The Engineer articles from April 2006

The Engineer archives from April 2006

COMMENT: A debate that's worth having.
April 10, 2006... Like its readers, The Engineer spends most of its time worrying about how things work, what they might be useful for, and even whether there might be a few pounds to be made from them. Engineers and technologists are rightly regarded as...

THE BIG PICTURE: Saab engine offers mixed blessings.
April 10, 2006... The Swedish carmaker showcases a bio-fuel/electric concept car Making its world premiere at the recent Stockholm motor show, Saab's BioPower Hybrid Concept is said to deliver zero fossil CO2 emissions, enhanced performance and a range of...

THE BIG PICTURE: Robotic arm will prove handy in space.
April 10, 2006... The giant European Robotic Arm (ERA) looks set to be an important piece of equipment for the International Space Station. To be delivered to Russia this summer in preparation for launch in 2007, the 11m-long robotic arm will transfer...

THE BIG PICTURE: JSF passes leak tests with flying colours.
April 10, 2006... The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has successfully completed 'leak-free' fuel-system checkout testing - an achievement its manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, claimed was 'remarkable'. The tests included methodically filling, measuring, weighing...

IN Brief: Funding of research centre could beno small achievement.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Researchers from King's College, London and the University of Strathclyde have been awarded #4.3m to develop a multidisciplinary centre of nanometrology, the emerging science and technology of measurement at the nanoscale. At King's,...

IN Brief: Pocket-sized nerve gas protection for troops.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Oak Ridge National Laboratory is teaming with Honeywell to develop a micro gas analyser the size of a mobile phone that combines a very small gas chromatograph with a tiny mass spectrometer. The researchers are testing the GC-MS sensor's...

IN Brief: Direct approach to chemotherapy.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Researchers at the University of Bath are working on a way of delivering chemotherapy to cancer patients without the side effects. The method involves using tiny fibres and beads soaked in the chemotherapy drug, which are then implanted...

NEWS: Single minded.
April 10, 2006... Uniting all electronic communications at airports and hospitals in one system could slash infrastructure costs Engineers are planning a single system to handle all electronic communications at complex sites such as airports, factories,...

NEWS: Sound of locusts.
April 10, 2006... Microphone research based on insect hearing The complex and highly sophisticated hearing of the locust is the inspiration for new research which could lead to the development of extremely sensitive microphones. A multi-disciplinary...

NEWS: Brainwave that caps it all.
April 10, 2006... UK input enables US-developed computer communication system for disabled to be used in the home UK Engineers have helped slash the cost of a brainwave reading computer system that enables severely paralysed people to communicate. The...

NEWS: Sharp set.
April 10, 2006... A more precise X-ray technique could give medics clearer images of the body's soft tissue An adaptation of conventional X-ray technology could offer detailed, sharp images of different tissues using low doses of radiation. X-rays...

NEWS: Surface worker.
April 10, 2006... A team at Imperial College, London is looking for a new method of detecting proteins in diagnostic tests such as those used to measure abnormal protein levels in the body. The researchers hope to find a way of using surface-enhanced Raman...

NEWS: Venus sees the light.
April 10, 2006... Device to guide Explorer with pinpoint accuracy using quasar A measurement system has been developed that will help scientists track the Venus Explorer spacecraft with extraordinary accuracy. Venus is 41 million kilometres from Earth yet...

NEWS: Space ANGELS.
April 10, 2006... SpaceDev is to build a class of satellite for the US Air Force Research Laboratory that will provide Space Situational Awareness (SSA) to military satellites. Under a $1.25m (#0.7m) preliminary design contract, Californian firm SpaceDev...

NEWS: Flight sight.
April 10, 2006... Qinetiq develops helicopter reconnaissance system for advance real-time data A system designed to give helicopter crews advance real-time images of the territory they are heading into has been tested successfully by the MoD. At the...

NEWS: UAVs do battle with the troops.
April 10, 2006... The US military has tested a system that helps soldiers to move faster and further into enemy territory while maintaining contact with their commanders via a UAV-enabled communications network. The system, developed by Northrop Grumman...

NEWS: Fingering explosives.
April 10, 2006... Spectroscopic technology uses 'fingerprints' to identify bombs and chemicals An emerging technology has helped researchers from the Argonne National Laboratory to develop sensors they say can quickly and effectively detect chemical,...

FOCUS: Material witness.
April 10, 2006... The National Physical Laboratory tests the composition of metals used in Formula One cars. And its rulings are just as stiff as the competition on the race track. Max Glaskin reports It's not easy enforcing the rules when the stakes are...

