The Engineer articles from December 2005

The Engineer archives from December 2005

COMMENT: Eastern promise a boon for UK aerospace.
December 12, 2005... Airbus's bonanza order from China for 150 new aircraft (The Big Picture, page 7) is more than just the latest round in the commercial aerospace contest between Europe and the US. It is the shape of things to come. Both Airbus and its...

Driving the rich into the red.
December 12, 2005... Ferrari unveils its most technologically advanced 'grand tourer' yet Ferrari has unveiled a production vehicle so expensive, so exclusive and so fast that the small number of specially selected customers who are able to afford its N1.5m...

Chinese boost Airbus with 150-plane order.
December 12, 2005... China has agreed to buy 150 aircraft from Airbus in a major boost for the European civil aerospace group. The #5.7bn deal represents Airbus's biggest single order in the world's fastest-growing aviation market. Various Chinese...

Eden Project gets into flower power.
December 12, 2005... A solar-powered education and research facility has opened at Cornwall's Eden Project. The Core, which cost #15m and took two years to build, features a geometrically complex roof structure based on the Fibonacci sequence - natural...

IN BRIEF: Galileo to go live by end of year.
December 12, 2005... ESA is due to launch its first Galileo experimental satellite, Giove A, developed by UK company Surrey Satellite Technology on 28 December. When Galileo is complete it will consist of 30 satellites and will be able to pinpoint an object on...

IN BRIEF: The long and short of nuclear waste storage.
December 12, 2005... Researchers at the US Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have made a breakthrough that could help cut the length of time for which high- level nuclear waste must be stored. The team used a synchrotron radiation source to examine the...

IN BRIEF: Researchers work hand in glove with arthritis sufferers.
December 12, 2005... An electrical stimulator glove has been proven to reduce the pain and other symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis in US clinical trials. The glove, developed by BioniCare Medical Technologies of Maryland, delivers pulsed electrical signals to the...

Ear to the ground.
December 12, 2005... Sonic wave technology to monitor UK's sewers in bid to cut surveillance costs An acoustic sensor system to monitor the UK's ageing sewer network could help utility operators boost efficiency and cut costs by providing accurate, real-time...

Good tidings.
December 12, 2005... Deep-water generator adapts wind energy technology A semi-submersible tidal power generator based on wind energy technology could allow the UK to meet a significant chunk of its electricity needs from deep coastal waters, according to...

Facing the future.
December 12, 2005... Image prediction system aids more accurate recognition A system that takes just seconds to age a child's image by decades could become a valuable tool in the search for missing persons. Following preliminary tests, researchers at the...

Dis-stress message.
December 12, 2005... Groundbreaking fibre-optic strain monitoring technology set for trial on the M25 An innovative monitoring technology that uses fibre-optic cables to measure strain in building foundations and road embankments is to be tested on the M25....

Drill instructor.
December 12, 2005... Real-time torque and force sensor aims to make microsurgery more accurate Birmingham engineers are developing a technique designed to make microsurgery more accurate by taking real-time force and torque measurements during operations. ...

European technology research must adapt says EU report.
December 12, 2005... European research into manufacturing technologies needs to adapt to the fast-changing global economy, according to an EU strategy group. The latest report from the Manufacture Technology Platform (MTP) - the EU's strategy group for...

Weight watchers.
December 12, 2005... Carbon nanotube-based transmitters could improve space signals and pave way towards low-cost micro-satellites Tiny transmitters based on carbon nanotubes could lead to major improvements in the efficiency of satellite communications, a UK...

Mars to get large bite of UK space mission cash.
December 12, 2005... The UK has pledged almost e900m (#600m) to Europe's space programme over the next four years, including future Mars missions and a variety of new satellite projects. The Aurora programme, which includes a number of missions to explore...

The butterfly effect.
December 12, 2005... Paper counterfeiters could be foiled by patterned films that mimic butterfly wings The coloured brilliance of butterfly wings is the inspiration for research into patterned films designed to more effectively protect bank notes and other...

Tough result for armour research team.
December 12, 2005... US researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a manufacturing process claimed to improve the performance of boron carbide, the material used for soldiers' body armour and aircraft protection. Boron carbide, one of...

FOCUS: Ground force.
December 12, 2005... The transport industry is backing a project to investigate the biological and environmental impacts of climate change on the embankments that support our roads and rail lines. Niall Firth reports The more apocalyptic possible effects of...

Sky's the limit for e2v.
December 12, 2005... New year cheer as group announces #2m profit, three major deals worth #17m and an acquisition Technology group e2v, the developer and manufacturer of advanced electronic components and sub-systems, will enter 2006 on an upbeat note after...

Bristol joins IP2IPO's academic roll.
December 12, 2005... Intellectual property commercialisation company IP2IPO has added Bristol University to its growing roster of academic partners. Under a 25-year deal, the company will identify and help set up spin- out businesses across the university and...

Letter: New twist, old idea.(Letter to the Editor)
December 12, 2005... Your article on the fibre-metal laminate for aircraft structures which change shape on the application of an electrical current (News, 28 November), was very interesting. Although today's technology is much more sophisticated, I seem to...

Letter: Hiding to nothing.(Letter to the Editor)
December 12, 2005... As a regular visitor to Holland I am amazed at their ever-increasing use of wind power. In this country we have 10 times more wind than Holland - but it is going to waste because we let a few protesters stop any development of renewable...

MALTESE FALCON: Ship shape.
December 12, 2005... It may be a throwback to the clippers of the 1930s, but the Maltese Falcon is the design of boats to come, with an automatic rigging system complete with sensors to help improve performance. Jon Excell reports When it enters the water for...

INTERVIEW - PROF GEOFF MAITLAND: Potential energy.
December 12, 2005... Prof Geoff Maitland of the Energy Futures Laboratory is tackling the vexed issue of finding innovative new ways of dealing with our fossil fuels. Stuart Nathan reports The reason we drill for oil and gas in the way that we do is,...

DESIGN ENGINEERING: Big wheels.
December 12, 2005... Today's bicycle designers face a tough job improving on the 120-year- old original, which remains a near-perfect engineering classic. Dan Thisdell reports Coventry, 1885: John Kemp Starley unveils the Rover safety bicycle. With its wheels...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - IMAGING: The right image.
December 12, 2005... Space software, combining 3D design with photographic techniques, could help design new materials by mixing existing ones - before they go into production. Stuart Nathan reports Software developed for the European Space Agency could help...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - SENSORS: Common sense.
December 12, 2005... Sensors are now found in a wide range of applications, from tiny consumer gadgets to spacecraft. But the industry is still growing - and some markets are expanding fast. Matthew Peach reports Although Sensors have been on the increase in...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - CONTROL & INSTRUMENTATION: Controlling interest.
December 12, 2005... Key developments and standards in control and instrumentation are driving market demands for higher performance devices. Matthew Peach talks to key suppliers about how they are achieving this UK manufacturing has been hit hard over the past...

SPECIAL REPORT: Eight of the best.
December 12, 2005... For first-hand information on the latest in technology, nothing beats getting out and seeing for yourself what is available. So forget the internet and make a date for February 2006 says Colin Carter It's coming up to February again, the...

SPECIAL REPORT: Vision of the future.
December 12, 2005... Advanced technology in the new generation of digital cameras makes them easier to configure and integrate. Interconnectivity options have also improved, with many interfaces available. Colin Carter explains Anyone who has been collecting...