Recent Warfare Technologies

[a_majoor]

Continuing my long standing interest in communications networks, here is perhaps the ultimate expression: "Server Sky", with the end point being the entire solar system filled with these things. For the mid term, tens of thousands of multiple redundant systems in orbit to provide communications, independent computer networks separate from the ground and power beaming to ground and aerial systems would have incalculable changes for the military, or indeed anyone hooked up to the system.

The most remarkable thing about the proposal is it uses off the shelf technology, so it isn't blue sky tech, but something that can be realized today:

First generation serversats are 20 centimeters across ( about 8 inches ), 0.1 millimeters (100 microns) thick, and weigh 7 grams. They can be mass produced with off the shelf semiconductor technologies.
Gallium arsenide radio chips provide intraarray, interarray, and ground communication, as well as precise location information. Serversats are launched stacked by the thousands in solid cylinders,shrouded and vibration isolated inside a traditional satellite bus.

 

[a_majoor]

Getting around the bandwidth gap for wireless devices:

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/february/duplex-radio-transmission-021411.html

Stanford researchers develop wireless technology for faster, more efficient communication networks

A new technology that allows wireless signals to be sent and received simultaneously on a single channel has been developed by Stanford researchers. Their research could help build faster, more efficient communication networks, at least doubling the speed of existing networks.
Jack Hubbard

The technology could have some very practical applications, including better wireless reception.

BY SANDEEP RAVINDRAN

"Wireless communication is a one-way street. Over."

Radio traffic can flow in only one direction at a time on a specific frequency, hence the frequent use of "over" by pilots and air traffic controllers, walkie-talkie users and emergency personnel as they take turns speaking.

But now, Stanford researchers have developed the first wireless radios that can send and receive signals at the same time.

This immediately makes them twice as fast as existing technology, and with further tweaking will likely lead to even faster and more efficient networks in the future.

"Textbooks say you can't do it," said Philip Levis, assistant professor of computer science and of electrical engineering. "The new system completely reworks our assumptions about how wireless networks can be designed," he said.

Cell phone networks allow users to talk and listen simultaneously, but they use a work-around that is expensive and requires careful planning, making the technique less feasible for other wireless networks, including Wi-Fi.
Photos by L.A. Cicero Philip A. Levis and Sachin Katt

Assistant professors Philip A. Levis, left, and Sachin Katti worked with advisees to create a full duplex radio device.
Sparked from a simple idea

A trio of electrical engineering graduate students, Jung Il Choi, Mayank Jain and Kannan Srinivasan, began working on a new approach when they came up with a seemingly simple idea. What if radios could do the same thing our brains do when we listen and talk simultaneously: screen out the sound of our own voice?

In most wireless networks, each device has to take turns speaking or listening. "It's like two people shouting messages to each other at the same time," said Levis. "If both people are shouting at the same time, neither of them will hear the other."

It took the students several months to figure out how to build the new radio, with help from Levis and Sachin Katti, assistant professor of computer science and of electrical engineering.

Their main roadblock to two-way simultaneous conversation was this: Incoming signals are overwhelmed by the radio's own transmissions, making it impossible to talk and listen at the same time.

"When a radio is transmitting, its own transmission is millions, billions of times stronger than anything else it might hear [from another radio]," Levis said. "It's trying to hear a whisper while you yourself are shouting."

But, the researchers realized, if a radio receiver could filter out the signal from its own transmitter, weak incoming signals could be heard. "You can make it so you don't hear your own shout and you can hear someone else's whisper," Levis said.

Their setup takes advantage of the fact that each radio knows exactly what it's transmitting, and hence what its receiver should filter out. The process is analogous to noise-canceling headphones.
Jung Il Choi and Mayank Jain

Jung Il Choi and Mayank Jain (with Kannan Srinivasan, not pictured) began working on a new approach listen and talk simultaneously on radio communications.

When the researchers demonstrated their device last fall at MobiCom 2010, an international gathering of more than 500 of the world's top experts in mobile networking, they won the prize for best demonstration. Until then, people didn't believe sending and receiving signals simultaneously could be done, Jain said. Levis said a researcher even told the students their idea was "so simple and effective, it won't work," because something that obvious must have already been tried unsuccessfully.
Breakthrough for communications technology

But work it did, with major implications for future communications networks. The most obvious effect of sending and receiving signals simultaneously is that it instantly doubles the amount of information you can send, Levis said. That means much-improved home and office networks that are faster and less congested.

But Levis also sees the technology having larger impacts, such as overcoming a major problem with air traffic control communications. With current systems, if two aircraft try to call the control tower at the same time on the same frequency, neither will get through. Levis says these blocked transmissions have caused aircraft collisions, which the new system would help prevent.

The group has a provisional patent on the technology and is working to commercialize it. They are currently trying to increase both the strength of the transmissions and the distances over which they work. These improvements are necessary before the technology is practical for use in Wi-Fi networks.

But even more promising are the system's implications for future networks. Once hardware and software are built to take advantage of simultaneous two-way transmission, "there's no predicting the scope of the results," Levis said.

Sandeep Ravindran is a science-writing intern at the Stanford News Service.

[/quote]

 

[a_majoor]

This might be fun to do at home (although in the real world this could be a project for a half decent computer lab in a University of College setting); building your own "Watson" expert system like the one that won Jeopardy. In the military setting, this sort of database expert system could be used to comb through intelligence databases to quickly answer questions, assist in logistics and transportation planning and so on.

Reading the spec sheets in the article, performance is dependent on the hardware. IF you are not in a real hurry, a single core processor can give the answer in about 2 hours. A 32 core IBM Power 750 server can come up with the answer in a matter of minutes. For most practical purposes, this might do. Real tech types might consider wiring several game consoles together in a Beowulf cluster or investing in NVidia Tesla supercomputer hardware if the price is right.

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/02/building-personal-version-ibm-watson.html#more

 

[a_majoor]

And advanced robotics. Cheetah fast robots in particular are interesting, you could use them as scouts, to rapidly establish a perimeter or as couriers to bring urgently needed messages or equipment or robot sentries that can actually run down fleeing suspects.

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/02/boston-dynamics-wins-darpa-contracts-to.html

Boston Dynamics Wins DARPA Contracts to Develop Robots that are Fast and Agile

One robot called ATLAS, a humanoid with two arms and two legs, will climb and maneuver in rough terrain to achieve human-like agility. A second robot with four legs is called CHEETAH; it will sprint faster than a human, corner like a race car and start and stop on a dime.

– Boston Dynamics, developer of BigDog, PETMAN, RHex and other dynamic robots, announced today it was awarded contracts by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop two new robots, one agile and one fast. The ATLAS robot will take the shape of a human being, with a torso, two legs and two arms. It will move through difficult terrain using human-like behavior: sometimes walking upright as a biped, sometimes turning sideways to squeeze through narrow passages, and sometimes, when the terrain gets its nastiest, using its hands for extra support and balance. Unlike most other humanoid robots that use static techniques to control their motion, ATLAS will move dynamically leveraging the advanced control software and high-performance actuated hardware that is Boston Dynamics’ specialty.