BUSINESS: Feeling the pressure.
April 10, 2006... UK company announces 'imminent' launch of tyre monitor based on acoustic wave technology Transense, the UK company developing a new tyre pressure monitoring system, said the launch of the first product incorporating its technology is...

BUSINESS: Taking a new angle against power tool vibration.
April 10, 2006... Angle, a venture management business specialising in the commercialisation of technology, has signalled its intention to enter the power tool industry with the launch of a new company called Innomatica. The new business has secured...

BUSINESS: Cambridge Consultants marks return to spin-out business.
April 10, 2006... Technology development group Cambridge Consultants is to create a new venture fund, marking its return to the spin-out business after several years. The company was behind a string of high-profile engineering technology spin-outs,...

BUSINESS: Qinetiq wins deal to assist Sweden's armed forces.
April 10, 2006... Qinetiq has been awarded an #800,000 contract by FMV, Sweden's equivalent of the UK's Defence Procurement Agency. The deal represents the next phase of an interoperability programme that has run for three years involving the UK technology...

BUSINESS: Corac heartened by two key contracts.
April 10, 2006... Compressor technology specialist Corac was upbeat after securing two key contracts in 2005. Despite a small increase in pre-tax losses from the previous year of #2m from #1.8m (of which #1m was development costs), chairman Prof Gerry...

BUSINESS: Amiad announces strong results.
April 10, 2006... The steady rise in global demand for clean water saw Amiad, the producer and supplier of filtration systems and water filters, record strong full year results. Significant sales growth in Ecuador, Columbia and Mexico coupled with demand...

BUSINESS: Clipper Windpower establishes US plant.
April 10, 2006... The steady growth in the global wind energy market in 2005 has led turbine specialist Clipper Windpower to strengthen its manufacturing base. With the market now estimated to be worth #8bn, the London-listed company has established a major...

VIEWPOINT: A question of ethics.
April 10, 2006... Engineers must address issues of social and environmental responsibility or risk being seen as part of the problem not the solution, argues Stuart Parkinson The public can be slow to thank engineers and scientists for useful inventions and...

LETTER: Quality not quantity.(Letter to the editor)
April 10, 2006... Colin Mynott (Letters, 27 March) asks us to believe that wild animals are rarely ill and that promoting health (as opposed to curing illness) would reduce the total cost of caring for the elderly. I am no expert on wild animals, but I am...

LETTER: Without measure.(Letter to the editor)
April 10, 2006... The tirade of abuse (Letters 13 March) against Mike Batiste's original letter in favour of metric measurements is very sad, but also very telling. It supports the widely-held perception of the engineering community in the UK (sorry, I...

LETTER: Power play.(Letter to the editor)
April 10, 2006... Neil Downie (letters, 27 March) makes some good points on global warming. Despite some belated, good words from Tony Blair and others, politicians seem bent on moving the deck chairs on the Titanic as the vessel sinks. and as usual there...

NASA EXPLORATION VEHICLE - 2018: A space odyssey.
April 10, 2006... The competition to design NASA's Crew Exploration Vehicle, which will shuttle equipment and astronauts to The competition to design NASA's Crew Exploration Vehicle, which will shuttle equipment and astronauts to and from the ISS, and lead...

INTERVIEW: On a mission.(Interview)
April 10, 2006... Sally Davis is lead flight director for the International Space Station, a job so demanding that no-one ever holds it for more than six months. Christopher Sell reports It is now over 30 years since Neil Armstrong took his epoch-making...

DESIGN ENGINEERING: Skeleton key.
April 10, 2006... German researchers base computer simulation system on structural forms of human bone to reduce weight of components without sacrificing strength. Stuart Nathan reports When it comes to lightweight engineering materials, technology is...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - SOFTWARE: Another dimension.
April 10, 2006... Adobe's 3D PDF is a fast, flexible and powerful single-solution tool which offers the user total collaboration across multiple platforms, says Charles Clarke Adobe has reached another software milestone with its 3D PDF software....

DESIGN ENGINEERING - SEALS: Splitting the cost.
April 10, 2006... The application of a tried-and-tested technology is claimed to offer all process industries improved reliability, increased uptime and reduced maintenance costs. Mark Venables explains Mechanical seals are an integral part of power...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - DRIVES: Energy drive.
April 10, 2006... According to a recent report, UK industry has been slow to take full advantage of the energy savings offered by variable speed drives. Colin Carter says now is the time to take stock of how your plant is running Look around any modern...

SPECIAL REPORT: Clean air.
April 10, 2006... Clean coal technology is likely to be a vital part of power generation at home and abroad. But government support is vital, as Mike Farley of Mitsui Babcock tells. Stuart Nathan The UK energy industry is facing difficult times. large...

