Tech Briefs

Electronics & Software

Access our comprehensive library of technical briefs on electronics and software, from engineering experts at NASA and major government, university, and commercial laboratories.

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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Optical oscillators that exploit resonantly enhanced four-wave mixing in nonlinear whispering- gallery- mode (WGM) resonators are under investigation for potential utility as low-power,...
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Briefs: Electronics & Computers
A scheme for stabilizing the frequency of a microwave signal is proposed that exploits the operational characteristics of a coupled optoelectronic oscillator (COEO) and related...
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Briefs: Information Technology
Several artificial-intelligence search techniques have been tested as means of solving the swath segment selection problem (SSSP) ? a real-world problem that is not only of interest in its own right,...
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Briefs: Information Technology
The spatial standard observer is a computational model that provides a measure of the visibility of a target in a uniform background image or of the visual discriminability of two images. Standard observers have...
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Briefs: Information Technology
An alternative to an optimal method of automated classification of signals modulated with M-ary phase-shift-keying (M-ary PSK or MPSK) has been derived. The alternative method is approximate, but it...
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Briefs: RF & Microwave Electronics
Assistant for Analyzing Tropical Rain Mapping Radar Data
TDS is composed of software and hardware elements incorporating a two-frequency spaceborne radar system for measuring tropical precipitation. The TDS would be used primarily in generating data products for scientific investigations. The most novel part of the TDS would be expert-system...
Briefs: Software
Discerning Trends in Performance Across Multiple Events
The program can perform Fourier analysis and other functions for the purposes of frequency analysis and trending of all variables. These functions facilitate identification of past use of diagnosed systems and of anomalies in such systems, and enable rapid assessment of related current...
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Anion-IntercalatingCathodes for High-Energy-Density Cells
A report discusses physicochemical issues affecting a fluoride-intercalating cathode that operates in conjunction with a lithium ion-intercalating anode in a rechargeable electrochemical cell described in a cited prior report. The instant report also discusses corresponding innovations made...
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
According to a proposal, a silicon dioxide layer in a high speed, low power, silicon-based electro-optical modulator would be replaced by a layer of lead zirconate titanate or other...
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Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Multiplexing and differential transducers based on tunnel-diode oscillators (TDOs) would be developed, according to a proposal, for operation at very low and/or widely varying...
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Briefs: Software
Scheduling With Automatic Resolution of Conflicts
DSN Requirement Scheduler is a computer program that automatically schedules, reschedules, and resolves conflicts for allocations of resources of NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) on the basis of ever changing project requirements for DSN services. As used here, "resources" signifies, primarily, DSN...
Briefs: RF & Microwave Electronics
Computing for Aiming a Spaceborne Bistatic-Radar Transmitter
BISTAT is a computer program for use in aiming a spaceborne bistatic-radar transmitting antenna at a remote planet that has an atmosphere, such that after refraction by the atmosphere and reflection from the surface of the planet, the radar signal travels toward a receiver on Earth....
Briefs: Software
Symbolic Constraint Maintenance Grid
Version 3.1 of Symbolic Constraint Maintenance Grid (SCMG) is a software system that provides a general conceptual framework for utilizing pre-existing programming techniques to perform symbolic transformations of data. SCMG also provides a language (and an associated communication method and protocol) for...
Briefs: Software
Thermal Model of a Current-Carrying Wire in a Vacuum
A computer program implements a thermal model of an insulated wire carrying electric current and surrounded by a vacuum. The model includes the effects of Joule heating, conduction of heat along the wire, and radiation of heat from the outer surface of the insulation on the wire. The model takes...
Briefs: Software
Compressible Flow Toolbox
The Compressible Flow Toolbox is primarily a MATLAB-language implementation of a set of algorithms that solve approximately 280 linear and nonlinear classical equations for compressible flow. The toolbox is useful for analysis of one-dimensional steady flow with either constant entropy, friction, heat transfer, or Mach...
