Briefs: Imaging
Theodolite With CCD Camera for Safe Measurement of Laser-Beam Pointing
The simple addition of a charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera to a theodolite makes it safe to measure the pointing direction of a laser beam. The present state of the art requires this to be a custom addition because theodolites are manufactured without CCD cameras as standard...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
An optoelectronic system distributes a reference signal of low noise and highly stabilized phase and frequency (100 MHz) from an atomic frequency standard to a remote facility at a...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
An improved method of calibration has been devised for instruments that utilize tunable lasers to measure the absorption spectra of atmospheric gases in order to determine the relative...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
The figure is a simplified cross section of a microscopic optical switch that was partially developed at the time of reporting the information for this article. In a fully developed...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
A simple, easy-to-use optoelectronic tool projects scale marks that become incorporated into photographic images (including film and electronic images). The sizes of objects...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
A proposed method based on the use of a special-purpose diffractive optical element (DOE) would simplify (relative to prior methods) the alignment of three off-axis mirrors that constitute...
Briefs: Test & Measurement
A ladar-based system now undergoing development is intended to enable an autonomous mobile robot in an outdoor environment to avoid moving toward trees, large rocks, and other...
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Two techniques have been proposed to increase the efficiency of coupling of light from lasers to Cassegrain telescopes and, in general, telescopes with secondary or tertiary mirror...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
InAs quantum-dot lasers that feature distributed feedback and lateral evanescent-wave coupling have been demonstrated in operation at a wavelength of 1.3 µm. These lasers are...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A custom high-speed charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera that features a capability for real-time readout from multiple regions of interest (subwindows) within its field of view is...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Interface System for Downlinking Digital TV Signals From Spacecraft
A system of interface electronic circuitry that includes a data packetizer and a data depacketizer has been developed to enable the downlinking of both standard- and high-definition television (SDTV and HDTV) signals from a space shuttle or the International Space Station. The...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Stereoscopic Vision System Tracks Objects in Real Time
A stereoscopic machine-vision system offers a capability for robust tracking of objects in three dimensions (3D). The system is suitable for use in a variety of robotic applications. The system hardware includes a pan-tilt-verge camera and aiming mechanism assembly and a board that holds...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The Data Acquisition and Control Systems (DACS) Laboratory is a facility at Stennis Space Center that provides an off test-stand capability to develop data-acquisition and control systems for...
Briefs: Software
Software for Monitoring Performance of Other Software
Performance Logging Services (PLS) is a software utility that tracks the performance of another program in terms of statistics of timing and use of memory buffers. The monitored program must utilize either the UNIX or the VxWorks operating system. PLS can monitor performance requirements in...
Briefs: Software
Software for Multidisciplinary Analysis With Parallelization
HiMAP is an advanced, portable software system that implements highly modular, parallel computation of the possibly nonlinear, coupled behaviors of aeroelastic and other complex systems that comprise subsystems, each of which is modeled by use of software formulated within a separate...
Briefs: Software
ICAN/JAVA: Integrated Composite Analyzer Recoded in Java
The Integrated Composite Analyzer (ICAN) computer program, originally written in the FORTRAN language, has been completely recoded in Java to make it more widely usable. Whereas the original ICAN could be executed on only a limited number of platforms, ICAN/JAVA is compatible with almost...
Briefs: Software
Software for Onboard Autonomy of a Three-Spacecraft Mission
A system of software has been designed to enable autonomous operations of the three University-built miniature spacecraft of the Three Corner Sat mission, scheduled for launch in 2003. The main software subsystems and their functions are the following:
Briefs: Software
Software for Mobile Data-Communication Networks
Mobile Router is operating system code residing in a network router allowing the router to provide mobile-ipv4 functionality for any attached nodes. Mobile Router enables the entire network to roam. It is no longer necessary for every node in the network to run mobile Internet Protocol (IP)...
Briefs: Software
Runge-Kutta Circular-Advection-Problem Solver
Release 3.0 of the Multi-Stage Runge-Kutta Circular Advection Solver is a computer program that solves the circular-advection problem by use of a general m-stage Runge-Kutta scheme (for m = 1, 2, and 4) on a Cartesian (x,y) grid with optimized coefficients. [The circular-advection problem, ¶u/¶t =...
Briefs: Software
Software Optimizes Piping System for Sewage Treatment Plant
A $90 million AUS (Australian dollar) upgrade ($49 million USD) to the Cronulla Sewage Treatment Plant in Southern Sydney, Australia, was undertaken to meet the requirements of a growing population and to add advanced sewage treatment processes including ultraviolet disinfection. During...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A proposed complementary metal oxide/semiconductor (CMOS) photodiode integrated-circuit imaging device of the active-pixel-sensor (APS) type would include column feedback sub-circuits...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
An optoelectronic/digital flash x-ray imaging system has been invented for use in quantitative physiological studies and general radiology. The system could be implemented in a...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A high-efficiency, high-frame-rate ultraviolet (UV) charge-coupled device (CCD) camera that is especially well suited for biological and defense applications was developed. This is the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Optimization of Orientations of Spacecraft Reaction Wheels
A report presents a method of optimizing the orientations of three reaction wheels used to regulate the angular momentum of a spacecraft. The method yields an orientation matrix that minimizes mass, torque, and power demand of the reaction wheels while maximizing the allowable duration...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The best-effort geographical multi-hop routing (BEGHR) protocol routes packets of data in an ad hoc digital radio-communication network on the basis of the current geographical...
Briefs: Information Technology
Characteristics of Dynamics of Intelligent Systems
An investigation of nonlinear mathematical models of dynamics has led to the selection of characteristics that could be useful for distinguishing mathematically between the behaviors of (1) intelligent or living systems and (2) nonliving systems. As contemplated here, an intelligent or living...
Briefs: Information Technology
The title "Coupled Layer Architecture for Robotics Autonomy" (CLARATy) refers to a software architecture for robots that has been proposed to (1) improve the modularity of...
Briefs: Materials
Polymeric electrolytes for rechargeable lithium-based electrochemical cells and batteries would be made by blending and complexing cyanoresins with lithium salts, according to a...
Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
A micromachining-based fabrication process has been proposed for low-volume production of copies of a mesoscale vibratory gyroscope. The process would include steps of photolithography,...
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