Newcastle University

Hand that sees offers new hope to amputees

A new generation of prosthetic limbs which will allow the wearer to reach for objects automatically, without thinking - just like a real hand - are to be trialled for the first time.

Are your sensors spying on you?

Cyber experts have revealed the ease with which malicious websites, as well as installed apps, can spy on us using just the information from the motion sensors in our mobile phones.

Wearable for recovery of hand movement for stroke patients

Neuroscientists have developed a device, the size of a mobile phone, which delivers a series of small electrical shocks followed by an audible click to strengthen brain and spinal connections.

Smart bricks will transform how buildings work

Smart bricks capable of recycling wastewater and generating electricity from sunlight are being developed by a team of scientists.

Traction motors for electric vehicles change radically

There are about 200 companies making traction motors for electric vehicles, rather like the 200 making the lithium-ion batteries that increasingly power them.

Electric vehicle end game: self-powered, energy autonomous

The end-game with electric vehicles by land, water and air is for them to be self-powered. They will create all their electricity from ambient energy such as light, wind, waves and tide where necessary storing it until needed.

Ultra lightweight motors for electric drones and airliners

Newcastle University in the UK was chosen by Boeing to develop an ultra-lightweight electric motor for an upper atmosphere electric aircraft. These spidery fixed-wing aircraft can have the wingspan of a jumbo jet but the weight of a small car.

Electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

This article primarily investigates the hybrid and pure electric powertrains and electrics being used or considered for UAVs and the new missions made possible by electrification. UAVs survey military threats but also the melting ice caps and natural disasters. They can carry ordnance but also drop aid and locate disaster survivors and lost climbers and trekkers. Little wonder then that new electric UAVs are announced frequently these days.

Tracing paper boost for solar cells

A piece of transparent paper made from wood-based cellulose fibres is an unlikely addition to a solar cell that actually increases its efficiency.

The total market for electric UAVs will reach over $1bn by 2023

The total market value for electric unmanned aerial vehicles will reach over one Billion dollars by 2023 according to findings in the new IDTechEx report, "Electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) 2013-2023"

Liberty Electric Cars

Liberty Electric Cars, founded in 2007, is a privately held clean technology company which designs, engineers and manufactures, electric vehicle technologies, to serve growing demand for zero-emission transport solutions. The company turns over a $5 million dollar revenue and has operations in Coventry, Newton Abbot, Heathrow and Peterborough, in the UK.

Nissan to lead rapid charge network project

Nissan is leading a consortium which aims to establish a network of rapid chargers for electric vehicles running the full length and breadth of the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Synthetic antenna mimics plants' light harvesting abilities

Researchers have developed a dye-based molecule that mimics the light harvesting complex found in plants.

Wireless sensors and energy harvesters in harsh environments

Energy harvesters and wireless sensors are not always deployed under "a walk in the park" operating environments. If anything, the most interesting applications for these technologies tend to be in sectors where conditions are harsh or devices are inaccessible once deployed.

Highlights of Energy Harvesting & Storage Europe 2012 (Part Two)

Highlights of last week's IDTechEx conference, Energy Harvesting & Storage Europe in Berlin, part two.

Holistic approach to energy harvesting

The Holistic project joins up three different research fields, including energy harvesting and MEMS processing methods, low-power embedded computing systems, and electronic design automation.

Electric vehicle motors: a business in turmoil

In this article we share some of our research for the new IDTechEx report, Electric Motors for Electric Vehicles 2012-2022.

Electric vehicle motors: a business in turmoil

In this article we share some of our research for the new IDTechEx report, Electric Motors for Electric Vehicles 2012-2022.

Solar plane contract for Newcastle University

The Newcastle team has secured a major contract with the UK's QinetiQ to help create the US-based Boeing 'SolarEagle'.

Air-fuelled battery

Scientists have created a new battery fuelled by air - with the potential for 10 times the storage capacity of conventional cells. This step-change in capacity could pave the way for a new generation of electric cars, mobile phones and laptops.