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Cool Tools: MetraSCAN BLACK2 -- Next-gen shop-floor 3D inspection

You'll gain some superhero powers when you brandish FARO CREAFORM's new MetraSCAN BLACK2, a next-gen portable metrology-grade optical 3D scanner engineered to deliver total inspection flexibility on the shop floor. This unit boasts a 3-in-1 architecture that combines C-Track scanning, stand-alone scanning, and probing in a single metrology-grade system.
Read the full article.

Compact, touchless position sensors: Wear-free operation in tight spaces

Novotechnik's TFD-4000 Series of touchless linear position sensors delivers wear-free measurement in tight spaces. Featuring ranges up to 50 mm, IP67 protection, 12-bit resolution, and analog outputs, these reliable sensors operate from -40 C to 125 C across diverse industrial, mobile, and medical applications such as short-stroke linear valve positioning, solenoid valves, off-highway brake actuation, and more.
Learn more.

World's first 10-m safety laser scanner: See farther, protect more

Datasensing, Datalogic's Sensor & Safety and Machine Vision business unit, has launched the SLS10 Safety Laser Scanner, the world's first 10-meter safety laser scanner. Delivering a 275-degree scanning angle, 240-m² of coverage, and an 84-msec response time, the SLS10 protects larger workspaces with fewer devices. It features best-in-class angular resolution for precise AGV navigation, SIL-2/PLd compliance, dust immunity, and the new ONEGUI platform for simplified configuration.
Learn more and see it in action.

Accelerate AI-driven machine vision systems

BitFlow has announced full production of its Claxon CXP-12 frame grabbers, designed for NVIDIA GPU-accelerated machine vision. Across five models, the CoaXPress 2.0 lineup delivers up to 50 Gbps -- five times 10 GigE Vision -- eliminating data bottlenecks. The full CXP-12 specification ensures deterministic, high-bandwidth streaming to unleash modern AI inference models.
Learn more.

Millimeter-wave imaging inspection in real time

With its new quality and inspection R&S IMAGER millimeter-wave scanner, Rohde & Schwarz aims to simplify the industrial inspection of packaged products. The system sees through common packaging materials at production speed without using X-rays, protecting both products and operators. The high-contrast 3D images are used as digital twins and can be automatically integrated into AI-powered fault-detection systems. Sees through plastics, cardboard, and composites. Applications include food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, logistics.
Learn more.

What are single-loop process controllers?

PLCs are powerful, but complex control isn't always necessary. For standalone processes requiring single-variable monitoring -- like temperature, pressure, or flow -- a single-loop controller is ideal. See how single-loop controllers can streamline your next project.
Read the AutomationDirect tech tip.

Great Resources: Flexible circuit design guide

Tech-Etch uses advanced techniques to manufacture flex and rigid-flex circuits to exacting customer specs. Special processes include selective plating a single circuit with two different finishes, contoured circuits with variable metal thickness, semi-additive and subtractive techniques, open window or cantilevered contact leads, plus SMT for component assembly. Tech-Etch specializes in flexible circuits for medical, telecommunications, aerospace, semiconductor, and other high-reliability electronic applications.
Learn about flex circuits and get the guide (no registration required).

EMI Investigations: New immunity development system

Saelig Company announces the Langer E1 Immunity Development System for EMI investigations. This compact, affordable kit simulates burst and ESD interference to pinpoint layout weak spots down to IC pins. By eliminating "black box" guesswork early in development, engineers can efficiently identify coupling mechanisms, test measures, and resolve immunity issues before compliance failure.
Learn more and see it in action.

Battery packs for unmanned aerial vehicles

Re:Build Manufacturing has launched U.S.-assembled, NDAA-compliant lithium-ion battery packs for commercial, public safety, and defense UAV applications. Available in Core, Power, and Performance series, the packs use non-FEOC cells and are produced at Re:Build's advanced facility in New Kensington, PA. Re:Build also offers custom pack and battery management system development.
Learn more.

Easy-to-use precision measurement system

Optical Gaging Products has announced the StarLite S1, a compact, semi-automatic 3-axis video measurement system. It combines fully automatic video measurements with manual stage motion and features an IntelliCentric-S optical system for high-resolution images. Powered by Measure-X software, this system delivers fast, repeatable, high-accuracy results, making it ideal for both shop-floor and quality-control applications.
Learn more.

Why a soccer kick bends the ball path: SOLIDWORKS simulation

With SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation, you can virtually test a ball's flight path and see the science behind its amazing trajectory. Visualize anything you want to test, including the physics that make a ball curve and dip, to optimize performance and reduce physical testing. See the SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation study setup and learn about the Magnus effect where a spinning object moving through a fluid curves away from its straight path. [Credit: Screenshot courtesy of SOLIDWORKS]
View the video.

