News: Electronics & Computers
Thin-film Thermal Charger
Nextreme Thermal Solutions (Durham, NC) and Infinite Power Solutions, Inc. (Denver, CO) offer a thermal charger that can continuously recharge the IPS THINERGYTM Micro-Energy Cell (MEC) using an eTEG...
Blog
Predicting the Weather on Mars
Over the years, I have learned not to place too much trust in weather forecasters. On a number of occasions, the forecasters have either underestimated or overestimated the severity or timing of predicted storms, or failed to predict weather events altogether. So I read with interest a story discussing NASA...
Blog
Software Obsolescence
I have never rushed out to purchase the latest version of a software release. As long as my current software is running my programs smoothly and not experiencing constant freeze-ups, I’d rather not bother with the arduous process of backing up my data and hoping the new software does not stall midway through installation...
News: Energy
Engineers Envision Cheaper Algae Oil Production
Compared to soybeans that produce 50 gallons of oil an acre a year, some algae can average 6,000 gallons - but it's not cheap to produce. Two Kansas State University engineers are assessing...
Blog
Robots as Personal Assistants
The increasing presence of robots in industrial applications has been well documented. But robotic technology advances are also trickling down into the consumer market, creating a similar boom in the demand for personal robots. That is the conclusion of a new study by ABI Research titled “Personal Robotics 2009:...
News: Green Design & Manufacturing
Robotic Fish Can Swim, Maneuver, and Monitor Water Quality
Michigan State University researchers are developing robots that use advanced materials to swim like fish and gather precise data on aquatic conditions. The robotic fish will carry...
Question of the Week
Will Microsoft’s Windows 7 succeed?
This week’s question concerns Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system. Microsoft released the new operating system last week to generally more favorable reviews than its bug-laden, slow-selling Vista predecessor. While Microsoft claims Windows 7 resolves many of Vista’s flaws, skeptics contend the...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Cryogenic Chamber for Servo-Hydraulic Materials Testing
A compact cryogenic test chamber can be cooled to approximately 5 to 6 Kelvin for materials testing. The system includes a temperature controller and multiple sensors to measure specimen temperature at different locations. The testing chamber provides a fast and easy method to perform...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Multimodal Friction Ignition Tester
The multimodal friction ignition tester (MFIT) is a testbed for experiments on the thermal and mechanical effects of friction on material specimens in pressurized, oxygen-rich atmospheres. In simplest...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Rover Attitude and Pointing System Simulation Testbed
The MER (Mars Exploration Rover) Attitude and Pointing System Simulation Testbed Environment (RAPSSTER) provides a simulation platform used for the development and test of GNC (guidance, navigation, and control) flight algorithm designs for the Mars rovers, which was specifically tailored to...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Desktop Application Program To Simulate Cargo-Air-Drop Tests
The DSS Application is a computer program comprising a Windows version of the UNIX-based Decelerator System Simulation (DSS) coupled with an Excel front end. The DSS is an executable code that simulates the dynamics of air-dropped cargo from first motion in an aircraft through landing....
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Small-Bolt Torque-Tension Tester
Current torque-tension measurement techniques involve using load washers as the force measuring transducer. The disadvantage of load washers is that they are too large to be used with fasteners smaller than about size #8. The device described here measures the torque-tension relationship for fasteners as small as...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
Apparatus Measures Thermal Conductance Through a Thin Sample From Cryogenic to Room Temperature
An apparatus allows the measurement of the thermal conductance across a thin sample clamped between metal plates, including thermal boundary resistances. It allows in-situ variation of the clamping force from zero to 30 lb (133.4 N), and variation of...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Simple Optoelectronic Feedback in Microwave Oscillators
A proposed method of stabilizing microwave and millimeter-wave oscillators calls for the use of feedback in optoelectronic delay lines characterized by high values of the resonance...
