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Why a soccer kick bends the ball path: SOLIDWORKS simulation

With SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation, you can virtually test a ball's flight path and see the science behind its amazing trajectory. Visualize anything you want to test, including the physics that make a ball curve and dip, to optimize performance and reduce physical testing. See the SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation study setup and learn about the Magnus effect where a spinning object moving through a fluid curves away from its straight path. [Credit: Screenshot courtesy of SOLIDWORKS]
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Lightning-fast in-line verification, high-performance barcode reading

The Omron VHV5 Barcode Reader now combines high-performance barcode reading and calibrated ISO verification in one device. Replacing offline sample checks, it delivers 100% inline verification at production speeds up to 1,200 parts per minute. With flexible lighting, the VHV5 easily inspects labels and Direct Part Marks, even on challenging curved or irregular surfaces.
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How to choose the right industrial Ethernet switch

Antaira Technologies breaks down 10 mission-critical capabilities separating industrial-grade switches from commercial compromises. Even if you aren't in IT engineering, you will find valuable networking knowledge in this guide to protect vital infrastructure.
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New CAM software cuts robotic machining deployment

At Automate (Booth #4476), RoboDK will showcase RoboDK CAM, which generates robotic machining programs directly from CAD files. Designed for easy deployment, it cuts setup time by up to 40%. Live demonstrations will show users how to create collision-free robot motion straight from CAD data, eliminating manual line-by-line coding.
Learn more about RoboDK CAM.

AI Tools You Can Use: What is OpenClaw? How do I get it and use it?

OpenClaw is trending big time right now, but what is it? The YouTubers over at Create a Pro Website run through the basics of what you need to know and how to implement it. Basically, OpenClaw is a next-gen 24/7 AI assistant that lives on your computer and can perform actions for you. You talk to it through a chat app. You can set it up to do real work such as alert you to important emails, answer emails for you, manage your calendar and travel, and so much more. There is a great intro video here and also a longer, very thorough step-by-step video to setting up OpenClaw.
View the OpenClaw intro video.
View the OpenClaw setup video.

New! 6-digit programmable display/controller

Bristol Instruments has released the OM 403UNI Series displays/ controllers, allowing users to monitor two or three simultaneous functions. Configured via OM Link software or front-panel buttons, they feature four- or six-digit displays with +/-0.05% of f.s. range accuracy. They function as numeric/bar-graph displays, controllers, data recorders, or accumulators. Additionally, they detect and alert users to error conditions like broken sensor wires.
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Mini edge AI systems for vision, generative AI

As enterprises transition from PoC to real-world edge AI deployment, Aetina has launched its Mini Series Edge AI systems. Powered by NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano and NX modules, these compact, fanless systems deliver high-performance vision and generative AI inference. Engineered for demanding industrial environments, they offer flexible camera connectivity, space-saving designs, and long-term reliability to accelerate smart infrastructure.
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Thermal imaging on the quality control line

On a high-speed food and beverage line, what you can see is not always what is happening. Thermal imaging adds a different layer of control. Instead of relying on surface appearance, it measures heat distribution as seals are formed and products move through the line, providing continuous, 100% in-line inspection instead of just sampling.
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Built for the test bench, ready for the field

FUTEK's IDC150 Signal Conditioner packages high-performance signal conditioning in a rugged aluminum enclosure. Built for engineers needing accurate, synchronized data from strain gauge sensors, it fits prototyping and lab environments. The device connects seamlessly to existing setups and pairs with SENSIT software and Python APIs. It is ideal for compact, high-performance digital sensor evaluation.
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Automotive lighting systems simplified, optimized

The new MLX81119 from Melexis is an 18-channel LIN RGB LED controller with an integrated DC/DC converter, designed to simplify and optimize automotive lighting systems. By generating the LED supply voltage locally on chip, this unit significantly reduces power dissipation, external components, and space requirements in increasingly dense vehicle applications such as door panels, dashboards, and charge-port lighting.
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How healthy is your machine? Moisture-in-Oil Sensor

iST's Moisture-in-Oil Sensor is a compact, digital RH/T module that accurately and continuously monitors the water content in oils and fuels. This sensor does not simply measure the absolute water content -- it measures the relative saturation level in % RH or water activity aw in %. This means you get a direct picture of the current oil quality and can react in time. Applications include: marine engines and gearboxes, commercial and rail vehicles, wind turbines and generators, drilling and paper machines, and more. Eval kit available.
Learn more.

World's first native color lidar sensors

Ouster Rev8 features the world's first patented native color lidar sensors. For the first time, a single lidar sensor can understand road signs, interpret brake lights, or simply capture the richness of planet Earth in survey-grade, colorized maps. Based on patented Ouster Silicon with embedded Fujifilm color science, the L4 chip boasts 42.9 GMACs of processing power, detection of up to 20 trillion photons per sec, and a 40-kHz measurement rate with picosecond timing precision. Sees up to 200 m.
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Real-world applications: 3D camera ensures precise aircraft cabin drilling

In modern aircraft production, precision is everything. In this application article, learn how an Ensenso 3D camera integrated into an automated process chain ensures accurate detection and alignment of drilling positions in aircraft cabin assembly using the CAD data of the aircraft frame.
Read the full article.

