We love the way friction gives us traction on the road, good brakes, and allows us to walk without looking like a newborn Bambi. But there are also things we can’t stand about it—engines seizing up, stuck bolts, and old grandfather clocks never chiming again. We absolutely need friction (and sometimes we absolutely need less […]

Engineering Changes (ECs) are fulcrums: They’re powerful, and a small mistake one day can have incredible consequences for weeks, or even months, afterwards. When companies mature, they need systems to limit the impact of potential unintended consequences, but you’ll always hear engineers grumbling about the red tape required to make this “one tiny, obviously logical […]

As robotics technology becomes more advanced and more accessible, we’ve seen an increase in robotic companion products come to market, intended to simulate human interaction. Sphero’s latest product, Ultimate Lightning McQueen, displays the company’s engineering and design mastery of life-like robotics technology. Similar to the BB-8 Droid, this new product in partnership with Pixar is packed with […]

Like cavemen did thousands of years ago with fire, you might have just struck upon an incredibly revolutionary idea. As you coin down your concept and think of ways to make it as simple as possible, you’ll probably come across mechanical functions that require linear action. Energy can be converted into linear motion by an […]

As an entrepreneur, you’ve probably heard this many times: “Ideas are worthless until you get them out of your head and see what they can do.” Every big idea starts with a small first step and many leaps of faith to get it realized. However, you’ve probably also seen big Kickstarter projects get funded, only […]

According to our 2017 State of Hardware Report survey participants, the second most useful website in existence is YouTube. Not surprising—where else are you going to find a quick CAD tutorial, learn about manufacturing, and watch a blender shred a brand new iPhone? As such, we’ve compiled a list of YouTube videos that show how […]