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Application Briefs: Photonics/Optics
The “always-true” use case for 360º vision systems is to avoid blind spots. Blind spots are a byproduct of conventional cameras. They have a limited field of view and they only see in the direction...
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Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Stratasys, Eden Prairie, MN, introduced the J750 3D printer that produces full-color, multi-material prototypes and parts in a single 3D print without post-processing. Users can choose from more than 360,000 different color...
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Who's Who: Green Design & Manufacturing
Using the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory satellite, launched in 2014, NASA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency researchers have...
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Briefs: Materials
Control of Carbon Nanotube Density and Tower Height in an Array
Use of arrays of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as an intermediary for transport of electrical particles (e.g., electrons) and/or transport of thermal energy from one body to another has grown. For example, a CNT array may be used for dissipation of thermal energy or accumulated electrical...
Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Aerotech (Pittsburgh, PA) offers the HEX500-350HL high-load, six-degree-of-freedom hexapod for applications in sensor testing and high-force device manipulation. It is actuated with six struts that are built with preloaded bearings,...
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Briefs: Materials
In order to understand whether the ablation laser would cause chemical reactions within the trapped organic molecules during resonant laser ablation of water ice containing organic molecules, a...
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Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
The Model BM-T tilt Switch from BinMaster (Lincoln, NE) is a level indicator used for point level detection of heavy materials in bins, tanks, or silos, or over a conveyor belt or open pile. It is suspended vertically over a...
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Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Aridged retention interface is necessary to secure planetary sample tubes within a caching system for use in future sample return missions. The assumed retention...
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Products: Robotics, Automation & Control
Mitsubishi Electric Automation (Vernon Hills, IL) introduced the iQ-R Series machine control system that incorporates sequence, motion, safety, process, and C language control into one platform. The control platform is...
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Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Planetary Ice Mining by Down-Hole Energy Injection
Ice has been discovered on Mars and is present in the permanently shadowed craters on the Moon and on many asteroids. The ice is usually buried beneath an overburden of regolith. Evidence indicates this overburden may be a meter deep in some locations for the Moon; for Mars, it varies with latitude...
Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
An electromechanical function from Kiekert AG (Heiligenhaus, Germany/Wixom, MI) prevents car doors from unintentionally striking nearby obstacles. The “i-protect” technology features a door-brake and sensor system for...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Laser Architecture and Atomic Filter for Daytime Measurements Using Spaceborne Sodium Lidar
A satellite-borne sodium lidar will provide key measurements that elucidate the complex relation between the chemistry and dynamics of the Earth’s mesosphere, and thus provide a thorough understanding of the composition and dynamics of this region. The...
Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Toshiba America Electronic Components (San Jose, CA) has released a group of 30 microcontrollers (MCUs) based on the ARM® Cortex®-M3 core. The M3H MCUs are fabricated with an embedded flash memory process. Target...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Rangefinder for Measuring Volume of Cryogenic or Caustic Turbulent Fluids
Specific impulse (ISP), or simply impulse (change in momentum) per unit amount of propellant consumed, is a measure of rocket and jet engine efficiency. The amount of propellant, or in the case of engine testing at the Stennis Space Center (SSC), cryogen consumed during...
Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Fluke (Everett, WA) has announced the 279 FC TRMS Thermal Multimeter. The test tool integrates a digital multimeter (DMM) with a thermal camera. Using the 279 FC imager, technicians can check for hot spots in fuses, wires,...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Micro-Force Sensing Nanoprobe
The NGXO (Next Generation X-Ray Optics) project has several problems relating to how to bond a very thin glass mirror to a metallic structure without distortion. One problem is that all epoxies shrink (at the micron level) when they cure. This shrinkage distorts the optical quality of the mirror unacceptably. Another...
Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
The IGA 140/23 pyrometer from LumaSense Technologies (Santa Clara, CA) offers non-contact temperature measurement on metals, ceramics, and graphite. The device, equipped with RS232 and RS485 serial interfaces, reads parameters via...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
High-Channel-Count, High-Scan-Rate Data Acquisition System for the NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel
The NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT) has been operational since 1960, investigating a wide range of aeroelastic and non-aeroelastic phenomena. A dedicated aeroelastic test facility, the TDT is a large,...
Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Allegro MicroSystems (Worcester, MA) offers two new current sensor ICs for AC or DC current sensing. Both the ACS724KMA (5 V) and the ACS725KMA (3.3 V) are set in a high-isolation SOIC16 wide-body surface mount package that provides...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Fusible Alloy Thermometer
This work was based on the need for a relatively small passive detector of maximum temperature reached by an object that can be visually inspected. The device requirements are to be hermetically sealed for contamination control, give a clear indication of maximum temperature achieved (non-reversible) with a ~10 °C...
Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
An IC and module from Sendyne (New York, NY) performs ground fault detection and isolation monitoring while simultaneously measuring current, voltage, and temperature. The AEC-Q100-qualified SFPGFD adheres to international...
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Briefs: Test & Measurement
Small-Volume Pressurized Sample Handling System
A method was developed for effective, efficient, non-destructive, in-situ sample processing. Pressure vessels are used for sample delivery and collection, a shaker is used to keep the particles suspended, a back pressure of argon gas is used to keep the system under pressure to regulate the flow, and...
Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
PIHER Sensors and Controls S.A. (Brighton MI), a Meggitt company, has introduced a two-piece magnetic Hall effect variable gap sensor that maintains stable electrical output and specified linearity on mobile...
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Briefs: Aerospace
An advanced Lean-Direct-Injection (LDI) turbine engine combustor was developed. Named LDI-II, which stands for second-generation LDI, this technology has vastly improved and expanded the performance...
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Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
The UFS (Universal Fluid Sensor) line of sensor kits from Pillar Point Electronics (Sarasota, FL) uses an infrared (IR) emitter and microprocessor to detect the presence of air in tanks or lines containing non-particulate bearing...
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Briefs: Aerospace
As powered flight expands to include electric propulsion technologies, aeronautics designers need to understand the electrical, aerodynamic, and structural characteristics...
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Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
The RS-3500 field portable spectro-radiometer from Spectral Evolution (Lawrence, MA) supports fast, non-destructive remote sensing applications, such as chlorophyll/moisture analysis, plant species identification, and forest...
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Briefs: Propulsion
The Hall effect thruster (HET) was designed for long-duration operation with gaseous iodine as the propellant. Iodine is an alternative to the state-of-the-art propellant xenon. Compared to xenon,...
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Products: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Littelfuse (Chicago, IL) has released the 59040 Series press-fit reed sensor. No screws, brackets, or attachment accessories are needed for installation. The magnetically operated Firecracker sensor press-fits securely into a...
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