Data Translation, Marlboro, MA, has introduced the DT9816-S multifunction, high-throughput, simultaneous USB data acquisition module that allows users to sample six...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Integrated Spacesuit Audio System Enhances Speech Quality and Reduces Noise
A new approach has been proposed for increasing astronaut comfort and speech capture. Currently, the special design of a spacesuit forms an extreme acoustic environment making it difficult to capture clear speech without compromising comfort. The current system, called...
Application Briefs: Software
Composites Software Helps in Design and Fabrication of Crew Module
Vistagy
Waltham, MA
781-250-6800
www.vistagy.com
When NASA originally considered employing composites in...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Small X-Band Oscillator Antennas
A small, segmented microstrip patch antenna integrated with an X-band feedback oscillator on a high- permittivity substrate has been built and tested (see Figure 1). The oscillator antenna is powered by...
Application Briefs: Imaging
Vision System Provides Real-Time Guidance for Unmanned Docking Operations
Neptec Design Group
Ottawa, ON, Canada
613-599-7602
www.neptec.com
NASA is conducting a Detailed Test Objective (DTO)...
Techs for License
Low-Cost Liquid Metal Cooling for High-Thermal-Density Electronics
Liquid metal has been used as a coolant for system-level thermal management for decades in nuclear reactors. The reason is its efficiency — liquid metal can have an effective thermal conductivity 10 to 100 times the thermal conductivity of copper. However, cost and long-term...
Techs for License
Needle-Free Injection System Using Pyrotechnical Propulsion
PYROFAST is a needle-free injection system with pyrotechnical gas propulsion that provides accurate and comfortable drug delivery through the skin for intra-dermal, subcutaneous, and intra-muscular injections of liquid and solid (lyophilized) drugs. The needle-free injection occurs...
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Hardware Implementation of a Bilateral Subtraction Filter
A bilateral subtraction filter has been implemented as a hardware module in the form of a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). In general, a bilateral subtraction filter is a key...
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Lattice-Matched Semiconductor Layers on Single Crystalline Sapphire Substrate
SiGe is an important semiconductor alloy for high-speed field effect transistors (FETs), high-temperature thermoelectric devices, photovoltaic solar cells, and photon detectors. The growth of SiGe layer is difficult because SiGe alloys have different lattice constants...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Discrete Fourier Transform Analysis in a Complex Vector Space
Alternative computational strategies for the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) have been developed using analysis of geometric manifolds. This approach provides a general framework for performing DFT calculations, and suggests a more efficient implementation of the DFT for applications...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Self-Assembling, Flexible, Pre-Ceramic Composite Preforms
In this innovation, light weight, high temperature, compact aerospace structures with increased design options are made possible by using self-assembling, flexible, pre-ceramic composite materials. These materials are comprised of either ceramic or carbon fiber performs, which are...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Miniature Scroll Pumps Fabricated by LIGA
Miniature scroll pumps have been proposed as roughing pumps (low-vacuum pumps) for miniature scientific instruments (e.g., portable mass spectrometers and gas analyzers) that depend on vacuum. The...
Tech Needs
Chemical Approach to Spraying All Sides of a Complex Shape
A company seeks technology to spray waterborne substances — both suspensions and solutions — on all sides of an object, even the under sides, regardless of the attitude of the object or the direction from which the spray impinges. Nearuniform coating on all surfaces of the object is...
Tech Needs
Triclosan Replacement
A company seeks a replacement for triclosan, a popular anti-microbial agent used in household products. The replacement requires thermal stability to withstand manufacturing temperatures (such as polymer melt temperatures during molding), UV stability, and compatibility with anionic detergents. It should also be...
Briefs: Software
Flightspeed Integral Image Analysis Toolkit
The Flightspeed Integral Image Analysis Toolkit (FIIAT) is a C library that provides image analysis functions in a single, portable package. It provides basic low-level filtering, texture analysis, and subwindow descriptor for applications dealing with image interpretation and object recognition....
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Will Robotics and Automation Lead to a Greater Appreciation of Nature?
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