The Engineer articles from November 2006

The Engineer archives from November 2006

THE BIG PICTURE: Nimrod lands in hostile territory.
November 13, 2006... A Florida test lab takes the RAF's next-generation prototype to the extreme BAE Systems' Nimrod MRA4 development aircraft PA2 is pictured here undergoing environmental trials at -400C at the McKinley Climatic Laboratory at Eglin US Air...

THE BIG PICTURE: Firefighters see help from above.
November 13, 2006... A team led by NASA and US Forest Service scientists used a remotely piloted aircraft - the Altair Unmanned Aircraft System - to collect data from visible and infrared spectrums in real time over the recent Esperanza fire in California. The...

THE BIG PICTURE: VW's Nanospyder goes organic.
November 13, 2006... Volkswagen designers have unveiled the Nanospyder, a radical vision for the future of modern transportation. The two-seater is an environmentally friendly concept vehicle. It includes nanotechnology, hydrogen fuel cells, solar power,...

IN BRIEF: GAWAIN quests for sat-nav.(Brief article)
November 13, 2006... The EU's GAWAIN project may make it easier and cheaper to mass-produce handsets that support both satellite navigation and 3G telephony. The aim is to support the world's two most important global positioning systems, Europe's Galileo and...

IN BRIEF: Bloodhound kit sniffs out bombs.(Brief article)
November 13, 2006... A Czech-led Eureka Umbrella project, 3109 Eulasnet Explosives Analyser, has created a portable system to detect explosives in areas susceptible to bomb attacks. Housed in a single compact and lightweight case, the device performs...

IN BRIEF: COSY housing for hydrogen.(Brief article)
November 13, 2006... The Marie Curie Research Training Network COSY (Complex Solid State Reactions for Energy Efficient Hydrogen Storage) was launched this month. With E2.5m in funding from the European Union, it aims to develop new types of reactive light-metal...

NEWS: Model medicine.
November 13, 2006... A training device using 3D imaging and force-feedback offers radiologists and surgeons a realistic chance to practice A virtual-reality training device that uses force-feedback and 3D imaging to recreate complicated invasive medical...

NEWS: Lightening the load.
November 13, 2006... Research into the failure of composites by Imperial College could slash the cost of components used in aircraft The use of composites in aircraft could take off now that failure prediction is to be refined. The development will pave the...

NEWS: Biomass on the front burner.
November 13, 2006... Combined heat and power systems may become available for large-scale domestic use if a Nottingham project succeeds A new project at Nottingham University's School of the Built Environment aims to create the first small-scale biomass-fired...

NEWS: Switched on.
November 13, 2006... Scientists are developing new types of antennae for wearable radio devices to overcome obstructions by the human body Marconi's heart was in the right place when he patented a radio transmitter and receiver in 1897 but today that vital...

NEWS: The light stuff.
November 13, 2006... Nanotechnology may improve optical and photonic devices, thanks to a partnership between business and academia Many hands are making light work better by using carbon nanotubes. Optical and photonic devices for industry, medicine and...

NEWS: A sense of safety.
November 13, 2006... Sensor patches to monitor tyres mark the commercial launch of the UK technology and should help cut road accidents Michelin has launched a wireless and battery-free tyre monitoring system that marks the commercial debut of UK-developed...

NEWS: Salt of the earth.
November 13, 2006... Research into a never-exploited nuclear technology could lead to a safer reactor not based on uranium solid fuel rods A design of nuclear reactor not built for more than 40 years is being scrutinised by scientists. They believe it could be...

VIEWPOINT: Transport in the balance.
November 13, 2006... Technology is key to ensuring transport systems not only satisfy demand but also protect against climate change, says Douglas Alexander Technology has always driven change in the transport world, from the canal system that supported the...

LETTER: In the wrong job?(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... The debate about getting youngsters into engineering will run and run but until there are some fundamental changes in terms of decent salaries and how engineers are treated, I fear the battle will be a losing one. My 12-year-old boy wants...

LETTER: We need a new line.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... I agree 100 per cent with Andrew Porter's view of the railway system in this country (Letters, 29 October). Compared with other national rail networks it is nothing short of an embarrassment. For example, on the German rail system you can...