Lightning-fast in-line verification, high-performance barcode reading

The Omron VHV5 Barcode Reader now combines high-performance barcode reading and calibrated ISO verification in one device. Replacing offline sample checks, it delivers 100% inline verification at production speeds up to 1,200 parts per minute. With flexible lighting, the VHV5 easily inspects labels and Direct Part Marks, even on challenging curved or irregular surfaces.
Learn more.

How to choose the right industrial Ethernet switch

Antaira Technologies breaks down 10 mission-critical capabilities separating industrial-grade switches from commercial compromises. Even if you aren't in IT engineering, you will find valuable networking knowledge in this guide to protect vital infrastructure.
Read the full article.

New CAM software cuts robotic machining deployment

At Automate (Booth #4476), RoboDK will showcase RoboDK CAM, which generates robotic machining programs directly from CAD files. Designed for easy deployment, it cuts setup time by up to 40%. Live demonstrations will show users how to create collision-free robot motion straight from CAD data, eliminating manual line-by-line coding.
Learn more about RoboDK CAM.

AI Tools You Can Use: What is OpenClaw? How do I get it and use it?

OpenClaw is trending big time right now, but what is it? The YouTubers over at Create a Pro Website run through the basics of what you need to know and how to implement it. Basically, OpenClaw is a next-gen 24/7 AI assistant that lives on your computer and can perform actions for you. You talk to it through a chat app. You can set it up to do real work such as alert you to important emails, answer emails for you, manage your calendar and travel, and so much more. There is a great intro video here and also a longer, very thorough step-by-step video to setting up OpenClaw.
View the OpenClaw intro video.
View the OpenClaw setup video.

Researchers overcome open-air atmospheric distortions when sending laser data

A world-first experiment shows information encoded in a beam of light can survive real-world atmospheric turbulence.

Researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg, South Africa, and the University of Bordeaux in France have demonstrated a new way of sending information through the atmosphere without having to correct for the distortions that normally disrupt optical communication.

In a world-first experiment conducted across the Wits West Campus, the researchers showed that information encoded in a special property of light known as topology remains intact even when the laser beam carrying it is strongly distorted by atmospheric turbulence.

Wits researchers use light's topology to beat atmospheric distortion. [Credit: Image courtesy of Wits University]

 

 

The findings, published in Science Advances, could help pave the way for more reliable long-distance optical communication, including links to satellites and spacecraft and, potentially, improved connectivity in remote and underserved areas.

Information that survives distortion
Modern communication systems use different properties of light, including color, intensity, and polarization, to carry information. Fiber-optic cables protect these signals from many outside disturbances, but sending light through open air is more difficult.

Changes in air temperature and pressure create atmospheric turbulence, which can distort a laser beam as it travels. This can damage the information it carries.

The Wits-led research takes a different approach by encoding information in topology -- a mathematical idea describing properties that remain unchanged even when an object is stretched or deformed.

"To explain its benefits, we can liken it to how a coffee mug can be reshaped into the form of a doughnut," says Prof. Andrew Forbes, head of the Structured Light Lab in the Wits School of Physics. "Despite their very different shapes, both have a single hole. You can stretch or distort them without changing that fundamental property. In the same way, the light beam can become badly distorted while its topological information remains unchanged."

The researchers used an optical structure known as a skyrmion to encode this information into laser beams.

They then transmitted the beams between two buildings on the Wits campus over a distance of hundreds of meters, exposing them to naturally occurring atmospheric turbulence.

Although the shape of the light arriving at the receiver was significantly different from the transmitted beam, the information contained in its topology remained intact.

"Small laboratory experiments have previously suggested that topology could provide a robust way of carrying information," says lead author Cade Peters. "This is the first time we have demonstrated that robustness across a real-world optical link and under naturally occurring atmospheric conditions."

No need to correct the beam
Conventional free-space optical communication systems often need to measure atmospheric distortion and then compensate for it using specialized hardware and complex calculations.

The new approach does not require the distortion to be measured or corrected before the information can be recovered.

This could make future systems simpler and reduce the technical and computing demands involved in transmitting information through difficult environments.

"The ability to encode and transmit information using light has transformed the way the world communicates," says Prof. Mitchel Cox of the Optical Communications Laboratory in the Wits School of Electrical and Information Engineering. "As our demand for data continues to grow, we need new ways to increase the capacity, reliability, and performance of communication systems. This work shows that topology is a largely untapped resource that could contribute to the next generation of optical communications."

The researchers also explored applications for both conventional and quantum communication, where maintaining the integrity of information is particularly important.

For South Africa, Peters says the research could eventually have wider social benefits.

"South Africa still faces major challenges in providing reliable access to information and communication technologies, particularly in remote and underserved communities," he says. "By developing new approaches to long-range optical communication, we hope this work can contribute to the broader effort to bridge the digital divide."

Source: Wits University

Published September 2026

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