FLEET OF 3D-PRINTED AUTONOMOUS BOATS CAN SELF-ASSEMBLE & SUPPORT CITIES
Waterway-rich cities like Amsterdam and Venice may soon include autonomous boats in their canals to help clear up road congestion. Researchers from MIT have designed a fleet of autonomous boats that offer high maneuverability and control. These boats can be 3D-printed using low-cost materials, and could serve as models for future self-assembling, driver-less water taxis transporting people and goods from place to place. The boats could also be equipped with environmental sensors to monitor a city’s waters and gain insight into urban and human health.
SCALABLE MANUFACTURING PROCESS SPOOLS OUT STRIPS OF GRAPHENE
MIT engineers have developed a continuous manufacturing process that produces long strips of high-quality graphene. The custom-built, roll-to-roll chemical vapor deposition (CVD) system makes graphene on copper foil at 1,000°C. The results, published in ACS, are the first demonstration of an industrial, scalable method for manufacturing high-quality graphene that is tailored for use in membranes that filter a variety of molecules, including salts, proteins, or nanoparticles. These membranes should be useful for desalination, biological separation, and other applications.
A 3D PRINTING FIRST – PRINTING WEARABLE ELECTRONICS DIRECTLY ONTO MOVING HAND
In a groundbreaking demonstration, researchers at the University of Minnesota used a customized 3D printer to print electronics on a real hand for the first time. Their hybrid fabrication method combines 3D printing of electrical connects with automatic pick-and-placing of surface-mounted electronic components, yielding functional electronic devices on a free-moving human hand.
Tech Briefs spoke to Michael McAlpine, professor at the University of Minnesota, about the technology’s potential.