Power Play

POWER PLAY | 2023-04-06

Academic Accuracy

It’s called the d2, a small, lightweight, nanoliter microplate dispenser—say that five times fast— used in lab automation to handle a variety of liquids. Created by UK Robotics, the liquid handler was launched in 2022 to shakeup the possibilities of moving liquids around the lab on a budget.

POWER PLAY | 2023-03-21

Metaphor: An Object in Motion

POWER PLAY | 2023-02-08

Traveling in a Sea of Marvels

In this classic science fiction tale, the protagonist has his futuristic electricity-powered submarine almost destroyed by a giant squid. What if Capt. Nemo created a mechanical “octopus” Kraken that he could pilot to attack and defeat his actual, biological nemesis?

POWER PLAY | 2022-12-02

Wind of Change

Wind-turbine drivetrains undergo severe transient loading during start-ups, shut-downs, emergency stops, and during grid connections. Load cases that result in torque reversals may be particularly damaging to bearings, as rollers may be skidding during the sudden relocation of the loaded zone. Seals and lubrication systems must work reliably over a wide temperature variation to prevent the ingress of dirt and moisture and perform effectively at all rotational speeds in the gearbox. Many wind-turbine gearboxes have also suffered from fundamental design issues such as ineffective interference fits that result in unintended motion and wear, ineffectiveness of internal lubrication paths and problems with sealing. Improving the resistance of future gearbox designs to all these issues is a key to the future cost of energy generated by wind turbines.

POWER PLAY | 2022-10-05

Production May Vary

It can’t be easy starting a new car company let alone bringing back an old one that ended almost as soon as it began. The original DeLorean Motor Company (DMC) headed by John DeLorean went spectacularly bankrupt in 1982 due to issues of quality among other things. Yet DeLorean once said, “It’s inevitable that the company come back,” and despite many attempts by various parties to revive the company over the years, DMC is now back to the future of automobiles deep in the heart of Texas.

POWER PLAY | 2022-09-13

Kraftwerk and Man as Industrial Palace

POWER PLAY | 2022-04-13

‘Shakr’ Not Stirred

Toni has mastered the art of mixing cocktails — swirling high-proof liquor through the air and elegantly swinging the shaker. Unlike most bartenders, Toni is mounted on the counter and boasts two mechanical arms (KUKA KR Agilus robots). This fully automated robotic bartender — from Italian company Makr Shakr— serves fresh drinks via an app.

POWER PLAY | 2022-03-10

FADE IN: INT. FACTORY - DAY

Maybe it's time to look at science, technology, engineering, and mathematics stories over more superhero films featuring Batman and Spiderman

POWER PLAY | 2022-02-01

Motorizing a Hand-Cranked Street Organ

Ron Walters became interested in handcranked street organs when he saw one playing in a video. He summed up his reaction with: "How cool is that."

POWER PLAY | 2021-12-01

Destination Dubai

Nidec provides control system for the largest observation wheel in the world

POWER PLAY | 2021-10-01

Adapting Aerodynamics

Northwestern University Introduces Smallest Human-Made Flying Structure

POWER PLAY | 2021-09-01

The Toys That Make Engineering Noise: Part 2

Who doesn't love LEGO? While no parent enjoys stepping on them in the living room, I'd rather have my kids building a castle, a tower or a giant LEGO wind mill then watch their faces glued to their cell phones for hours on end.

POWER PLAY | 2021-08-01

Honoring the Past, Present, and Future

Velocipede Time Machine Celebrates 'The Nation of Inventors' at Hagley Museum

POWER PLAY | 2021-06-01

History-Making Micromotors on Mars!

Helicopter Makes Maiden Voyage Across the Red Planet with Help from Maxon

POWER PLAY | 2021-04-01

Where We're Going, We Don't Need Roads!

Why not flying cars? We talk on video screens. We disappear into virtual 3D worlds thanks to Virtual Reality (VR). We have robots working in restaurants. Flying cars are pretty much the last thing from The Jetsons cartoon missing in 2021.

POWER PLAY | 2021-03-01

An Inside Look at Bell's EDAT System

Bell's Electrically Distributed Anti-Torque (EDAT) is Bell's latest commercial innovation. The EDAT system is composed of four small fans within a tail rotor shroud in an offset two-by-two pattern.

