HOME  |  NEWS  |  BLOGS  |  MESSAGES  |  FEATURES  |  VIDEOS  |  WEBINARS  |  RESOURCE CENTER  |  INDUSTRIES
REGISTER   |   LOGIN   |   HELP
Analysis
Charles Murray

Electronic News & Comment
Air Guitar Retuned by Clippard's Pneumatics
Charles Murray, Senior Technical Editor, Electronics & Test
2/22/2012  5
Pneumatic technology is usually associated with machine control, but at the Medical Design & Manufacturing West Conference in Anaheim, Calif., it was about music.

Steve Ravet

Gadget Freak
Driving App Updates via Crowdsourcing
Steve Ravet, Contributing Writer
2/22/2012  3
When I first saw the traffic overlay on Google Maps, I was struck by the simple brilliance of the idea. As long as you are running the Google Maps app on your phone, you are ...

Ann R. Thryft

Engineering Materials
Bioplastics Powered by Plants & Metals
Ann R. Thryft, Senior Technical Editor, Materials & Assembly
2/22/2012  5
A research team at the University of Rennes in Brittany has identified the ingredient that makes it possible to use plant oil, instead of fossil fuel-based oil, to produce polyamide ...

Michael Holtz

Made by Monkeys
Auto Climate Control Is Backwards
Michael Holtz
2/22/2012  6
I have a Toyota Highlander with an automatic climate control system that totally baffles me. The issue concerns the option to either bring in fresh air or recirculate the cabin air.

Beth Stackpole

CAD/CAM Corner
Slideshow: Social Side of CAD
Beth Stackpole, Contributing Editor, Design Hardware & Software
2/21/2012  10
Given the overwhelming groundswell of enthusiasm for social networks and consumers' relentless quest for sharing -- and over-sharing -- with communities of like-minded peers (as ...

Ann R. Thryft

Engineering Materials
Packaging Replaces Plastic With Pulp
Ann R. Thryft, Senior Technical Editor, Materials & Assembly
2/21/2012  23
Procter & Gamble has replaced 57 percent of the plastic in its packaging for the Gillette Fusion razor with moldable plant based pulp. And, the company has pledged a major ...

Jon Titus

Mechatronics Zone
User Interfaces Should Be Easy to Navigate
Jon Titus, Contributing Technical Editor
2/21/2012  15
I don't need a top-of-the-line smartphone, but when the opportunity came to cut cellphone costs in half, my wife and I switched to a new company and got new phones as part of the ...

Charles Murray

News
Better Cameras Simplify Machine Vision
Charles Murray, Senior Technical Editor, Electronics & Test
2/21/2012  2
Editor's Note: This is Part 2 of a two-part series on 3D machine vision. Part 1 can be found here.

Ann R. Thryft

News
Composites Employed in Military Helicopters
Ann R. Thryft, Senior Technical Editor, Materials & Assembly
2/17/2012  17
Two prototype helicopters that will be evaluated by the US Army deploy carbon-fiber-reinforced composite materials in both the aircraft structure and the blades. The light tactical ...

Features

Time for Obama to End Timidity on US Tech Manufacturing Jobs
1/27/2012
 67
President Obama laid out a "blueprint for an American economy that’s built to last" during his election-year State of the Union address this week. Good. When do we start?

Slideshow: 11 Top iPad Engineering Apps
11/28/2011
 32
Here are 11 iPad apps in automation, CAD, and technical reference for mechanical, industrial, and design engineers.

Case Study: Building Your Own 20kW Hydroelectric Power Plant
11/16/2011
 45
Using automation components from AutomationDirect, this small-scale hydroelectric system generates 20kW of power from a nearby lake.

Slideshow: 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Preview
11/10/2011
 14
The 2012 International Consumer Electronics show has innovative designs of interest to mechanical engineers. Check out our CES slideshow.

Slideshow: Messiest Engineering Desks
10/26/2011
 33
Here's a slideshow of the messiest engineer's desks submitted by readers of our sister site EETimes.

Top 5 Roadblocks to Digital Factory of the Future
10/24/2011
 24
The digital factory of the future faces challenges of cost, compatibility and programmability as PLCs and PACs lurch towards a fulling integrated production cycle.

Slideshow: Apple iPad 2 Teardown
10/5/2011
 6
UBM TechInsights conducted a teardown of the Apple iPad 2 3G version tablet.

Distinguishing Between Scientists & Engineers
10/3/2011
 42
News media often identify engineers as scientists and engineering achievements as scientific ones.