LETTER: Post Office moves on.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... The post office will need more than a new form of personal transporter to ease the load of postmen on their rounds (News, 29 October). I have been involved in studies of the trends in this respect and there is no doubt that the increasing...

LETTER: Bring back the boffins.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... There is nothing new in the defence industry calling on developers of innovative new technologies to meet the national need (Comment, 29 October). This is just a welcome return to the era when 'boffins' such as those in university...

LETTER: Firework fears.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... The point made by John Halley about the non-environmental friendliness of fireworks is an intriguing one and had never occurred to me. (Letters, 16-29 October). As someone who greatly enjoys fireworks I am now worried that someone in the...

LETTER: Edinburgh event.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... John Halley's comments on the pollution caused by fireworks were sensible but coming from a resident of Edinburgh he surely has little choice in the matter. Some of the best fireworks I have ever seen were those at Edinburgh Castle a few new...

LETTER: More on mills.(Letter to the editor)
November 13, 2006... While having no connection with Scotland, I nonetheless agree with practically everything Hugh Falconer says (Letters,16-29 October). However, a few points need a little more consideration. First, here in the south, where development land...

SUSTAINABLE HOMES: Green house.
November 13, 2006... Builders are being urged to match Scandinavian building standards and are devising new technologies to make homes airtight and economical to cut domestic energy consumption. Stuart Nathan reports Builders are being urged to match...

INSIGHT: Pull up a screen.
November 13, 2006... Daily meetings may be transformed as staff in different parts of the country or the globe sit down at the same table, linked by new 'virtual meeting' technology. Andrew Lee reports It is time for your midday meeting. Together with five...

MANAGING TECHNOLOGY: Ready for the second revolution.
November 13, 2006... Regional development agencies have a key role in transforming manufacturing, says Richard Hutchin Manufacturing is and will remain a major contributor to economic activity and employment in most parts of the UK and drives innovation by...

MANAGING TECHNOLOGY: University challenge.
November 13, 2006... Collaboration between academia and business can be an exchange of knowledge from which everyone benefits, argues Prof Tim Wilson IN March I presented the Regional Research and Development Awards to small businesses. I was looking forward...

INTERVIEW: Toy story.(Interview)
November 13, 2006... Robosapien creator Mark Tilden believes artificial intelligence is over- rated. Jon Excell reports on the man who turned robotics on its head Mark Tilden is an unlikely hate figure. The effusive, Indiana Jones hat- wearing scientist has...

DESIGN ENGINEERING: The sensitive touch.
November 13, 2006... An international multi-disciplinary project aims to create a biomimetic finger that can be connected directly to the central nervous system, writes Stuart Nathan Machines with feelings are the province of science fiction - perhaps...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - HANDLING: Floating free.
November 13, 2006... With magnets in the platform and coils in the stationary bed, Philips' Planar Maglev allows precise control even in isolated clean rooms, reports Siobhan Wagner The sensitive operations involved in laser machining, semiconductor...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - DRIVES: Driven away.
November 13, 2006... Wherever industry needs to optimize cost productivity or functionality, mechanical parts are being replaced by software-supported drives. Mark Venables investigates Greater flexibility continues to be demanded from industrial drives...

DESIGN ENGINEERING - MULTI-PHYSICS: Fluid thinking.
November 13, 2006... The analysis of real-world mixed physics, once the field where intractable problems were relegated, is fast becoming a must for engineers, explains Charles Clarke In our last expose on CFD/FEA we mentioned that mother nature never does...

SPECIAL REPORT: Blooming by design.
November 13, 2006... Lotus Engineering's versatile vehicle architecture concept shows that the UK automotive industry can remain competitive in the niche market. Charles Clarke reports When UK manufacturing bemoans the loss of its automotive industry, people...

CAREERS: Set for a field day.
November 13, 2006... Higher oil prices, coupled with the technology to tap previously unreachable or non-viable reserves, has resulted in a North Sea investment boom that is expected to create 15,000 jobs. Julia Pierce reports It is not long since observers...

Gone but not forgotten.
November 13, 2006... Curiosities from 150 years of The Engineer archive October 1865 Gilbert's improved fire alarum It was a dangerous place to be, Victorian England. With many industrial practices in their infancy deadly boiler explosions, fatal fires...