POWER PLAY | 2021-02-01

Highly Sophisticated War Machines are Tilling New Battleground

A common if not somewhat cynical reference to our nation's array of military capabilities is thinking of it as a "toy box."

POWER PLAY | 2020-12-01

Time to Turn the Page

Let's all say good-bye to 2020.

POWER PLAY | 2020-10-01

Mechanical Wonders of All Sizes

The industrial arts of mechanical engineering are all around us and seen in many forms and technologies. Of greatest interest is how these wonders are designed, constructed and used. From the smallest home appliance to the behemoths used for outsize building and excavation projects.

POWER PLAY | 2020-09-01

Motors in Space

Components like motors, bearings and drives are subject to harsh environments on Earth, but they must be at the top of their game to enjoy space travel. Recent applications from Maxon Motors (Return to Mars) and the University of Michigan (Robotic Legs) illustrate the incredible requirements it takes to handle applications in space and how these components can be utilized here on Earth.

POWER PLAY | 2020-08-01

Electric Bikes - Wired for Fun

There is absolutely no doubt that riding an electric bicycle will not stir up cinematic memories of Marlon Brando (The Wild One) or Steve McQueen (The Great Escape) tearing it up on their hogs. Think more Pee Wee Herman and his Great Adventure.

POWER PLAY | 2020-06-01

3x3 Puzzle Cubes with Gears

Looking at a Gear Cube XXL, you can't help but think about a Rubik's Cube. Both are 3x3 puzzle cubes with brightly colored pieces. Moreover, both are sold commercially as toys.

POWER PLAY | 2020-04-01

A Classic Computer Cameo

Siemens products and technologies seem to pop up in the strangest of places.

POWER PLAY | 2020-03-01

The Coolest Cylinder in Michigan

You might not expect a humble cylinder to garner more attention than a luxury boat or a giant, shiny stage prop, and yet thatâ??s just what happened in Michigan's latest contest celebrating local manufacturersâ?? contributions.

POWER PLAY | 2020-02-01

Schaeffler Goes Big in Bearing Applications

One of the largest components manufactured by Schaeffler last year was a double-row tapered roller bearing featuring an outer diameter measuring 3.6 meters and a weight just over nine tons.

POWER PLAY | 2019-12-01

Vesconite Bushings Assist Record-Breaking Steam Train

Andries Keyser built his first steam locomotive at the age of 19 and completed the project five-years later. It was named after his mother, Doreen and is based on a Beira Railways Lawley design from way back in 1895.

POWER PLAY | 2019-10-01

Geography Quiz

How well do you know your public gear art? Match wits with the Power Play travel team by trying to identify the locations of these awesome works of public art. Answers at the bottom of the page!

POWER PLAY | 2019-09-01

Picking and Placing with Flexible Fingers

They're like real fingers, able to pick up hard stuff, a spark plug or a metal pipe connector, and pick up soft stuff without breaking or smushing it: an egg, a loaf of bread, a donut.

POWER PLAY | 2019-08-01

Renewable Building Blocks

LEGO & Vestas Collaborate on Sustainability Project.

POWER PLAY | 2019-06-01

Cars with Jet Engines

In the late 1940s, the U.S. auto industry started an exciting experiment and spent decades on it. One result came in '63, when the Turbine was introduced by Chrysler Corp., now a part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA). In appearance, the two-door, four-passenger car looked like a regular car, but it wasn't. Under its sleek shell, the car had a jet engine.

POWER PLAY | 2019-04-01

Hands-Free Driving in the 1950s

Yes, the headline is correct: Autonomous vehicles are not a new idea. In fact, in the 1950s, handsfree driving so interested General Motors engineers that they designed a concept car for it. And in 1956, at its own auto show, the GM Motorama, the automaker unveiled the car, the Firebird II.

POWER PLAY | 2019-03-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the March 2019 issue of Power Transmission Engineering.

POWER PLAY | 2019-03-01

No Regrets Over Lost Opportunity

It was recently announced that the planet Mars has at least one thing in common with planet Earth: all good things come to an end. In this case, the good thing is the recently announced and documented (Feb. 12) demise of the Mars rover Opportunity.