Briefs: Software
Code for Multiblock CFD and Heat-Transfer Computations
The NASA Glenn Research Center General Multi-Block Navier-Stokes Convective Heat Transfer Code, Glenn- HT, has been used extensively to predict heat transfer and fluid flow for a variety of steady gas turbine engine problems. Recently, the Glenn-HT code has been completely rewritten in Fortran...
Briefs: Software
General Flow-Solver Code for Turbomachinery Applications
Phantom is a computer code intended primarily for real-fluid turbomachinery problems. It is based on Corsair, an ideal-gas turbomachinery code, developed by the same authors, which evolved from the ROTOR codes from NASA Ames. Phantom is applicable to real and ideal fluids, both compressible...
Briefs: Software
Probabilistic Prediction of Lifetimes of Ceramic Parts
ANSYS/CARES/PDS is a software system that combines the ANSYS Probabilistic Design System (PDS) software with a modified version of the Ceramics Analysis and Reliability Evaluation of Structures Life (CARES/Life) Version 6.0 software. [A prior version of CARES/Life was reported in "Program for...
Briefs: Software
STRANAL-PMC Version 2.0
Version 2.0 of the Strain Rate Dependent Analysis of Polymer Matrix Composites (STRANAL-PMC) software has been released. A prior version was reported in "Analyzing Loads and Strains in Polymer-Matrix Composites" (LEW- 17227), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 26, No. 11 (November 2002), page 36. To recapitulate: Modified versions of...
Briefs: Software
Micromechanics and Piezo Enhancements of HyperSizer
The commercial HyperSizer aerospacecomposite- material-structure-sizing software has been enhanced by incorporating capabilities for representing coupled thermal, piezoelectric, and piezomagnetic effects on the levels of plies, laminates, and stiffened panels. This enhancement is based on a...
Briefs: Software
Loci-STREAM Version 0.9
Loci-STREAM is an evolving computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software tool for simulating possibly chemically reacting, possibly unsteady flows in diverse settings, including rocket engines, turbomachines, oil refineries, etc. Loci-STREAM implements a pressure-based flow-solving algorithm that utilizes unstructured grids....
Briefs: Software
Reconfigurable Software for Controlling Formation Flying
Software for a system to control the trajectories of multiple spacecraft flying in formation is being developed to reflect underlying concepts of (1) a decentralized approach to guidance and control and (2) reconfigurability of the control system, including reconfigurability of the software...
Briefs: Software
Analyzing Aeroelastic Stability of a Tilt-Rotor Aircraft
Proprotor Aeroelastic Stability Analysis, now at version 4.5 (PASTA 4.5), is a FORTRAN computer program for analyzing the aeroelastic stability of a tilt-rotor aircraft in the airplane mode of flight. The program employs a 10-degree-of-freedom (DOF), discrete- coordinate, linear mathematical...
Briefs: Software
Tracking Positions and Attitudes of Mars Rovers
The Surface Attitude Position and Pointing (SAPP) software, which runs on computers aboard the Mars Exploration Rovers, tracks the positions and attitudes of the rovers on the surface of Mars. Each rover acquires data on attitude from a combination of accelerometer readings and images of the Sun...
Briefs: Software
Simulating Responses of Gravitational-Wave Instrumentation
Synthetic LISA is a computer program for simulating the responses of the instrumentation of the NASA/ESA Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission, the purpose of which is to detect and study gravitational waves. Synthetic LISA generates synthetic time series of the LISA fundamental...
Briefs: Software
SOFTC: A Software Correlator for VLBI
SOFTC is an advanced software implementation of a signal correlator for verylong- baseline interferometry (VLBI) for measuring positions of natural celestial objects and distant spacecraft. Because of increases in processing speeds of general- purpose computers, software VLBI correlators have become viable...
Briefs: Software
Program for Analyzing Flows in a Complex Network
Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP) version 4 is a generalpurpose computer program for analyzing steady-state and transient flows in a complex fluid network. [GFSSP version 2.01 was reported in a prior issue of NASA Tech Briefs.] The program is capable of modeling compressibility,...
Briefs: Software
Computing Spacecraft Solar-Cell Damage by Charged Particles
General EQFlux is a computer program that converts the measure of the damage done to solar cells in outer space by impingement of electrons and protons having many different kinetic energies into the measure of the damage done by an equivalent fluence of electrons, each having kinetic...
Briefs: Software
Automated Camera Calibration
Automated Camera Calibration (ACAL) is a computer program that automates the generation of calibration data for camera models used in machine vision systems. Machine vision camera models describe the mapping between points in threedimensional (3D) space in front of the camera and the corresponding points in...

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