MicroSupply

How much power does my connected device use? Does its sleep mode conform to the manufacturer's documentation? How long will the CR2032 battery last? If you're asking yourself these sorts of questions, here is a regulated power supply, dubbed MicroSupply, in the form of an Arduino shield, which measures very small currents. Thanks to a link with a PC application, you can see and log the power consumption of your device.

Long-term exposition of your body, or parts of it, to vibrations may result in injury. But how do you measure the risk? This project might help here. Although originally designed for measuring vibrations caused by hand-held power tools like drills and grinders in the user’s hand and arm, there are probably many other fields of application for it. All you need to do is place the sensor in the right spot.

How much, potentially harmful, vibration do you receive from power tools? Probably not much unless you dig roads full-time, but it is good to know.

This is a submission from Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH on the smart Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) BMI270 that scores with increased system battery life and an improved accelerometer. Optimized for wearable and hearable applications, the BMI270 is available at www.Rutronik24.com.

Imagine a world where smartphones, laptops, wearables and other electronic devices are powered without batteries... Too good to be true? Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have taken a step in that direction with a flexible circuit that can convert the energy from WiFi signals into electricity that can power electronics.

Yes, electrically conductive paint, non-toxic, water based, and water soluble. It might not be the best material to use for traditional circuits. But Electric Paint is perfect for creative work, in designs that work with low DC voltages at low currents and can tolerate some resistivity. It is perfect for creative workshops or for the classroom (no soldering required!). Two kits are available: the Touch Board Pro Kit and the Electric Paint Lamp Kit. Electric Paint is easy to use and makes a perfect gift.

Thinking of electronics in military applications, expensive systems made out of highly robust parts developed in ultra-secure laboratories in top-secret locations come to mind. Whatever you imagine, it will probably not be an Arduino-compatible board running a sketch created from a few buggy open-source libraries produced by a bunch of electronics enthusiasts in their spare time. And yet…

A research team led by faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York has developed an entirely textile-based, bacteria-powered biobattery that could one day be integrated into wearable electronics. The team, led by Binghamton University Electrical and Computer Engineering Assistant Professor Seokheun Choi, created an entirely textile-based biobattery that can produce maximum power similar to that produced by his previous paper-based microbial fuel cells. Additionally, these textile-based biobatteries exhibit stable electricity-generating capability when tested under repeated stretching and twisting cycles.

A new method for digital design and printing of stretchable, flexible electronics has been developed by a team of researchers from the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University. Hybrid 3D printing, as the scientists call this technique, uses additive manufacturing to integrate soft, conductive inks with a material substrate to create stretchable, wearable electronic devices.

A team of engineers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) have built the most flexible, fully-functional transistor in the world – and at the same time developed a fast, simple and cheap production process that can easily be scaled up to commercial levels. This new development can open the door to an increasingly 'connected' world…