The CHEETAH robot will have four legs, a flexible spine, an articulated head/neck, and possibly a tail. It will run fast: faster than any existing legged robot and faster than the fastest human runners. In addition to top speed, the CHEETAH robot will be designed to make tight turns so it can zigzag to chase or evade, and it will accelerate rapidly, starting and stopping on a dime. Like ATLAS, it will leverage the advanced control software and high-tech mechanical and electrical systems that Boston Dynamics created for previous robots, such as BigDog, PETMAN and others.

ATLAS will walk like a man, using a heel-to-toe walking motion, long strides and dynamic transfer of weight on each step,” explains Rob Playter, the ATLAS principal investigator and VP of Engineering at Boston Dynamics. “We have already achieved some advanced behavior in PETMAN, an anthropomorphic robot we developed for the Army, so ATLAS will start out with a leg up on the problem by leveraging the PETMAN results.”

In addition to military applications, such robots can be used in civil and commercial applications such as emergency response, firefighting, advanced agriculture and vehicular travel in places that are inaccessible to conventional wheeled and tracked vehicles.

 

[a_majoor]

Manufacturing complex items using 3D printers. Note Airbus is already using a version of this technology to "print" wing structures, here the ability to accurately lay down intricate structures outweighs the time and cost factors. I have also seen a proposal for a simplified but vastly scaled up version to "print" concrete buildings using layers of fast setting concrete (obviously there would be no rebar), and even 3D printers that can print replacement organs are under development. An exciting new field:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/03/additive-layer-manufacturing-printing.html#more

Additive Layer Manufacturing printing of a bicycle with no metal by the makers of the Airbus jets

EADS, the European aerospace and defence group, has unveiled the world’s first bike that uses a revolutionary new manufacturing process which demonstrates the potential to transform manufacturing around the globe.

    Known as the ‘Airbike’, it is a bike with a difference. Made of nylon but strong enough to replace steel or aluminium, it requires no conventional maintenance or assembly. It is ‘grown’ from powder, allowing complete sections to be built as one piece; the wheels, bearings and axle being incorporated within the ‘growing’ process and built at the same time. The Airbike can be built to rider specification so requires no adjustment.

    While the Airbike is only a technology demonstrator at this stage, EADS has developed the technology to the extent that it can manipulate metals, nylon, and carbon-reinforced plastics at a molecular level which allows it to be applied to high-stress, safety critical aviation uses. Compared to a traditional, machined part, those produced by ALM are up to 65% lighter but still as strong. The technology is likely to be employed in due course in industrial applications such as aerospace, the motor industry and engineering. Studies show that for every 1kg reduction in weight, airlines can save around $3500 worth of fuel over the lifespan of the aircraft, with corresponding reductions in carbon-dioxide emissions.

    Minister for Business and Enterprise, Mark Prisk, said: "I am proud to see the UK - through EADS and others - leading the world in the development of innovative products. Additive Layer Manufacturing, or ‘3-D printing’, is a truly exciting, green, new technology, which not only enables the creation of products beyond the capability of traditional manufacturing processes, but also offers the potential to help the manufacturing sector slash its waste and carbon emissions. This is exactly the sort of advanced technology that we want to see companies investing in, here in the UK."

    ALM also offers a glimpse of wider potential benefits. The process itself uses about one-tenth of the material required in traditional manufacturing and reduces waste. On a global scale, ALM offers potential for products to be produced quickly and cheaply on ‘printers’ located in offices, shops and houses. It would allow replacement components to be produced in remote regions, improving logistics on humanitarian relief and military operations.

    Andy Hawkins is the lead engineer for ALM at EADS. “The possibilities with ALM are huge – it’s a game-changing technology. The beauty is that complex designs do not cost any extra to produce. The laser can draw any shape you like and many unique design features have been incorporated into the Airbike such as the auxetic structure to provide saddle cushioning or the integrated bearings encased within the hubs.”

    Further ahead, by removing production lines and the need for factories, the costs of ‘manufacturing’ will be significantly reduced and, through this, ALM has the potential to reverse trends of urbanization that have historically accompanied industrialization.

    Iain Gray, Chief Executive of the Technology Strategy Board, said: “It is hugely exciting to see examples of British engineers showcasing their work so effectively. The ‘Airbike’ is an example of technology innovation which stands a real chance of providing UK businesses with a manufacturing edge for the future while delivering economic growth both here and around the globe.”

    Whilst there are currently limitations in terms of the maximum component size achievable and the costs involved, the technology is developing fast. There is growing recognition of the potential ramifications of ALM and the barriers to delivering this technology on a global scale are falling rapidly.

From the EADs website:

http://www.eads.com/eads/france/fr/actualites/press.8d764849-d439-475b-93b3-3cc9a7d2ba20.f09e6a74-16d2-4525-a32e-1a8f65b76168.html?queryStr=airbike&pid=1

The future of manufacturing…on two wheels
Bristol,  07 mars 2011

• EADS produces world’s first bike using revolutionary ALM technology - ‘grown’ from high-strength nylon powder
• Called the ‘Airbike’ because Airbus was the first EADS company to use the technology
• New technology will transform manufacturing around the globe
 
EADS produces world’s first bike using revolutionary ALM technology - ‘grown’ from high-strength nylon powder. Called the ‘Airbike’ because Airbus was the first EADS company to use the technology (c) EADS

EADS, the European aerospace and defence group, has unveiled the world’s first bike that uses a revolutionary new manufacturing process which demonstrates the potential to transform manufacturing around the globe.

Known as the ‘Airbike’, it is a bike with a difference. Made of nylon but strong enough to replace steel or aluminium, it requires no conventional maintenance or assembly. It is ‘grown’ from powder, allowing complete sections to be built as one piece; the wheels, bearings and axle being incorporated within the ‘growing’ process and built at the same time. The Airbike can be built to rider specification so requires no adjustment.
The revolutionary manufacturing process is known as Additive Layer Manufacturing (or ALM) and it allows single products to be grown from a fine powder of metal (such as titanium, stainless steel or aluminium), nylon or carbon-reinforced plastics from a centre located next to Airbus’ site at Filton. Similar in concept to 3D printing, the bike design is perfected using computer-aided design and then constructed by using a powerful laser-sintering process which adds successive, thin layers of the chosen structural material until a solid, fully-formed bike emerges.

Robin Southwell, Chief Executive of EADS UK, commented: “The Airbike is a fantastic example of British innovation at its very best. The team at EADS in Bristol includes world-class engineers who continue to push boundaries by working at the forefront of technology. I believe that ALM technology represents a paradigm shift.”

