Street lighting in the UK could better cut crime, promote feelings of well-being and enhance sight for pedestrians, according to a report published today. By using the wrong type of lighting councils are missing an opportunity to reduce both the fear of crime and pedestrian accidents, and are spending more than they need to on powering street lamps.

The paper, published in Lighting, Research and Technology argues that while UK councils traditionally use orange sodium lamps for their s

A discovery by Princeton researchers may lead to an efficient method for controlling the transmission of light and improve new generations of communications technologies powered by light rather than electricity.

The discovery could be used to develop new structures that would work in the same fashion as an elbow joint in plumbing by enabling light to make sharp turns as it travels through photonic circuits. Fiber-optic cables currently used in computers, televisions and other devi

Orelis of France is launching a new individual filtration module, the Pleiade® MP4, for the ultrafiltration of electrophoretic paint. The competitively priced module is available in two versions – MP450 and MP470 – and is easy to use and clean (both plates and frame), while offering the compactness of spiral modules.

Based on the tried and tested Pleiade® technology, the filtering surface of the Pleiade® MP4 is a stack of separate membranes. A unique feature is that users can

European researchers have developed an innovative satellite-based control and command system for low-density railway lines that could herald a minor revolution in train transportation management.

“There is a real need for this technology,” says LOCOPROL project coordinator Michel Rousseau. “Existing command-control systems adapted for medium traffic density lines or the future ERTMS/ETCS [European Rail Traffic Management System/ European Train Control System] system dedicated to hi

Integrated European research project develops low-cost, modular and interactive automation solutions for SMEs

Automation makes you competitive ndustrial robots which, while being quick to install and easy to operate, are intended, thanks to their low-cost design, to make the competitive potential of automation technology available to European SMEs. “SMErobot” brings together leading European robot manufacturers, research institutes, scientists, software engineers and consultant

ELTA of France is looking for international distributors for its latest range of Argos data transmitters – the HAL-2 and the VHAL-2. These new high-performance products have been designed to operate in the most hostile environments. Argos – with more than 11,000 active platforms throughout the whole world – has become the preferred system for observing and monitoring the environment on a worldwide scale.

The new-generation Argos HAL-2 (High Accuracy Locator) transmitter has an excellent

LIER (INRETS Road Equipment Test Laboratory) of France uses state-of-the-art technology to accredit road-safety devices. Clients use the services of LIER to develop and improve their road-safety products with the aim of obtaining both French and foreign accreditation, especially with respect to the new EN1317 European standard.

LIER is the European leader in the regulatory crash testing of different forms of road-side safety barriers or VRS (Vehicle Restraint Systems). It i

Renowned for their ability to walk up walls like miniature Spider-Men–or even to hang from the ceiling by one toe–the colorful lizards of the gecko family owe their wall-crawling prowess to their remarkable footpads. Each five-toed foot is covered with microscopic elastic hairs called setae, which are themselves split at the ends to form a forest of nanoscale fibers known as spatulas. So when a gecko steps on almost anything, these nano-hairs make such extremely close contact with the surface th

To help achieve the Bush Administration’s goal of increased use of solar and other renewable forms of energy, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science has released a report describing the basic research needed to produce “revolutionary progress in bringing solar energy to its full potential in the energy marketplace.” The report resulted from a workshop of 200 scientists held earlier this year.

“The tax credits contained in the historic energy bill signed by President Bush

New technology developed at Northwestern University has the potential for broad application in the detection of terrorist activities such as missile attacks on U.S. troops. Scientists at the Center for Quantum Devices (CQD) have demonstrated, for the first time, uncooled infrared imaging using type-II superlattice technology. This significant development could lead to smaller, faster and less expensive hand-held infrared imaging devices.

High-speed infrared (IR) imagers are capable of se

Space has come down to Earth for this week’s legendary Fastnet regatta. Competitor Marc Thiercelin’s 20-metre Pro-Form yacht boasts lighter batteries, more efficient solar cells and advanced energy management systems – all spin-offs from Europe’s space programmes.

On Sunday 7 August 283 boats took off from Cowes in the Rolex Fastnet 2005 race, sailing along the south coast of England before crossing the Irish Sea to round the Fastnet Rock off Ireland’s south we

Emerging wireless technologies for vehicle-to-vehicle communication promise to dramatically reduce fatal roadway accidents by providing early warnings to motorists. As well as improving road safety, such technologies will also help optimise traffic flow and enable drivers to take greater control of their vehicles.

This is the broad vision behind the IST-funded project CarTALK 2000. The project developed cooperative driver assistance systems and a self-organising ad-hoc radio network

The next generation of motor vehicles could be powered by engines that are cleaner, greener and smarter, thanks to research at two South West universities.

Engineers at the University of Bath are carrying our research described as being like ‘neurosurgery on diesel engines’ to find ways of making them even more efficient than their petrol-driven equivalents.

Meanwhile, researchers at the University of the West of England are experimenting with the production of fuel ma

A novel intelligent transport system to increase traffic safety provides a range of smart solutions to help reduce the risk of accidents in tunnels.

The average frequency of fires in tunnels is higher than 25 per 100 million vehicle kilometres and the frequency of fires involving heavy goods vehicles (HGV) is higher than that for passenger cars. For example, last June, a truck hauling tyres burst into flames while travelling through the 12.8 km Frejus tunnel between Lyon, France

A discovery reported in the August 5 issue of Science could speed the design of materials that approach the hardness of diamond yet remain supple enough to be worked like metal.

In a massive computer simulation involving 128 computer processors and nearly 19 million atoms, materials scientist Izabela Szlufarska of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and colleagues at University of Southern California demonstrated the precise atomic mechanisms that explain why “nanostructured” cera

A public-private effort to develop more fuel-efficient automobiles and eventually introduce hydrogen as a transportation fuel is well-planned and identifies all major hurdles the program will face, says a new report from the National Academies’ National Research Council. Many technical barriers must be overcome and new inventions will be needed, but the program, which was launched three years ago, has already made an excellent start, said the committee that wrote the report.