PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: Combining collaborative robotics, AI

A "hassle-free" model to fabricate materials used in wearable sensors removes experimental barriers in design

Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: Combining collaborative robotics, AI
2024-06-04
(Press-News.org) College Park, Md. — Engineers at the University of Maryland (UMD) have developed a model that combines machine learning and collaborative robotics to overcome challenges in the design of materials used in wearable green tech.

Led by Po-Yen Chen, assistant professor in UMD's Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, the accelerated method to create aerogel materials used in wearable heating applications – published June 1 in the journal Nature Communications – could automate design processes for new materials.

Similar to water-based gels, but instead made using air, aerogels are lightweight and porous materials used in thermal insulation and wearable technologies, due to their mechanical strength and flexibility. But despite their seemingly simplistic nature, the aerogel assembly line is complex; researchers rely on time-intensive experiments and experience-based approaches to explore a vast design space and design the materials.

To overcome these challenges, the research team combined robotics, machine learning algorithms, and materials science expertise to enable the accelerated design of aerogels with programmable mechanical and electrical properties. Their prediction model is built to generate sustainable products with a 95 percent accuracy rate.

[VIDEO: Accelerating aerogels design via machine learning and collaborative robotics]

“Materials science engineers often struggle to adopt machine learning design due to the scarcity of high-quality experimental data. Our workflow, which combines robotics and machine learning, not only enhances data quality and collection rates, but also assists researchers in navigating the complex design space,” said Chen.

The team's strong and flexible aerogels were made using conductive titanium nanosheets, as well as naturally occurring components such as cellulose (an organic compound found in plant cells) and gelatin (a collagen-derived protein found in animal tissue and bones).

The team says their tool can also be expanded to meet other applications in aerogel design – such as green technologies used in oil spill cleanup, sustainable energy storage, and thermal energy products like insulating windows.

“The blending of these approaches is putting us at the frontier of materials design with tailorable complex properties. We foresee leveraging this new scaleup production platform to design aerogels with unique mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties for harsh working environments,” said Eleonora Tubaldi, an assistant professor in mechanical engineering and collaborator in the study.

Looking ahead, Chen’s group will conduct studies to understand the microstructures responsible for aerogel flexibility and strength properties. His work has been supported by a UMD Grand Challenges Team Project Grant for the programmable design of natural plastic substitutes, jointly awarded to UMD Mechanical Engineering Professor Teng Li.

###

The A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland serves as the catalyst for high-quality research, innovation, and learning, delivering on a promise that all graduates will leave ready to impact the "grand challenges" of the 21st century. 

Follow us online:
eng.umd.edu | Instagram | LinkedIn | X

END


[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: Combining collaborative robotics, AI Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: Combining collaborative robotics, AI 2

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Chasing down a cellular ‘short circuit’

Chasing down a cellular ‘short circuit’
2024-06-04
A group of researchers at University of California San Diego has identified the cause of a “short-circuit” in cellular pathways, a discovery that sheds new light on the genesis of a number of human diseases. The recent study, published in the journal Science Signaling, explores the biochemical mechanism that can interrupt the cellular communication chain — a disruptive interaction that Pradipta Ghosh, M.D., likens to a game-ending “buzzer.” Ghosh, a professor in the Departments of Medicine and Cellular and Molecular Medicine ...

When mothers and children talk about problems, environment matters

2024-06-04
URBANA, Ill. – Talking to their parents about daily stressors can help adolescents deal with their problems. This is particularly important during the transition to middle school, when youth often are faced with new peer and academic challenges. But does it matter where these conversations take place? That’s the topic of a new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “We were interested in the environmental settings for mother-youth conversations. Where do they typically happen, and what are the preferred locations? We wanted to get the perspectives of both the youth and their ...

How tumor stiffness alters immune cell behavior to escape destruction

How tumor stiffness alters immune cell behavior to escape destruction
2024-06-04
Immunotherapy is based on harnessing a person’s own immune system to attack cancer cells. However, patients with certain tumors do not respond to these therapies and it remains unclear why. “The full impact of anti-cancer immunotherapy has not been realized, especially for some solid tumors,” says Kevin Tharp, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Cancer Metabolism and Microenvironment Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys. Researchers presume that part of the reason why these therapies fail is due to tumor-associated fibrosis, the creation of a thick layer of fibrous collagen (like scar tissue) that acts as a barrier ...

Convergence and collaboration to achieve circularity

2024-06-04
The linear consumption model of raw material extraction, production, use, and disposal dominates the global economy, but it’s led to serious unintended global consequences: from resource use to pollution including negative impacts on environmental and human health that disproportionately affect the Global South.  In contrast, circular economy – a model where products and materials are by design kept in continual use – aims to decouple economic growth from resource consumption. While approaches ...

Wayne State University partners with Great Lakes Water Authority to help train water pipeline managers of the future

2024-06-04
DETROIT — The Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) has partnered with Wayne State University to develop its Workforce Development and Pipe Management Program, which will help recruit, teach and graduate the next generation of water pipeline managers. The two-year program will begin July 1, 2024, and will be supported by a contract totaling more than $480,000. The GLWA says that water utilities are experiencing significant employee recruitment, training and retention challenges. An additional concern is the availability of specialized technical training that addresses recent technological advances in the water sector. In response to these challenges, the Workforce Development and ...

