A movable sunshade on the roof of the Milwaukee Art Museum consists of a pair of wing-like structures, each made up of 36 steel ribs ranging in length from 24 to 105 ft. The ribs are mounted on two rotating steel shafts, in turn connected to the pavilion's spine. To open and close the sunshade, 22 hydraulic cylinders (11 on each side) stroke simultaneously. The cranks swing a 90-degree. arc to open the wings in 3.5 minutes. Engineers equipped the building with two separate ultrasonic wind sensors to monitor velocity and direction. If wind speed exceeds 23 mph for three seconds or longer, the control system automatically closes the wings. Similarly, a lightning sensor is installed to predict imminent lightning strikes. The power unit consists of two identical pump sets. Each 30-hp motor drives a tandem axial-piston pump. One pump of each tandem set powers the north wing, the other powers the south wing. This circuit can move both wings even if one motor/pump group is out of service.
Inforbix is leveraging its CAD and product data access technology to power up a free iPad app that lets mobile users search and access engineering data.
Unlike his friends in engineering programs, blogger Jon Titus had little need for calculus except in a few of his college physical-chemistry labs and classes.
In the wake of the Chevy Volt fire investigations, sales are down, and General Motors' (GM) CEO Dan Akerson is blaming the downturn on a spate of bad publicity.
Thanks to embedded electronics, medical devices are getting smaller and smarter than ever. Pacemakers and implantable defibrillators are now able to call physicians. MRIs, CT scanners, and ultrasound machines are gaining mobility. And the venerable Band-Aid may soon be able to detect illnesses ranging from fevers to heart arrhythmias. On February 21, join Design News senior editor Charles Murray for a wide-ranging discussion, "Embedded Angles for Medical Products," which will explore the latest developments in medical electronics. The discussion will examine advances in medical device technology and offer an inside look at the embedded electronics behind it.
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