News
sensor CoMpany CongraTulaTes nasa/Jpl for Mars rover suCCesses
FUTEK Advanced Sensor Technology has congratulated the NASA/JPL team on their extraordinary success in managing the Mars Exploration Rovers Oppor tunity and Spirit since their initial Mars landing in January 2004.
While FUTEK was not a par t of these early Rovers, the company
appreciates the extraordinary effor ts of the JPL team to keep these Rovers operating as viable exploration laboratories far beyond their designed mission time. These twin rovers that landed on different locations on Mars in 2004 have logged over 28 miles on the Mar tian surface and exceeded their design three-month expected lifetime by 15 years. The Spirit rover functioned until it fell into a sand trap on the back nine and lost communication in 2000. The Oppor tunity rover uncovered scientific evidence about ancient conditions on Mars that could have suppor ted life as well as other scientific discoveries until a planet-wide sandstorm in June 2018 deprived it of the solar energy is needed to charge its batteries and continue its mission. The mission was declared closed in February when all effor ts to reestablish communication were ended. FUTEK Advanced Sensor Technology’s sensors continues to be a vital
part of the Mars Exploration Rover Curiosity which continues explore the surface of Mars and send back extraordinary science from the surface of Mars. The Curiosity rover is five years into its mission and continues to outperform NASA’s original expectations. The two FUTEK sensors on the Curiosity rover have played an even more vital role than their original mission anticipated. When the rover’s original drill mechanism failed the JPL team found a way to configure the two FUTEK sensors to stabilize and control the drilling so the sample collection and analysis could resume. While FUTEK sensors are primarily known in the MedTech
industry for their integrated suppor t of robotic surgery platforms and medical tools and appliances, FUTEK’s highly sophisticated and cryogenic sensors have played essential roles in space exploration even beyond the Mars Rover Curiosity in such endeavors as the International Space Station and in various satellite programs.
www.futek.com 6
MTC Chief exeCuTive developing TeChnology parTnership beTween uK and india
Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) chief executive Dr Clive Hickman is spearheading a drive to establish a technology partnership with India. The far-reaching link-up aims to increase trade, investment, technology and skills transfers between the UK and the sub-continent. The initiative follows the launch of the UK-India Technology Partnership by
Prime Minister Theresa May and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year. A major leadership summit – the India-UK FutureTech Festival – was held in
New Delhi in December, bringing together manufacturing, engineering and technology chief executives and senior leaders as well as scientists, academics, investors and researchers, to explore collaboration between the two nations. Dr Hickman who, before he joined the MTC, was head of engineering for Tata
Motors in India, attended the event and met several key people including Prof Vijay Raghavan, the principal scientific advisor to the Indian government. Potential collaborations discussed included connecting Indian and UK
manufacturers and supply chains to bring economic benefits to both countries, sharing new digital manufacturing technologies and developing these with India’s world-class IT sector, giving UK companies access to India’s markets and production capabilities, sharing engineering expertise and developing and investing in joint research and development projects. Dr Hickman said the potential opportunities were enormous, with the UK and
India being among the world’s top manufacturing nations with a combined manufacturing output of around £750 billion. “The UK expertise in advanced manufacturing and its well-developed
innovation programmes alongside the scale and ambitions of India’s manufacturing sector present an opportunity for both countries. Greater collaboration – from joint research and development and the creation of new technologies to increased trade and investment – can deliver growth and increased productivity in the UK and India,” he said. He added, “The growth potential and appetite in India for advanced
manufacturing innovation and solutions is high in sectors such as automotive, aerospace, defence and pharmaceuticals. The UK’s expertise in advanced manufacturing and its innovation infrastructure can help to deliver the growth and productivity aspirations of both countries.” As a next step both countries are examining the possibility of
establishing Catapult-type centres like the MTC in India, bringing industry together with academia.
www.the-mtc.org March 2019 Instrumentation Monthly
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