Podcast: 3D Printing Space Sensors & Solar Cell Windows

11 Aug, 2022

MIT researchers have demonstrated a 3D-printed plasma sensor for orbiting spacecraft that works just as well as much more expensive, semiconductor sensors. These durable, precise sensors could be used effectively on inexpensive, lightweight satellites known as CubeSats, which are commonly utilized for environmental monitoring or weather prediction. Figure courtesy of the researchers and edited by MIT News

In this episode, we talk about how researchers are bringing affordable space technology to the masses via additive manufacturing along with a manufacturing approach that could serve as the keystone for wide scale use of affordable, semitransparent organic solar cells.

In this episode, we talk about how researchers are bringing affordable space technology to the masses via additive manufacturing along with a manufacturing approach that could serve as the keystone for wide scale use of affordable, semitransparent organic solar cells.

This podcast is sponsored by Mouser Electronics.

EPISODE NOTES

(3:30) - 3D Printing Satellite Sensors🛰🔬

(19:33) - Useful Semitransparent Solar Cells🪟☀️

Episode 82 was brought to you by Mouser Electronics, Farbod & Daniel’s favorite electronics distributor. Click here to read about the Mouser technical resources discussing cubesats!

As always, you can find these and other interesting & impactful engineering articles on Wevolver.com.

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Switching vs Linear Power Supply: What's the difference

DC power supplies are available in switch-mode (also known as switching) or linear configurations of which switching power supply is preferred in modern-day electronics due to their low cost, compact design, and improved efficiency.

Abhishek Jadhav

14 Jul, 2022

power conversion

- solar power

Different electronic devices that we use in everyday life, such as smartphones, LED lights, computers, and robots use different electronic circuits and processors for their operation. The utility supplies AC to different households and industries in order to transfer power efficiently over long distances. A stable DC power supply can be obtained using electronic circuits that can be internal or external in nature. Smartphones and laptops power external power supplies, while devices like computers, robots, and servers have power supplies integrated within them.

Power supplies can be regulated or unregulated, wherein in regulated power supplies, changes in the input voltage profile do not affect the output of the power supply. On the other hand, in an unregulated power supply, the output depends on the input.

To illustrate the general structure of a DC power supply we can consider it to consist of four basic blocks. Each block represents a particular function that is performed. The basic blocks are described below:

Transformer: Since the input supply to the transformer is AC, the transformer converts high voltage AC into low voltage AC or converts a low voltage AC to high voltage AC. The transformer also acts as an isolator preventing high-frequency signals from going into the input side.
Rectification - This is the process of conversion of AC to DC. Switching converters are used to rectify the voltage. The output of the rectifier circuit is DC along with ripples. These ripples need to filter out before connecting them to the load.
Filter - The rippled DC output of the rectifier is filtered out using filter circuits. These filter circuits are generally capacitors connected in parallel with the load.
Voltage regulator - These devices are used to regulate the voltage with certain limits as desired by the load that is connected.

DC power supplies are available in switch-mode (also

Brains on board: Smart microrobots walk autonomously

A collaborative effort has installed electronic “brains” on solar-powered robots that are 100 to 250 micrometers in size – smaller than an ant’s head – so that they can walk autonomously without being externally controlled.

David Nutt

fromCornell University

23 Sep, 2022

microrobots

- solar power

A collaborative effort has installed electronic “brains” on solar-powered robots that are 100 to 250 micrometers in size – smaller than an ant’s head – so that they can walk autonomously without being externally controlled.

Cornell researchers installed electronic “brains” on solar-powered robots that are 100 to 250 micrometers in size, so the tiny bots can walk autonomously without being externally controlled. Noël Heaney/Cornell University

While Cornell researchers and others have previously developed microscopic machines that can crawl, swim, walk and fold themselves up, there were always “strings” attached; to generate motion, wires were used to provide electrical current or laser beams had to be focused directly onto specific locations on the robots.

“Before, we literally had to manipulate these ‘strings’ in order to get any kind of response from the robot,” said Itai Cohen, professor of physics in the College of Arts and Sciences. “But now that we have these brains on board, it’s like taking the strings off the marionette. It’s like when Pinocchio gains consciousness.”

The innovation sets the stage for a new generation of microscopic devices that can track bacteria, sniff out chemicals, destroy pollutants, conduct microsurgery and scrub the plaque out of arteries.

The team’s paper, “Microscopic Robots with Onboard Digital Control,” published Sept. 21 in Science Robotics. The lead author is postdoctoral researcher Michael Reynolds, M.S. ‘17, Ph.D. ‘21.

The project brought together researchers from the labs of Cohen, Alyosha Molnar, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering in Cornell Engineering; and Paul McEuen, the John A. Newman Professor of Physical Science (A&S), all co-senior authors on the paper.

The “brain” in the new robots is a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) clock circuit that contains a thousand transistors, plus an

Podcast: 3D Printing Space Sensors & Solar Cell Windows

In this episode, we talk about how researchers are bringing affordable space technology to the masses via additive manufacturing along with a manufacturing approach that could serve as the keystone for wide scale use of affordable, semitransparent organic solar cells.

EPISODE NOTES

Evaluating the Feasibility of Energy Harvesting for IoT Products

Energy Storage System (ESS) Technologies Most Suitable for Renewable Energy Usage

Female Tech Heroes role models no.21 - Liselotte Graas: "Opportunities arrive when we dare to say 'yes' to the chances that we are given"

In this episode, we talk about how researchers are bringing affordable space technology to the masses via additive manufacturing along with a manufacturing approach that could serve as the keystone for wide scale use of affordable, semitransparent organic solar cells.

EPISODE NOTES

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