While the Airbike is only a technology demonstrator at this stage, EADS has developed the technology to the extent that it can manipulate metals, nylon, and carbon-reinforced plastics at a molecular level which allows it to be applied to high-stress, safety critical aviation uses. Compared to a traditional, machined part, those produced by ALM are up to 65% lighter but still as strong. The technology is likely to be employed in due course in industrial applications such as aerospace, the motor industry and engineering. Studies show that for every 1kg reduction in weight, airlines can save around $3500 worth of fuel over the lifespan of the aircraft, with corresponding reductions in carbon-dioxide emissions.

Minister for Business and Enterprise, Mark Prisk, said: "I am proud to see the UK - through EADS and others - leading the world in the development of innovative products. Additive Layer Manufacturing, or ‘3-D printing’, is a truly exciting, green, new technology, which not only enables the creation of products beyond the capability of traditional manufacturing processes, but also offers the potential to help the manufacturing sector slash its waste and carbon emissions. This is exactly the sort of advanced technology that we want to see companies investing in, here in the UK."

ALM also offers a glimpse of wider potential benefits. The process itself uses about one-tenth of the material required in traditional manufacturing and reduces waste. On a global scale, ALM offers potential for products to be produced quickly and cheaply on ‘printers’ located in offices, shops and houses. It would allow replacement components to be produced in remote regions, improving logistics on humanitarian relief and military operations.

Andy Hawkins is the lead engineer for ALM at EADS. “The possibilities with ALM are huge – it’s a game-changing technology. The beauty is that complex designs do not cost any extra to produce. The laser can draw any shape you like and many unique design features have been incorporated into the Airbike such as the auxetic structure to provide saddle cushioning or the integrated bearings encased within the hubs.”
Further ahead, by removing production lines and the need for factories, the costs of ‘manufacturing’ will be significantly reduced and, through this, ALM has the potential to reverse trends of urbanization that have historically accompanied industrialization.

Iain Gray, Chief Executive of the Technology Strategy Board, said: “It is hugely exciting to see examples of British engineers showcasing their work so effectively. The ‘Airbike’ is an example of technology innovation which stands a real chance of providing UK businesses with a manufacturing edge for the future while delivering economic growth both here and around the globe.”

Whilst there are currently limitations in terms of the maximum component size achievable and the costs involved, the technology is developing fast. There is growing recognition of the potential ramifications of ALM and the barriers to delivering this technology on a global scale are falling rapidly.

Notes for editors:
1. Broadcast: BBC Inside Out West: 7 March 2011 (19.30pm), (BBC iPlayer from [8 March])
2. Airbike’s unique design features include:
• Frame: integrated truss structure to reduce weight but maintain stiffness:
• Saddle: auxetic structure to provide cushioning;
• Wheels: spoke design mimics the unique A400M eight-bladed scimitar propeller design;
• Drivetrain: Kevlar belt creates clean drive system;
• Crank / hubs: integrated bearings encased in hubs and crank and manufactured in-situ;
• Personalisation: embossed text in various positions.
3. Auxetics: Auxetic shapes or materials appear to defy the laws of physics. If you squeeze, the entire structure compresses (instead of getting thicker), if you pull the entire structure gets bigger (as opposed to getting thinner). These structures have mechanical properties such as high energy absorption and fracture resistance and can be used in applications as far-ranging as building structures or body armour.

EADS (www.eads.com). EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2009, the Group – comprising Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian and Eurocopter – generated revenues of € 42.8 billion and employed a workforce of more than 119,000, including more than 16,500 employees in the UK.

 

[a_majoor]

Increasingly sophisticated equipment can be purchased, made and used by smaller and smaller groups. The implications of this are profound. If *we* can get into this mindset, the CF can be rapidly upgraded and re equiped quickly and at low cost. (This would involve breaking bureaucratic and industry rice bowls). If our enemies are doing this, expect sophisticated modes of attack from unlikely sources (unknown unknowns...):

http://blogs.forbes.com/danielfreedman/2011/03/30/israel-the-third-nation-on-the-moon/

Israel, The Third Nation on the Moon?
Mar. 30 2011 - 6:01 am | 10,109 views | 0 recommendations | 0 comments
By DANIEL FREEDMAN

If all goes according to plan, by December 2012 a team of three young Israeli scientists will have landed a tiny spacecraft on the moon, explored the lunar surface, and transmitted live video back to earth, thereby scooping up a $20 million prize (the Google Lunar X Prize), revolutionizing space exploration, and making the Jewish State the third nation (after the U.S. and Russia) to land a probe on the moon. And they’re doing it in their spare time.

The three engineers – Yariv Bash (electronics and computers), Kfir Damari (communication systems), and Yonatan Winetraub (satellite systems) all have high-level day jobs in the Israeli science and technology world, and also both teach and study. They all had heard of the Google Lunar X Prize independently, before being introduced by mutual friends who, as Yonatan puts it “thought we were all crazy enough to do it, so we should meet each other.”

By the end of November 2010 they had sketched together a novel plan to win the prize and submitted it to organizers. Only on December 21 (10 days before the December 31 deadline) did they set about raising the $50,000 entry fee. “Like good Israelis we left it to the last minute,” Yonatan laughs.

Since then they’ve recruited around 50 volunteers from across the Israeli science and technology community and have gained support from academic institutions, including the prestigious Weizmann Institute of Science (founded in 1933 by Chaim Weizmann, himself a successful chemist who went on to become Israel’s first president). They’re operating as a non-profit (“we’re looking for stakeholders,” says Project Coordinator Ronna Rubinstein), and any winnings will be invested in promoting science among Israeli youth.

The X Prize’s organizers say their competition is intended to attract “mavericks” who “take new approaches and think creatively about difficult problems, resulting in truly innovative breakthroughs.” They see the moon as a largely untapped resource, and believe that “inexpensive, regular access to the Moon is a critical stepping stone for further exploration.”

Maverick and creative thinkers the Israeli trio appear to be: According to the X Prize organizers, the 29 competing teams will spend between $15 million and $100 million on the project, with the earliest launch not scheduled until 2013. The Israelis aim to spend less than that (around $10 million) and to launch before 2013.

“One of reasons that we’re able to do this,” Kfir (who started programming aged six and wrote his first computer virus aged 11) explains, “is because of our different perspective. Most space missions aim to last many years and so have to be built in a certain way. Ours doesn’t have to last as long. This saves cost.”

Another way the team intends to keep costs down involves utilizing existing technology that just hasn’t previously been linked up for this purpose, rather than spending a new fortune. Naturally the team isn’t releasing specific details of the technology they’re using, but they’re confident that they’ve got what they need.

And once they’re on the moon? “The actual robot will be something the size of a coca-cola bottle,” says Yonatan. “Think about it – a cell phone has most of the capabilities necessary for communication and imaging, and to that we need to add a hopper” to move around the moon. “Simple” really. And the impact of this? “Once we do this it will break the glass ceiling,” Yonatan adds, “and show that space exploration doesn’t have to be expensive.”

