer Puzzled

"As we celebrate 2025, the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, I started to think about practical applications of quantum mechanics in computers, sensors, and cryptography. And I find that thinking about these things from an engineer’s point of view is quite challenging.

"If Richard Feynman, who won a Nobel Prize for his work on 'quantum electrodynamics,' didn't think anyone really understands quantum mechanics, how can so many people these days be talking about quantum computers being the next big thing? On the other hand, Feynman himself laid out the theoretical underpinnings of quantum computers in 1982, when he said that 'to accurately model a quantum system, scientists would need to build another quantum system.' That other system is what we now call a quantum computer."

Learn more about SAE Media Group's Ed Brown's opinion on the matter: https://ow.ly/OpZY50Wg0y8

🚨 Last Chance! Only 1 Week Left to Enter 🚨The 2025 Create the Future Design Contest closes in just 7 days! This is your ...
06/24/2025

🚨 Last Chance! Only 1 Week Left to Enter 🚨

The 2025 Create the Future Design Contest closes in just 7 days! This is your final opportunity to submit an idea that could change the world.

🏆 Win $25,000
🌍 Get global recognition
📅 Deadline: July 1, 2025 at 11:59 PM EDT

If you've been thinking about entering, now is the time. Don’t miss your chance to make an impact.

👉 Submit your entry today: https://contest.techbriefs.com/

Digitalization in Battery Development: What Engineers need to KnowHow digitalization can lead to efficient, safe, and su...
06/24/2025

Digitalization in Battery Development: What Engineers need to Know

How digitalization can lead to efficient, safe, and sustainable battery design and manufacturing.

"Battery manufacturing is very similar to cake baking, the process is similar — you mix the cake mixture, spread it, and then put it in an oven. Those steps are similar for battery manufacturing, but just like in cake baking, because you and I have the same recipe, it is highly likely that your cake will have a better quality than if I use the same recipe and bake a cake. That’s driven by experience."

Learn more: https://ow.ly/XTjT50WfnwU

How Much Do You Know About Electric Vehicle Powertrains?Switching the powertrain from ICE to electrical can be a tough c...
06/23/2025

How Much Do You Know About Electric Vehicle Powertrains?

Switching the powertrain from ICE to electrical can be a tough challenge. How much do you know about electric vehicle powertrains? Find out with this quiz.

Take now: https://ow.ly/BkBJ50WeCn0

The countdown is on! Nominations for the Women in Engineering: Rising Star Awards close July 22. Know an inspiring early...
06/11/2025

The countdown is on! Nominations for the Women in Engineering: Rising Star Awards close July 22. Know an inspiring early-career engineer? Nominate her today!

www.techbriefs.com/RSA

Realize LIVE: Powering Engineering Design with Digital TransformationAt this year’s Realize LIVE Americas, an event that...
06/11/2025

Realize LIVE: Powering Engineering Design with Digital Transformation

At this year’s Realize LIVE Americas, an event that brings together the Siemens Digital Industries Software community to collaborate and share knowledge and experiences, there were many live demonstrations of how digital transformation is enabling productivity and efficiency gains for manufacturers across multiple domains including aerospace, automotive, energy, marine, and many more.

Watch this video to see some technology applications that were showcased at the event.

Watch now: https://ow.ly/xcwl50W7Egg

Biocompatible Ultrasonic Receiver Overcomes Many Wireless Charging LimitationsWith the increasing demand for underwater ...
06/10/2025

Biocompatible Ultrasonic Receiver Overcomes Many Wireless Charging Limitations

With the increasing demand for underwater and implantable medical electronics, a stable and continuous power supply is essential. However, conventional wireless charging methods (such as electromagnetic induction and radio frequency-based charging) used in smartphones and wireless earphones suffer from short transmission distances, low energy transfer efficiency in biological tissues, and electromagnetic interference. To overcome these limitations, researchers are now considering the use of ultrasound as a new wireless power transfer technology. Ultrasound has the advantage of being human-friendly and less absorbed by tissues, allowing for more reliable energy transfer in implantable and skin-adherent devices. As a result, wireless charging technology utilizing ultrasonic energy is emerging as the next generation of power transfer.

A research team led by Dr. Sunghoon Hur of the Electronic and Hybrid Materials Research Center at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and Professor Hyun-Cheol Song of Korea University has developed a biocompatible ultrasonic receiver that maintains its performance even when bent. The receiver overcomes many of the limitations of existing wireless power transmission methods while improving biocompatibility and is expected to be applied to next-generation wearable and implantable electronic devices. The researchers also demonstrated wireless charging of batteries by receiving ultrasonic waves, which is an important step toward commercializing the technology.

Learn more: https://ow.ly/9qOu50W6VlI

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