NRG Oncology abstract considered “best of ASCO” for 2024 shows difference in outcomes for node-negative versus node-positive pancreatic cancer patients when adding chemoradiation to systemic therapy

2024-06-04
NRG Oncology recently reported the results  from the radiotherapy randomization, which was the second step of their NRG-RTOG 0848 clinical study comparing adjuvant chemotherapy with or without chemoradiation for patients with resected periampullary pancreatic adenocarcinoma. The trial data did not show that the addition of radiation and chemotherapy to adjuvant systemic therapy improved overall survival (OS) for all patients on the study, however, OS was improved among node-negative patients. OS was essentially the same between treatment arms for node positive patients. The trial data also showed that disease-free survival (DFS) was improved with ...

Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, Ph.D., receives high honor at European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, Ph.D., receives high honor at European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
2024-06-04
Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, PhD, Receives High Honor at European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology The Paul Ehrlich Award for Experimental Research recognizes scientists who have revolutionized the understanding of allergic diseases and immunological mechanisms. New York, NY (June 4, 2024) – The 2024 European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) Annual Congress selected Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, PhD, Waldman Chair of the Kimberly and  Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology, and Professor of Dermatology and Immunology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, as the recipient of the ...

An anti-inflammatory curbs spread of fungi causing serious blood infections

2024-06-04
A team of UC Davis Health researchers discovered that a common anti-inflammatory drug, mesalamine, can replace the work of good bacteria in fighting the nasty fungus Candida albicans in the gut. C. albicans, or candida, is known to cause yeast infections. In some cases, it develops into invasive candidiasis, a potentially fatal infection occurring mostly in patients with compromised immunity. The researchers found that this fungus can’t grow without an oxygen supply. Their study in mice showed that the drug can ...

Intracerebral hemorrhage stroke outcomes improve with early minimally invasive surgery evaluated in clinical trial

2024-06-04
INDIANAPOLIS – Patients with an intracerebral hemorrhage have better medical outcomes when surgeons perform an early minimally invasive removal of a hematoma compared to those receiving the standard of care, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Indiana University School of Medicine faculty clinicians Mitesh Shah, MD, Bradley Bohnstedt, MD, Regg Singh, MD and Jason Allen, MD, PhD are co-authors ...

UC San Diego Health first in region to provide novel therapy for melanoma

2024-06-04
UC San Diego Health is the first hospital system in the region to offer a new immunotherapy treatment for metastatic melanoma. The personalized cellular therapy derived from tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), is the first solid tumor therapy on the market approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).  “This one-time cellular immunotherapy is a powerful and robust tool to treat patients with advanced melanoma resistant to other approved therapies and who have limited treatment options,” said Gregory Daniels, MD, PhD, professor of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Oil spill still contaminating sensitive Mauritius mangroves three years on

Unmasking the voices of experience in healthcare studies

Pandemic raised food, housing insecurity in Oregon despite surge in spending

OU College of Medicine professor earns prestigious pancreatology award

Sub-Saharan Africa leads global HIV decline: Progress made but UNAIDS 2030 goals hang in balance, new IHME study finds

Popular diabetes and obesity drugs also protect kidneys, study shows

Stevens INI receives funding to expand research on the neural underpinnings of bipolar disorder

Protecting nature can safeguard cities from floods

NCSA receives honors in 2024 HPCwire Readers’ and Editors’ Choice Awards

Warning: Don’t miss Thanksgiving dinner, it’s more meaningful than you think

Expanding HPV vaccination to all adults aged 27-45 years unlikely to be cost-effective or efficient for HPV-related cancer prevention

Trauma care and mental health interventions training help family physicians prepare for times of war

Adapted nominal group technique effectively builds consensus on health care priorities for older adults

Single-visit first-trimester care with point-of-care ultrasound cuts emergency visits by 81% for non-miscarrying patients

Study reveals impact of trauma on health care professionals in Israel following 2023 terror attack

Primary care settings face barriers to screening for early detection of cognitive impairment

November/December Annals of Family Medicine Tip Sheet

Antibiotics initiated for suspected community-acquired pneumonia even when chest radiography results are negative

COVID-19 stay-at-home order increased reporting of food, housing, and other health-related social needs in Oregon

UW-led research links wildfire smoke exposure with increased dementia risk

Most U.S. adults surveyed trust store-bought turkey is free of contaminants, despite research finding fecal bacteria in ground turkey

New therapy from UI Health offers FDA-approved treatment option for brittle type 1 diabetes

Alzheimer's: A new strategy to prevent neurodegeneration

A clue to what lies beneath the bland surfaces of Uranus and Neptune

Researchers uncover what makes large numbers of “squishy” grains start flowing

Scientists uncover new mechanism in bacterial DNA enzyme opening pathways for antibiotic development

New study reveals the explosive secret of the squirting cucumber

Vanderbilt authors find evidence that the hunger hormone leptin can direct neural development in a leptin receptor–independent manner

To design better water filters, MIT engineers look to manta rays

Self-assembling proteins can be used for higher performance, more sustainable skincare products

[Press-News.org] Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: Combining collaborative robotics, AI
A "hassle-free" model to fabricate materials used in wearable sensors removes experimental barriers in design