Category Technology/Electronics

Researchers in Southampton and San Francisco have developed the first compact 3D LiDAR imaging system that can match and exceed the performance and accuracy of most advanced, mechanical systems currently used.

3D LiDAR can provide accurate imaging and mapping for many applications; it is the “eyes” for autonomous cars and is used in facial recognition software and by autonomous robots and drones. Accurate imaging is essential for machines to map and interact with the physical world but the size and costs of the technology currently needed has limited LIDAR’s use in commercial applications.

Now a team of researchers from Pointcloud Inc in San Francisco and the University of Southampton...

Emerging robotics technology may soon help construction companies and contractors create buildings in less time at higher quality and at lower costs.

Purdue University innovators developed and are testing a novel construction robotic system that uses an innovative mechanical design with advances in computer vision sensing technology to work in a construction setting.

The technology was developed with support from the National Science Foundation.

“Our work helps to address workforce shortages in the construction industry by automating key construction operations...

The material yields soft, elastic objects that feel like human tissue. Researchers in the labs of Christopher Bates, an assistant professor of materials at UC Santa Barbara, and Michael Chabinyc, a professor of materials and chair of the department, have teamed to develop the first 3D-printable “bottlebrush” elastomer. The new material results in printed objects that have unusual softness and elasticity — mechanical properties that closely resemble those of human tissue.

Conventional elastomers, i.e. rubbers, are stiffer than many biological tissues...

Digital to analog converter bridges the gap between internet and electronic hardware. Researchers at the George Washington University and University of California, Los Angeles, have developed and demonstrated for the first time a photonic digital to analog converter without leaving the optical domain. Such novel converters can advance next-generation data processing hardware with high relevance for datacenters, 6G networks, artificial intelligence and more.

Current optical networks, through which most of the world’s data is transmitted, as well as many sensors, require a digital-to-analog conversion, which links digital systems synergistically to analog components...