News: Electronics & Computers
A push to convert conventional automobiles to high-voltage power systems was a flop back in the 1990s. But a number of factors have prompted many technical strategists to once again promote the benefits...
Articles: Design
Aerodynamics currently is a hot topic for the transportation sector, from passenger vehicles all the way to Class 8 trucks. Along with advanced powertrain technologies and light-weight materials, aerodynamics is an...
Technology Report: Transportation
Screaming children in rear seats have been classic examples of intermittent driver distractions for as long as cars have been family vehicles. However, as DVD players and...
Technology Report: Transportation
Ford recently unveiled a heavily modified Fusion Hybrid that is serving as a testbed for the automaker’s automated-vehicle research. Ford is conducting the program with the...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
In addition to providing thrust, the engines on conventional civil jet airliners generate power for onboard systems and ancillary loads in the form of pneumatic, hydraulic, and...
Features: Medical
The path to innovation is often long and full of challenges. For Corindus Vascular Robotics, the journey to develop the CorPath Vascular Robotic System...
Briefs: Medical
In 1974, Sherwood Rowland and Mario Molina discovered that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were depleting the ozone layer, and in 1995, they received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this work. In response, the United Nations Environment Programme called an international conference to discuss the issue. Shortly...
Briefs: Medical
Today, medical devices are made using a variety of plastic materials and manufacturing processes. Advances in plastic processing make it possible to obtain virtually any shape, form, or function. In...
Articles: Defense
Electronic controls are slowly transforming aircraft engines of all types, bringing improved fuel consumption, improved efficiency, and more power. As the functionality of control units for jet engines increases, digital...
Articles: Aerospace
Modern electronic devices and computing equipment are often integrated with wireless capabilities which utilize multi-bands for high speed communication, as well as high...
Articles: Aerospace
Pumped two-phase cooling provides a compact, low pumping power option for thermal management in high heat flux applications (300-500W/cm2). Compared to single-phase...
Articles: Materials
With the implementation of major aircraft structures fabricated from carbon fiber reinforced plastic materials, lightning protection has become a more complicated...
Articles: Defense
Communication is key to just about any endeavor. NASA’s ability to update and modify communication capabilities to reflect the latest upgrades without impacts to mission time or...
Articles: Aerospace
In 2008, 4RF Communications started development of a new range of radio products to augment their existing point-to-point, long-range wireless link product. Used...
Application Briefs: Defense
Charles River AnalyticsCambridge, MA617-491-3474www.cra.com
Reducing combat fatalities demands quick and effective emergency care on the battlefield, and all soldiers are expected to provide...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
A test array has been developed to measure the response of pixel-integrated infrared gratings over a wavelength range from 3 to 13 μm for multiple grating geometries. This array allows for testing and for determining the performance of an infrared focal plane array camera before resources have been...
Application Briefs: Aerospace
Environmental Tectonics Corporation Southampton, PA 215-355-9100 www.etcusa.com
Most fighter aircraft simulators are fixed-base, with no motion or sustained G-capability. Even those with six degree of freedom...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Simulation and Test (JIST) environment is a software-only system simulator that provides an environment to exercise JWST flight software subsystems and interfaces. JIST is capable of executing the unmodified flight software binaries in an operational...
Application Briefs: Defense
U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) Warren, MI 586-215-8763 tardec.army.mil
At the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC), final...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
As described in “JWST Integrated Simulation and Test (JIST) Core” (GSC-16739-1) on page 25, the JIST system is a software-based simulator that uses the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) operational ground system, ground system command/telemetry databases, simulated flight...
Application Briefs: Defense
Senso Optics Yokneam, Israel +972-4-993-5527 www.senso-optics.com
The combat effectiveness of a weapon system depends substantially on its hit probability. The most accurate aiming occurs when an optical device is aligned to the weapon’s bore centerline.
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Whispering gallery mode (WGM) res- onators have been suggested for use as reference cavities for laser stabilization. Because of their unique properties (small size, high stability, narrow line width), such application appears to hold great promise. It is...
Products: Defense
GE Intelligent Platforms (Waltham, MA) has announced the DSP281, a rugged, dual-node, quad-core 6U OpenVPX High Performance Embedded Computing (HPEC) deployed server platform. GE’s HPEC architecture scales from one to...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Display devices play a vital role as the man-machine interface in most embedded domains. Display systems provide information regarding the health of safety-critical subsystems and the general status of the machine. Accuracy and precision of the information displayed is a key factor in proper machine operation. Hence,...
Products: Aerospace
Kelvin Hughes (Enfield, UK) offers a carbon composite housing for its SharpEye™ radar system. With coherent transmission and Doppler processing, the system separates targets from clutter, resulting in greatly improved...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Thermal requirements and a need for a very flat mechanical interface led to the development of a copper doubler for the titanium vault on the Juno Spacecraft. The vault is designed to contain the science instruments on the spacecraft, protecting them from damage due to the extreme radiation...
Products: Aerospace
Texas Instruments (Dallas, TX) unveiled an inductance-to-digital converter (LDC), a new data converter category that uses coils and springs as inductive sensors. Inductive sensing measures the position, motion,...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Friction stir welding (FSW) has emerged as a promising solid-state process with encouraging results, particularly when used on high-strength aerospace aluminum alloys that are generally difficult to weld. Laser peening has been applied to the mechanical and fatigue properties of welded joints. Laser...