Fraunhofer

In most hearing aids, sounds emitted by a tiny speaker are directed down the ear canal. The "alpha" hearing aid is different, however – and reportedly better – in that its speaker actually sits directly against the wearer's eardrum.

Getting traditionally administered drugs into the brain can be challenging, due to the body's protective blood-brain barrier. There may be new hope, however, in the form of a patch that gets shoved up the patient's nose.

Scientists have worked out a way to embed active enzymes in plastic that can give it different capabilities, such as an ability to break down proteins on the surface or degrade itself to avoid polluting the environment.

Discarded carpets take up a lot of space in landfills, or create a great deal of smoke when incinerated. Soon, however, it may be possible to recover high-grade polypropylene from synthetic carpets that would otherwise just end up in the dump.

By reimagining the way power inverters relay the current from the battery to the motor in electric vehicles, scientists at Fraunhofer have conjured up a new design they say works much more efficiently and could improve EV range as much as six percent.

It can be difficult, digging out your keys or wallet when your hands are full. Well, if an experimental new 3D-printed "smart ring" reaches production, such digging may no longer be necessary.

In most grocery stores, all of the fresh produce is either pre-wrapped in plastic film or it gets placed in plastic bags – both of which are often discarded by consumers. A new bioactive paper bag, however, could serve the same purpose while being easily recyclable.

Many cars are now equipped with pedestrian-detecting radar systems, but those systems can still be blocked by obstacles such as buildings or other vehicles. A new setup is intended to get around that problem, by taking the radar to the streets.

Due to the current pandemic, people are shopping online like never before. This means that distribution warehouses have become very busy places, where goods need to be transported quickly but safely – and that's where the LoadRunner comes in.

When viewing sports coverage from other countries, it's common to see advertising boards promoting products you've never heard of, but a new TV system is capable of digitally replacing that advertising content with region-specific products.

Even though lifeguards are essential to maintaining safety at swimming pools, they can't always see everything that's happening. That's where a new swimmer-saving underwater robot is designed to come in.

Although ozone is used to disinfect water in settings such as treatment plants, the required equipment is typically too large for use in small appliances like water coolers. A new miniaturized ozone generator, however, may be about to change that.