Sensors Magazine articles from May 2006

Sensors Magazine archives from May 2006

TinyOS: operating system design for wireless sensor networks; Meet the OS designed to ease development of robust software applications for wireless sensor networks.
May 1, 2006... TinyOS has been adopted by thousands of developers worldwide, on many platforms, for a broad range of wireless sensor networks. Its communication-centric design and modular software model are tailored to the unique requirements of these...

Automotive propels consumer sensors: building a bridge between automotive accelerometers and those designed for the consumer market means giving reconsideration to design, test, space, quality, time-to-market, front- and back-end assembly--and price.
May 1, 2006... The silicon micromachined inertial sensor that deploys your automotive airbags can't simply be dropped into your laptop for free-fall detection without some do-differentlys. The differences go well beyond the application spaces of medium/high-g...

Testing for materials aging in nuclear power generators: an eddy current probe with frequency-independent magnetic sensors mounted on a teleoperated crawler detected stress corrosion cracks in a reactor vessel head assembly.
May 1, 2006... Although our country is young by European, and especially by Asian standards, its infrastructures are getting old. These aging structures' rising costs are becoming an epidemic that directly affects public safety and has an adverse impact on...

Systems support proves mainstreaming: two announcements illustrate the trend of greater mainstream support for sensors.
May 1, 2006... Sun Microsystems has unveiled a special version of its Java programming language, called SPOT (Small Programmable Object Technology), geared specifically for wireless sensor applications. A development kit with two wireless sensors, a base...

Chevron sees sensors as strategic.
May 1, 2006... A presentation by Chevron at ARC's recent forum on Next Generation Manufacturing pointed out that leveraging technology to deliver superior performance and growth is a key aspect of Chevron's overall corporate strategy. Global shift in supply...

Sensors central: systems support proves mainstreaming.
May 1, 2006... Sun Microsystems has unveiled a special version of its Java programming language, called SPOT (Small Programmable Object Technology), geared specifically for wireless sensor applications. A development kit with two wireless sensors, a base...

M & A News features Honeywell, Measurement Specialties, Continental.
May 1, 2006... When Honeywell announced its acquisition of First Technology plc in late March it was already planning to sell First's Safety & Analysis business. The divestiture happened immediately; Honeywell was interested in First Technology's other two...

Free advice on sensors for defense.
May 1, 2006... We now face a new concept of war where instead of being miles away, the enemy may be in the same building or just a few feet away," says David Shumaker, director of SENSIAC, the new sensing information analysis center serving the U.S....

Enabling 3D vision.
May 1, 2006... High-end machine vision applications are progressing from 2D to 3D imaging with techniques such as laser triangulation and stereovision, say analysts at Frost & Sullivan. The 3D image sensor chips are emerging as cost-effective alternatives to...

Sensors and satellites.
May 1, 2006... Sensors are being paired with satellites to enable new capabilities. Here's an example: MachineTalker Inc. says its MachineTalker units are now transmitting sensor data and security alerts that can be monitored on the QTRACS Web site of...

CityTV questions value of road sensors.
May 1, 2006... CityTV News in Calgary, AB, Canada, reports that motorists don't see the value in road sensors installed by the city's Roads & Maintenance division. In her Today at Sensors weblog entry "The Perils of Poor Design," Sensors' Senior Editor...

Sun-Sentinel reports backup sensor debate.
May 1, 2006... On March 26, South Florida's Sun-Sentinel reported that a local woman, whose two-year-old daughter was killed before her eyes as a neighbor's car backed over her, is on a mission. Legislation in Congress to make backup sensors mandatory has...

RF test instruments.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... Keithley Instruments Inc., Cleveland, OH, offers the Model 2910 RF vector signal generator for RF design, development, and manufacturing. The device uses software to adapt as test requirements change and features a software-defined radio...

Wireless mesh module.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... RF Monolithics Inc., Dallas, TX, offers its DM1800 embedded wireless mesh networking module that is now FCC and ETSI certified. The DM1800 is based on the company's ASH radio and a PIC microcontroller and is suited for applications that require...