As to why they got involved? “Three reasons,” say Yonatan,  “Creating national pride, really putting Israel on the map as a start-up nation by doing something only the superpowers have done, and reigniting Israeli interest in science.” And it’s the third – rejuvenating interest among Israeli youth in science – that’s closest to these young scientists’ hearts.

In the 1960s and 1970s, they say, many young Israelis pursued careers in science, in part inspired by the American space program. Today that isn’t the case, and the number of high school seniors majoring in science is constantly declining. “We want to show that science isn’t just about sitting in a lab all day,” says Kfir.

In 1919 French hotelier Raymond Orteig offered $25,000 for the first non-stop flight between New York City and Paris. Eight years later Charles Lindbergh, considered an underdog, won the prize by making the crossing in his “Spirit of St. Louis.” That not only changed the way people saw flying, but how they saw the world.

The X Prize was inspired by the Orteig Prize, and if the “Spirit of Israel” is successful they can certainly count on changing how young Israelis see science and how others see Israel. They may also change how we all see the universe.

Daniel Freedman is the director of strategy and policy analysis at The Soufan Group, a strategic consultancy. His writings can be found at www.dfreedman.org. He writes a fortnightly column for Forbes.com.

 

[a_majoor]

This may have lots of unexpected benefits; a quick first look of the article suggests there may be lots of improvements in engines if friction and heat transfer properties can be manipulated. Since engines are old and well known technology, "tweaking" the internal parts will have a faster impact than adopting new technologies:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/03/lower-cost-molding-of-microstructures.html#more

Lower cost molding of Microstructures at the millimeter to micron scale

They have made 5 micron pillars on copper

The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) has selected Hoowaki, LLC as one of the seven recipients for the 4th Annual SME List of Innovations That Could Change the Way You Manufacture.

The award was presented for Hoowaki’s surface engineering technology that increases energy efficiency by improving friction, fluid drag and heat transfer. This innovation comes from the laboratory of William King, Chief Technology Officer of Hoowaki and Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois. “Microstructures molded onto a surface can change the properties of that surface,” says King. “By molding microstructures into a surface, we can engineer the surface friction, heat transfer coefficient, or water repellency. All of these are in demand for energy efficiency applications, from hydraulic equipment to air conditioners to batteries.”

Different patterns on copper

Hoowaki has developed a unique surface molding technology to unleash the engineering potential at the meso scale. Here the meso scale is defined as smaller than what the unaided eye can see, or about 0.2mm, down to about a micron. Properties of surfaces differ from those of bulk materials and strongly influence many of the performance characteristics that contribute to product value.
160 micron holes in stainless steel

Benefits of Hoowaki Process

* Low cost - our proprietary micro-molding process forms millions of tiny surface features at once and has a clear route to low cost scale up

* Processing flexibility - Hoowaki tooling can be used in a number of industrial processes including injection molding, compression molding, roll processing, extrusion, stamping, forging and casting.

* Process integration - microstructures can be applied to existing tooling through direct machining methods.

* Design flexibility and expertise - Hoowaki is able to engineer surface patterns tailored to specific applications to modify surface properties independent of the bulk material properties. Multiple "levels" of features give combinations of surface performance attributes never before possible. Hoowaki has the unique ability to form micro patterns on both flat and curved parts out of metal and other

Casting metal microstructures from a flexible and reusable mold

    This paper describes casting-based microfabrication of metal microstructures and nanostructures. The metal was cast into flexible silicone molds which were themselves cast from microfabricated silicon templates. Microcasting is demonstrated in two metal alloys of melting temperature 70 ◦C or 138 ◦C. Many structures were successfully cast into the metal with excellent replication fidelity, including ridges with periodicity 400 nm and holes or pillars with diameter in the range 10–100 μm and aspect ratio up to 2:1. The flexibility of the silicone mold permits casting of curved surfaces, which we demonstrate by fabricating a cylindrical metal roller of diameter 8 mm covered with microstructures. The metal microstructures can be in turn used as a reusable molding tool.

 

[a_majoor]

Sometimes, effective equipment does not have to be "high tech". Consider this as a potential replacement for modular tentage and other field structures:

http://www.hoberman.com/portfolio/rapidlydeployableshelter.php?myNum=24&mytext=Rapidly+Deployable+Shelter&myrollovertext=%3Cu%3ERapidly+Deployable+Shelter%3C%2Fu%3E&category=&projectname=Rapidly+Deployable+Shelter

 

[multihobbist]

something i can't quite understand is that some of the fundaments of physics can be VERY useful for warfare technology such as counter IED.

If you charge Solenoids and have them facing down and by right hand rule, the microwave-like effect will be shot directly below the soleonoid. If they apply that to our vehicles and have them extended and the soleonoids tilted forward, with proper cooling system it'll be very effective detonating planted articles far before the vehicles approaching it.
With experiments, any conducting materials (wires, metal cases or detonator) with improper plantation would be launch off, if not heated up enough for detonating cap to go off.
It's how "Gauss guns" work.

basically they cant act as metal coils that create magnetic field that heats up or moves ANY material that conducts electricity.
As far as I understand the PPE and VPE create interfering field for wireless devices but why don't we use a system that physically makes explosive articles to either move or detonate at safe distance.

It'll be definatly a cheap and safe substitution for many other equipments we developed and it's not like re-inventing the wheel, just simply reviewing what we already know.
A few problems that I can think of are the weather conditions and the cooling systems and the fact that it will effect ANY conductors i.e. if you drive the vehicle equipped with this towards an ammo compound.

 

[a_majoor]

With this guy on the case, we should be in for interesting times. I want to be at the proving grounds when they do tests....

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/04/mythbuster-jamie-hyneman-working-to.html

Mythbuster Jamie Hyneman working to develop lighter armor for U.S. military vehicles in Iraq and Afghanistan

Register UK - Jamie Hyneman has been working with the US government to devise lightweight armor for US military vehicles in Afghanistan and Iraq, all thanks to his work with materials such as TNT and C4 in the frankly unconventional setting of MythBusters.

Hyneman's armor had to be ultra-lightweight so the vehicle doesn't get bogged down, but also capable of standing up the shrapnel and blast damage from a powerful IED while protecting the humans inside the vehicle from the pressure wave accompanying a blast.

Hyneman was contacted by a military subcontractor working with the Office of Naval Research to participate in the armor project. He works out of his business, M5 Industries - the San Francisco studio that's featured in most episodes of MythBusters, and that's a hobbyist's dream of workbenches, power tools, and sheet metal.

This is not Hyneman's first work with the military, however. He also devised a "fully realistic human" robotic avatar to give newbie army medics something realistic to work on, and to help prevent them from freezing up when they see gore in the field for the first time. The MythBuster reckons his avatar is as close to human as it gets: it smells bad, has "real hair", groans, and spurts blood until you successfully apply a tourniquet. The machine is being manufactured "by the dozen" and used for training in the Middle East, he says.

