Engineering news

Engineering

Construction exoskeletons may help workers spot hazards by reducing fatigue

Taking some of the physical strain off construction workers could do more than reduce fatigue. New research from Texas A&M University suggests it may also help them recognize hazards around them.

Engineering

A cooling device built to last: Sustainable refrigeration system maintains performance through one million cycles

Although invaluable to modern society, refrigeration faces challenges from traditional vapor-compression systems, which are energy-intensive and use refrigerants that exacerbate the greenhouse effect and damage the ozone ...

Robotics

Maple-seed-inspired robot flies more accurately with predictive control

A flying robot with just one moving part may sound simple. Controlling one precisely is anything but. Most conventional drones rely on several rotors to control how they rise, turn and move. A robot with only one actuator ...

Engineering

Cost-conscious method helps design automated materials labs before equipment is purchased

A research team from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed a new modeling and optimization framework that helps researchers design modularized autonomous experimentation (MAE) platforms ...

Robotics

Light-powered soft robots that can keep jumping forever

Researchers from North Carolina State University have created teardrop-shaped soft robots that leap upward or forward when exposed to infrared light—and will keep jumping as long as the light is present. The work demonstrates ...

Engineering

Recycled aggregates can match structural concrete strength

A new study challenges one of the most deeply rooted assumptions in civil engineering: that using recycled materials in structural concrete inevitably means sacrificing strength. Researchers from Escuela Superior Politécnica ...

Engineering

How probabilistic analysis can help improve nuclear safety

In nuclear power plants, primary coolant piping systems are designed to maintain the structural integrity of the nuclear reactor under normal operating conditions. A pipe rupture that can result in a loss-of-coolant accident ...

Robotics

New underwater robot could make ocean missions more reliable

A new, patent-pending underwater robot developed at Purdue University's College of Engineering could improve ocean research, underwater infrastructure inspection and search-and-rescue efforts by adapting to mission needs ...

Engineering

Erasable semiconductor is programmed with light

Researchers at Princeton Engineering have created a semiconductor with unique properties: It is just a few molecules thick and can repeatedly change its properties in response to light. This is a step toward building more ...