Topic: General News

Researchers at Minnesota's Mayo Clinic have developed a technique that uses low frequency sound to vibrate internal organs and when used with a Magnetic Resonance Imaging scanner (MRI) can be used to determine the elasticity or stiffness of internal organs, which is an indicator that something is wrong.

This new technique, called magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), was commercialised by GE Healthcare. They released their new device called MR-Touch, which is the first commercial application of MRE technology, which the company has licensed from the Mayo Clinic.

To read more about this story visit the Scientific American web site.

Researchers at Cornell University have developed a portable high intensity ultrasound system. They have built a small battery powered demonstration device.

For more information, read their journal article, "Development of a portable therapeutic and high intensity ultrasound system for military, medical, and research use"

Federal Mogul have developed an acoustic liner that is made from recycled materials including cardboard, carpet fibres, and other fabrics. The first application will be the 2010 Buick LaCrosse luxury sedan.

For more information, read the press release on the Federal Mogul web site.

A conference is currently underway on the topic of Energy Harvesting from sources such as vibration, wind, sun and others.

The Energy Harvesting Journal has a good commentary on the conference with extracts from experts in the field.

Raytheon has won a $US19m contract from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop a vehicle mounted land mine detection system that uses a laser radar vibration sensor.

For more information read the news release on the Raytheon web site.

Researchers have found using Functional MRI scans that the brain function is altered in patients with Hand-Vibration syndrome compared with a control group. The results were presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. 18-20 September 18-20, 2008. Chicago, USA.

Read the full article on the Orthosupersite.

A federal appeals court in the USA (9th Circuit Court of Appeals) has rejected the Bush administration request to exempt the US Navy training activities using active sonar from environmental laws. This decision follows from a lower court that set conditions in an effort to protect whales and dolphins from the active sonar.

Read more on the LA times web site.

Sony have released a new type of headphone that has a separate bass 'duct', a tube that is inserted into the ear canal, and external speakers for the mid- and high- frequencies. The PFR-V1 headphones will be available for retail sale in the US in April. The reason for doing this is to provide a more natural sound rather than the 'in the head' sound from most headphones. Images of the headphones can be viewed on Sony's Japan web site.

Mitsui Engineering has developed a water tank with multiple actuators that can form a standing wave pattern in the shape of letters.

For the Mitsui press release see here (In Japanese), and for their brochure see here.

A company called AADcontrol have a 'new' technology to reduce the vibration of towers on 1MW turbines, called 'Active Aerodynamic Damping'.

Perpetuum, a UK based company have released a product for energy 'harvesting' from vibrating machinery. The PMG7 generator outputs at much as 5 mW at 3.3V from a vibration level of 100 mg.

Another company RLW has used this principle in a wireless vibration condition-monitoring product.

Bruel and Kjaer have released a new instrument called the Human Vibration Analyzer Type 4447.

Bruel and Kjaer, MSC (Material Sciences Corporation), and Link Engineering have built a new testing facility in Canton, Michigan, USA for design and testing of Noise Vibration Harshness issues related to automotive and communications equipment.

Perpetuum have released a device to convert vibration into electricity. The device is capable of generating 5mW of power, which is usually sufficient for powering many wireless transmitters.

See the news release for more information.

Mathematicians at Vanderbilt University have created a mathematical model of the cochlea and use the model to show that the spiral shape acts to enhance the low frequency sounds. The researchers led by Daphne Manoussaki and her colleagues, Richard Chadwick and Emilios Dimitriadis of the National Institutes of Health, published their findings in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Ling Electronics, which make vibration shakers, have been bought by QualMark.

Read the press release on the QualMark web site.

A recently published article in the Annals of Neurology (Volume 59, Issue 1, Pages 4 - 12), by Attila Priplata et. al., shows that vibrating insoles can improve the balance for people suffering from the effects of a stroke or diabetic neuropathy.

Eskom, a South African power company, is planning to build a science and technology center in Kwazulu-Natal, in conjunction with the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The proposed center will consist of a vibration research and testing centre (VRTC), a high voltage laboratory, and a museum.

Avon Automotive have released an active vibration isolator for engines. The isolator will be used on the latest Jaguar XJ6 TDVi.

For more information, read Avon's Vibramount brochure.

XFX Gear have released a headset for gamers that incorporates a mini-shaker that is powered by the USB port.

For more details see the XFX Web Site.

Sunfire have made a large sub-woofer for mounting in a wall that incorporates an integrated vibration cancellation device that reduces the vibration transmission to the walls in which it is mounted. The ContraBass™ In-Wall Subwoofer has a suggested price of $2,995 each.