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December 21, 2021Volume 17 Issue 47


Image - New: Instant Quotes on Laser and Waterjet Cutting From Xometry
New: Instant Quotes on Laser and Waterjet Cutting From Xometry
Xometry is now offering instant quoting on all laser and waterjet cut parts! With ITAR registration, full material traceability, and lead times measured in days, Xometry is your one-stop shop for both prototype and production laser and waterjet cutting.
Get your instant quote today!

In this issue of Designfax

  • Semiconductor breakthrough from IBM and Samsung
  • Engineer's Toolbox: Gear crowning -- a cheap noise fix
  • Apollo 8: A story of Christmas around the Moon
  • Toyota and Lexus unveils 15 new EV concepts
  • You gotta see this: Robot hive packs orders
  • Packaging Profile: Ring Container Technologies
  • Getting a grip on the future, with robotics
  • Great Resource: Unit Conversion Tool
  • Top Tech Tip: How to create quality STL files for 3D prints
  • SureFrame cut-to-length T-slotted rails
  • Mini load button sensor: Small but mighty
  • Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
    • Gear motor basics: Introduction to gear motors
  • Most Popular Last Issue
    • Ford 1978 F-100 all-electric pickup
    • Rolls-Royce aero hybrid-electric system
    • Particle accelerator magnet sets record
  • New Products
    • Electrical, Mechanical, Motion
    Cover Image: Toyota and Lexus all-electric concept vehicles

News

Stretchable pressure sensor could lead to better robotics and prosthetics

August to October sees largest streak in manufacturing tech orders in over 23 years

'Hungry Hippo' design will enable large launch vehicle to release a payload and return to Earth

Weird Science: Researchers discover how crowds can make bridges wobble and sway



Image - Worldwide Exclusive Range of Ultrafine Wires
Worldwide Exclusive Range of Ultrafine Wires
Goodfellow has introduced a range of ultrafine wires (gold, silver, platinum, copper, nickel, etc.) with a diameter less than 1ยต and a continuous, chemically inert glass insulation coating that provides high electrical strength, wide temperature range, and radiation and pressure resistance. The full range, which meets the demand for miniaturization across a variety of industries, can be used in a vast array of applications including sensors, medical devices, smart devices, and aerospace and aviation components.
Learn more.

Feature articles

Image - Semiconductor breakthrough from IBM and Samsung upends conventional design
Semiconductor breakthrough from IBM and Samsung upends conventional design
It's Moore's Law, Schmoore's Law at IBM's Albany Nanotech Complex, where a joint effort between Big Blue and Samsung has rewritten the rules for semiconductor design -- creating a new vertical transistor architecture with 85% energy savings and the allure of smartphones that get charged once a week.
Read the full article.

Image - Engineer's Toolbox: <br>Gear crowning -- a cheap fix for noise
Engineer's Toolbox:
Gear crowning -- a cheap fix for noise

With smaller gearboxes transmitting more power at higher rpm and the incumbent demands for greater efficiency, gear engineers are always searching for new ways to reduce vibration and limit noise -- without increasing costs.
Read the full article.

Image - Apollo 8: A story of Christmas around the Moon
Apollo 8: A story of Christmas around the Moon
Christmas Eve, 1968. As one of the most turbulent, tragic years in American history drew to a close, millions around the world were watching and listening as the Apollo 8 astronauts -- Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders -- became the first humans to orbit another world.
Read the full article.

Image - Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Designfax!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Designfax!
2021 was a big challenge, but we made it and are filled with gratitude. Thanks to all of our readers, sponsors, writers, and article contributors. We wish all of you a healthy and happy holiday season!

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Image - Toyota and Lexus unveil 15 new all-electric concepts in a single shot
Toyota and Lexus unveil 15 new all-electric concepts in a single shot
In a real Oprah you-get-a-car moment, Toyota and Lexus took the wraps off 15 all-new all-electric vehicle concepts at once at a press briefing Dec. 14 -- everything from a high-end Electrified Sport prowler to a Bronco-like Compact Cruiser and even a Smart-car-like Micro Box. There was a vehicle for everyone. It was a slick, surprising, and economical mass-release event that put the world on notice: Toyota plans to roll out 30 battery EV models by 2030.
Read the full article.

Image - You gotta see this: Robot hive packs orders
You gotta see this: Robot hive packs orders
Watch as Tom Scott, science and technology reporter, tours Ocado's seven-football-fields-long grocery-packing warehouse southeast of London where about 2,300 bots controlled by The Hive Mind artificial intelligence move more than 1 million items per day. A single bot (top speed 14 km/h) can transfer items in three dimensions, often working with only a 5-mm gap between robo units. A Designfax reader tipped us off to this incredible video -- one of our favorites of the year -- and we are really glad he did.
View the video.