 

[dinicthus]

I can sort of visualize a series of lenses spaced around a helmet feeding into a set of goggles which is the display (the real heavy lifting is the stuff between the lenses and the display). It will be interesting to see how this works out.

How about a monobloc polycarbonate piece that is a prism, sort of like tank prisms for outward view that just starts with the part you look into right above your eyebrows, and gets its view from behind you?

So, when you look far up, instead of seeing the inside of the bottom of the front of your helmet, you would see the view from behind as bounced through the folded path of the block of polycarbonate, possibly with reflective surfaces included as necessary.

I know, it would add weight to the helmet, about the last place you want more weight, but it is simple, robust, and doesn't need million dollar technologies to implement. In fact, the polycarbonate could be part of the protection afforded by the helmet, though, obviously, it doesn't have the same protection capability per pound as the stuff that helmets are made of now, but where the polycarbonate is, the kevlar could be thinner, at least, unless that is too detrimental to over helmet integrity.

They use "folded path" monobloc clear plastic or glass lenses for digital camera smartphones already, it isn't some revolutionary technology.

The view would be just like a rearview mirror, so people would be used to it. No electronics to suddenly quit. Prescription could be ground into (or glued onto, or clipped onto) the rear or front surface of the block so looking up over your eyeglasses into your rearview wouldn't yield a blurry ambiguous mess.

What path the polycarbonate "light tunnel" would take from eye to rearview is not significant, except that the shorter the better.

In fact the PC block or blocks could go to the sides, or just poke out the sides of the helmet right near the front viewable portion. Yes, that might look like ears or horns, and would definitely be more vulnerable to damage than a system where the light path was under the kevlar outer shell and the view port and the part facing rear was actually on the rear of the helmet.

I guess the primary question would be "how bad do they need to see a rearview?", which would determine what sacrifices could be made to provide it.

 

[a_majoor]

Rapidly deployable shelters, bunkers, bastions and walls can be possible with this:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/05/concrete-canvas.html

Concrete Canvas was covered back in 2005 in Wired.

BBC News - Concrete Canvas allows aid teams to construct solid structures in emergency zones quickly and easily. It is a fabric shelter that, when sprayed with water, turns to concrete within 24 hours.

* It is available in 5, 8 and 13 millimeter thicknesses.

* It is ceramic and will not burn

* Once hydrated it remains workable for 2 hours and hardens to 80% strength in 24 hours. Accelerated or retarded formulations can be produced as specified.

* It uses 95% less material than conventional concrete

* It can be used for fast shelters, roofing, retaining walls, basement lining, weed inhibition, flood defense, water tanks and many other applications

The Concrete canvas website

 

[a_majoor]

Stronger, cheaper materials for all kinds of purposes:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/06/flash-bainite-is-strongest-most-ductile.html

Flash Bainite is the Strongest, Most Ductile, Lean Alloyed, Readily Weldable, Least Expensive Ultra Strength METAL known to man

ShareFlash Bainite is the Strongest, Most Ductile, Lean Alloyed, Readily Weldable, Least Expensive Ultra Strength METAL known to man. A50 tensile ranges from 1100 to 2080MPa (160-302ksi) with 8 to 9% elongation. Total elongation up to 10-11% is not uncommon. Flash 4130 at 1900MPa and 9% elongation exceeds titanium-6Al-4V's strength to weight ratio making it pound per pound stronger at only 56% the volume. Flash4130 is just 10% the cost of Ti-64.

"Off the shelf" plate and tubing can be made into Flash Bainite. Triple the strength of Chrome Moly, Flash 4130 is pound for pound 2X stronger than the best aluminums. If you are "lightweighting" structure with aluminum, Flash Bainite will do a better job at less weight and lower cost.

Ohio State University engineers verified the claims of increase the strength of steel by seven percent and can make cars and other products 30% lighter while keeping the same strength. For armor it can provide the equal of the best protection with a 20% weight reduction.

* 20,000 ton per year capacity by July, 2011
* 40-48 inch prototype sheets (3/16 and 1/4 inch thickness) available since Q1 2011
* starting with defense market and then expanding
* Environmentally friendly, this process consumes only a Kwatt of energy per Kg of steel processed. Water is used instead of polluting oils or molten salt.

The most obvious use of Bainitic High Strength Steel (BHSS) is in sheet form in the transportation industry. The increased ductility of a bainitic microstructure will allow stamping of part configurations never possible with existing martensitic Advanced High Strength Steels (AHSS). A significant number of complex stamped components will soon be manufactured in much thinner gages of steel due to the excellent formability of BHSS. Imagine an automobile whose stiffness has been increased yet weighs hundreds of pounds less.

Another area of increased use will be in the field of civil engineering. Steel building components can be manufactured to rely on much higher tensile strengths than previously thought possible. Wall studs, bar stock, angle iron, and I-beams are just some of the shapes that can be converted to bainite using this process. Significantly lighter roof trusses could be completely constructed from thinner gauge bainitic members that rely on greater tensile strengths. Tensioning components such as wire and re-bar may positively impact the bridge and highway building industries. Just imagine how much less steel could be used in a suspension bridge if architects could rely on much higher tensile strength cables.

Other areas as diverse as household appliances to stronger armor plating to space craft will be able to take advantage of Bainitic High Strength Steel.

 

[a_majoor]

OK, the Bikini is cute, but now expand the thought to fully customized uniforms, boots and load carriage systems designed to fit you:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/06/3d-printed-bikini-is-first-ready-to.html

3D Printed Bikini is the first ready to wear 3D printed clothing and fitted exactly using body scanning

ShareThe N12 bikini is the world's first ready-to-wear, completely 3D-printed article of clothing. All of the pieces, closures included, are made directly by 3D printing and snap together without any sewing. N12 represents the beginning of what is possible for the near future.

The same process can be used to make shirts, dresses and suits that are custom fitted using body scanning. It is 0.7 millimeters (1/36th of a inch) thick
nylon.

N12 is named for the material it's made out of: Nylon 12. This solid nylon is created by the SLS 3D printing process. Shapeways calls this material "white, strong, and flexible", because its strength allows it to bend without breaking when printed very thin. With a minimum wall thickness of 0.7 mm (1/36th of an inch), it is possible to make working springs and almost thread-like connections. For a bikini, the nylon is beautifully functional because it is waterproof and remarkably comfortable when wet.

Shapeways describes the CAD process and customizing the fit exactly

The N12 was designed using Rhino 3D CAD software and specially written algorithmic script to create the structure of the 3D printed fabric. The algorithm uses a complex 'circle packing' equation on an arbitrarily doubly curved surface (the bikini). The size of the circles responds to curvature and edge conditions of the form, creating smooth edges and a responsive pattern.