POWER PLAY | 2019-02-01

Ask Pneuman

Escape Rooms have been popular in recent years for their challenging game play, group participation and unique time constraints. Teams have X amount of time (typically 60 minutes) to solve puzzles, ponder riddles and dissect clues in order to escape a variety of themed games. Here's an escape room with a fluid power twist.

POWER PLAY | 2018-12-01

Introducing the Ball Screw

The Swiss Army Knife of PT Components.

POWER PLAY | 2018-10-01

The World's Most Famous Mass Damper

Marvels of engineering have always drawn crowds. But when we think of tourist destinations, we think of old, opulent buildings like the Vatican or Versailles, massive, elaborately designed fountains, or skyscrapers.

POWER PLAY | 2018-09-01

Motor Insight: Anatomy of a Drone

The skies are full of them in 2018 - drones flying around amusement parks, job sites and even your own backyard. There are drone racing leagues on ESPN, drones capturing wide angle shots over film locations and government drones keeping a bird's eye view on the Mexican/America border.

POWER PLAY | 2018-08-01

About as Big as it Gets

The Overburden Conveyor Bridge F60.

POWER PLAY | 2018-06-01

The Final Puzzle Piece

The PCCP, one of the largest pumping station systems in the world, is finally fully operational, marking the completion of the last piece of New Orleans' countermeasures against another Hurricane Katrina.

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-04-25

The Long and Short of It

One of the problems with “tribal knowledge” is that the terminology can confuse those who are not fully immersed in that community. I have lost ...

POWER PLAY | 2018-04-01

It's a Jungle Out There

Harsh environments and saltwater properties tend to make it difficult for motors, gearboxes and engines to perform consistently at a high level.

POWER PLAY | 2018-03-01

Built for Speed

Japan's Electric Aspark Owl Does 0-to-60 MPH in 1.9 Seconds!

POWER PLAY | 2018-02-01

A Manufacturing Mix-Tape

I noticed it during my first assignment in a job shop. Maybe it was the gentle whir of a motor or the scratching sound of a grinding gear, but the factory floor boasted plenty of unique noises and sound effects.

POWER PLAY | 2017-12-01

History of a Forgotten Engine

In 2017, there's more variety to be found under the hood of a car than ever. Electric, hybrid and internal combustion engines all sit next to a range of transmission types, creating an ever-increasingly complex evolutionary web of technology choices for what we put into our automobiles. But every evolutionary tree has a few dead end branches that ended up never going anywhere.

POWER PLAY | 2017-09-01

The Hyperloop is Here - Sort of

It is unlikely the hyperloop will inspire Hollywood to start making films emulating the tried-but-true terror-on-a-train genre - a genre that includes many classics. But somehow titles like - Lady on a Hyperloop, Strangers on a Hyperloop, Murder on the Hyperloop Express, Throw Momma from the Hyperloop, The Great Hyperloop Robbery - just don't work. And you can forget about another venerable train travel tradition - the club car - given that you will probably reach your destination sooner than you can say "Jack on the rocks."

POWER PLAY | 2017-06-01

Al-Jazari - Mechanical Genius

The following is a very brief overview on the life, work and achievements of Al-Jazari - the most famous mechanical engineer of his time. Now well more than 1,000 years ago,

POWER PLAY | 2017-04-01

Battle Bots - Victorian Edition

Airships, gears, robots, steam power and buzzer-beating theatrics highlight the 2017 FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition known as FIRST Steamworks.

POWER PLAY | 2017-03-01

Your Robotic Chariot Awaits

Furrion is developing a mech in the hopes of launching racing into realms so far only explored by science fiction.

POWER PLAY | 2017-02-01

Now That Is Smart Manufacturing!

A machine called Sub1 Reloaded solved a Rubik's Cube in 637 thousandths of a second in Munich.

POWER PLAY | 2016-12-01

Bearing the Brunt of Earthquakes

America suffers $4.4 billion in losses due to earthquakes every year. While that's a drop in the bucket for our $16 trillion plus GDP, it's still a substantial amount of money, and some people are working to lessen those losses. One group is Earthquake Protection Systems (EPS), a company that is designing bearings to better protect buildings from earthquake damage.

