Stories
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Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Phase Sensor for Aligning a Segmented Telescope Mirror
A phase sensor has been developed for use in aligning a segmented telescope mirror to within a fraction of a wavelength in piston. (As used here, "piston" signifies displacement of a mirror segment along the optical axis of the telescope.) Such precise alignment is necessary in order to realize...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
A recently proposed boundary condition for atomistic computational modeling of semiconductor nanostructures (particularly, quantum dots) is an improved alternative to two prior such...
Articles: Motion Control
The age-old tradition of using shaft keys in mechanical drives has served the power transmission industry well for many years. When appropriately sized, it guarantees that virtually no relative motion...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Prototype transducers based on integrated optical ring resonators have been demonstrated to be useful for detecting the protein avidin in extremely dilute solutions. In an experiment, one of the...
Application Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
In the 1980s and 1990s, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Pasadena, CA) began developing advanced microsystems and microelectronics technologies and components for future space...
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Semiconductor Bolometers Give Background-Limited Performance
Semiconductor bolometers that are capable of detecting electromagnetic radiation over most or all of the infrared spectrum and that give background-limited performance at operating temperatures from 20 to 300 K have been invented. The term "background-limited performance" as applied to a...
Application Briefs: Motion Control
In situations where human travel is necessary but where the geography is too steep or treacherous, aerial tramways often are used as a convenient alternative. Ski resorts, mountaineering...
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
A multichannel dielectric-resonator oscillator (DRO), built as a prototype of a local oscillator for an X-band transmitter or receiver, is capable of being electrically tuned among and within...
Application Briefs: Motion Control
Robotics are now and have been an inextricable aspect of American industry, performing tasks as varied as the robots themselves. Robots can, in most cases, accommodate greater production speeds,...
Briefs: Software
Control Software for Advanced Video Guidance Sensor
Embedded software has been developed specifically for controlling an Advanced Video Guidance Sensor (AVGS). [As described in several previous NASA Tech Briefs articles, a Video Guidance Sensor is an optoelectronic system that provides guidance for automated docking of two vehicles (space-craft in...
Products: Motion Control
YET US (Manchester, NH) introduced the XtraDrive® servo system, configured for compatibility with all brushless servo motor technologies. The unit features patented non-linear control technology (NCT) for performance and...
Briefs: Software
Earth Observing System Data Gateway
The Earth Observing System Data Gateway (EDG) software provides a "one-stop-shopping" standard interface for exploring and ordering Earth-science data stored at geographically distributed sites. EDG enables a user to do the following:
Products: Motion Control
Heidenhain (Schaumburg, IL) expanded its ERA 4000 series of angle encoders with the ERA 4×80, 4×81, and 4×82 versions. The ERA 4x80 is mounted using a centering collar method, with a low profile encoder system. With seven...
Briefs: Software
Mercury Shopping Cart
Mercury Shopping Cart Interface (MSCI) is a reusable component of the Power User Interface 5.0 (PUI) program described in the immediately preceding article. MSCI is a means of encapsulating the logic and information needed to describe an orderable item consistent with Mercury Shopping Cart service protocol. Designed to be used...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Linear-Arc Motor
Applimotion (Loomis, CA) offers the LARC Series of linear-arc motors, a combination of a disk drive voice coil motor and brushless linear motor. The units can be driven by three-phase brushless motor controllers from 24 to 300 volts with speeds ranging from 0.1 to 1000 rpm. Features include axial low profile, with options as low as...
Products
Z Corporation, Burlington, MA, has introduced the ZScanner 700, a handheld, self-positioning 3D scanner that can digitize 3D surfaces in real time. The scanner is part-referenced, orienting itself to the target object, rather than...
Briefs: Software
Cassini Archive Tracking System
The Cassini Archive Tracking System (CATS) is a computer program that enables tracking of scientific data transfers from originators to the Planetary Data System (PDS) archives. Without CATS, there is no systematic means of locating products in the archive process or ensuring their completeness. By keeping a database...
Products: Motion Control
H2W Technologies, Inc. (Valencia, CA) released limited angle torque motors (“torquers”) that are single phase, brushless, low profile motors, vacuum compatible to 10^5 torr. Options include kit motors and housed motors....
Products: Motion Control
Madison Electric Products (Mentor, OH) has released the Model HPRT C-Face Magnetic Ring Encoder, compatible with AC vector drive applications. Standard features include digital square wave quadrature-signal (064, 128, 256,...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Helical Products Co. (Santa Maria, CA) introduced single-piece, flexible couplings to compensate for mechanical movement irregularities. The units require neither maintenance nor lubrication; they offer constant rotational velocity,...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
The plug-in General Purpose Relays from c3controls (Beaver, PA) are designed for use in motors and motion control devices. Base configurations come in Octal, Square, Flange Mounted, and Miniature Square, with pin and blade...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
NORD Gear Corp (Waunakee, WI) offers the NORDAC SK 500E and 520E AC vector frequency inverters. Both feature high torque, rapid response, and wide spread range for extended power outputs ranging from 0.25 kW to 7.5 kW....
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Oilgear (Milwaukee, WI) introduced a contaminant-resistant PVWH open loop, axial piston pump. Ten sizes are available, and reach a pressure of 5,000 psi. With sleeve bearings that run on wet film and are pressure lubricated...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
TrustAutomation (San Luis Obispo, CA) has released the TA600 4-axis stand-alone motion controller for use with brushed, brushless, and stepper motor drives, featuring dual processors, a DSP processor, and a high-speed...
Products: Motion Control
Copley Controls (Canton, MA) introduced the Model 800-1514 dual-axis servo amplifier for current (torque) control of brushless servomotors. The unit accepts encoder and Hall feedback data from a range of servo motor types. Drive...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
National Instruments (Austin, TX) released NI Motion Assistant 2.0 interactive software for prototyping single- and multi-axis motion control systems. Motion profiles from CAD and drafting programs can be imported using a...
Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Nidec Copal USA Corp (Torrance, CA) offers the MG16 series of sub-miniature brush DC motors with high torque planetary boxes. The 8-model series is RoHS compliant and measures 16 mm. Available gear ratios include 60:1, 120:1,...
Who's Who: Aerospace
Before becoming NASA Ames Research Center Director, Dr. Worden was a Research Professor of Astronomy, Optical Sciences, and Planetary Sciences at the University...
Briefs: Software
Computing Fault Displacements From Surface Deformations
Simplex is a computer program that calculates locations and displacements of subterranean faults from data on Earth-surface deformations. The calculation involves inversion of a forward model (given a point source representing a fault, a forward model calculates the surface deformations) for...
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