Manufacturing

Researchers sing praises of parallel kinematic machines PKMs are not widely used in the aerospace industry, but a paper to be presented at the Nov. 10-12 SAE 2009 AeroTech Congress & Exhibition in Seattle features test results that show ABB's Tau PKM could deliver advantages over industrial robots, gantry robots, and contemporary PKMs. Read full story

Robots rule in applying F-35 stealth coat Lockheed Martin has implemented what it calls a unique robotic aircraft finishing system for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s stealth coating. A paper describing the hardware and software work that went into the system will be presented at the SAE 2009 AeroTech Congress & Exhibition Nov. 10-12 in Seattle. Read full story

Alcoa fastener a lightning-strike fighter The Alcoa fastener conforms to machine-induced micro texture inherent in fastener holes drilled in composite material, reducing the likelihood of electrical arcing in a lightning strike. A paper describing Alcoa’s solution, and the testing that led to it, will be presented at the SAE 2009 AeroTech Congress & Exhibition Nov. 10-12 in Seattle. Read full story

Longer range for new Omni-ID passive RFID tags Omni-ID has released a suite of new RFID products specifically designed for the manufacturing, transportation, and defense industries to track high-value assets. The 100-ft-plus read range Ultra tag uses 512-bit memory and 240-bit EPCglobal Class-1 Gen2-compliant silicon. Read full story