Tech Briefs

Topics:

A comprehensive library of technical briefs from engineering experts at NASA and major government, university, and commercial laboratories covering all aspects of innovations in electronics, software, photonics, imaging, motion control, automation, sensors, test, materials, manufacturing, mechanical, and mechatronics.

-1
11460
30
Briefs: Materials

Ion-beam-deposited surface layers of diamond-like carbon (DLC) on fine-grain chemical-vapor-deposited (CVD) diamond have been found to be effective in reducing friction and wear in a...

Feature Image
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Microscopic forced-flow heat-transfer systems containing heat exchangers, flow channels, electrostatically driven peristaltic pumps, and related components have been proposed. These...

Feature Image
Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Charge-coupled devices (CCDs) of a type developed previously for imaging in ultraviolet light have been found to be useful as detectors of electrons and other charged particles with kinetic...

Feature Image
Briefs: Materials

Two poly(arylene ether phosphine oxide)s (PAEPOs) have been found to be suitable as matrix and coating materials for composite-material (matrix/fiber) tanks and pipes that contain...

Feature Image
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

A methodology for designing robots provides for satisfying both safety and performance requirements. Heretofore, most robot-design efforts have been focussed on maximizing performance, with only...

Feature Image
Briefs: Motion Control

Linear-translation motors containing inertial-reaction masses driven by magnetostrictive actuator elements are undergoing development. These motors could be used to make fine position...

Feature Image
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Pulse-tube Refrigerator Unit

Pulse-tube Refrigerators can be operated over a wide range of temperatures. These units can be used in numerous space and commercial refrigeration applications, including food refrigerator/freezers, laboratory freezers, and freeze dryers. Pulse-tube Refrigerators can also be used to cool detectors and electronic...

Briefs: Materials
Device for High-Pressure Fused Deposition of Engineering Polymers From Feed Rods

A more versatile delivery system for fused deposition has recently been developed. This system uses a very stiff, precise, and compact actuator to drive a small piston/cylinder extruder that has a heated nozzle. Because feed rods are used as the feed material, this...

Briefs: Software
Application Specific Integrated Circuit Physical Layout for the RSDL ASIC

An integrated circuit physical layout has been developed for the RSDL ASIC™ — an integrated circuit that encodes telemetry data and transfers the data (which are grouped together in transfer frames) to a radio transmitter. The RSDL ASIC is described in "ASIC for...

Briefs: Materials

A modified alloy, known as Modified PWA1484, is a single-crystal nickel-base superalloy, developed under a NASA Marshall Space Flight Center contract for use as a turbine blade and vane alloy for the...

Feature Image
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Software Models Processes in a Gaseous Chemical Reactor

The Simple Analysis of Materials Processing Reactors (SAMPR) computer code is meant for the analysis of plasma and nonplasma processes used in manufacturing semiconductors. The code can also be used to analyze any chemical-processing reactor with gaseous (but not liquid) streams.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Estimating Attitude From GPS Measurements on One Antenna

A technique for estimating the boresight direction of a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver antenna involves utilization of the relationship between the strengths of received signals and the direction-dependent antenna gain pattern. The technique is fundamentally different from, and...

Briefs: Physical Sciences
Automated Calibration of Temperature Transducers

An automated system of laboratory equipment and computer hardware and software reduces the time that technicians must spend in calibrating temperature transducers. The laboratory equipment includes a controlled-temperature bath, two digital multimeters for processing the outputs of two...

Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Over the past year, the Structural Dynamics and Loads Branch of Marshall Space Flight Center has been calculating prelaunch ground winds for several different launch-vehicle configurations....

Feature Image
Briefs: Photonics/Optics

The figure schematically shows a micromachined Fabry-Perot interferometer that, when fully developed, would be part of a two-dimensional array of such interferometers in a...

Feature Image
Briefs: Information Technology

The Automated Nonconformance System, based at Stennis Space Center, is a computer network dedicated to administration of inspections and repairs of rocket engines. This automated...

Feature Image
Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Performance of a Soft Digital-Data-Transition Tracking Loop

A report discusses the performance of a soft digital-data-transition tracking loop (DTTL) in a radio receiver that recovers digital data conveyed by binary phase-shift keying. The DTTL is used as a symbol synchronizer; it provides symbol timing to essential parts of the receiver. The...

