In Brief

• The measurement technology specialist National Instruments has cut the global prices of 13 of its most popular data acquisition modules by up to 25%. It says it has taken advantage of low-cost, off-the-shelf technologies and increased manufacturing efficiencies to pass on the savings to its customers.

• A US company is developing an electrically powered hybrid of a self-propelled surfboard and a waterski. Powerski already makes petrol-driven versions of its Jetboard that can travel at up to 65km/h. It has now teamed up with Global Electric to create a cleaner and quieter electric version, powered by lithium-ion batteries.

• Invensys has announced a £3.5m, five-year extension to its funding of Oxford University`s Technology Centre for Advanced Instrumentation. Under the agreement, Invensys works with the University to create new measurement and flow control technologies. Developments to date have included self-validating sensors and condition monitoring systems.

• The Fieldbus Foundation has produced a system engineering guide that describes the design, specification, installation, configuration, commissioning and maintenance of control systems based on Foundation Fieldbus. The guide (document AG-181) can be downloaded as a PDF file from the Foundation`s Web site