Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Articles: Communications
This column presents technologies that have applications in commercial areas, possibly creating the products of tomorrow. To learn more about each technology, see the contact information provided for that...
Technology Leaders: Imaging
Laser range-finding, or LIDAR, is a way of measuring distance, directly analogous to radar except using radiation in the near infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum rather...
Articles: Medical
Jon Sumroy, Carfoldio, Ltd., Ra’anana, Israel
The mifold Grab-and-Go booster seat for children aged 4-12 is more than ten times smaller than a...
Articles: Test & Measurement
Product research and development on internal combustion engines, brake rotors, tires, and high-speed airbags are just a few of the areas that truly benefit...
Application Briefs: Aerospace
Space Systems/Loral (SSL)
Palo Alto, CA
650-852-4000
www.sslmda.com
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has chosen Space...
Briefs: Propulsion
There are difficulties related to storing enough gas to propel a CubeSat within an onboard tank. Currently, a CubeSat requiring a large volume of gas for extended...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
The largest supersonic parachute ever developed is one of the test articles on the Supersonic Flight Dynamics Test (SFDT) vehicle of the Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD)...
Articles: Aerospace
B y the time the gas you fill your car with hits the engine, it’s been through quite a journey. Even apart from its transformation from organic matter into...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Safely Testing Parachute-Based Extraction Systems
This invention relates to the safe, reliable, and repeatable testing under external load of the Extraction Force Transfer Coupling (EFTC) currently used in the extraction of airdrop platforms from both the C-17 and C-130 cargo transport aircraft. The invention enables functional testing of the...
Application Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Navigation and entertainment screens in cars are becoming ever-larger and, in some cases, the central control point for drivers and passengers. Many manufacturers consider using glass to cover...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Analyzing Rollover Stability of Capsules With Airbags Using LS-Dyna
As NASA moves towards developing technologies needed to implement its new Exploration program, studies conducted for Apollo in the 1960s to understand the rollover stability of capsules landing are being revisited. Although rigid body kinematics analyses of the rollover behavior...
Articles: Imaging
High-speed photography is as much of an engineering tool as an oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer, or logic analyzer. The photographic technique enables us to visualize and analyze motion, especially...
Briefs: Medical
The MDMouse system incorporates a pre-existing medical device into a conventional computer control mouse. The tool is designed to measure blood pressure outside of the medical environment, and to provide that...
Application Briefs: Software
The idea for the automotive crash test dummy first came to life in the 1950s when U.S. Air Force flight surgeon Col. John Stapp realized that more of his fighter pilots were...
Application Briefs: Imaging
The Kettering University Crash Safety Center (Flint, MI) conducts vehicle subsystem tests using a pneumatic deceleration sled. The research and testing includes frontal, rear, or side impact...
Articles: Transportation
Tai Chiem Melbourne, Australia
Movito is a scooter based on an electric inwheel motor, a hubless front wheel, and a modular base system. It is designed for traveling short...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
The terminal descent sensor (TDS) is a radar altimeter/velocimeter that improves the accuracy of velocity sensing by more than an order of magnitude when compared to existing sensors. The TDS is designed...
Articles: Automotive
While the latest news surrounding the U.S. auto industry continues to be focused on slumping sales and production cutbacks, automakers continue to turn out cars that highlight the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Soft Landing of Spacecraft on Energy-Absorbing Self-Deployable Cushions
A report proposes the use of cold hibernated elastic memory (CHEM) foam structures to cushion impacts of small (1 to 50 kg) exploratory spacecraft on remote planets. Airbags, which are used on larger (800 to 1,000 kg) spacecraft have been found to (1) be too complex for...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Martian Landing Balls
A report describes Martian landing balls, which are under development for use in delivering scientific payloads to Mars. Martian landing balls are related to other soft-landing devices that resemble beach balls and that have been described in several previous NASA Tech Briefs articles. They are also related to the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Pneumatic cushions have been proposed for protecting the afterbodies of two-body instrumented soil-penetrator projectiles. These cushions would be, essentially, doughnut-shaped...
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control
Mars Lander
A brief report presents drawings for the conceptual design of a spacecraft that would land on Mars or another remote planet. The spacecraft would have a tetrahedral shape, would include airbags to cushion impact, and would have a self-righting capability. The drawings show the general appearance of the spacecraft and show the...
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Upcoming Webinars: Photonics/Optics
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Application Briefs: Photonics/Optics