COMMENT: Join in the fusion of minds.
April 24, 2006... The Engineer's news story about moves to reinforce the knowledge base underpinning nuclear fusion (page 8) is interesting on a number of levels. The creation of a centre in Warwick to boost the UK's pool of plasma physics specialists...

THE BIG PICTURE: Flat out for a record.
April 24, 2006... JCB to attempt new land-speed record for diesel at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah THE JCB Dieselmax car, launched last week, will make a land-speed record attempt this summer in an attempt to earn the title of the world's fastest...

THE BIG PICTURE: Aquanauts go Moon-walking.
April 24, 2006... Three astronauts, a doctor and two technicians have completed an 18-day stay at the world's only undersea habitat to test remote robotic surgery and Moon-walking techniques. The ninth of NASA's Extreme Environment Mission operations...

THE BIG PICTURE: Boeing throws a treble.
April 24, 2006... Designed to carry the main components of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner for final assembly in Everett, Washington, the latest incarnation of the 747 series is now taking shape in Taiwan. The Large Cargo Freighter, with a main-deck capacity of...

IN BRIEF: IceCube team spies early finish.(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... The team working on the IceCube neutrino telescope at the South Pole (The Engineer, 28 November) have reported a major advance in its construction and say it may become operational before the original 2011 completion date. After dealing with...

IN BRIEF: Russia ups the roubles.(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Russia will allocate an extra 5bn roubles ($180m) for space programmes this year, bringing the federal programme allocation to 23bn roubles, according to Anatoly Perminov, the country's leading space official. In the next 10 years the agency...

IN BRIEF: Knit your own stockings.(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... The University of Manchester's William Lee Innovation Centre (WLIC) has opened Scan2Knit, a medical system that makes made-to-measure compression stockings.It will be used to treat patients suffering from venous diseases such as leg ulcers...

NEWS: Meeting of minds.
April 24, 2006... New centre promises to boost UK's fusion technology research base UK research in nuclear fusion has received a significant boost with the creation of a Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics at the University of Warwick. Under the...

NEWS: Tracking the troops.
April 24, 2006... A vision software system that gives soldiers intelligence of each other's positions and their terrain is on trial in the US A VISION system that helps soldiers plan a route through the chaos of the battlefield will undergo tests on both...

NEWS: Faster on the draw.
April 24, 2006... Visual clues to detect if criminals are carrying guns are being studied to build a CCTV system that will help cut crime In an attempt to tackle gun crime in the UK, researchers from Loughborough University are developing an innovative...

NEWS: Nanocar revved up and ready for the track.
April 24, 2006... Scientists at Rice University in Houston, Texas have created a nanocar complete with wheels, axles and a motor. James Tour and his group had already made a prototype with Buckminsterfullerene molecules as wheels. Now they have attached an...

NEWS: Model hearing.
April 24, 2006... Don't look now but that robot's listening to you. Researchers try to replicate the part of the brain that processes sounds Robots may one day be equipped with the advanced listening skills of human beings if a team of UK researchers...

NEWS: Sight as well as sound.
April 24, 2006... RESEARCHERS at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) have developed a technique for imaging acoustic fields that could lead to huge improvements in microphone and loudspeaker design. Peter Theobold is a senior research scientist in NPL's...

NEWS: Challenging channels.
April 24, 2006... Three universities collaborate to devise a way of making environmentally-friendly microreactors RESEARCHERS from Liverpool, Bath and Durham are combining to make tiny chemical reactors. The goal is to find environmentally friendly ways of...

NEWS: Furnace sensor irons out waste energy.
April 24, 2006... A NEW type of high-temperature sensor could help increase the efficiency of steelmaking furnaces and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to its developers at the University of Toronto. The sensor, which monitors the concentration of...

FOCUS: Crackdown on the cyber crooks.
April 24, 2006... Top industrialists and academics are joining the government in a concerted attack on the growing threat of hi-tech fraudsters. Niall Firth reports Cyber-crime cost UK businesses more than #2.45bn last year, according to recent figures...

BUSINESS: Eleksen searches for the bigger picture with AIM listing.
April 24, 2006... Eleksen, the smart-fabric company based at Pinewood studios, is to join AIM in an attempt to expand its business portfolio. The company wants to move away from its consumer business base and into untapped markets. It expects a market...

BUSINESS: US trials help Bioquell clean up losses.
April 24, 2006... The bio-decontamination specialist targets American market after tests reveal 50 per cent cut in hospital infections Following a successful trial of its technology in the US, Bioquell, the UK bio-decontamination specialist, enjoyed a...

VIEWPOINT: Moore and more and more.
April 24, 2006... Over 40 years on since Gordon Moore's prediction that processing power would double every 18 months, there is no stopping the demand or satisfying the desire for computer memory, says Craig Barrett Technology has changed just about every...