Briefs: Physical Sciences
Solar/Infrared Aerobots for Exploring Several Planets

A report discusses a class of balloon-borne robotic instrumentation systems that have been proposed for use in exploring Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The balloons would be of the Montgolfier type; that is, buoyancy would be achieved through heating of atmospheric gases...

Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Computer System for Managing Construction Projects

An automated system of computer hardware and software has been developed for managing construction projects at Stennis Space Center. This system replaces an older collection of paper-based subsystems, wherein documents were copied, filed, and distributed in labor-intensive processes. Data...

Briefs: Physical Sciences
Analysis of Stresses and Deflections in RTDs

A report presents an analysis of stresses and deflections in resistance temperature detectors (RTDs) of various model numbers with standard sizes and shapes. The RTDs are assumed to be installed in pipes that contain flows of oxygen and hydrogen in a test facility at Stennis Space Center. The...

Briefs: Information Technology

The Nondestructive Inspection and Evaluation Management System (NIMS), based at Stennis Space Center, is a computer network dedicated to administration of a large data base pertaining to...

Feature Image
Briefs: Physical Sciences
Carbon/Carbon Shield/Antenna Structure

A proposed lightweight, off-axis reflector structure for a microwave communication antenna would be made of a carbon/carbon composite material. The structure was conceived for use aboard the Solar Probe spacecraft, where it would also serve as a shield to protect the spacecraft against solar radiation at...

Briefs: Electronics & Computers
ASIC Physical Layout for the HCD ASIC

An integrated circuit (IC) physical layout has been developed for the HCD ASIC - an application-specific integrated circuit that decodes digital command signals transmitted from a ground station to a spacecraft (uplink commands). The HCD ASIC is described in "Hardware-Command-Decoding ASIC" (NPO-19615),...

Briefs: Electronics & Computers
Micromachined Tunneling Accelerometer for Use in Outer Space

Two short reports describe a micromachined quantum-mechanical-tunneling accelerometer and radiation-hardened support electronics designed for use in outer space. Like the micromachined tunneling accelerometers described previously in NASA Tech Briefs, this device is based on the use...

Briefs: Materials
Muscle Wires for Planetary-Exploration Robots

A report proposes the use of muscle wires as mechanical actuators for planetary-exploration robots. Muscle wires are commercially available in kit form in the hobby market, and have been described (though not explicitly called "muscle wires") in previous articles in NASA Tech Briefs. A muscle wire...

Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Hybrid Propulsion System for Returning a Sample From Mars

A paper suggests the development of a hybrid rocket engine and associated equipment for returning a sample of material from Mars at relatively low cost. In a hybrid rocket engine, a solid fuel is burned by use of a liquid or gaseous oxidizer, the flow of which can be throttled to control...

Briefs: Materials

Two techniques have been proposed to reduce thermal-expansion mismatches between (a) substrates made of silicon, silicon-based ceramics, and silicon-based-ceramic composite...

Feature Image
Briefs: Electronics & Computers

A hardware-command-decoding application-specific integrated circuit (HCD ASIC) is designed to decode digital command signals transmitted from a ground station to a spacecraft (uplink commands). Implemented in...

Feature Image
Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Mobile robots that would resemble earthworms have been proposed for use in exploring remote, hostile, or inaccessible terrain surface and subsurface environments. This class of robots would be a special case...

Feature Image

Webcasts

Feature Image
On-Demand Webinars: Defense

From Data to Decision: How AI Enhances Warfighter Readiness

Feature Image
Upcoming Webinars: Aerospace

April Battery & Electrification Summit

Feature Image
Upcoming Webinars: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Tech Update: 3D Printing for Transportation in 2024

Feature Image
Upcoming Webinars: Materials

Unleashing Epoxy's Potential: Ensuring Hermetic Sealing in Modern...

Feature Image
Upcoming Webinars: Test & Measurement

Building an Automotive EMC Test Plan

Feature Image
Upcoming Webinars: Aerospace

The Moon and Beyond from a Thermal Perspective

Videos