NextFab Studio Blog

Weekly Staff Picks June 3, 2012

Tiny Chip Inserted in the Sole of a Shoe Can Charge the Wearer’s Cell Phone   Say what?   Charge your cell phone as you walk?   It’s the future, indeed. - Christine

Paradoxical gears have a complex shape with multiple lobes that exert pressure on the lobes of meshing gears, allowing for some interesting behavior.   These gears are often called “paradoxical gears” due to the fact that in some configurations, all of the gears rotate in the same direction (it’s easier to see in the videos than to explain in words).   The original design is credited to a Renault engineer named Mercier (the gears were needed for the torque-limiting Mercier differential).   Perhaps the most impressive thing is that such complex shapes were designed before the advent of modern CAD/CAM, most likely through the solving of some very complex equations.   [Bonus link - print your own paradoxical gears!] - Alex

Progressive Cavity Pump   An interesting wikipedia article about a type of pump most people may not have heard of.   The design uses two fairly complex shapes, one which rotates eccentrically inside of the other one.   This particular design is useful for applications which require either a consistent flow rate, or liquids/slurries that require low levels of shear stress. - Alex

The Return of the Vacuum Tube   The New Vacuum Tubes. - Gregg

Colossal   A cathedral made of lights - Brandon