What are Onshape Custom Features?

Certified Onshape Professional Too Tall Toby explains how to supercharge your workflow using community-created tools. In this insightful tutorial, he dives into the world of FeatureScript -- the powerful coding language behind Onshape. Learn where to find new scripts and how to use them. Save time. Learn new skills, shortcuts, and maybe even better ways to do things. Incorporate Custom Features into your everyday work. Very useful.
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What can you do with touchless magnetic angle sensors?

Novotechnik has put together an informative video highlighting real-world applications for their RFC, RFE, and RSA Series touchless magnetic angle sensors. You may be surprised at the variety of off-highway, marine, material handling, and industrial uses. You'll learn how they work (using a Hall effect microprocessor to detect position) and their key advantages, including eliminated wear and tear on these non-mechanical components. We love when manufacturers provide such useful examples.
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These newly designed copper cold plates could slash data-center energy usage

By Julia Grimmett, Cell Press

Mechanical engineers at the University of Illinois have designed a more effective and energy-efficient technology for cooling computer chips. Published May 7, 2026, in the Cell Press journal Cell Reports Physical Science, the researchers used a mathematical algorithm and advanced 3D-printing method to produce pure copper cold plates that outperformed conventional cold plates and required less energy to run. If used to cool an entire data center, the technology would contribute only around 1.1% of the data center's total energy usage compared to more than 30% for conventional air-cooling methods, the researchers estimate.

"Cooling is the bottleneck in computer-chip design," says first author Behnood Bazmi, mechanical engineering graduate student. "By bridging the gap between computational design and manufacturing capability, our approach provides a pathway for more energy-efficient liquid cooling of chips and other electronics."

Photo of the fabricated topology optimization (TO) fin array on a copper base. [Credit: Image courtesy of the researchers/University of Illinois/Cell Press]

 

 

 

 

Computer chips are becoming increasingly high powered, which means they produce more heat. This, combined with the increase in data centers, is putting a strain on the energy grid -- by 2028, it's predicted that data centers will consume up to 12% of the national grid load in the United States. For the past 40 to 50 years, computer chips have been cooled by circulating air, but air is insufficient for dissipating the heat produced by modern chips. Liquid direct-to-chip cooling could offer a more effective solution, say the researchers.

Direct-to-chip cooling systems consist of a cold plate that is attached to a computer chip. These cold plates have tightly packed metal "fins" that project out into the cooling liquid to maximize the surface area that is in contact with the coolant. Some direct-to-chip liquid cooling systems are already commercially available, but those systems prioritize manufacturing cost over performance. In this study, the researchers set out to optimize fin design to create cold plates with maximum cooling ability.

The team used a technique called topology optimization to design fins with an optimal shape. From a simple rectangular starting design, topology optimization uses a mathematical algorithm to gradually alter the fin's shape. For each iteration in fin design, the algorithm estimates the cooling capability and the amount of power that would be needed to pump coolant past the fins.

"Topology optimization ends up converging on a design which is optimal in maximizing thermal performance and minimizing pumping power," says Founder Professor Nenad Miljkovic.

With pointed tops and jagged edges, the resulting fins are much more complex than conventional fins, which are usually simple rectangles, cones, or cylinders. Because this design would be too difficult to manufacture using conventional techniques, the team collaborated with a company called Fabric8 to use an advanced manufacturing method called electrochemical additive manufacturing (ECAM) to produce copper cold plates with the optimized fins. Rather than melting copper, ECAM relies on electrochemical plating to deposit copper and build the fins up, layer by layer, from bottom to top.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of the fabricated pin fin. Scale bar 200 µm. [Credit: Image courtesy of the researchers/University of Illinois/Cell Press]

 

 

 

 

Pure copper has a high thermal conductivity, but it's difficult to 3D print, so most cold plates are made of an aluminum alloy (AlSiMg) or stainless steel, which are not optimal for heat transfer. "ECAM can manufacture pure copper parts with very fine detail -- down to 30 to 50 micrometers, less than the width of a human hair," says Miljkovic.

When the researchers compared the cooling performance of an individual copper cold plate with the optimized fins to cold plates with conventional rectangular fins, they found that the optimized plate delivered up to 32% better cooling and reduced pressure drop (less effort to push fluid through the cold plate) by up to 68% while maintaining the same cooling performance. At the level of an entire data center, this would translate into significant energy savings compared to both air-cooling and commercially available liquid-cooling systems, the researchers say.

For example, a data center with 1 gigawatt (GW) of computing power consumes around 550 megawatts to run an air-cooling system, meaning it actually consumes 1.55 GW total in energy, but only 1 GW is used for functions such as ChatGPT, searches, and storage. "With our cold plates, data centers would only need to use 11 megawatts for cooling instead of 550 megawatts," says Miljkovic.

This optimization and manufacturing system could be scaled to design optimized cooling systems for other electronics and non-electronic applications, the researchers say. "Our workflow can be applied to a wide range of cooling challenges across different length scales," says Bazmi.

Published May 2026

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