Image - Packaging Profile: Ring Container Technologies optimizes packaging and packing through end-of-line robotic palletizing
Packaging Profile: Ring Container Technologies optimizes packaging and packing through end-of-line robotic palletizing
Ring Container Technologies is one of the largest plastic container manufacturers in North America. Learn how their high-performance blow molding and injection molding systems are integrated with end-of-line conveying, accumulation, and robotic palletizing systems engineered and built by Brenton Engineering to reduce labor hours and downtime, increase throughput, and support sustainability.
Read the full article.

Image - Getting a grip on the future, with robotics
Getting a grip on the future, with robotics
Today, a world without robots is inconceivable. The areas of application that require process safety, reliability, and economic efficiency from these robots are equally manifold. FAULHABER drive systems play a major role in fulfilling these requirements, and they continue to impress with their durability and performance in a robust and compact design. Whether a robotics application requires high dynamics or precise positioning, FAULHABER has a micro motion solution available -- from gripping without compressed air to robots used in inspection, delivery, and more.
Learn more.

Image - Great Resource: Unit Conversion Tool
Great Resource: Unit Conversion Tool
With Smalley's engineering tools, convert popular spring units such as force or retaining ring thrust capacities into metric units. Convert units such as mass and weight, angular measurements, velocities, temperatures, pressures, densities, and more!
Learn more. You should bookmark this one.

Image - Top Tech Tip: How to create high-quality STL files for 3D prints
Top Tech Tip: How to create high-quality STL files for 3D prints
Have you ever 3D-printed a part that had flat spots or faceted surfaces where smooth curves were supposed to be? Or maybe you've just seen a picture of a 3D print that looked like it belonged in some low-res CGI from the 90s? You are not alone, and it's not your 3D printer's fault. According to Markforged, the culprit is likely a lack of resolution in the STL file that was used to create the part.
Read this detailed and informative Markforged blog.

Image - SureFrame cut-to-length T-slotted rails
SureFrame cut-to-length T-slotted rails
AutomationDirect has added SureFrame cut-to-length T-slotted extruded aluminum rails to its offerings. These structures are lightweight, economical, versatile, and easy to construct. This system has many uses, from stands that hold barcode scanners and label applicators to OEM machines made entirely of T-slotted aluminum rail. The rails are available in the most popular profiles and dimensions, are compatible with many other brands, and can be cut to your specified lengths in increments of 0.001 in. with no cutting fees.
Learn more.

Image - Mini load button sensor: Small but mighty
Mini load button sensor: Small but mighty
The LLB250 from FUTEK is a miniature load button sensor in a class of its own. Capable of measuring compression forces up to 250 lb with a footprint of just 0.5-in. diameter and 0.15-in. high, it is an extraordinarily powerful and precise tiny sensor. It features a custom single-gauge design for integration with the sensor case and very high accuracy and reliability. It is designed for press or inline compression applications, such as measuring loads on a turbine shaft or gauging forces on a CNC workpiece.
Learn more.

Most popular last issue

Image - Ford turns 1978 F-100 pickup into all-electric showpiece
Ford turns 1978 F-100 pickup into all-electric showpiece
We've seen some pretty impressive restomods in the past couple of years, where vintage gasoline vehicles are outfitted with state-of-the-art all-electric propulsion systems. Ford showed off its latest conversion at the 2021 SEMA show: the 480-hp 1978 all-electric F-100 Eluminator concept truck that features twin front and rear electric traction motors from the Mustang Mach-E.
Read the full article.

Image - Rolls-Royce aero hybrid-electric propulsion system sets a megawatt milestone
Rolls-Royce aero hybrid-electric propulsion system sets a megawatt milestone
About the size of a beer keg, Rolls-Royce's hybrid-electric aero power and propulsion system called Power Generation System 1 has delivered more than a megawatt of power just weeks after its first testing start -- and ramping up the power is in the works.
Read the full article.

Image - Particle accelerator magnet sets record using high-temperature superconducting tape
Particle accelerator magnet sets record using high-temperature superconducting tape
A small team of physicists, engineers, and technicians at the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Particle Accelerator Lab just demonstrated the world's fastest magnetic ramping rates for particle accelerator magnets. Noteworthy, they achieved this record by using magnets made with an energy-efficient, high-temperature superconducting material.
Read the full article.

Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action
Gear motor basics: Introduction to gear motors
Groschopp USA gives a nice overview of motors and explains the rationale for using gear motors -- why using a reducer (gearbox) with a motor enables the use of a smaller motor and increased torque and/or speed. Other videos in this series address common reducer types and advantages and disadvantages.
View the video.

New products

Electrical/Electronics
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Mechanical
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Motion
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