Ann Thryft has written for EDN, RTC Magazine, COTS Journal, NIkkei Electronics Asia, EE Times, Computer Design, and Electronic Buyers' News. She introduced readers to several emerging trends: early mobile phone architectures, set-top box system design, open network server and switch/router architectures, software-defined radio, and RFID. At EBN Ann won two independently judged Editorial Excellence awards for Best Technology Feature. Currently, she is a Contributing Technical Editor for Test & Measurement World, and assists in researching and writing reports for In-Stat. She holds a BA in Cultural Anthropology from Stanford University and a Certified Business Communicator certificate from the Business Marketing Association (formerly B/PAA).
The cloud and edge computing have come to the industrial world and they’re here to stay. Whether one thinks that’s a good or bad thing, it’s now inevitable. These shifts have been accelerated by the enormous expansion in remote workers due to Covid-19 and their many unmanaged or insecurely managed devices, along with the connection of millions…
Editor’s note: The IoT and the industrial IoT (IIoT) provide the capability for all stakeholders in the electronics supply chain to seamlessly connect and share critical data. Visibility from the moment a component begins production through its end-of-life is possible through these leading-edge applications. But there are also real dangers to the networks that link supply…
BOULDER CREEK, Calif. — We are seeing a number of attacks both on industrial control systems (ICS) and on the operational technology (OT) side of the industrial IoT (IIoT) with increasing frequency. Why is the IIoT so vulnerable to cyberattacks? We talked to ICS and OT specialists at major cybersecurity solutions providers, as well as…
Major changes are happening in the world of 3D printing and additive manufacturing (AM), in the three key technology areas of materials, machines, and software. But if the industry — and the design engineers and OEMs it serves — are to grow, all three of those areas must become much more tightly integrated. As patents…
HP's industry-changing announcement of its Multi Jet Fusion 3D printing technology for commercial-scale end-production got the lion's share of attention at this week's RAPID 2016 show. But that wasn't the only news of note. Other companies made some game-changing software and hardware announcements as well, all of them aimed at making it easier to print…
With an eye toward building space-qualified radio-frequency (RF) components for Earth observation and science instruments, the European Space Agency (ESA) has 3D printed a satellite antenna designed as a single part. The antenna is now being tested in the agency's Compact Antenna Test Facility, located at ESA’s ESTEC technical center in the Netherlands. The prototype…
What are humanoid robots? Design News editors have written several articles on this subject, but there's more than one kind. Most of them sort into two general categories. The first are obviously mechanical objects shaped like people, such as the contestants in DARPA’s Robotics Challenge, or the earlier Terminator models before SkyNet wised up and…
There are new materials for use with 3D printers, and then there are new materials that can only be made using 3D printing (3DP) techniques. In this slideshow, we'll show you some of both. Most of them are ones you can buy now, or very soon. We'll also tell you about some that have just…
MIT's MultiFab 3D printer can print 10 different materials at once, has an open-platform design, and can be built for under $7,000. Sound impossible? It's not. Can you buy that printer now? Not yet. But you can start building one yourself: the new open-platform machine from a team at MIT uses off-the-shelf hardware and they…
Think you can design 3D-printed deep space buildings that will sustain human life? Think your design can win out over zillions of entries? You've got until July 15 next month to submit your registration package to 3D printing (3DP) public/private institute America Makes for its NASA-sponsored 3D Printed Habitat Challenge. “From Waste to Space” is…