LETTER: Workshop battle.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... Your article about testing the materials used in Formula One cars (Focus, 10 April) illustrates the pressure on the sport's governing body when it comes to enforcing its own rules. It was interesting to see the comment of the NPL engineer...

LETTER: Air of politics.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... Your feature 'Clean Air Action' (Special report, 10 April) makes some interesting points and should be the way forward. However, the greatest challenge is not technical - after all, numerous supercritical plants are in operation and...

LETTER: Answer in the pipeline.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... Am I missing something? The big focus in the power industry at present would appear to be carbon dioxide. Many initiatives are under way to find ways of removing carbon dioxide from flue gases and then storing it somewhere. At the moment...

LETTER: A question of ethics.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... I failed to understand what point beyond the blindingly obvious was being made by Stuart Parkinson (Viewpoint, 10 April) in his call to engineers to consider the ethical dimension to their work. It seems to me to go without saying that...

LETTER: The real health issue.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... The real challenge we face on healthcare is the huge amount spent on preventable illness that would be better spent on engineers developing aids to help the seriously disabled and infirm. Richard Beaman (letters, 10 April) doubts that...

LETTER: Burning question.(Letter to the editor)
April 24, 2006... Nicholas Long's observations that 'obviously the best energy source is hydrogen...' (Letters, 10 April) begged one vital question. Hydrogen is basically a carrier of energy, not a source of it. Yes, it is abundant on the planet, but...

NORTH-SOUTH RAIL LINK: The need for speed.
April 24, 2006... The case for a new North-South rail link is compelling but which technology should underpin the high-speed line? Jon Excell reportsThe case for a new North-South rail link is compelling but which technology should underpin the high-speed line?...

NORTH-SOUTH RAIL LINK: The case in favour of the jet set.
April 24, 2006... While TGV-style trains, or maglev, are regarded as the most likely candidates for a high-speed link, the past few months have seen excited speculation about 'jet-propelled' trains criss-crossing the countryside at the speed of passenger...

INTERVIEW: Greenhouse effect.(Interview)
April 24, 2006... When Kew Gardens decided to build its first new greenhouse in 19 years, Patrick Bellew of environmental services company Atelier Ten was the obvious choice. Stuart Nathan reports At Kew Gardens science and art go hand in hand. Recognised...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING: Shaping a fast future.
April 24, 2006... UK project aims to develop sintering process for high-speed, high volume manufacturing of components whose complex shapes cannot be formed by machining or moulding. Stuart Nathan explains A method of making components whose complex shapes...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - SEMICONDUCTORS: Taking the strain.
April 24, 2006... US research focuses on technique that could lead to semiconductors being formed in any shape. Stuart Nathan reports A manufacturing technique could lead to semiconductors being formed in any shape, according to materials scientists at the...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - MATERIALS: Discovery stops the rot.
April 24, 2006... A solution to the problem of steel corrosion has been cooked up in Washington, US where aluminium is used to create a stronger, cheaper coating. Stuart Nathan reports A new method of protecting the surface of steel could cut material costs...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - COMPRESSORS: Cut down on the carbs.
April 24, 2006... Compressor manufacturers are looking for new ways to help their clients reduce losses and conserve energy, as Mark Venables reports Energy saving is one of the big trends driving compressor development in the current economic and...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - HANDLING: Moving it about.
April 24, 2006... Colin Carter reports on how automated handling systems can read the colours of gaming chips and help bring the news to the breakfast table BY Automating plant or the production of consumer goods it is possible to improve the efficiency...

SHOW SPECIAL: Mach factors.
April 24, 2006... In a few weeks' time the NEC will host Mach 2006, the world's window on UK expertise in engineering manufacturing. Mark Venables previews some of the exhibitors, plus seminars and workshops Mach 2006, recognised as the world's window on...

SHOW SPECIAL: The kindest cut.
April 24, 2006... Poorly selected tooling can be the bugbear of even the most sophisticated machinery. Mark Venables previews insert grades, exotic coatings and inserts on view at next month's MACH 2006 Any manufacturer will tell you that even the fastest,...

SHOW SPECIAL: Automatic gear.
April 24, 2006... At Automatica 2006, production and automation professionals can find out how the latest developments in the field of 'co-operating robots' can maximise effficiency. Mark Venables explains Multi-robot systems provide the manufacturing...

SHOW SPECIAL: Strategic planning.
April 24, 2006... In today's increasingly competitive global market, UK firms must outsource and offshore to remain competitive. Mark Venables reports on a series of free seminars lined up to help With pressure from low-cost economies continuing to grow,...