Perhaps there is an application here in male enhancement. Not that I need it. Or make car bodies and structure such that, after a collision, the car springs back to its original shape by the application of electricity. The fantasy is that a laptop computer can be made to fit in your pocket. The reality, as Alex points out, lends itself in the short term to, toys, robotics, micro-actuators, and radio controlled models.
You are correct, the cost is super high. On the other hand it is amaizing to see a tool unfolding on your desk while you shine a heat lamp. It makes you brain run with ideas like a race car.
It is a shame that due to budget cuts many of these projects are shelved every day.
Shape-memory actuators for space applications continue to be a hot topic. Although calculations vary, it's been said that it may cost around $10,000 per pound to put something in low Earth orbit. That being the case, anything that can take weight out of actuation systems (for example, to deploy solar arrays) has a high value. There is a company in Colorado called CTD which has done some interesting work with shape memory polymers for this type of application.
I think it will be a while before the cost of this technology reaches the point where it will make sense to use it in consumer-oriented applications. The advanced concepts described in this article are not likely to be realized next week or next year.
However, it's good for design engineers to educate themselves about these materials now, so that when they become more readily available, engineers can take advantage of their unique properties. Shape memory materials can open all kinds of interesting design opportunities, some of which can barely even be imagined now.
Very interesting. Thank you for the story. Some years back i worked on the metal with thermal memory. NASA had use it to pre-orient some tools in a specific shape and then upon use in space, expose them to certain temperature and resape them into a useful shape.
By experimenting with the photovoltaic reaction in solar cells, researchers at MIT have made a breakthrough in energy efficiency that significantly pushes the boundaries of current commercial cells on the market.
In a world that's going green, industrial operations have a problem: Their processes involve materials that are potentially toxic, flammable, corrosive, or reactive. If improperly managed, this can precipitate dangerous health and environmental consequences.
With LEDs dropping in price virtually every year, automakers have begun employing them, not only on luxury vehicles, but on entry-level models, as well.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
3 
