Communications of the ACM
New Process Promises to Revolutionize Manufacturing of Products
University of Waterloo scientists have developed Multiple Memory Material Technology, a new manufacturing process that they say makes smart materials even smarter. "We have developed a technology that embeds several memories in a monolithic smart material," says Ibraheem Khan, a Waterloo research engineer working with Waterloo professor Norman Zhou. "In essence, a single material can be programmed to remember more shapes, making it smarter than previous technologies." The researchers say the technology will enable almost any memory material to be quickly and easily embedded with additional local memories.
One of the team's demonstrations of the technology involves a miniature robot whose limbs transform in response to increasing temperatures. View a video demonstration of the Multiple Memory Metal technology.
The researchers say the smart material process could revolutionize the manufacture of medical devices, microelectromechanical systems, printers, hard drives, automotive components, valves, and actuators.
From University of Waterloo
View Full Article
Abstracts Copyright © 2010 Information Inc., Bethesda, Maryland, USA 
No entries found