POWER PLAY | 2016-10-01

Making Shakespeare Shine

New things are invented for theater lighting all the time and they’re usually big, expensive technology-driven devices. It’s the simple things that make you wonder, “Why didn’t I think of that?” according to Ken Billington, lighting designer. The RSC Lightlock is a great example of this.

POWER PLAY | 2016-09-01

Mind Sport

Here’s what we know about Tremont, Illinois: It’s a small village in Tazewell County, (population 2,400+), holds an annual summer turkey festival (quite popular) and the courthouse is a famous historic site where politician James Shields challenged an “up-and-coming” lawyer named Abraham Lincoln to a duel with cavalry broad swords (they showed up, but the duel never materialized). In 2016, you can add FIRST Robotics Competition World Champion to the village’s rather eccentric list of accomplishments.

POWER PLAY | 2016-08-01

Hertha Marks Ayrton

She was born Phoebe Sarah Marks April 28, 1854 in Portsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire, UK — the third child of a Polish-Jewish watchmaker named Levi Marks and Alice Theresa Moss, a seamstress. Her father died in 1861, leaving Sarah’s mother with seven children — and another on the way — and Sarah with shared responsibility for caring for the children.

POWER PLAY | 2016-06-01

The Stage Where It Happens

Although David Korins had an impressive resume of Broadway, film, television and music credits, the New York-based production designer had something to prove when interviewing for the pop culture phenomenon Hamilton. “I prepped for the interview like crazy, sketching out my ideas, presenting a scene breakdown, basically doing everything I could short of begging for the job,” Korins said. “Lin Manuel Miranda (the show’s creator and star) had developed an incredibly effective blueprint. I just wanted the opportunity to help tell his story.”

POWER PLAY | 2016-04-01

Automatic for the People

The world is full-on automated. From our factories to our vehicles to our leisurely activities, the future is now and it’s nothing but algorithms, robotics and hands-free operation. It comes as no surprise that a 2016 Google search brings a fair amount of technology gone awry. The following examples don’t scare us (they’re actually quite fascinating) but they probably should worry us a little bit…

POWER PLAY | 2016-03-01

Seeking Higher Ground

Even for a toddlin town famous for making “no small plans” — such as, for example, reversing in 1900 the Chicago River to secure clean drinking water, or rebuilding itself seemingly overnight after the devastating “Great Chicago Fire” (1871) — to physically — and successfully — elevate itself as much as 14 feet above its original ground level defies not only description but credulity.

POWER PLAY | 2016-02-01

Gyroscopes in Spaaaace!

Moving around in open space is a cautious endeavor. Without the luxury of gravity, the slightest push can send you twirling in circles or, worse, tumbling off into the unknown. Every motion must be thought out and deliberate, all the more so because our bodies take that luxury into account.

POWER PLAY | 2015-12-01

Hovercraft Technology Taking Us Back to the Future

There are few things in this world that elicit such a gleeful, childlike sense of wonder as does the word “hoverboard”.

POWER PLAY | 2015-10-01

Meet Mayhems Master

Power Play patrons may recall last month’s drop-in at the Museum of Unworkable Devices — a virtual and pretty damn funny (www.lhup.edu) “celebration of fascinating devices that don’t work.”

POWER PLAY | 2015-09-01

The Museum of Unworkable Devices

Albert Einstein, it is said, defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result.”

POWER PLAY | 2015-08-01

This Tattoo Machine is Off the Chain

Groan inducing, yes — but truer than the blue-soaked dermis layer of infamous ink fiend The Enigma (if you’re not familiar with the tattoo/sideshow icon, he’s basically an R-rated version of Papa Smurf who eats fire and twirls chainsaws). Though other altered individuals obviously operate on a much less extreme plane of body modification, there seems to be a definite link between the ink and the irregular.

POWER PLAY | 2015-06-01

Surviving the Robot Revolution

It had no arms or legs to speak of; no fleshy, meaty exterior or squishy insides; no heart, no brain, no soul. It was just a protracted steel body, long and spindly, a rectangular “head” at the end, and one glowing sensor. It wasn’t alive. It wasn’t sentient. It was a robot.

