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At least 325 records · Page 18

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NASA NTRS2004

Data Longevity Beyond 2010

The current cache of S/X-band geodetic/astrometric VLBI data accumulated since 1979 is approx. 5 million observations and is increasing by approx. 300,000 observations per year. The long time interval and access to all such VLBI data for re-analysis have contributed to their usefulness for the terrestrial and celestial reference frames, Earth orientation parameters, tidal and non-tidal loading, and troposphere. While data access and integrity have been maintained through the Mark III data base system as storage devices and media have evolved, past transitions have been major projects. A new format and retention concept to ensure eternal archiving and access should make use of self-documentation, generalized media, network connectivity and multiple redundancy. Similarly permanent organizations or sequences of organizations are also necessary.

Ma, Chopo↗

NASA NTRS2006

Single Event Effects Test Results for the Actel ProASIC Plus and Altera Stratix-II Field Programmable Gate Arrays

This work describes radiation testing of Actel's ProASIC Plus and Altera's Stratix-II FPGAs. The Actel Device Under Test (DUT) was a ProASIC Plus APA300-PQ208 nonvolatile, field reprogrammable device which is based on a 0.22micron flash-based LVCMOS technology. Limited investigation has taken place into flash based FPGA technologies, therefore this test served as a preliminary reference point for various SEE behaviors. The Altera DUT was a Stratix-II EP2S60F1020C4. Single Event Upset (SEU) and Single Event Latchup (SEL) were the focus of these studies. For the Actel, a latchup test was done at an effective LET of 75.0 MeV-sq cm/mg at room temperature, and no latchup was detected when irradiated to a total fluence of 1 x 10(exp 7) particles/sq cm. The Altera part was shown to latchup at room temperature.

heavy ions↗

NASA NTRS2007

Small Aircraft RF Interference Path Loss Measurements

Interference to aircraft radio receivers is an increasing concern as more portable electronic devices are allowed onboard. Interference signals are attenuated as they propagate from inside the cabin to aircraft radio antennas mounted on the outside of the aircraft. The attenuation level is referred to as the interference path loss (IPL) value. Significant published IPL data exists for transport and regional category airplanes. This report fills a void by providing data for small business/corporate and general aviation aircraft. In this effort, IPL measurements are performed on ten small aircraft of different designs and manufacturers. Multiple radio systems are addressed. Along with the typical worst-case coupling values, statistical distributions are also reported that could lead to more meaningful interference risk assessment.

Nguyen, Truong X.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Small Aircraft RF Interference Path Loss

Nguyen, Truong X.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Spatial Standard Observer

The present invention relates to devices and methods for the measurement and/or for the specification of the perceptual intensity of a visual image. or the perceptual distance between a pair of images. Grayscale test and reference images are processed to produce test and reference luminance images. A luminance filter function is convolved with the reference luminance image to produce a local mean luminance reference image . Test and reference contrast images are produced from the local mean luminance reference image and the test and reference luminance images respectively, followed by application of a contrast sensitivity filter. The resulting images are combined according to mathematical prescriptions to produce a Just Noticeable Difference, JND value, indicative of a Spatial Standard Observer. SSO. Some embodiments include masking functions. window functions. special treatment for images lying on or near border and pre-processing of test images.

Watson, Andrw B.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Spatial Standard Observer

The present invention relates to devices and methods for the measurement and/or for the specification of the perceptual intensity of a visual image, or the perceptual distance between a pair of images. Grayscale test and reference images are processed to produce test and reference luminance images. A luminance filter function is convolved with the reference luminance image to produce a local mean luminance reference image. Test and reference contrast images are produced from the local mean luminance reference image and the test and reference luminance images respectively, followed by application of a contrast sensitivity filter. The resulting images are combined according to mathematical prescriptions to produce a Just Noticeable Difference, JND value, indicative of a Spatial Standard Observer, SSO. Some embodiments include masking functions, window functions, special treatment for images lying on or near borders and pre-processing of test images.

Watson, Andrew B.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Wind Tunnel Testing of Active Flow Control on High-Lift Common Research Model

A 10%-scale high-lift version of the Common Research Model (CRM-HL) and an Active Flow Control (AFC) version of the model equipped with a simple-hinged flap (CRM-SHLAFC) were successfully tested. The tests were performed in the 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel (14x22) at the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC). The CRM-HL has a set of 37° inboard and outboard single-element Fowler flaps. The CRM-SHL-AFC has a set of 50° inboard and 55° outboard simple-hinged flaps equipped with integrated modular AFC cartridges on the flap shoulder. Both high-lift configurations share the same 30° slats and engine nacelle. Three new types of AFC devices were examined: the Double-Row Sweeping Jets (DRSWJ), the Alternating Pulsed Jets (APJ), and the High Efficiency Low Power (HELP) actuators. The DRSWJ and the APJ actuators used two rows of unsteady jets, whereas the HELP actuators used a combination of unsteady and steady jets, to overcome strong adverse pressure gradients while minimizing the mass flow usage. Nozzle pressure ratio, mass flow consumption and the power coefficient, which takes account of both supply air pressure and mass flow usage for the actuators, were used for judging the performance efficiency of the AFC devices. A prestall lift performance degradation for the CRM-HL configuration was resolved with a properly placed nacelle chine. The configuration with nacelle chine was chosen as the representative reference conventional high-lift case for comparison with the CRMSHL- AFC. The AFC-induced lift coefficient increment (DCL) was maintained for the entire lift curve over the CRM-SHL-AFC case with no AFC for almost all flow-control cases examined. The lift curve of the reference CRM-HL have a slightly steeper slope compared to those of the CRM-SHL-AFC configurations. The HELP actuation concept was extremely effective in controlling flow separation in the “linear region” of the curves comparing lift coefficient to mass flow rate. The HELP actuation achieved a targeted DCL of 0.50 using a moderate amount of mass flow and supply air pressure. The CRM-SHL-AFC configuration equipped with HELP actuation was able to match or exceed the lift performance of the reference conventional high-lift configuration (i.e., CRM-HL equipped with a nacelle chine), thus meeting the NASA Advanced Air Transport Technology (AATT) project goal.

