Robotiker Telecom is collaborating with Telvent traffic, road transport and toll payment systems R+D group in the design of satellite and microwave (wireless) tele-payment at highway/motorway toll booths.

More specifically, the new system is based GNSS/CN technology incorporating, moreover, DSCR 5.8 GHz technology to ensure compatibility with current toll payment systems.

Although the payment systems based on satellite and cellular networks are in a pioneering stage, the l

Sending your favorite suit to the dry cleaners could one day become an infrequent practice. Researchers at Clemson University are developing a highly water-repellant coating made of silver nanoparticles that they say can be used to produce suits and other clothing items that offer superior resistance to dirt as well as water and require much less cleaning than conventional fabrics.

The patented coating — a polymer film (polyglycidyl methacrylate) mixed with silver nanoparticles —

When Marc Thiercelin set out on the Vendée Globe, one of the world’s toughest sailing races, earlier this month, novel space technologies were used to give his six-year-old boat a ‘facelift’. Lighter batteries, more efficient solar cells and an intelligent energy management system cut critical weight and optimised vital electricity systems. All three were originally developed for Europe’s space programmes.

“In 2003 we started to discuss with Marc Thiercelin and his team ho

One of the conclusions of Arjen Zoeteman, who will defend his thesis on 22 November at TU Delft, is that significant amounts of money could be saved on the maintenance of European railway systems, including the Netherlands. Through a carefully structured schedule and a detailed analysis of maintenance work, he was able to achieve a cost reduction of 10 percent for the Dutch railway system.

The operators of the rail networks, such as NS, are continuously increasing the demands on t

Technologies used to spin wool have been adapted to produce yarns made solely from carbon nanotubes (CNTs)

In a collaborative effort, scientists at CSIRO Textile and Fibre Technology (CTFT) have achieved a major technological breakthrough that should soon lead to the production of futuristic strong, light and flexible ’smart’ clothing materials. In partnership with the world-renowned NanoTech Institute at the University of Texas at Dallas, CTFT has adapted textile tech

Technology could aid explosive detection, cancer screening, more

Electrical engineers at Rice University in Houston have demonstrated the world’s first endoscope for terahertz imaging, a discovery that could extend the reach of terahertz-based sensors for applications as wide-ranging as explosives detection, cancer screening and industrial and post-production quality control.

The research appears in the Nov. 18 issue of the journal Nature. It presents the emerging te

The modern world is filled with the uncoordinated beeping and buzzing of countless electronic devices. So it was only a matter of time before someone designed an electronic network with the ability to synchronize dozens of tiny buzzers, in much the same way that frogs and cicadas coordinate their night-time choruses.

“Several years ago I was on a camping trip and we pitched our tent in an area that was filled with hundreds of tree frogs,” says Kenneth D. Frampton, an assistant prof

Inspired by cell biology, European researchers have created the world’s first shape-shifting robot made of many modules, which could lead to new applications in fields ranging from medicine and space exploration to education and entertainment.

On display at IST 2004 in The Hague and being showcased on 17 November in Tokyo, the HYDRA project’s robots have broken new ground in robotics and artificial intelligence through a simple but highly effective design that allows the device

Electrically powered planes and ships which are lighter, can travel further, cause less pollution and have oil-free engines are a step closer to becoming a reality, as a new centre for research at The University of Manchester opens today (Friday, November 12).

The Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Electrical Systems for Extreme Environments will be officially opened by Rolls-Royce Chief Operating Officer John Cheffins, just one mile from where Charles Rolls and Henry R

Tiny nanocables, 1,000 times smaller than a human hair, could become key parts of toxin detectors, miniaturized solar cells and powerful computer chips.

The technique for making the nanocables was invented by UC Davis chemical engineers led by Pieter Stroeve, professor of chemical engineering and materials science. They manufacture the cables in the nano-sized pores of a template membrane. The insides of the pores are coated with gold. Layers of other semiconductors, such as telluriu

Ohio State University researchers are finding new insights into how microscopic corrosion attacks an aluminum alloy commonly used in aircraft.

They’ve developed a statistical model of the deterioration and simulated it on computer, using what may seem like an unlikely analogy: a cracking brick wall. What they’ve found could one day help scientists better understand this kind of corrosion, and also explain corrosion in other types of alloys. Although the alloy, called 2024-T3, is

When the non-profit organisation IdéeVerte Compétition decided to create a ’green’ racing car, they turned to space technology to make it safer. Running on liquefied petroleum gas, one of the least polluting fuels, and lubricated with sunflower oil, the car is protected against fire hazards by space materials. ’Green’ does not have to mean slow – last week the car set a new speed record of 315 km/h.

“The car of the future will have to respect the environment. This is the only

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have demonstrated the laser operation of a heterojunction bipolar light-emitting transistor. The scientists describe the fabrication and operation of their transistor laser in the Nov. 15 issue of the journal Applied Physics Letters. “By incorporating quantum wells into the active region of a light-emitting transistor, we have enhanced the electrical and optical properties, making possible stimulated emission and transis

The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia National Laboratories is joining forces with Stirling Energy Systems, Inc. (SES) of Phoenix to build and test six new solar dish-engine systems for electricity generation that will provide enough grid-ready solar electricity to power more than 40 homes.

Five new systems will be installed between now and January at Sandia’s National Solar Thermal Test Facility. They will join a prototype dish-Stirling system that was er

A system to help assess the impact of proposed action, or inaction, in dealing with disabled and drifting ships is being developed with the help of grant of €1.25m (euros) from the EU’s Framework Programme.

The objective of SAFETOW (Strategic Aid for Escort Tugs at Work), a 36 month project with a total cost of €2.24m (euros), is to provide tools to help ships Masters control their vessels if they become disabled. It will also help Masters of salvage and escort tugs to take de

Improved safety at sea for cruise ship passengers and crews will be the outcome of a research and development project, funded with the help of over €1.7m (euros) from the EU’s Framework Programme.

SEA-AHED (Simulation environment and advisory system for on-board help, and estimation of manoeuvring performance during design) was a 39-month project to produce a technology system that can predict the course of cruise ships within 10 to 20 metres – far more accurately than anything c