Proximity sensors and accelerometers are changing the gaming experience as we know it today. While these technologies are not new, improvements in user acceptance, size, performance, and price are spurring their use in the gaming market.

There's yet another food spoilage detector that can detect high levels of bacterial activity in poultry and other meats destined for the table. SensorfreshQ sniffs out biogenic amines that can be picked up by a handheld device that passes an air sample over the item of interest.

At Cornell University, researchers are working on a new table napkin made of nanofibers that can advise of the presence of microorganisms you don't want to ingest.

FingerTPS, a line of capacitive tactile pressure sensors mounted on stretchable fabric designed to be worn on a person's fingertips and palm, can measure the pressures exerted while the person uses a tool or performs some other action.

When Michael Faraday introduced the concept of an electric field, little did he realize how far science would run with the idea. Today, engineers are using electric fields to sense the presence of other objects without relying on physical contact. Referred to as e-field sensors or capacitance sensors, they are becoming more and more prevalent in a wide range of inexpensive and long-lasting applications. When you take a closer look at how they work, you quickly see why their popularity is growing.

Nike's new shoes incorporate sensors that communicate with Apple's iPod to display time, distance, and pace, as well as calories burned. Runners can review workout stats by run, or by week or month.

One problem with every type of eyeglasses, contact lenses, and even the plastic lenses implanted after cataract removal is that they all have a fixed focal length. Auto-focus cameras don't, but they operate on a principle that wouldn't work for a pair of spectacles. Until now.

Cell phone providers promote location-based services (LBS) as a way to send custom messages to subscribers based on their location—as reported by GPS or radiolocation and triangulation. Now LBSs are beginning to incorporate sensors.

The silicon micromachined inertial sensor that deploys your automotive airbags can't simply be dropped into your laptop for free-fall detection without some do-differentlys. The differences go well beyond the application spaces of medium/high-g and low-g that automotive sockets sport. In fact, the automotive and consumer markets present conflicting fundamental demands. Building a bridge between them means giving reconsideration to design, test, space, quality, time-to-market, front- and back-end assembly—and price.