Archive for Material
October 8, 2008 at 1:25 pm · Filed under JAXA, Tokyo University, Transportation, Space, Material
Japanese precision machinery manufacturer Castem has sent nine origami space shuttles to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) office in Houston, it was announced on October 7. If all goes as planned, the paper planes will conduct experimental flights from the space station to Earth early next year.
The 29-gram (1 oz) origami shuttles, which measure 38 centimeters (14 in) long and 22 centimeter (9 in) wide, are made from lightweight but durable sugar cane fiber paper that has been chemically treated to resist heat and water. Developed by JAXA and the University of Tokyo, the special paper has already been used to construct a miniature prototype shuttle, which was tested in a hypersonic wind tunnel in January. In that test, the prototype survived wind speeds of Mach 7 (8,600 kph/ 5,300 mph) and temperatures of around 200 degrees Celsius (nearly 400 degrees Fahrenheit).
If NASA approves, the Space Shuttle […]
Original post by Edo
August 13, 2008 at 1:42 pm · Filed under Tokyo University, Robot, Material, electronics, Nanotech, Wearable
In a technological advance that opens up new possibilities in the fields of robotics and wearable computing, researchers at the University of Tokyo have developed a stretchable, rubbery material that conducts electricity and can be incorporated into electronic devices.
The researchers — led by assistant professor Takao Someya of the University of Tokyo — were able to create elastic electronic circuits that could be stretched up to 1.7 times their original size without affecting performance, thanks to conductive wires made from a new carbon nanotube-polymer composite they developed.
In recent years, scientists have made advances in blending carbon nanotubes (good conductors of electricity) with polymers to make flexible conductive materials, but success has been limited because nanotubes tend to cluster together, causing the composite to harden when too many nanotubes are added. The University of Tokyo researchers were able to overcome this hurdle by mixing the nanotubes with […]
Original post by Edo
August 8, 2008 at 12:38 pm · Filed under Household, Material, Architecture, Kyushu
Styrofoam dome houses at Aso Farm Land (Photo by: Erika Snyder)
While styrofoam may be most commonly associated with disposable coffee cups, meat trays and packaging, prefab home manufacturer Japan Dome House Co., Ltd. uses it to construct easy-to-assemble modular kit homes.
Dubbed the “habitat for the 21st century,” the Dome House is an igloo-shaped structure built from snap-together wall sections made of 100% expanded polystyrene foam (styrofoam). It might seem like an odd choice of material for a house, but the company lists a number of advantages that styrofoam has over traditional materials. Unlike wood and metal structures, for example, the styrofoam Dome House does not rust, rot or attract termites. It is also highly resistant to earthquakes and typhoons. In addition, the walls, which are treated with a flame retardant, emit no toxic fumes in a fire.
Dome House interior
The styrofoam used in the Dome House’s 175-millimeter (7 in) […]
Original post by Edo
July 23, 2008 at 11:43 am · Filed under Material, Energy
A research team led by professor Tomiki Ikeda at the Tokyo Institute of Technology has developed what is being called the world’s first plastic motor powered solely and directly by light.
Unlike solar-powered motors that use photovoltaic cells to convert light to electric power (and which require wires and batteries to deliver and store the power), this first-of-a-kind motor converts light directly into mechanical energy, thanks to a belt made from a special elastomer whose molecular structure expands or contracts when illuminated, depending on the wavelength of light.
Ikeda began working on the light-activated motor in 2003, after discovering that a plastic compound containing azobenzene would contract when exposed to ultraviolet light and resume its original shape when exposed to visible light. Since then, in addition to working on improving the material’s shape-shifting properties, Ikeda’s team has been looking at ways to use the material in a motor that converts light […]
Original post by Edo
October 5, 2007 at 1:51 pm · Filed under food, Animal, Material
Mayu Yamamoto, a former researcher at the International Medical Center of Japan, has won this year’s Ig Nobel Chemistry Prize for developing a method for extracting vanillin — an ingredient in vanilla fragrance and flavoring — from cow dung.
Read the full post (230 words, 1 image)
Original post by Edo
August 13, 2007 at 2:59 pm · Filed under Tokyo University, Health, Simulacra, Material, Printing
Researchers from the Tissue Engineering Department at the University of Tokyo Hospital and venture company Next 21 are using 3D inkjet printers to produce tailor-made artificial bones for use in facial reconstructive surgery. Following initial trials performed on a Welsh corgi and 10 people over the past year and a half, the researchers are set to begin a more extensive second round of human testing this autumn.
To make an artificial bone with this technology, a 3D computer model of the bone is first created based on the patient’s X-ray and CT scan data. The computer model is then sliced into a large number of cross-sections and the data is sent to a special 3D inkjet printer, which works sort of like an ordinary inkjet printer by transferring tiny droplets of liquid onto a surface. However, unlike ordinary printers that print on paper, this one prints onto thin layers of […]
Original post by Edo
April 11, 2007 at 9:45 am · Filed under Imaging/Display, Material, RIKEN, Display, Nanotech
A team of researchers led by professor Hideo Hono of the Tokyo Institute of Technology has developed a new type of alumina cement that conducts electricity like metal by altering the crystal structure at the nano level.
Read the full post (238 words, 1 image)
Original post by Edo
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