Today on Engineering Newswire, we’re searching the sea with robotic ocean gliders, unfolding an electric scooter in a single second, and shielding our eyes from blinding headlights.
Electric scooter unfolds in 1 sec.: Kleefer, a France based company specializing in light electric vehicles for the urban mobility market has partnered with Solvay Engineering Plastics to unveil its unfolding scooter.
The foldable scooter was specially designed for intermodal mobility in urban areas, and would be great for commuting. It has an electric driving range of about 12.5 miles at a speeds of up to 15.5 miles per hour.
The streamlined fairing parts of the scooter were made using the industry’s first glass-filled polyamide 6 powder for Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) from Solvay’s Sinterline Technyl range of materials.
Robots glide across the ocean: Caltech researchers are using robotic “ocean gliders” to conduct research along the coast of West Antarctica. These bullet-shaped gliders use a battery powered pump that changes their buoyancy. Fluid from the pump travels to a compartment inside the glider, allowing it to become less buoyant so it can sink. And when the fluid is pumped into an external bladder, it rises to the ocean surface.
The relatively small, 6 foot long gliders are very energy efficient, and are able to sample the ocean for longer periods of time than large ships can. Every few hours, the glider will surface and call the researchers via a mobile phone-like device located on its tail. This method allows scientists to have almost instantaneous access to the collected information.
Blinded by the lights: On Semiconductor introduced two new devices for use in vehicle lighting systems.
First up: The NCV78763 advanced smart power ballast and dual channel LED driver, which provides a highly efficient single-chip automotive lighting solution that is capable of driving two strings of LEDs up to 60 volts.
This device is optimized for front lighting applications, and can be employed in high beam, low beam, turn indicator, static cornering, fog and daytime running lights. For each individual LED channel there is an independent buck switch output, through which both the output current and voltage can be configured to meet specific application criteria.