POWER PLAY | 2015-04-01

Whats In a Meme

Rosetta Mission mixes with Maxon, Kim K for one unforgettable photo

POWER PLAY | 2015-03-01

3-D PRINTING IS HERE!

Necessity is the Mother of Invention, goes the bromide, but this 3-D printing thing is taking manufacturing to an entirely different — yes — dimension.

POWER PLAY | 2015-02-01

The Science Fiction Addiction

It seems preposterous in the whimsical, wireless world of today, but in 1977 cinema’s greatest visioneers came together and decided the pinnacle of robotic technology in the future would be a motorized trash can.

POWER PLAY | 2014-12-01

The Model T Ford: One Mean Machine

Some of us are old enough to have had say, great-grandparents, for example, who when the occasion arose would casually refer to cars as “machines.” It sounded funny and arcane, and we would snicker under our breath. But of course the laugh was on us; back in the day — 1910s through the 1930s — automobiles were commonly referred to as machines.

POWER PLAY | 2014-10-01

Chariots to Steamboats to E-Fans

Heaven help Mr. Deane were he around today. In our non-stop world of transportation & transport technology, for at least the past decade it is without question the electric car that has drawn most of the attention

POWER PLAY | 2014-09-01

High-Tech Motors Evolving from PM Muck

University lab's motor eliminates pricey rare-earth magnets.

POWER PLAY | 2014-08-01

Solving the Longitude Challenge

300-Year-Old discovery remains vital to scientific research today.

POWER PLAY | 2014-06-01

Destination Mars!

NASA is building a flying saucer.

POWER PLAY | 2014-04-01

Gonzo Gear Design

Artist Tom Longtin adds completely non-circular planetary gears to his unique portfolio.

POWER PLAY | 2014-03-01

Kids Dont Have to Become President to Become Deciders

Finding picture books for kids old enough to appreciate them can be a daunting task. There are, of course, the usual suspects--celebs, athletes, boy bands, girl bands, and so on, but not much of substance. That's where David Janosz Jr. enters the picture.

POWER PLAY | 2014-02-01

Galactic Housekeeping

With the constant push for sustainable and environmentally friendly procedures on Earth, you'd think we’d apply the same rules high above it.

POWER PLAY | 2013-12-01

A Mechanical Melange of Art, Movement and Memory

A brief history of automata, featuring Henri Maillardet's automaton at the Franklin Institute.

POWER PLAY | 2013-10-01

Ready for Some Hyper Loop de Loop

High-speed transit system the dreamwork of ideators or idiots?

POWER PLAY | 2013-08-01

Seabees

For the Seabees, hazardous construction zones have always been part of the job.

POWER PLAY | 2013-06-01

You Go, Goldie Girl

New doll and toy set geared for inspiring young engineering misses -- not misters.

POWER PLAY | 2013-04-01

John Oldham: The Coupling Personified

A biographical sketch of John Oldham, inventor of the Oldham coupling.

POWER PLAY | 2013-02-01

Before There Were Bar Cars

The history of railroading is a saga of epic proportions: North meets South; Ocean meets Ocean. Track and trains and the locomotives that power them have long held Americans' fascination and fancy.

POWER PLAY | 2012-12-01

The More You Rock, the More You Rock and Roll!

The concept is simple enough. Take the traditional rocking chair, the one you’d find on a front porch or the corner of the living room, and give it a 2012 twist.

POWER PLAY | 2012-06-01

The Painful Birth of the DC Electric Motor

Defined in rudimentary terms, an electric motor is a device that uses electricity to create mechanical force. But in 1834, when our story takes place, most people would have trouble understanding the ramifications. That was the year that one of the earliest DC electric motors was invented—by a blacksmith.

POWER PLAY | 2012-04-01

The Show Must Go On

Nook Customized Components Fit Talk Show Set…By a Thread

POWER PLAY | 2012-02-01

Major Tom Meets Rocket Man

NASA launches Third Rock Radio.

