Hockey
stick behavior is such a serious manipulation of the numbers that manufacturers
should have to report it in the footnotes of their public financials.
Industrial research and development programs are the seed corn of
product innovation. Unfortunately, one of the first cost-cutting measures some companies
take when faced with the challenge of a recessionary economy is slashing their R&D programs.
Engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL, Pasadena, CA) have created a system that uses water motion to generate a high-pressure liquid, which is then transported to shore and used to produce electricity on land. It eliminates all submerged electrical components, which are subject to corrosion.
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI, Troy, NY) have developed a new type of light emitting diode (LED) that features significantly improved lighting performance and energy efficiency. The polarization-matched LED exhibits an 18 percent increase in light output and a 22 percent increase in wall-plug efficiency.
A new type of solar cell is so thin and flexible that it can be mass-produced like paper currency. The printable cells offer a number of advantages over traditional solar panel technology. For instance, they are lightweight and easily transportable, making them attractive to a domestic market and also flexible like a banknote.
A new software program that simulates assembly paths has been developed by engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics (ITWM, Kaiserslautern, Germany). By using the software, components that only exist in the form of CAD data can be virtually installed in a new car model.
Nanotechnology may help aircraft manufacturers produce airframes that are lighter and stronger than ever. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT, Cambridge, MA) are reinforcing the plies used in advanced composites by stitching them with nanotubes.
Traditionally, using any material other than metal in the engine compartment was unthinkable. But, that old rule of thumb is changing as many automakers and suppliers use plastic to reduce vehicle weight.
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