| July 09, 2013 | Volume 09 Issue 26 |
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 | New Full Line Catalog -- Full of New Fasteners
Micro Plastics introduces its new catalog #39. With 290 pages of nylon fastener items, 12 new product lines, and over 500 new items added. Contents include: standard and metric machine screws, cap screws, nuts, washers, spacers, insulators, grommets, bushings, rivets, hole plugs, clamps, printed circuit board accessories, suspended ceiling hooks, and wire routing kits. FREE samples are available upon request.
Click here for more information. |
 | Tell us, "Why I love my car"
What engineer doesn't like to talk about cars? Now it's your turn to tell us why you love yours -- and the engineering behind it. Email a paragraph or two and maybe even a pic to share your story, and we'll post a bunch of them in an upcoming issue of Designfax. Got a 250,000-miler? Love the way your ride handles that grueling trip to work each day? Maybe you're a do-it-yourselfer, and you just want to show off. Debbie, an engineering editor in the office next to mine, owns a Corvette she loves (pictured) that is raced in pro series events. Who knew? Email why you love your car to Mike at mfoley@nelsonpub.com, and we'll get the reader contributions rolling. Or submit your comments here using the reader feedback form. |
| | Feature articles |
 | Wheels:
World's smallest production V8 optimized with precision honing
Gary Conley's 30-year quest to manufacture a true production V8 engine in quarter-scale almost went up in smoke twice: once in 2001 when a foundry fire claimed all his critical molds, and later when oil smoke proved a stubborn problem during run-offs of the engine. Conley overcame the first setback with years of sheer determination. The second issue required a Sunnen MB 1660 honing machine, abrasives, and some Sunnen know-how.
Read the full article. |
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 | Extreme miniaturization:
7 devices in one chip navigate without GPS
The U.S. military relies on the space-based Global Positioning System (GPS) to aid air, land, and sea navigation. Like the GPS units in many automobiles today, a simple receiver and some processing power is all that is needed for accurate navigation. But what if the GPS satellites suddenly became unavailable due to malfunction, enemy action, or simple interference, such as driving into a tunnel?
Read the full article. |
 | Wheels:
Cyclists take industrial 3D printing for a spin
About four years ago, Russell Kappius -- mountain-bike enthusiast, winner of six Masters racing titles, and a research geophysicist/software developer -- became obsessed with bicycle hubs. After working out a design for a novel oversized hub and high-performance drive assembly that would transfer more power from pedal to chain to wheel, he looked to direct metal laser sintering (DMLS), an additive manufacturing (3D printing) technology, to produce complex parts quickly to exacting specifications.
Read the full article. |
 | Mike Likes:
No-cost NASA e-books
If you haven't taken a tour of the latest no-cost e-book offerings from NASA, now's the time to fill up on summer reading material. "Coming Home: Re-entry and Recovery from Space" is one of my new faves. It's 300+ pages of in-depth NASA history about re-entry aerodynamics, thermal protection, guidance and control, stability, propulsion, and landing systems. "Dressing for Altitude - U.S. Aviation Pressure Suits" is another good choice, chronicling an "indispensible part of a small fragment of the aviation world" and providing loads of historical perspective along the way. And after reading "Hubble Space Telescope: Discoveries," an interactive picture book made for all ages, you may never look at the July night sky the same way again. All titles are available in mobile and pdf formats.
Check out the NASA e-books page. |
 | Most Popular Products:
Incredibly versatile copper foam
Copper foam, now available from Goodfellow, combines the outstanding thermal conductivity of copper with the structural benefits of a metal foam. These features are of particular interest to design engineers working in the fields of medical products and devices, defense systems and manned flight, power generation, and the manufacture of semiconductor devices. This product has a true skeletal structure with no voids, inclusions, or entrapments. The matrix of cells and ligaments is completely repeatable, regular, and uniform throughout the material. Characteristics of copper foam include: optimal heat transfer; high strength-to-weight and surface area-to-volume ratio; controlled stress-strain characteristics; isotropic load response; and can be brazed, coated, and plated.
Click here to learn more. |
 | Most Popular Products:
Creaform GO!SCAN 3D scanner
Creaform's Go!SCAN 3D is a simple, portable, and affordable 3D scanner that lets engineering users effortlessly capture the 3D shape of any object, including complex, freeform, and organic shapes. This is a really slick tool that lets you scan using a super-easy spray-paint style for accurate reverse-engineering or prototyping models. Dynamic referencing makes it possible to move the part during scanning, all while keeping the accuracy level up to 0.1 mm.
View the video. |
 | Most Popular Products:
Linear actuator with moving magnet offers precise positioning
Moving magnet actuators lend themselves to applications that require moderate speed and controllable, gentle stop points, functions not achievable with solenoids or standard voice coil actuators. BEI Kimco Magnetics' new Moving Magnet Voice Coil Actuator Series allows for precise positioning to meet high accuracy requirements. When combined with smart drive electronics, this actuator can be controlled for speed and desired output force. By keeping the magnet mass low, the system inertia is well controlled, resulting in more precise speed and position control. Typical applications include remotely controlled circuit breakers, medical hand tools, and other delicate instrumentation.
Click here to learn more. |
| | Videos+: Technologies and inspiration in action | What do drones see?
Wow. In this PBS NOVA video clip, an engineer describes the super-secret (up till now) 1.8-billion-pixel surveillance sensor called ARGUS used by some high-level UAVs. The sensor makes for the world's highest-resolution camera. UAVs equipped with the device can see objects as small as 6 in. on the ground from 17,500 ft up, stream all their video in real time, and also record everything spotted: up to 1 million TBs of video a day. Wait a sec for video to load after clicking.
View the video. |
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All-LEGO paper airplane folding machine
Why make a paper airplane the easy way, when you can engineer a LEGO machine to do it for you? Mindstorms user Hknssn used nearly 7,000 LEGO pieces, an array of NXT sensors, 15 motors, and a whole lot of time and attention to detail to create a fully automated LEGO paper plane folding machine. The machine is about 60 in. long by 16 in. wide. Wow, and I just sat around all weekend ...
View the video. |
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Bonus fun: F-35B completes first vertical takeoff
A Lockheed Martin F-35B Short Takeoff/Vertical Landing (STOVL) Lightning II test aircraft recently completed the first-ever Vertical Takeoff (VTO) on May 10, 2013. While not a combat capability, VTOs are required for repositioning of the STOVL in environments where the jet could not perform a short takeoff. In these cases, the jet, with a limited amount of fuel, would execute a VTO to travel a short distance.
View the video. |
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