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Welcome to the April 2009 Issue of the Electronix Express Newsletter
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The pilot program at the university will demonstrate new production techniques that allow traditional panels to catch more light from the blue end of the spectrum, the short wavelengths. The problem with many existing solar cells is that the shorter wavelengths of light are reflected back by a layer of phosphate ducting within the panel. The new technique allows the phosphate ducts to be better aligned, so more light can be absorbed without adding to production costs. It will also deploy new laser-cutting techniques that allow greater precision when cutting the edges of wafer-thin silicon and aligning it to the metal frames that conduct electricity from the panel to the battery. The work will be done at the university's new Solar Industrial Research Facility, which will focus on applying Australian research to commercial production.
According to Dr Richard Corkish, the head of the university's School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering, "There have been a lot of people looking at solutions to these problems around the world for a long time, but I think we've got it. This is something we've dreamed of for many, many years, and it's been a challenge putting it all together. But all the pieces seem to have fallen into place right now, and that's exciting." The plant is designed to demonstrate technology and enhance the skills of industry workers, but it will also produce functioning panels that could be fitted to the university's buildings. The new centre will be operational early next year.
While the flight isn't likely to snag the official world record spot it does mark a new milestone in solar energy research that could have long-lasting effects. The Zephyr is a 66-lb. aircraft that, unlike previous solar models, is launched by hand. Solar panels as thin as paper line its fittingly tiny wings. The plane itself is made of a carbon fiber material and uses lithium-sulfur batteries to hold the energy collected from the sun. The Zephyr can fly as high as 60,000 feet into the air. The plane is funded by the U.K. Ministry of Defense, with additional support from the U.S. Department of Defense. The recent three-and-a-half day flight actually took place at the Army's Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. QinetiQ wants to see the creation eventually be used for military communications and Earth observation.
Practically speaking, don't expect to board a solar-powered passenger flight any time soon. The true value of the experiment, scientists say, lies more in its demonstration of solar energy's potential. Mark Bernstein, managing director of the USC Energy Institute commented, "We're certainly not going to run airplanes on solar energy and get anywhere very fast. What it does for the industry overall is show what you can actually do with solar -- show that it is a viable energy source." Bernstein believes the technology could have a place within transportation, though it's more likely to be on the ground than in the sky. The industry, Bernstein said, is quickly growing within the energy field -- and we can expect to see plenty more applications as costs fall over the coming years. "Its best use is stationary applications for electricity generation. That's what we're going to see its major use for in the near term," he predicted.
Noel Sharkey, robotics expert and professor at the University of Sheffield, believes robots can serve as an educational aid in inspiring interest in science, but they can't replace humans. "It would be delusional to think that such robots could replace a human teacher," he said. "Leading scientists, engineers and mathematicians, almost without exception, talk about that one teacher who inspired them. A robot cannot be that kind of inspirational role model."
Kobayashi says Saya is just meant to help people and warns against getting hopes up too high for its possibilities. "The robot has no intelligence. It has no ability to learn. It has no identity," he said. "It is just a tool."
Perhaps more interesting about this particular robot, however, are the reactions with which it has been viewed since its demonstration. Some people called it creepy. Indeed, while the machine is very lifelike, many have found it disturbing at the same time. In fact, robotics researchers have a term for what causes that kind of reaction-- the uncanny valley. Kara observed, "What this robot represents, and why a lot of people get creeped out by it, is the uncanny valley, which is a term we use to describe robots or other animatronic devices that look really realistic but are off just a little bit. They're not quite there, and it's much more disturbing than if they simply looked machinelike."
For the CB2, it remains to be seen what kind of effect the device's uncanniness will have on its usefulness as a research tool.
Technological innovation has powered the rise and the economic domination of the West for two centuries. But the balance of power has begun to shift. The first reason for this shift is the diminished role of corporate laboratories that were the birthplace of many of the ideas of the 20th century like Bell Labs. The second reason is distributed development. In the drive to seek the best return on invested capital, many companies are moved to invest in talent away from the West. India, for example, graduates more than 100,000 English-speaking engineers each year, so Western companies find it particularly attractive as a destination for this work. On the other hand, first-world countries have declining populations and a lower percentage of students choosing technical careers.
A third reason is increased competition. Increased competition has pressured companies to speed products to market as never before. Because profits from new technologies are highest before the technologies become commoditized, if a new product has a four-year life and you are one year late to market, you may lose not one quarter but rather half of the potential profit from the product. Leaders in R and D, unable to hire enough qualified engineers in the West, turn to Asian resources to keep up with this faster pace of development. Time-to-market pressure continues to drive new product initiatives to leverage talent in India.
Rolls-Royce will embark this summer on sea trials of a half-megawatt (MW) turbine to harness power from the tide, which it has developed alongside a company called Tidal Generation Limited, and it plans to test a 1 MW version in about 18 months. It will develop the bigger turbine with other partners, including Garrad Hassan, the University of Edinburgh, EDF Energy, E.ON, Plymouth Marine Laboratories and the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC).
Rolls-Royce is spending about 5 percent of its R and D budget on clean energy technologies including tidal power and fuel cells. The proposed budget will include some $29.06 million that will be used to develop clean energy technologies using public and private sector cash. The initiative, led by the public-private partnership Energy Technologies Institute (ETI), would support four projects in wind and tidal power, with Rolls-Royce leading one of those. By 2020 there could be 300 MW tidal power deployed around the UK, or 100-200 devices.
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