| July 09, 2019 | Volume 15 Issue 26 |
 | 1/4 Ton Of Refrigeration
This small, stainless steel Vortex Tube produces 1/4 ton of refrigeration and has no moving parts to wear out. Temperatures range from minus 50 to +250 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooling applications include electronic controls, machining operations, heat seals, welding operations, hot melts and more.
More details online. |
 | Ford Ranger gets tough with special VelociRaptor treatment
Who knew a little 2019 Ford Ranger could look so intimidating? The creative geniuses at Hennessey Performance Engineering did. Known for taking vehicles "from mild to wild," the famous upgrades shop has created a 500-unit special edition VelociRaptor Ranger that looks as big and bad as its high-end Raptor sibling. It's got solid power upgrades too.
Read the full article. |
 | New kind of shape-shifting airplane wing
A team of MIT and NASA engineers has built and tested a radically new kind of airplane wing, assembled from hundreds of tiny identical pieces. The wing can change shape to control the plane's flight, and could provide a significant boost in aircraft production, flight, and maintenance efficiency.
Read the full article. |
 | Fastest Camaro ever is made for the track
The fastest, most track-capable Camaro ever -- the 2019 Camaro ZL1 1LE -- will offer a special 10-speed automatic transmission. During development, Chevy engineers pushed the limits of the transmission design to be more than one-half second faster than the standard manual on General Motors' 2.9-mile Milford Road Course.
Read the full article. |
 | Harvard/MIT engineers reinvent piston using soft materials
A team of roboticists has developed a new way to design pistons that replaces their conventional rigid elements with compressible structures inside a membrane made of soft materials. The resulting "tension pistons" generate more than three times the force of comparable conventional pistons, eliminate much of the friction, and are strikingly more energy efficient.
Read the full article. |
 | Scientists weld glass and metal together
Scientists from Heriot-Watt University in Scotland have welded glass and metal together using an ultra-fast laser system. They consider the feat to be a breakthrough for the manufacturing industry. The new process could have direct applications in the aerospace, defense, optical technology, and even healthcare fields.
Read the full article. |
 | Top Product: Allite Super Magnesium
Weighing 33 percent less than aluminum, while also being stiffer and stronger pound for pound, the new Allite Super Magnesium alloy has shown its mettle in classified defense and aerospace applications. Now it's available for wider use. This material is less expensive than carbon fiber and has the lowest carbon footprint of any structural material throughout the value chain. Industry applications include home improvement, sporting goods, aerospace, automotive, biking, and beyond. Three alloy variants are available to suit welding, forming/forging, or casting. These alloys feature excellent shock-absorption properties, good electromagnetic shielding performance, good heat dissipation, and recyclability. Allite is based in Dayton, OH.
Learn more. |
 | Top Product: Carbon composite bellows springs for lightweighting and more
The Carbon Composite Bellows Spring (CCBS) from MW Industries is a system of carbon fiber elements that combine to work as a high-performance, lightweight, and design-flexible compression spring meant to replace conventional coil springs or metallic Belleville disc springs. It offers value through unique dynamic characteristics and unparalleled in-the-field design flexibility. A functional spring is made from several individual elements, paired in sets and joined to make a stack. The spring rate of the stack is determined by the number of elements, the base rate of each element, and their series or parallel orientation in the stack. Applications include motorsports, aerospace, outdoor recreation, general industry, and high-performance activities.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Top Product: Cut and form LED sheets let you bend the rules of lighting design
VCC is bending the rules of lighting design with its new VentoFlex tiles. The VentoFlex modular lighting system opens up countless ways for architects and lighting designers to make an impact. Available in 12-in. x 12-in. sheets, these innovative LED tiles can be cut and formed around any design element, including rounded corners and tight spaces, without taking up much room at all -- just 0.15 in. (3.81 mm). A pair of scissors is the only tool required to cut VentoFlex tiles to the size and shape you desire. Ten or 15 tiles can be linked together to one driver and dimmer to create thousands of square inches of versatile lighting power!
