By Suresh Patel, Sales Engineer, Mer-Mar Electronics Cloud manufacturing is an AI-based, advanced manufacturing approach that streamlines different production processes, integrates stand-alone functions, and automates all manual tasks through remote-hosted software. It is also known as digital manufacturing or Manufacturing as a Service (MaaS). This model aims at continual improvement of the manufacturing process with […]
FAQ
What are submersible sensors?
The International Electrotechnical Commission’s (IEC’s) standard IEC 60529 (and International Organization for Standardization’s ISO 20653) identifies the ability of an electronic device (sensor) to withstand water or dust intrusion with IP68, IP69 and IP69K ratings. An IP68 product should prevent or withstand water ingression for a depth exceeding 1 meter as specified by the manufacturer […]
When should passive or active RFID be used?
The main difference between passive and active radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags is the absence (passive) or presence (active) of an internal power source. Because of these primary differences, there are several secondary differences. Understanding these differences is the key to properly selecting the most appropriate RFID system for a specific application. Passive RFID Since they […]
How can sensors protect a diamond center vault?
In Belgium’s’ Antwerp Diamond District, eighty percent of the world’s rough diamonds passed through a three-square-block area. The Diamond Squad, the world’s only specialized diamond police, provided 24-hour police surveillance and 63 video cameras monitored the district. In this area, the Antwerp Diamond Center vault was thought to be impenetrable. In addition to having a […]
How scanning electron microscopy is helping researchers develop better lithium-ion batteries
By Pamela Mansfield, JEOL USA As the market for renewable energy sources and electric vehicles grows, the need for reliable, high-capacity energy storage is increasing too. Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) fit the bill in many ways, but plenty of challenges remain ahead, such as understanding their microstructure. This article describes how scanning electron microscopy (SEM) can…
RFID upgrade pushes “ancient” pneumatic-tube system into the 21st century: Part 2
Adding simple RFID tags to hospitals’ widely used pneumatic-tube systems has dramatically improved performance without needing a system rebuild. Wireless solves the problem — and does more Modern electronic technology has reinvigorated the pneumatic tube system to do more and do better without requiring more tube pathways. This can apply to upgrading an existing installed […]
RFID upgrade pushes “ancient” pneumatic-tube system into the 21st century: Part 1
The addition of simple RFID tags to hospitals’ widely used pneumatic tube system has dramatically improved performance without needing a system rebuild. Although email and the web have greatly diminished the need for physical mail in many situations, it’s important to remember that there are many real-world scenarios where a tangible, physical object must be […]
Need a really long-life battery or heat? Try a radioisotope thermal source – problem solved! – Part 5
Power-generation and heating units using radioactive decay as their primary energy source have been successfully used in space and on Earth for over 60 years. RHU principles and technology are similar in many ways to those of the RTG, but with important differences in objective and implementation. Q: We’ve looked at the use of radioactive […]
Need a really long-life battery or heat? Try a radioisotope thermal source – problem solved! – Part 4
Power-generation and heating units using radioactive decay as their primary energy source have been successfully used in space and on Earth for over 60 years. Q: How much power does a single Pu-238 RTG core generate? A: The newest thermoelectric converters using PbTe/TAGS-based thermocouples can produce between 100 and 125 Watts of electrical energy from […]
Need a really long-life battery or heat? Try a radioisotope thermal source – problem solved! – Part 3
Power-generation and heating units using radioactive decay as their primary energy source have been successfully used in space and on Earth for over 60 years. This part looks at RTG operation in detail. Q: What’s this about radioactive decay and heat? A: Heat is generated when the natural or man-made unstable isotopes of elements undergo […]