Clippard Demonstrates Pneumatic Guitar
Guitar uses 62 pneumatic valves and 62 pneumatic cylinders, ...
Gadget Freak Case #205: Colorado Smart ...
A group of Colorado State University engineering students ...
05:04
GMC Acadia Center Air Bag
GMC Acadia chief engineer Susan Eckel explains how ...
Gadget Freak Case # 204: Self-Starting, ...
Doug Conner's self-starting, solar-powered Stirling engine ...
LEDs Light Up Dodge Dart
Jeff Gale talks about the use of LEDs on the back end of ...
Cadillac Cutting Mass 1 Gram at a Time
How engineers reduced mass of the body structure on the new ...
Ford Showcases Its First Plug-in Hybrid
The technical choices that Ford made on its new C-Max ...
Tesla's Model S Nears Production
Khobi Brooklyn of Tesla Motors talks about the advantages ...
Gadget Freak Case #203: Smart Recycle Can
This recycler determines the type of material being entered ...
What's Next. Right Now.
Mouser urges you to ensure your product life span by not ...
Environmental Commitment
Mouster stresses identifying EOL, obsolete, and NRND products.
Chevy Volt Structure Enhancements
To help the Chevy Volt handle side impacts, GM engineers ...
01:01
Voyager Belt Actuator Lengths up to 6 ...
50mm wide steel reinforced belt and 20mm profile rail and ...
TechnoMod XYZ Gantry System Is a ...
Complete 3-axis automation platform with controller, I/O, ...
ICP Gantry Robot Is a Complete Desktop ...
This compact, low-cost gantry robot is great for testing, ...
Gadget Freak Case #202: The Frankenkindle
Glenn Johnson created an easier-to-use Kindle using the ...
Gadget Freak Case #201: Plug & Play ...
Jared Bouck's monitor system is 100 percent open-source and ...
Gadget Freak Case #200: The Sun Lights ...
To provide nighttime safety for his deck, William Grill ...
02:40
Gadget Freak Case #199: Nixie MilliVolt ...
When James Hartnett found a Nixie, a tube for displaying ...
Gadget Freak Case #198: Build a Remote ...
Andy Morris has devised a propeller fan remote control that ...
Message Boards
Partner Zone
Hello. We were unable to find the address you requested. You may search for the content you are seeking using our search form or email technical support with any questions.
First Stop
Driving App Updates via Crowdsourcing
Waze, an open-source GPS-enabled smartphone app, takes full advantage of crowdsourcing to update ...
Gadget Freak Case #205: Colorado Smart Bike ...
A group of Colorado State University engineering students created a bike that shifts gears by ...
Gadget Freak Case #204: Self-Starting, ...
Doug Conner's self-starting, solar-powered Stirling engine runs all year when the sun is visible ...
Gadget Freak Case #203: Smart Recycle Can
This recycler determines the type of material being entered, by scanning it in or entering it ...
Gadget Freak Case #202: Frankenkindle – An ...
To help his sister, who has cerebral palsy, Glenn Johnson created an easier-to-use Kindle by ...
Auto Climate Control Is Backwards
The automated climate controls do exactly the opposite of what is needed, despite the season.
Design Flaw Rusts Rear Mounts
Catching rusted rear mounts on cars before they fail is difficult if the rust is hidden.
Fatigued Controllers Render Washer Useless
After watching the harness break off from the washer controller twice, this owner comes up with ...
HP Printer Is Baked Back to Life
The HP printer died. The owner found surprising success with a home-baked solution.
Why Are USB-A Connectors So Frail?
USBs are the most common PC connectors, yet they are also the most fragile.
Case of the Reversed Power Switches
When everything you do to fix the motor fails, it's time to examine your assumptions.
Case of the Plunging Insulation Resistance Values
Not all measurements can be trusted, especially if you're using improvised equipment.
Case of the Process Variations
Sometimes it's surprising how much a composite shell can shrink after curing and cooling to room ...
Rewound Motor Saves Refrigerator
Sometimes the real problem is hard to see. Sometimes the fix is even harder to see.
Can You Hear Air Traffic Control Now?
After several years of ground-to-air noise, Sherlock Ohms brought clarity to Air Traffic Control.
How Much Thread Engagement Is Enough?
To avoid defective designs, you must find the proper thread engagement.
MEMS in Sports
MEMS in sports is such a hot topic that MEMS Industry Group – a partner of Sensors in Design ...
Rebuilding Manufacturing: Fixing the ...
As the debate over how to revive US manufacturing heats up, tax and other proposals are emerging ...
Buying the Logic of Safety
Blogger TJ McDermott recently completed an industrial system requiring a fair amount of safety ...
When Environmental Stress Cracking Strikes
Environmental stress cracking is a common failure mode for plastics, and you may need to do your ...
The Continuing Education Center offers engineers an entirely new way to get the education they need to formulate next-generation solutions.
Feb 27 - Mar2, Basic Industrial Control Processing


DN Radio
Sponsored by
NEXT UPCOMING BROADCAST
3D CAD & Visualization
February 23, 2pm EST Thursday
Gone are the days when CAD-savvy individuals are the only ones who need access to 3D CAD models. As more companies embrace digital design tools and digital prototyping for their product development processes, there's a growing need to make the 3D models accessible and usable by a wider population beyond CAD users. This radio show will explore how technologies are evolving to give non-CAD users and even non-engineers access to the 3D digital models for markup, review, and collaboration purposes, along with how these tools can deliver value in terms of fostering reuse, innovation, and overall product development efficiencies.
Quick Poll
Twitter Feed
Design News Twitter Feed
Like Us on Facebook

Datasheets.com Parts Search

185 million searchable parts
(please enter a part number or hit search to begin)
Engineering Careers
Jobs sponsored by
Copyright © 2012 UBM Electronics, A UBM company, All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service