The patterning starts with a curved surface, some geometry to indicate edges and value ranges for the circles sizes and tolerance parameters. The pattern begins placing circles at a point near the edge. Each subsequent circle tries to stay as near to the nearest edge geometry at possible. The circle’s size is determined using this nearness and the local curvature of the surface. Curvier areas get small circles and flatter areas larger, both to help with accurately approximating the surface and to ensure flexibility where it is needed and efficiency of pattern where it is not.

Every time a bend or elbow is encountered in the surface edge, a small gap will be left in the pattern. Gaps will also occur near the middle distances between edges where the placement of the next circle is less certain. After the first level of pattern has been created, these open areas are infilled with smaller circles to ensure complete coverage, and to create a more interesting aesthetic pattern.

One of the goals of the circle patterning system is to be able to adapt it to any surface, at any size. This means that future articles of clothing can be produced using the same algorithm, this could be taken a step further into absolute customization by using a body scan to make a bespoke article of clothing, 3D printed to exactly fit that person only.

 

[a_majoor]

Getting up walls without ropes and ladders: Spiderman come to life:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/06/darpa-z-man-program-to-enbale-wall.html

DARPA Z-man program to enable wall climbing soldiers

DARPA Z-man program will develop biologically inspired climbing aids to enable soldiers to scale vertical walls constructed from typical building materials, without using ropes or ladders. Geckos, spiders and small animals are the inspiration behind these climbing aids.

Nanopatents and innovations - In 2010, DARPA demonstrated a fully loaded soldier (300 lb) wearing reattachable pads (magnets and microspines) scaling a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials using Z-Man technology.

In 2011, DARPA began the transition of Z-Man prototype technologies (magnets and microspines) to the Armed Services.

Draper is a not-for-profit research and development laboratory focused on the design, development, and deployment of advanced technological solutions for our nation’s most challenging and important problems in security, space exploration, healthcare, and energy. They have a staff of about 1400 and have been developing the Z-man project.

Draper technology digest 2010 (page 95) - Development and Demonstration of ZMAN Microspine and Magnetic Climbing Hardware

The microspines and magnetic switching concepts that enable strong reversible adhesion using van der Waals forces or by hooking into surface asperities. The materials and concepts were scaled up into a novel climbing aid optimized for efficient human climbing without the need for ropes or ladders. The demonstration proved the technical feasibility of an unloaded soldier to climb vertical walls of multiple surfaces constructed of typical building materials. This has never been done before and significantly outperformed the current state-of-the-art.

I made a prediction in 2006 - Gecko mimicing wallcrawling suits for military and enthusiasts 2008-2012

2010 achievements were-
- Demonstrated a fully loaded soldier (300 lb) wearing reattachable pads (magnets and microspines) scaling a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials using Z-MAN technology.
- Demonstrated an unloaded soldier (150 lb) using reattachable pads (gecko nanoadhesives) to scale a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials.
- 2011 transition the nanoadhesives, magnetics and microspines prototypes to the services.

Seems to fulfill the Gecko mimicing wallcrawling suits for military by 2010-2011.
See how far it gets to enthusiasts in by Dec 2012.

Daniel Harjes developed an innovative approach to use magnetic switching with negligible external energy, and in May, 2010 the team successfully demonstrated the integrated technologies and impressed DARPA, which led to the Phase III contract.

DARPA's 2012 plans are to integrate nanoparticle enabled space propulsion technology and Z-MAN adhesion technologies for operationally relevant space applications such as orbital debris cleanup, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR). [pages 11 and 12 out of 40 pages of DARPA budget.]

Title: Reconfigurable Structures
Description: In the Reconfigurable Structures thrust, new combinations of advanced materials, devices, and structural architectures are being developed to allow military platforms to move, morph, or change shape for optimal adaptation to changing mission requirements and unpredictable environments. This includes the demonstration of new materials and devices that will enable the military to function more effectively in the urban theater of operations. For example, a key focus is to formulate a more principled, scientific basis for robotic ground mobility and manipulation, and to develop and demonstrate from that basis innovative robot design tools, fabrication methods, and control methodologies.

FY 2010 Accomplishments: ($7 million)
- Performed laboratory testing of engineered soft material robot operations and optimized design.
- Performed laboratory demonstrations of robot function.
- Developed engineering model for soft robots, and designed prototype robots for selected applications.
- Demonstrated a fully loaded soldier (300 lb) wearing reattachable pads (magnets and microspines) scaling a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials using Z-MAN technology.
- Demonstrated an unloaded soldier (150 lb) using reattachable pads (gecko nanoadhesives) to scale a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials.

FY 2011 Plans: ($20 million)
- Perform laboratory demonstration of prototype soft material robots and refine designs.
- Perform simulated field testing of prototype robots.
- Finalize robot designs for field use.
- Demonstrate a fully loaded soldier (300 lb) using reattachable pads (gecko nanoadhesives) to scale a series of 25-foot walls built from mission-relevant materials.
- Transition Z-MAN prototype technologies (magnets and microspines) to the Services.
- Demonstrate components of new design tools for accelerating high quality design of robots by non-experts.
- Demonstrate proof of concept prototypes of new fabrication methods for producing robots at low cost.
- Demonstrate components of new control algorithms able to improve the mobility and manipulation performance of robots.
- Demonstrate in simulation proof of concept robots with higher mobility and manipulation performance than currently available.
- Demonstrate proof of concept components for increasing robot mobility and manipulation performance.

FY 2012 Plans: ($21 million)
- Perform field testing of prototype robots for transition to end user.
- Refine final robot designs based on field test results.
- Identify potential end users and transition to end users.
- Integrate and demonstrate components of new design tools for accelerating high quality design of robots by non-experts.
- Brass board new fabrication methods for producing robots at low cost.
- Demonstrate new control algorithms able to significantly improve mobility performance.
- Demonstrate new control algorithms able to significantly improve manipulation performance.
- Demonstrate of proof of concept robot prototypes with higher mobility.
- Integrate and demonstrate proof of concept robot prototypes with higher manipulation performance.

 

[a_majoor]

Drawing ambient energy for small sensors and other devices will have interesting applications in urban ops and low intensity conflict scenarios. High intensity conflict will probably involve the deliberate destruction of the electrical grid and most of the emitters mentioned here, which limits this technology:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/07/ambient-electromagnetic-energy.html

Ambient Electromagnetic Energy Harnessed for Small Electronic Devices

Georgia Tech - Researchers have discovered a way to capture and harness energy transmitted by such sources as radio and television transmitters, cell phone networks and satellite communications systems. By scavenging this ambient energy from the air around us, the technique could provide a new way to power networks of wireless sensors, microprocessors and communications chips.


"There is a large amount of electromagnetic energy all around us, but nobody has been able to tap into it," said Manos Tentzeris, a professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering who is leading the research. "We are using an ultra-wideband antenna that lets us exploit a variety of signals in different frequency ranges, giving us greatly increased power-gathering capability."

