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Computer Sciences

New algorithm helps read QR codes on uneven surfaces

Sometimes, we try to capture a QR code with a good digital camera on a smartphone, but the reading eventually fails. This usually happens when the QR code itself is of poor image quality, or if it has been printed on surfaces ...

Engineering

Rooftop solar panels impact temperatures during the day and night in cities, simulation study shows

Widespread coverage of building rooftops with conventional photovoltaic solar panels may increase temperatures on hot days and lower them at night, says new modeling.

Robotics

New data augmentation algorithm could facilitate the transfer of skills across robots

In recent years, roboticists have developed a wide range of systems designed to tackle various real-world tasks, ranging from completing household chores to delivering packages or finding target objects in delineated environments.

Engineering

Dragonfly wing pattern reinforces vaults and domes better than ancient Roman and tech-generated methods

Skoltech researchers and their colleagues from the University of Granada, Spain, have determined the most efficient ways to reinforce vaults and domes in architecture. The team compared how well various traditional and unconventional ...

Robotics

Introducing GTGraffiti: The robot that paints like a human

Graduate students at the Georgia Institute of Technology have built the first graffiti-painting robot system that mimics the fluidity of human movement. Aptly named GTGraffiti, the system uses motion capture technology to ...

Electronics & Semiconductors

Lithium-ion batteries that last longer in extreme cold

When temperatures fall below freezing, cellphones need to be recharged frequently, and electric cars have shorter driving ranges. This is because their lithium-ion batteries' anodes get sluggish, holding less charge and draining ...

Engineering

A chip that can classify nearly 2 billion images per second

Artificial intelligence (AI) plays an important role in many systems, from predictive text to medical diagnoses. Inspired by the human brain, many AI systems are implemented based on artificial neural networks, where electrical ...

Hardware

Radio waves for the detection of hardware tampering

As far as data security is concerned, there is an even greater danger than remote cyberattacks: namely tampering with hardware that can be used to read out information—such as credit card data from a card reader. Researchers ...

Robotics

Making robotic assistive walking more natural

A paper published in the April 2022 issue of IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters outlines the AMBER team's method and represents the first instance of combining hybrid zero dynamics (HZD)—a mathematical framework for generating ...

Energy & Green Tech

Sponge-like solar cells could be basis for better pacemakers

Holes help make sponges and English muffins useful (and, in the case of the latter, delicious). Without holes, they wouldn't be flexible enough to bend into small crevices, or to sop up the perfect amount of jam and butter.

Engineering

New imager microchip helps devices bring hidden objects to light

Researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas and Oklahoma State University have developed an innovative terahertz imager microchip that can enable devices to detect objects and create images through obstacles that include ...

Consumer & Gadgets

An edible QR code takes a shot at fake whiskey

In the future, when you order a shot of whiskey, you might ask the bartender to hold an edible fluorescent silk tag that could be found floating inside—even though it is safe to consume.

Energy & Green Tech

New model finds best sites for electric vehicle charging stations

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a computational model that can be used to determine the optimal places for locating electric vehicle (EV) charging facilities, as well as how powerful the charging ...

Engineering

Textile filter testing shows promise for carbon capture

North Carolina State University researchers found they could filter carbon dioxide from air and gas mixtures at promising rates using a proposed new textile-based filter that combines cotton fabric and an enzyme called carbonic ...

Telecom

'Beam-steering' technology takes mobile communications beyond 5G

Birmingham scientists have revealed a new beam-steering antenna that increases the efficiency of data transmission for 'beyond 5G'—and opens up a range of frequencies for mobile communications that are inaccessible to currently ...