Application Briefs

Hamburg Airport Relies on Drive Technology to Keep Bags Moving

Hamburg Airport in Germany handles nine million pieces of baggage every year. For the baggage handling staff, the reliability of the conveyor system and the prevention of faults are...

‘Ralph’ Camera Shows Pluto in Color

Thanks to a camera affectionately known as “Ralph,” NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has delivered stunning natural-color images of Pluto and its moons.

The Increasing Use of Electrical Actuators in the Aerospace and Defense Industry

Hydraulic and pneumatic systems have traditionally been the market leader in providing power in the aerospace and defense industry because of their low cost and...

Electrical Connectors Provide Signal Integrity for Orion

KA Series PCB connectors and D-Sub Series connectors Smiths Connectors Costa Mesa, CA 714-371-1100 www.smithsconnectors.com Development of NASA’s Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle was...

Servo Motors Help Launch Vehicles Optimize Fuel

Servo motors MICROMO (the FAULHABER Group) Clearwater, FL 800-807-9166 www.micromo.com Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) builds economical launch vehicles like the Falcon 9 to carry a range...

Motion Controller Automates Hydrostatic Pressure Testing

A flexible hydrostatic test system for the oil and gas industry must precisely measure a wide range of pressures. Because the items tested vary widely, most testing is done manually. A...

3D Machine Vision Using Laser Triangulation

Applications for 3D machine vision are rapidly expanding in a variety of industries for several reasons. The first is that vision systems can lower production costs by increasing yields and/or...

System Tests Flight Control of Dream Chaser Spacecraft

DynoLAB™ data acquisition and control system SAKOR Technologies Okemos, MI 517-332-7256 www.sakor.com SAKOR Technologies has supplied a test system to Southwest Research Institute®...

Ion Thruster System Powers Spacecraft to Deep-Space Destinations

Ion thruster system and power processing units Aerojet Rocketdyne Sacramento, CA 916-355-4000 www.rocket.com Aerojet Rocketdyne is developing NASA’s Evolutionary Xenon...

Software Helps NASA Simulate Performance of James Webb Telescope

Femap™ engineering simulation software Siemens PLM Software Plano, TX 972-987-3000 www.siemens.com/plm Scheduled for launch in 2018, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)...

Advanced Holography Offers 3D Fire Measurements

In a propellant fire, large molten aluminum drops form at the burning surface. The drops are lofted into the environment and can severely damage anything that they fall on. Liquid breakup must be...

Cameras Provide Critical Data for NASA Rocket’s First Flight

On March 11, NASA tested the powerful five-segment booster for NASA’s new rocket, the Space Launch System. To provide critical data for the rocket’s first flight, eight cameras...

Thermoplastic Racks Open Up New Motion Control Applications

Rack and pinions are linear actuators that play a critical role in a wide range of linear motion control applications. While rack and pinions are commonly thought of as a timeless...

Intelligent Photonic Multi-Sensor Solutions

With the Internet of Things (IoT) quickly rising in front of us, it would be easy to get caught in the trap of thinking that both the trajectory and applications will be somewhat predictable. While...

NASA, UCF Professor Send Sensor to Stratosphere

Planetary Atmospheres Minor Species Sensor (PAMSS) University of Central Florida Orlando, FL www.ucf.edu Using a high-altitude balloon, NASA and a team led by University of Central Florida physics...

NASA Sensors Detect Aircraft Icing Hazards

Atmospheric Icing Sensors Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/home NASA’s Glenn Research Center scientists are sending up weather balloons to read weather data and validate...

3D-Printed Functional Antenna Arrays Operate on Exterior of COSMIC-2 Satellites

FDM® (Fused Deposition Modeling™) technology and ULTEM 9085 thermoplastic Stratasys Direct Manufacturing (RedEye, Solid Concepts, and Harvest Technologies) Eden...

Waggle Platform Offers Possible Key to the ‘Smart City’

Data Collection Platform Argonne National Laboratory Lemont, IL www.anl.gov As urban populations expand, some experts envision “smarter” cities, where hundreds or thousands of...

Autonomous Robots Keep Warehouse Running Green

YLOG, a startup company in Austria, uses an intelligent and very environmentally friendly logistics system that is winning an increasing number of customers. The technology makes use of individual,...

Precision Measurement and Inspection Ensure Quality of SLS Rocket Panels

Reverse engineering and inspection software Verisurf Software Anaheim, CA 714-970-1683 www.verisurf.com In spaceflight, the first eight minutes are critical. This is when...

3D Volumetric Display Technology

The United States government spends a lot of money on its defense programs, investing in the training and technology necessary to arm and prepare the most advanced fighting force on the planet. The price tag for...

System Concept Studies Will Aid NASA in Asteroid Redirect Mission

SSL 1300 commercial satellite bus Space Systems/Loral Palo Alto, CA 650-852-4000 www.sslmda.com NASA continues to advance the journey to Mars through progress on the Asteroid...

Data Recorders Prepare Orion for Splashdown Test

Data recorders and software Diversified Technical Systems (DTS) Seal Beach, CA 562-493-0158 www.dtsweb.com It’s no simple task to travel 3,600 miles into space, blaze back through Earth’s...

3D Vision System Aids 560-Mile Piloted Drive

Audi completed a long-distance test drive of its Audi A7 Sportback semi-autonomous concept vehicle, finishing the journey at the International CES 2015 consumer electronics show in Las Vegas. The...

Creating a Unique Solution to Test Indoor Climate Systems

In the past, controlling the indoor climate in homes consisted of a thermostat regulating the heat, and ventilating the homes by opening the windows. New energy performance regulations...

Energy Efficiency in Machine Tools

Discussions of the efficient use of energy have become more frequent in many sectors of industry. Machine tools comprise numerous motors and auxiliary components whose energy consumption can vary strongly...

Video Wall Monitors Space Station Science

Clarity™ Matrix LCD Video Wall System Planar Systems Beaverton, OR 866-475-2627 www.planar.com A Clarity Matrix video wall system was installed at NASA’s Payload Operations Integration Center (POIC)...

Power Management System Keeps SpaceCube Flying

UltraCMOS®-based power management card Peregrine Semiconductor Corp. San Diego, CA 858-731-9400 www.psemi.com Selected for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s SpaceCube 2.0 Hybrid Science Data...

Fabricating Custom Components from Stock Optics

Two quantities are perennially in short supply on engineering projects: time and money. When it comes to producing custom optical components in less time, for less money, one feasible approach is...