Tentzeris and his team are using inkjet printers to combine sensors, antennas and energy-scavenging capabilities on paper or flexible polymers. The resulting self-powered wireless sensors could be used for chemical, biological, heat and stress sensing for defense and industry; radio-frequency identification (RFID) tagging for manufacturing and shipping, and monitoring tasks in many fields including communications and power usage.

A presentation on this energy-scavenging technology was scheduled for delivery July 6 at the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Symposium in Spokane, Wash. The discovery is based on research supported by multiple sponsors, including the National Science Foundation, the Federal Highway Administration and Japan's New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).

Communications devices transmit energy in many different frequency ranges, or bands. The team's scavenging devices can capture this energy, convert it from AC to DC, and then store it in capacitors and batteries. The scavenging technology can take advantage presently of frequencies from FM radio to radar, a range spanning 100 megahertz (MHz) to 15 gigahertz (GHz) or higher.

Scavenging experiments utilizing TV bands have already yielded power amounting to hundreds of microwatts, and multi-band systems are expected to generate one milliwatt or more. That amount of power is enough to operate many small electronic devices, including a variety of sensors and microprocessors.

And by combining energy-scavenging technology with super-capacitors and cycled operation, the Georgia Tech team expects to power devices requiring above 50 milliwatts. In this approach, energy builds up in a battery-like super-capacitor and is utilized when the required power level is reached.

The researchers have already successfully operated a temperature sensor using electromagnetic energy captured from a television station that was half a kilometer distant. They are preparing another demonstration in which a microprocessor-based microcontroller would be activated simply by holding it in the air.

Exploiting a range of electromagnetic bands increases the dependability of energy-scavenging devices, explained Tentzeris, who is also a faculty researcher in the Georgia Electronic Design Center (GEDC) at Georgia Tech. If one frequency range fades temporarily due to usage variations, the system can still exploit other frequencies.

The scavenging device could be used by itself or in tandem with other generating technologies. For example, scavenged energy could assist a solar element to charge a battery during the day. At night, when solar cells don't provide power, scavenged energy would continue to increase the battery charge or would prevent discharging.

Utilizing ambient electromagnetic energy could also provide a form of system backup. If a battery or a solar-collector/battery package failed completely, scavenged energy could allow the system to transmit a wireless distress signal while also potentially maintaining critical functionalities.

The researchers are utilizing inkjet technology to print these energy-scavenging devices on paper or flexible paper-like polymers -- a technique they already using to produce sensors and antennas. The result would be paper-based wireless sensors that are self-powered, low-cost and able to function independently almost anywhere.

To print electrical components and circuits, the Georgia Tech researchers use a standard-materials inkjet printer. However, they add what Tentzeris calls "a unique in-house recipe" containing silver nanoparticles and/or other nanoparticles in an emulsion. This approach enables the team to print not only RF components and circuits, but also novel sensing devices based on such nanomaterials as carbon nanotubes.

"We can now print circuits that are capable of functioning at up to 15 GHz -- 60 GHz if we print on a polymer," Vyas said. "So we have seen a frequency operation improvement of two orders of magnitude."

The researchers believe that self-powered, wireless paper-based sensors will soon be widely available at very low cost. The resulting proliferation of autonomous, inexpensive sensors could be used for applications that include:

• Airport security: Airports have both multiple security concerns and vast amounts of available ambient energy from radar and communications sources. These dual factors make them a natural environment for large numbers of wireless sensors capable of detecting potential threats such as explosives or smuggled nuclear material.

• Energy savings: Self-powered wireless sensing devices placed throughout a home could provide continuous monitoring of temperature and humidity conditions, leading to highly significant savings on heating and air-conditioning costs. And unlike many of today’s sensing devices, environmentally friendly paper-based sensors would degrade quickly in landfills.

• Structural integrity: Paper or polymer-based sensors could be placed throughout various types of structures to monitor stress. Self-powered sensors on buildings, bridges or aircraft could quietly watch for problems, perhaps for many years, and then transmit a signal when they detected an unusual condition.

• Food and perishable-material storage and quality monitoring: Inexpensive sensors on foods could scan for chemicals that indicate spoilage and send out an early warning if they encountered problems.

• Wearable bio-monitoring devices: This emerging wireless technology could become widely used for autonomous observation of patient medical issues.

 

[Antoine]

The following is a bit of a specialized paper, but for chemist in the CF, you might find it interesting.

PM me if you don't have access to the article but you would like to read it.

Review
Destruction and Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents, Chem. Rev., Article ASAP, (Web): June 13, 2011

pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/cr100193y

 

[a_majoor]

British engineers "print" an airplane. This is interesting for small/medium UAV's today, but engineers ar Airbus hope to use this sort of technology to build full sized aircraft parts and eventually airplanes. Imagine being able to "print" heavy transports and equipment when you need to do a surge...

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-07/uk-engineers-print-and-fly-worlds-first-working-3-d-printed-aircraft

UK Engineers Print and Fly the World's First Working 3-D Printed Aircraft
By Clay Dillow Posted 07.28.2011 at 12:44 pm 17 Comments

SULSA University of Southampton

Engineers at the University of Southampton in the UK have designed, printed, and sent skyward the world’s first aircraft manufactured almost entirely via 3-D printing technology. The UAV--dubbed SULSA (Southampton University Laser Sintered Aircraft)--is powered by an electric motor that is pretty much the only part of the aircraft not created via additive manufacturing methods.

It’s no slouch of a UAV either. SULSA boasts a 6.5-foot wingspan, a top speed of about 100 miles per hour, and is nearly silent while cruising. Created on an EOS EOSINT P730 nylon laser sintering machine, its wings, hatches, control surfaces--basically everything that makes up its structure and aerodynamic controls--was custom printed to snap together. It requires no fasteners and no tools to assemble.

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Tags
Technology, Clay Dillow, 3-D printing, aviation, rapid prototyping, uavs, unmanned aerial vehicles

This, of course, is the dream of aircraft makers big and small. Building something as large as a Boeing 787 for instance requires a lot of machining, a lot of custom tooling, and above all a lot of waste. Additive manufacturing (that’s a fancy way of saying 3-D printing) builds components layer by layer, allowing designers to create parts with virtually no waste. It also lets them tweak designs on the fly and go from CAD drawing to prototype extremely quickly (which is why it’s also referred to as “rapid prototyping”).

Moreover, it allows aircraft engineers tap design tricks that are known to be more efficient and effective but are also expensive and wasteful to create in practice--like the elliptical wings on SULSA. So perhaps it’s no surprise that elsewhere in the UK a team of Airbus engineers is working on printing an entire aircraft wing--that is, a real jetliner aircraft wing, the kind that would carry people--with the ultimate goal of printing out most of the important components of an entire passenger aircraft.

