Today on Engineering Newswire, we’re battling diabetes with temporary tattoos, testing out Ford’s all-new carbon-fiber super car, and floating a foam car.
Ford’s Carbon-Fiber Supercar
This week Ford has unveiled its all-new GT featuring the most powerful EcoBoost production engine ever – a new twin-turbocharged V6 that produces more than 600 horsepower. The engine will be paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch transaxle for quick gear changes and enhanced driver control.
The supercar also features rear-wheel drive, a deployable rear spoiler, SYNC 3 – the latest version of Ford’s advanced connectivity system, and an aerodynamic, two-door coupe body shell.
Foam Car Enters Pilot Production
Soft, Safe, Sexy. This is the motto of a three wheeled micro vehicle, the Spira4u, which is beginning pilot production in China for both electric- and gas-powered honeycomb-composite versions.
With one wheel in front and two in back, steering of the one seat vehicle is performed with two grips in the shape of an inverted V. The car’s polypropylene foam panels also give it a better shock absorption than other vehicles on the road today.
Temporary Tattoos Fight Diabetes
A new temporary tattoo from the nanoengineers at the University of California, San Diego extracts and measures the level of glucose in the fluid in between skin cells.
In this proof-of-concept, carefully patterned electrodes are printed on temporary tattoo paper. A mild electrical current is applied to the skin and forces sodium ions in the fluid between skin cells to migrate toward the tattoo’s electrodes. These ions carry glucose molecules that are also found in the fluid. A sensor built into the tattoo then measures the strength of the electrical charge to determine your overall glucose levels.