Learn more about this new and exciting lighting technology. |
 | Cool Tools: New Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+
Fans of the extremely popular credit card-sized computer called Raspberry Pi have something new to celebrate. The line of highly customizable base units has expanded with the third-gen A+ board, which brings the latest features and capabilities to a more compact form factor and lower price point -- only 25 bucks (and we have seen this on sale for under 20)!
Read the full article. |
 | Top Toolbox: Self-clinching fasteners design tips
Dozens of types and thousands of variations of self-clinching fasteners (steel, stainless steel, or aluminum) have been engineered over the years. Leon M. Attarian of PennEngineering provides three mini case studies where manufacturers benefited greatly by switching to self-clinching fasteners in their assemblies. This article is filled with insightful tips and suggestions.
Read the full article. |
 | HVACR Tech Tip: How to properly clean a condenser coil
Condenser coil cleaning is one of those subjects where there is a fair amount of misdirection and misinformation being propagated by some manufacturers/distributors that has caused unfortunate confusion in the industry. Parker Hannifin provides answers to common questions to set the record straight. Why do condenser coil cleaners foam, and evaporator coils usually don't? What is the difference between the acid and non-acid condenser coil cleaners? Learn these things and more in this informative post.
Read the Parker Hannifin blog. |
| | Most popular last issue |
 | One-armin' the '52 Fetzenflieger with Porsche factory racing engine
There have been a lot of racing legends throughout the history of motor sport, but none can quite compare to Austrian driver (and mechanical engineer) Otto Mathé, who, despite having only one functional arm, not only drove to victory in each of the 20 races he entered in 1952, but also built his own cars exclusively featuring Porsche engines. In the mid-1950s, he became well known for building, driving, and winning in an unusual vehicle dubbed the "Fetzenflieger."
Read the full article. |
 | Air-rifle trigger assembly gets coiled spring pins
When engineers at SPIROL evaluated the trigger assembly for a client's air-rifle product, they thought they could do better in terms of part count, assembly time, and assembly steps. Their solution was to replace 15 components (five pins and 10 retaining E-rings) with five self-retaining Coiled Pins. Learn how they did it -- and helped to automate production along the way.
Read the SPIROL application note. |
 | How a camera auto-focus lens uses a special spring
Ultrasonic motors are small motors, some measured in millimeters, that are being used in a variety of applications including the auto-focus feature on a camera lens, side mirrors, surgical equipment, and robots. Learn how a single-turn closed wave spring is used to maintain the necessary pressure against the motor stator in a camera, and why it is a better choice in this application over coil or washer-type springs.
Read the Rotor Clip application note. |
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| | Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action |
X Gamer tries out Harley-Davidson scooter
X Games host Jack Mitrani was the first person ever to ride Harley-Davidson's new lightweight electric scooter concept in public this past January. Mitrani especially loved the quick responsiveness of the electric direct drive as he whizzed around Aspen. Harley says it has designed the battery to be removable, so riders can "single-hand-carry (it) back to an apartment or office space to charge using a charging dock that plugs into any standard household power outlet." The company is really planning to make these -- not a late April Fool's joke.
View the video. |
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Create and print your own PCB!
Levon Habosian, senior applications engineer ECAD Products, introduces two solutions offered by his company TriMech that allow you to create a printed circuit board (PCB) using SOLIDWORKS PCB. Once you've finalized your design, you export the Gerber files to the Nano Dimension electronic 3D Printer. TriMech says it's a game-changer. What do you think?
View the video. |
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Saildrones set out to conquer the high seas
After Richard Jenkins set the world speed record for land sailing in a self-designed three-wheeler with a unique wing/tail/tab system, he turned his business and engineering skills to creating a global fleet of 1,000 wind- and solar-powered ocean Saildrones. Their mission is to monitor the state of the seas and sea life in real time -- gathering important info on weather at the same time. The totally autonomous sail craft feature a 23-ft hull, heavy keel, and a 15-ft solar sail wing. Outfitted with a multitude of sensors and at least one camera, they are built to withstand hurricane forces and can travel for thousands of miles for a full year on their own. Jenkins says he hasn't lost a Saildrone yet. Thanks to Bloomberg for this excellent report.
View the video. |
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