COMMENT: ITER gold medal would be money well spent.
November 27, 2006... There are some projects so big, so ambitious and so challenging - not to mention expensive - that they make the everyday business of most engineers look reassuringly manageable. We have heard a lot over the last few weeks about the...

THE BIG PICTURE: Roll out the Barrel.
November 27, 2006... World's largest-ever superconducting magnet powers up to operating conditions at first go The largest superconducting magnet ever built has successfully been powered up to its operating conditions at the first attempt. Called the...

THE BIG PICTURE: Military aims to stay one jump ahead.
November 27, 2006... RAF parachutists, parachute engineers and scientists from the Aircraft Test and Evaluation Centre - a partnership between Qinetiq and the military at Boscombe Down - are testing a tandem parachute system. They hope that it will allow...

THE BIG PICTURE: Samsung introduces slimline tonic.
November 27, 2006... Samsung has unveiled what it claims is the world's thinnest LCD panel. The company says the display is no thicker than a credit card and is 0.07mm thinner than the world's previously-reported slimmest panel. The company also announced...

IN BRIEF: 3D software for surgeons.(Brief article)
November 27, 2006... The EC-funded Decision Support Software for Orthopaedic Surgery (DeSSOS) project is developing software to support joint replacement surgery. It combines sensor systems with 3D design software to guide surgeons before, during and after surgery...

IN BRIEF: Anita sniffs out the gases.(Brief article)
November 27, 2006... The European Space Agency, SINTEF, and Germany's Kayser-Threde have created Anita, an advanced system for identifying and measuring gases in space vehicles. NASA plans to take it up to the international space station for 10 days next summer,...

IN BRIEF: Environmental wizard of Oz.(Brief article)
November 27, 2006... Information about the environmental impact of industry materials is to be made available to the Australian public via a new national database. The Australian Life Cycle Inventory database initiative, led by CSIRO, will allow users from...

NEWS: Taking a shine to safety.
November 27, 2006... National Physical Laboratory provides artificial sun to improve in-car display screens Car makers can now specify visibility standards for in-car display screens from their suppliers. This should improve road safety as well as customer...

NEWS: Acid test.
November 27, 2006... Sensors monitor cows' guts for higher milk yield and lower methane excretion A wireless pH sensor that monitors the acidity of a cow's stomach from within the body has been developed by a group of UK animal and technology researchers....

NEWS: Highway patrol.
November 27, 2006... Digital road tracking system could reveal bottlenecks to help traffic flow smoothly at optimum speeds MOTORISTS could once again experience the joy of the open road and fresher air thanks to a highly-accurate vehicle tracking system which...

NEWS: On track for stability.
November 27, 2006... As trains get faster they become less stable. A collaborative, aerodynamic study aims to find an answer RAIL travellers are familiar with aerodynamic forces - the lateral buffeting felt when a train passes on an adjacent line, or the change...

NEWS: Reflecting on the future.
November 27, 2006... UK project develops technology which uses GPS signals from space to predict climate change Some 20,000km above the Earth, 30 GPS satellites are beaming down signals, helping thousands of sales reps figure out how far it is to the next...

NEWS: Power gains.
November 27, 2006... Industrial and academic engineers are combining to develop devices for use in high-power electronic applications Advanced energy-efficient semiconductor devices with lower running costs are to be developed in a collaboration between a...

NEWS: New wave bands.
November 27, 2006... Multiple-input, multiple-output technology is helping expand the potential of wireless networks The demand for communicating by wireless networks is growing fast, and device manufacturers are scrabbling to stay ahead. The evidence is in...

VIEWPOINT: A decade of sustainability.
November 27, 2006... The oil giant has been contributing to the carbon debate for almost 10 years and is working to limit emissions, says BP's Ellis Armstrong The demand for energy has risen by 15 per cent during the 21st century and some forecasts expect...

LETTER: More salt please.(Letter to the editor)
November 27, 2006... The molten salt reactor (MSR) featured in your article 'Salt of the earth' (News, 13 November) is a great concept. It has very good stability, can run at very high temperature and very low pressures (not much higher than city water...

LETTER: It's down to timing.(Letter to the editor)
November 27, 2006... In his letter regarding acceleration over road humps to minimise jolting (Letters, 13 November) your correspondent P Field asks if the laws of physics apply. This overcomplication of things is typical of an engineer - I know, being one myself....