POWER PLAY | 2011-12-01

Remembering Paul Winchell - A Man with Heart to Spare

Remember Paul Winchell? Sure you do - if you are a child of the ’50s. Who of that period does not recall ventriloquist dummies Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff?

POWER PLAY | 2011-10-01

Shape-Shifters at Cal Tech Work at Perfecting Metallic Glass

There are no alchemists at the California Institute of Technology, but a team of research scientists at the Pasadena-based institution is doing some pretty remarkable things "transforming something common into something special."

POWER PLAY | 2011-08-01

Meet Paro, the Robotic Baby Seal

I robot. You robot. He robot. Robots are everywhere. For decades, they have been as prevalent on TV and in science fiction novels and movies as they are now on the world’s factory floors—and operation rooms. Fiction is now fact.

POWER PLAY | 2011-06-01

Carnage and Mayhem 101

What did you learn in school today? This typical parental inquiry is met with several responses but rarely followed with, “The complete and total annihilation of robotic machines in a no-holds-barred death match.”

POWER PLAY | 2011-04-01

When (Robotic) Animals Ruled the Earth...

Nowadays, you can find scientists and engineers creating micro-robotic creatures for a slew of fascinating research projects.

POWER PLAY | 2011-02-01

With These Shoes, Some Say Even White Men Can Jump

“Banned by the NBA!” the headline screams. What are we talking here - Steroids? Gambling? Methamphetamines? Black socks? No - we’re talking shoes.

POWER PLAY | 2010-12-01

Urban Mobility--Reinventing the Wheel

Suggesting a bicycle is environmentally friendly is stating the obvious. But the Copenhagen Wheel, unveiled at the 2009 COP15 United Nations Climate Conference, is taking green technology and cycling in a new direction.

POWER PLAY | 2010-10-01

Vive (American) La France

A look back at a turbine-powered fire engine that was years ahead of its time.

POWER PLAY | 2010-08-01

The Joys of Tinkering

Wheelie car competition helps develop future engineers.

POWER PLAY | 2010-06-01

The Ultimate Control

We all dream of being our own boss, but living that dream is a rare reality. Not so for employees at Isthmus Engineering and Manufacturing, an entirely worker-owned cooperative, where each member has a vote in every aspect of the business.

POWER PLAY | 2010-04-01

Service Without a Smile

Manufacturing employees have always kept their eyes on the robotic systems that continue to pop up in assembly lines and industrial workspaces. These metallic, low-maintenance robotic employees don’t waste time with smoke breaks or catching up on episodes of Lost. They tend to stick to the task at hand with little argument or attitude, giving human counterparts a bad name when they gripe about factory temperatures or lack of a decent dental plan.

POWER PLAY | 2010-02-01

Power Generating Play

Never has generating alternative sources of energy been so fun. All that excess energy children have bottled up now helps power lighting for remote African villages.

POWER PLAY | 2009-12-01

NuVinci Transmission a Work of Art

Leonardo DaVinci is credited with the idea first, as is the case with many engineering innovations; although, somewhere in China there may be a continuously variable transmission etched into an ancient cave dwelling.

POWER PLAY | 2009-10-01

Meet the Dustbot - A New Spin on Waste Management

Scientists have been hard at work creating a robotic system with the capabilities to sweep and collect garbage in urban environments. This real-world Wall-E is known as the DustBot, aimed at designing, developing, testing and demonstrating a system for improving the management of urban hygiene.

POWER PLAY | 2009-08-01

Now That Is Product Placement

ABB Robotics gets free advertising via summer blockbuster.

POWER PLAY | 2009-06-01

Power Transmission - Behind the Scenes

Building a mast that extends as high as a 12-story building with the capability to support a full-size 50 kg camera in potential high winds is no easy task.

POWER PLAY | 2009-02-01

Who Needs a Social Life When You Can Mine the Moon

Dust, soil broken rock and other related materials that blanket planetary surfaces—known as regolith—have great potential to contribute to space observation research, but the physical properties of lunar regolith are unique and very difficult to excavate from a technical perspective. A group of students at the Missouri University of Science and Technology, dubbed the Lunar Miners, decided to step up to the plate—that is, by entering the 2008 NASA Regolith Excavation Challenge.

POWER PLAY | 2008-12-01