33
-1
2100
30
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Improved pulsed inductive plasma accelerators are undergoing development for use as long-life thrusters for propulsion of spacecraft on interplanetary missions and for maneuvering of...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A concept for obtaining high energy-conversion efficiency in a solar photovoltaic system involves (1) concentration and spectral dispersion of sunlight and (2) use of several types of solar...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
An Internet-based software system, called the "Web Interface for Telescience" (WITS), enables geographically dispersed scientists to participate in scientific exploration of remote planets by use of...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Eight-Channel WDM Fiber-Optic Data-Communication System
A proposed wavelength-division-multiplexing (WDM) optical communication system would feature a single optical fiber carrying eight channels of digital data signals. In the original application, the signal in each channel would be a serial digital video-camera output, but the system could just...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Quantum-well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) that are designed to exploit transitions between bound and quasi-bound electron quantum states and that incorporate random reflectors are undergoing...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Tracks for the guidance of magnetic bubbles propagating in the input and output lines of Vertical-Bloch-Line memory devices can be made in the form of ridges instead of in the traditional form of...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
"Free-Space Optical Communications Analysis Software" (FOCAS) is the name of a spreadsheet computer program for analysis of direct-detection (as distinguished from...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Most current radar scanning antennas utilize mechanical scanning, relying on a gimbal, motor, and gear arrangements to physically rotate/elevate the antenna. This technique is slow, gravity-sensitive, and...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A technique for adjusting the resonance frequency of a single-mode round cylindrical microwave cavity has been proposed to maximize the transfer of power from a magnetron to one or more...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Sponsored by a NASA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II contract, MetroLaser, Inc., has developed a novel, compact and low-cost laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV) under the...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Micromachined Photodiode/Bolometer Arrays
Micromachined planar arrays of detectors that could operate either as photodiodes or as bolometers have been proposed for use in detecting photons in applications in which broad spectral responses are required. The availability of either of the two modes would enable operation throughout the spectrum, from...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The term "space cube" denotes a scheme for three-dimensional stacking and interconnection of electronic-circuit modules. [This scheme should not be confused with a related one...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Efforts are underway to develop an electron-tunneling magnetometer with a "planarized" (as explained below) design. Older designs of electron-tunneling magnetometers are more three-dimensional in...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Multiple-beam transmission has been proposed to reduce the deleterious effects of atmospheric turbulence on free-space laser communications - especially on uplinks from ground stations to...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) has been developed as a prototype of neuroprocessors for real-time diagnosis and control of automotive engines. The application of this...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Development of Circuitry for Wristband Radio Transponders
A document proposes the development of several alternative types of electronic circuits for wristband transponders for the system described in "Person-Locator System Based on Wristband Radio Transponders" (NPO-19280) NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 19, No. 12 (December 1995), page 40. To...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Circuits to generate the intensity reading and the coordinates of the brightest pixel in each image would be added to imaging photodetector arrays of the active-pixel-sensor (APS) type, according...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A program to demonstrate the feasibility of GaAs-based Kₐ-band power amplifiers has generated a number of technological advances. The goals of the program included (1) capability of amplifier...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The figure shows a complementary metal oxide/semiconductor (CMOS) integrated circuit that contains all of the electronic circuitry of a programmable active-pixel-sensor digital camera....
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Circuits to generate analog or digital representations of the coordinates of the centers of mass of images would be added to imaging photodetector arrays of the active-pixel-sensor...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The Production Support Flight Control Computers (PSFCCs) are flight-control computers that are being developed by NASA in conjunction with the United States Navy. These computers are...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A developmental electronic system that includes Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers is designed to track the relative position and velocity to two airplanes in real time. In the...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A concept for optimizing the designs of two-wavelength GaAs-based quantum-well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) could make it practical to use focal-plane arrays of QWIPs as image sensors in...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Modules of electronic circuitry that perform the amplitude- and phase-control and the status-monitoring functions for eight-element (2 ×4) subarrays of K-band phased-array antennas...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
An information-reduced carrier-synchronization (IRCS) system has been proposed for use in a coded binary-phase-shift-keying (BPSK) radio-communication receiver...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Magnetostatic switches — switches that open or close in response to magnetic fields — are being developed and fabricated using micromachining (MEMS) technology. These switches operate similarly to...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The figure illustrates aspects of a proposed switching protocol for optical packet data communication that would serve as an alternative to the older store-and-forward and header-first...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Credit-card-sized electronic transponders have been proposed for use in tracking cargo anywhere on Earth. A transponder would be carried on a cargo container, where it would act as a "smart tag." The...
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
The figure schematically illustrates an optoelectronic apparatus that generates both an optical output and an electronic output (typically at frequencies in the range from hundreds of...
Top Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
2025 Holiday Gift Guide for Engineers: Tech, Tools, and Gadgets
INSIDER: Energy
Scientists Create Superconducting Semiconductor Material
Blog: Software
Blog: Materials
This Paint Can Cool Buildings Without Energy Input
Quiz: Automotive
Blog: Semiconductors & ICs
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: AR/AI
The Real Impact of AR and AI in the Industrial Equipment Industry
Upcoming Webinars: Robotics, Automation & Control
Next-Generation Linear and Rotary Stages: When Ultra Precision...
Upcoming Webinars: Transportation
Hydrogen Engines Are Heating Up for Heavy Duty
Podcasts: Design
How Wearables Are Enhancing Smart Drug Delivery
Podcasts: Power
SAE Automotive Podcast: Solid-State Batteries
Podcasts: Manufacturing & Prototyping