LETTER: Keep foot off pedal.(Letter to the editor)
November 27, 2006... In response to P Field's point, when I studied automotive engineering design at Coventry polytechnic - now a university - we did the force analysis of a suspension system riding over a bump to look at the accelerations and forces of each of...

LETTER: Suspension is key.(Letter to the editor)
November 27, 2006... Regarding 'Drive your way out of a hump', off the top of my head I would guess that the state of the front suspension system is the key. Under-braking, spring and strut will be pre-compressed as the nose of the car dips. With no...

LETTER: Better than Jamie.(Letter to the editor)
November 27, 2006... As an accountant who regularly reads our company's copy of The Engineer I was greatly interested in your editorial (13 November). We have a number of young engineers - though given my age and the rules on sexual harassment I do not have...

SAFER TRUCKS: Truck stop.
November 27, 2006... Heavy goods vehicles are involved in 10 per cent of all fatal road accidents in the UK. Could an ambitious European project to develop sensing and control systems reduce the carnage? Dan Thisdell investigates On Wednesday 25 October, a...

INSIGHT: Dyson's quick on the dry.
November 27, 2006... Power savings and better hygiene are two of the benefits promised by Airblade, a hand-dryer that brings proven industrial technologies to a new environment. Stuart Nathan reports Drying your hands in a public washroom isn't something...

MANAGING TECHNOLOGY: EU billions up for grabs.
November 27, 2006... The European Union is offering vast funds for collaborative projects in the fields of science and technology, says Richard Wrigley Gaining access to funding from the European Union is no easy matter, but success can play an essential part...

MANAGING TECHNOLOGY: How to talk to angels.
November 27, 2006... When engineering companies require additional investment, one of the best options may be to seek out venture capitalists, says David Beer A pedigree of innovation and an appetite for expensive plant means engineering-based businesses...

INTERVIEW: Galaxy guru.(Interview)
November 27, 2006... Astronomer Martin Barstow, the only UK representative on NASA's Hubble committee, is helping the novel 'patch-up' in space of the ageing telescope. Niall Firth reports With its glorious images of distant stars and colliding galaxies, not...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING: Skin treatment.
November 27, 2006... Carmakers can save time and money by using a new form of coating for plastic parts that also provides decorative skins for car interiors. Siobhan Wagner reports Those in the business of car production know that coating an injection-...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - CONDITION MONITORING: Sound performance.
November 27, 2006... A non-intrusive system widely used in steelmaking to check the condition of critical plant and machinery is now available to other industries. Siobhan Wagner reports Acoustics emissions monitoring is the only tried and tested way of...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - PARTICLE PHYSICS: Isis keeps beaming.
November 27, 2006... An improved proton beam apparatus should help Oxfordshire's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory keep a worldwide lead in particle technology. Siobhan Wagner reports When physicists at ISIS, the world's leading pulsed neutron and muon source,...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - MARKING: Keeping tabs.
November 27, 2006... Laser coding on glass bottles and pharmaceutical bag labelling are just two of the technological responses to laws demanding traceability. Mark Venables reports Even before September 11, traceability was an important concern for...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - ON-DEMAND SOFTWARE: ERP hosts grow.
November 27, 2006... Hosted software is booming, and now includes enterprise resource planning systems. So how do firms decide if it is right for them? Charles Clarke explains WITH SOFTWARE, value for money increases when advances in underlying computing...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - MACHINE TOOLS: Fast movers.
November 27, 2006... Developments in software and control engineering are making parallel kinematic machine tools viable, while traditional designs are also benefiting. Which technology will dominate in future? Martin Oakham reports Growing competition from...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - MACHINE TOOLS: Vinten picks a Winner.
November 27, 2006... When Vinten Broadcast, part of the global Vitec Group, had to meet a surge in orders for one of its products, the choice to keep the work in- house centred on the acquisition of a new twin-pallet horizontal machining centre. After an...

PRODUCTION ENGINEERING - MACHINE TOOLS: TGM gets lift-off.
November 27, 2006... When aerospace subcontractor Techni Grind Machining (TGM) won a project to manufacture 1,200mm x 800mm cargo door linings for the Airbus A340 aircraft, no machine tool maker could compete with the bed size and machine capabilities of the...