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Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Enginering in Jena, Germany, have developed a 3D imaging system that is pised to revolutionise the field of detal prsthesis.
Making dentures today is a multi step process. Dentist take impressions of the bite, make wax or stone material models from them, and test them in the patient's mouth for fit before sending them to the lab for the final cast. many dentures come back ill-fitting, requiring still more adjustments.
The 3D system, designe for the German detal technology company Hint Els, takes less time and improves accuracy. An optical scanner is inserted into the patient's mouth, where it takes a rapid sequence of pictures freom various angles every 200 milliseconds, recording the surface and shape of every tooth or gap. The dentist then inputs the images into 3D software, which conducts  pixel pricis comparison to map the patient's mouth. Technicians are then able to creat a dental prosthesis with a more exact fit.
Hint Els is currently working on commercial production of the optical scanner, called directscan, which could be available as soon as September. Better fitting dentures are on the way.

by : elfian

The most vulnerable part of any underwater robot is its propeller, which can be easily damaged on rocky terrain or get caught in submerged plant. The black ghost knifefish, a South American river species, has no such problem. An undulating fin that runs along its belly propels it throug abstacle. Keri Collins, a doctoral student at the University of bath in England, developed a robot called Gymnobot (for Gymnotiformes, a group of fish species including knifefish) using the fish as a model. The robot's flexible fin, attached to a rigid body, is tangle proof, according to laboratory test. When complete, Gymnobot will help scientists study marine life in coastal waters, where varying terrain an habitats are tricky to navigate.