 

[a_majoor]

A very strange and out of the box way to generate electrical energy. This currently has a very low energy conversion efficiency, but note that it is still twice that of Lithium Ion batteries (the current gold standard), which would solve some pretty pressing logistical and weight issues for us:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2011/07/more-efficient-sun-free-photovoltaics.html

More Efficient Sun-free photovoltaics

Using new nanofabrication techniques, MIT researchers made these samples of tungsten with billions of regularly spaced, uniform nanoscale holes on their surfaces. In their TVP system, this type of photonic crystal serves as a thermal emitter, absorbing heat and then—because of its surface structure—radiating to the PV diode only those wavelengths that the diode can convert into electricity. The inset shows a digital photo of the full 1 cm-diameter sample, illuminated by white light. The color suggests the diffraction of white light into green as a result of the surface pattern.

A new photovoltaic energy-conversion system developed at MIT can be powered solely by heat, generating electricity with no sunlight at all. While the principle involved is not new, a novel way of engineering the surface of a material to convert heat into precisely tuned wavelengths of light — selected to match the wavelengths that photovoltaic cells can best convert to electricity — makes the new system much more efficient than previous versions.

    They used a slab of tungsten, engineering billions of tiny pits on its surface. When the slab heats up, it generates bright light with an altered emission spectrum because each pit acts as a resonator, capable of giving off radiation at only certain wavelengths.

In this novel MIT design, input heat from an energy source raises the temperature of the tungsten photonic crystal, which transmits radiative heat at selected wavelengths to the PV diode. A second photonic crystal—mounted on the face of the PV diode—lets through heat at wave- lengths that the diode can convert into electricity and reflects the rest back to the tungsten photonic crystal, where it is reabsorbed and reemitted. Electricity from the PV diode passes to an electronic circuit that adjusts its voltage to match the external device being powered.

Prototypes of their micro-TPV power generator are "pretty exciting," says Celanovic. The devices achieve a fuel-to-electricity conversion efficiency of about 3%—a ratio that may not sound impressive, but at that efficiency their energy output is three times greater than that of a lithium ion battery of the same size and weight. The TPV power generator can thus run three times longer without recharging, and then recharging is instantaneous: just snap in a new cartridge of butane. With further work on packaging and system design, Celanovic is confident that they can triple their current energy density. "At that point, our TPV generator could power your smart phone for a whole week without being recharged," he says.

This diagram demonstrates how manipulating the nanostructure of the tungsten photonic crystal can affect the spectrum of the light it emits. (Emittance is an indicator of radiation efficiency.) In this example, the three colored spectra come from heated tungsten samples that contain nanoscale holes of differing diameters, depths, and spacing. Those differing geometries dramatically change the dominant wavelengths in the emitted light. The spectrum drawn in black is from a sample of tungsten with a smooth surface

    The key to this fine-tuned light emission, described in the journal Physical Review A, lies in a material with billions of nanoscale pits etched on its surface. When the material absorbs heat — whether from the sun, a hydrocarbon fuel, a decaying radioisotope or any other source — the pitted surface radiates energy primarily at these carefully chosen wavelengths.

    Based on that technology, MIT researchers have made a button-sized power generator fueled by butane that can run three times longer than a lithium-ion battery of the same weight; the device can then be recharged instantly, just by snapping in a tiny cartridge of fresh fuel. Another device, powered by a radioisotope that steadily produces heat from radioactive decay, could generate electricity for 30 years without refueling or servicing — an ideal source of electricity for spacecraft headed on long missions away from the sun.

    Half a century ago, researchers developed thermophotovoltaics (TPV), which couple a PV cell with any source of heat: A burning hydrocarbon, for example, heats up a material called the thermal emitter, which radiates heat and light onto the PV diode, generating electricity. The thermal emitter's radiation includes far more infrared wavelengths than occur in the solar spectrum, and "low band-gap" PV materials invented less than a decade ago can absorb more of that infrared radiation than standard silicon PVs can. But much of the heat is still wasted, so efficiencies remain relatively low.

    The solution, Celanovic says, is to design a thermal emitter that radiates only the wavelengths that the PV diode can absorb and convert into electricity, while suppressing other wavelengths. "But how do we find a material that has this magical property of emitting only at the wavelengths that we want?" asks Marin Soljačić, professor of physics and ISN researcher. The answer: Make a photonic crystal by taking a sample of material and create some nanoscale features on its surface — say, a regularly repeating pattern of holes or ridges — so light propagates through the sample in a dramatically different way.

    "By choosing how we design the nanostructure, we can create materials that have novel optical properties," Soljačić says. "This gives us the ability to control and manipulate the behavior of light."

 

[a_majoor]

A rather amazing development. Who says we can't have connectivity?

http://www.fastcompany.com/1774515/lifenet-a-simple-communications-system-that-works-when-cell-phones-internet-are-down

A Wireless Communications System That Works When Cell Phones, Internet Are Down
BY Ariel SchwartzThu Aug 18, 2011
LifeNet lets computers and phones talk to each other without an Internet connection, which could come in handy after disasters that knock out communication networks.

One of the first things to disappear in the wake of a major disaster is reliable communication. Without access to cell phone service or the Internet, it's difficult for first responders--or anyone who wants to help out--to speak with each other. And while satellite phones work in these situations, they're too expensive for many first responder organizations to purchase en masse. Now researchers from Georgia Tech College of Computing claim to have developed a cheap, easy solution: LifeNet, a piece of software that allows people to communicate after disasters, even if landlines, cell phone networks, and the Internet are all down.

"It's just a piece of code that you can have on your laptop or phone. Once you have the software, the computers can communicate with each other, and you don't need infrastructure," says Santosh Vempala, the Georgia Tech computer science professor in charge of the project.

Any device that has LifeNet installed acts as both a host and router for the network--meaning the software can route data both to and from any other LifeNet-enabled device. You can read more technical details here.

A group of people using the software can all communicate with each other (texting is the easiest way), but if even one person on the network has access to the Internet, everyone else can access it, too--though the connection probably wouldnt be strong enough to do any powerful surfing, like stream video. And if one user has a satellite phone, the whole network can use its services.

There's just one catch: Users have to be within range of each other. Outdoors, this could mean up to a kilometer. Indoors, users may have to be as close as a few hundred yards. But as Vempala notes, "you could have a line of people on this network that are spaced 100 yards apart, and the line could go as long as you want."

Hrushikesh Mehendale, one of Vempala's former graduate students, plans to bring LifeNet to market. The software will be free, he says, but users will have to pay for specific applications (i.e text messaging). Still, the cost will be cheap compared to satellite phones, which cost up to $600 a pop and charge 50 cents per text.

Vempala and Mehendale have already tested LifeNet with the FAA, which found that it was able to run all of its operations on top of the network. The researchers also recently partnered with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in India, which will help deploy the service in communications-poor areas that have been hit hard by recent cyclones.

And the software isn't just useful in disaster situations. It could also be used in any region that lacks a reliable communications infrastructure. "The next thing is to get real users. We plan to find critical scenarios where we identify real need," says Mehendale.