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they fly into space repeatedly

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so being able to determine the condition

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of shuttle components like the main

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designing sophisticated monitoring

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systems to do this

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is the goal of a nasa-sponsored research

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effort at the university of cincinnati

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a team of faculty members and graduate

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students is developing a series of micro

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sensors

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to indicate the health of space faring

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vehicles

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almost everything visible here is

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packaging used in testing

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the sensor itself is just the tiny speck

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in the center

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one of these sensors under a microscope

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reveals their sophistication

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advanced micro machining techniques make

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it possible to include

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valves heaters or even motors in a

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device with a diameter less than that of

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the goal is to embed these tiny flow

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sensors in the walls of critical shuttle

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engine and systems components to ensure

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their functioning properly

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and the sensors are so small that even

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if one came loose it would have

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negligible impact on engine

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uc researchers are also working on

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vibration and crack detection sensors

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for other parts of the shuttle which

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could point out existing defects

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or indicate fatigue in high stress areas

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there are a number of potential spin-off

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applications for micro sensors like

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these

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researchers at the university of

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cincinnati's medical center

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are already exploring their use in the

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care of premature infants

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a significant number of preemies suffer

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respiratory disorders

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many must be connected to a ventilator

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around the clock

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but setting the ventilator remains a

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relatively imprecise science

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and improper oxygen levels and pressures

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can contribute to more severe problems

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including mental retardation

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assistant professor of pediatrics

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michael donnelly

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you get into situations where you're

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looking at morbidity are these babies

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going to grow up to be

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normal fully functioning adults don lee

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and his colleagues are studying the

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possibility of putting a microsensor

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inside the plastic tube inserted in a

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baby's trachea

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with this type of flow sensor we would

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have one of the vital numbers that we

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need which is volume

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related to each inspiration cycle

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so we're right now we're looking at

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averages over five minutes or multiple

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cycles

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this will actually take us down to look

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at breadth to bread activity

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advanced micro sensors enhancing the