Industry

Jonathan Naish created an award-winning virtual reality system to check radiation exposure levels in a nuclear fusion experiment. Image courtesy of Jonathan Naish

22 September 2016

Augmented reality could let us see radiation – SOFT Prize winner Jonathan Naish

Engineers at the Joint European Torus (JET) nuclear fusion experiment could be using augmented reality through Microsoft’s HoloLens technology to see where radiation hotspots are, according to Jonathan Naish, at the UK’s Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, who has developed an award-winning system to check exposure using virtual reality.

Solid-state cooling could make fridges more energy efficient while reducing their environmental footprint. Image credit: Flickr/ Jeff Wright

industry | environment | frontier research

21 September 2016

Fridges without the hum – alloys and salts offer liquid-free cooling

The familiar, or perhaps annoying, whirring of a refrigerator could soon be gone for good.

Natural oil and nanoparticles are making wood varnish an environmentally friendly product. Credit: Pixabay

industry | open innovation

19 July 2016

Algae and vegetable oils give wood a whole new shine

Biological alternatives to oil-based varnish are turning wood into one of the most sustainable building materials available.

Danny Dankner has developed brain-training software for ice hockey players to improve their performance. Image courtesy of Danny Dankner

health | industry | interview | open innovation

26 April 2016

Brain training to become as prevalent as physical training – IntelliGym developer Danny Dankner

Software that can enhance your cognitive abilities will become as prevalent as physical gyms are today, according to Danny Dankner, the chief executive of Applied Cognitive Engineering, developers of the IntelliGym sports brain-training software.

Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, presented the Women Innovators first prize to Dr Susana Sargento on 10 March. Image courtesy of the European Commission

ict | industry | policy | open innovation

11 March 2016

‘Internet of moving things’ wins EU’s Women Innovators prize

Dr Susana Sargento, co-founder of Portuguese company Veniam, which turns city vehicles into wifi hotspots, has won the EUR 100 000 first prize in the EU Prize for Women Innovators 2016, which was awarded at a ceremony in Brussels, Belgium, on 10 March.

Researchers are working to create customised robots that can be quickly set up and taught by demonstration. Image courtesy of the RECONCELL project

ict | industry

29 February 2016

Workshop robots controlled by touch

Think industrial robot and you imagine a production line of machines each dedicated to a specific task, but low-cost machines that can be taught by simply guiding their arms mean that automation is coming to the workshops and ateliers of Europe’s small-scale innovators.

Researchers are using lasers to manufacture more efficient industrial tools. Image courtesy of DIPLAT

industry

11 January 2016

Ultra-short pulse lasers increase precision of diamond sculpting

Engineers are using laser pulses that last 10 trillionths of a second and self-learning cooling systems to craft new diamond tools that are more durable and efficient than ever before.

Researchers believe a calendar sky disc from Bronze Age Germany has tin that came from Cornwall, UK. Image credit: ‘Nebra Scheibe’ by Dbachmann is licensed under Creative Commons BY 3.0

industry | social sciences

07 January 2016

Sophisticated scans unlock Bronze Age mystery

There’s a 5 000-year-old mystery to the Bronze Age – where did people then get the tin needed to forge and smelt the dark yellow metal that gives the period its name?

Researchers are developing an exoskeleton prototype that makes it easier to carry heavy loads. Image courtesy of Robo-Mate

health | industry

30 November 2015

March of the exoskeletons

Body-enhancing robotic exoskeletons will soon be stepping out of movies such as Alien, Avatar and Edge of Tomorrow and into homes, clinics and workplaces across Europe.