Engineering
Las Vegas breakthrough
Teaching
Empa
Ultra-fast capsules in vacuum tubes: All around the world, companies and research institutes are working on "Hyperloop" concepts. Swissloop Tunneling, a student initiative, is developing a drilling machine for underground transport tubes. The first reward for their efforts: a second place in an international competition in Las Vegas.  
ETH graduates reinvent the user manual
TechTransfer
ETH Zurich
No sooner had David Shapira and Kordian Caplazi finished their studies than they set about creating a start-up. Rimon develops virtual user manuals for industrial companies, enabling users to quickly and intuitively learn how to operate complex machines with the aid of AR glasses.
Predicting complex dynamics from data
Research
ETH Zurich
Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a new algorithm that allows them to model the dynamics of physical systems from observations. In the future it could be applied to the onset of turbulence and tipping points in climate.
Using images and artificial intelligence to inspect bridges
TechTransfer
EPFL
EPFL startup SwissInspect has developed a novel bridge-inspection system that combines structural engineering with drone technology, artificial intelligence and computer vision. SwissInspect is the result of research at Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics Laboratory (EESD) in collaboration with Swiss Data Science Center (SDSC) on the image-based inspection and monitoring of structural elements.The company plans to test its system, which offers major advantages over visual inspection methods, on around 50 bridges in Switzerland.
Building lean pays off
Research
Empa
Super-insulating materials such as aerogels are expensive. At the same time, they offer a powerful advantage: the thinner the insulation of a building, the larger its usable area. An Empa research team shows when and where, even today, the use of aerogel is already economically viable and ventures an optimistic forecast.
Making installed train windows permeable to mobile-phone signals
TechTransfer
EPFL
EPFL spin-off nu glass has successfully tested a portable system that makes the window panes on railcars permeable to mobile communications. This can bring significant environmental and cost benefits to railway companies and mobile-phone operators, since they’ll no longer have to install signal boosters to provide wireless connectivity for passengers.
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