Level measurement.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... Monitor Technologies LLC, Elburn, IL, offers the Flexar guided-wave radar level measurement system that uses time domain reflectometry to measure level of powders, granules, and other bulk solids as well as various liquids. Measuring range is...

Single-gas detector.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... The ALTAIR single-gas detector from MSA Instrument Div., Pittsburgh, PA, features three sensor options: carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, and oxygen. Versions with carbon monoxide or hydrogen sulfide sensors can operate for >2 yr. Sensor...

Wireless sensor system.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... Moteiv Corp., San Francisco, CA, offers its Tmote Invent wireless sensor system that lets you build and install custom wireless sensor applications more easily and cheaply. The system combines in one case the company's Tmote Sky sensor module...

PC-based gauging system.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... NDC Infrared Engineering, Irwindale, CA, offers a lower-cost version of its Pro.Net PC-based supervisory system, capable of managing up to 2 product scanners and measurement sensors for extrusion, nonwovens, calendaring, and simple coating...

Bluetooth to IP gateway.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... Sena Technologies, Milpitas, CA, offers the Parani100 Bluetooth to IP gateway that connects Bluetooth devices to a 10/100Base-T Ethernet network. The device supports point-to-multipoint connectivity for up to 7 points and transmits data from...

Machine vision system.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... The Count Accura from The Value Engineering Alliance (VEA), Cambridge, MA, is a PC-based automated system that uses a 6 Megapixel camera and lens combination, illumination, and image processing and analysis software to provide exact counts of...

Portable readout.(Toolbox)
May 1, 2006... The HPM420 Series from Webster Instruments, Milwaukee, WI, is a handheld readout that features a 2-line display for simultaneous readings from 2 variable inputs for diagnostic measurements of flow, measure concentrations of metallic elements...

Keep your secrets secret.(NIST researchers's Xaio Tang generates raw code)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... NIST researchers including Xaio Tang (photo) have generated raw code for "unbreakable" encryption at a rate >4 million bps over 1 km of optical fiber. The work is described as a step toward using conventional high-speed networks such as...

Look to the birds.
May 1, 2006... Oxford University zoologists Graham Taylor and Adrian Thomas have outfitted an eagle with four miniature high-speed spy cameras and other instruments in a 15 g pack to learn more about its aviational secrets. An inertial measurement unit...

Is your engine weary?
May 1, 2006... Scientists at the University of Manchester, U.K., are developing a new type of wireless sensor to remotely monitor mechanical parts and systems and allow predictions of breakdowns in advance of failure. Aimed at the machinery and transport...

Putting your data on the right bus.
May 1, 2006... Lately I have been building, debugging, and using different data acquisition (DAQ) systems for various purposes. In the course of this work (especially the debugging!) I started wondering about some of the "available options"--a code phrase for...

Composite applications.
May 1, 2006... Previously in this column, I've discussed software tools that are invisible to the user, such as integration platforms and service-oriented architectures (SOAs). These mechanisms function in the background of information transactions and fall...

Differences among RFID, extending Bluetooth's range.
May 1, 2006... RFID Frequencies Are all RFID systems able to work in the same frequency range? Signed, Range Rover Wise Guy: No, RFID systems operate at various frequencies. Passive tags tend to work at lower frequencies while active devices...

App snaps.
May 1, 2006... Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) makes ingredients for human food and animal feed, as well as renewable fuels and naturally derived alternatives to industrial chemicals. In 1971, ADM acquired Corn Sweeteners Inc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which it...

Ethanol pH = mean beer.
May 1, 2006... Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) makes ingredients for human food and animal feed, as well as renewable fuels and naturally derived alternatives to industrial chemicals. In 1971, ADM acquired Corn Sweeteners Inc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which it...

Lessons from other worlds.
May 1, 2006... Don't be intimidated by Gentry Lee. While his career has taken him into the far reaches of space (if not physically, then by extension), the man is as down-to-earth as they come. A keynote speaker at Sensors Expo, June 5-7...