“The most important qualification for any leader is not wanting to be leader.”
– Plato
1. Art and Engineering
English “best” smoothbores, Italian gear-driven cam V12s, Swiss perpetual calendar chronographs, Japanese folded steel blades… The fling between art and engineering is more timeless than Romeo and Juliet. Dr. Onome Scott-Emuakpor is a mechanical engineer who has shown that art and engineering are not mutually exclusive. He believes that by looking at all topics with an open mind, one can find art in any field.
2. Robot Retires To Do What It Loves
This is the story of Brian Brocken, who procured a retired ABB IRB6400 six-axis welding robot from a Eurorail factory in Austria and brought it back to life with some repairs and upgrades. He installed a USB drive and a spindle on the robot’s wrist with a 3D printed adapter and then used a serial port to stream coordinates to it, allowing it to function as a giant CNC router. The video shows the machine being delivered and used to carve foam blocks into complex shapes.
3. Projects for Standards in Measurement
Three working groups of the VDMA Measurement and Testing Technology Association are working to develop basic standards to promote communication and interoperability in measurement technology. The groups are focused on developing the OPC Companion Specifications for Geometric Measurement Systems, OPC UA Cutting Tools, and I++ DME protocols, making the digital integration of measurement systems into an Industry 4.0 environment easier and more efficient.
4. US Air Force Offers AM Experience for Students
The University of Oklahoma has received an $8.7 million congressional appropriation from the Air Force Research Laboratory in partnership with the Air Force Sustainment Center, the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex, and GE Additive for a comprehensive metal additive manufacturing research project that will test the design and fabrication of replacement parts that could meet the certification requirements for airworthiness by the U.S. Air Force.
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