Lin, John C.↗

NASA NTRS2003

Wireless Phone Threat Assessment and New Wireless Technology Concerns for Aircraft Navigation Radios

To address the concern for cellular phone electromagnetic interference to aircraft radios, a radiated emission measurement process was developed for two dominant digital standards of wireless handsets. Spurious radiated emissions were efficiently characterized from devices tested in either a semi-anechoic or reverberation chamber, in terms of effective radiated power. Eight representative handsets (four from each digital standard) were commanded to operate while varying their radio transmitter parameters (power, modulation, etc.). This report provides a detailed description of the measurement process and resulting data, which may subsequently be used by others as a basis of consistent evaluation of other portable transmitters using a variety of wireless transmission protocols. Aircraft interference path loss and navigation radio interference threshold data from numerous reference documents, standards, and NASA partnerships were compiled. Using these data, a preliminary risk assessment is provided for wireless phone interference to aircraft Localizer, Glideslope, Very High Frequency Omni directional Range, and Global Positioning Satellite radio receivers on typical transport airplanes. The report identifies where existing data for device emissions, interference path loss, and navigation radio interference thresholds need to be extended for an accurate risk assessment for wireless transmitters in aircraft.

Ely, Jay J.↗

NASA NTRS1967

Device measures static friction of magnetic tape

Device measures the coefficient of static friction of magnetic tape over a range of temperatures and relative humidities. It uses a strain gage to measure the force of friction between a reference surface and the tape drawn at a constant velocity of approximately 0.0001 inch per second relative to the reference surface.

Cole, P. T.↗

NASA NTRS1971

Performance evaluation system for inertial navigation equipment

Testing system studies inertial characteristics of gyroscopic devices. System consisting of instrument support package, dynamic test table, torque control electronics, and real-time computer evaluates performance of prototype gyroscopic strapdown units in inertial-grade attitude-reference systems. System is applicable to commercial aircraft.

Mc Kern, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1975

Measuring snow cover using satellite imagery during 1973 and 1974 melt season: North Santiam, Boise, and Upper Snake Basins, phase 1

Measurements are examined of snow coverage during the snow-melt season in 1973 and 1974 from LANDSAT imagery for the three Columbia River Subbasins. Satellite derived snow cover inventories for the three test basins were obtained as an alternative to inventories performed with the current operational practice of using small aircraft flights over selected snow fields. The accuracy and precision versus cost for several different interactive image analysis procedures was investigated using a display device, the Electronic Satellite Image Analysis Console. Single-band radiance thresholding was the principal technique employed in the snow detection, although this technique was supplemented by an editing procedure involving reference to hand-generated elevation contours. For each data and view measured, a binary thematic map or "mask" depicting the snow cover was generated by a combination of objective and subjective procedures. Photographs of data analysis equipment (displays) are shown.

Wiegman, E. J.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Status of the microwave power transmission components for the solar power satellite

During the 1970-1980 time period a substantial advance has been made in developing all portions of a microwave power transmission system for the solar power satellite (SPS). The most recent advances pertain to the transmitting portion of the system in the satellite and are based upon experimental observations of the use of the magnetron combined with a passive directional device to convert it into a highly efficient directional amplifier with excellent low-noise properties and potentially very long life. The ability of its microwave output to track a phase reference makes it possible to combine it with many other radiating units to provide a highly coherent microwave beam. The ability of its output to track an amplitude reference while operating from a dc power source with varying voltage makes it possible to eliminate most of the power conditioning equipment that would otherwise be necessary.

Brown, W. C.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Optical investigation of Comet Halley

The physical properties of Comet P/Halley are being monitored from the ground using state of the art optical detectors. The long time base (1982-present) of the observations provides a unique record of the development of activity in a single comet. In addition, physical properties of other comets are measured to provide a reference against which Comet Halley may be compared. Results for the past year include: (1) publication of the first results on the surface brightness profiles of dust comets; (2) charge coupled device measurements of Comet Bowell show that the activity of comets can persist at least to heliocentric distances R = 13.6 AU; (3) a study of the back-scattering phase angle dependences of 5 comets (including Halley) shows evidence for small linear phase coefficients in each case; (4) temporal monitoring of P/Halley continues.

Jewitt, David↗

NASA NTRS1991

Particulate impacts on the UHCRE cosmic ray experiment teflon covers: The ESA programme

The optical scanning equipment at the University of Kent Unit for Space Science consists of a 102.5 by 42.5 cm computer controlled motorized stage which has a reproduction accuracy of 30 microns over the entire area. This is used with an optical microscope connected to two charge coupled device video cameras which can be used to obtain stereo color images of any features found. A coordinate system can be defined on each cover by means of two or more reference marks which allow a feature to be located using different equipment such as a scanning electron microscope, providing two known marks can be found. By using back illumination, penetrating features can be found automatically, and their sizes, circularity, and positions logged for later revisiting either on the optical system or using a scanning electron microscope.

Mcdonnell, J. A. M.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Development and Demonstration of a Self-Calibrating Pseudolite Array for Task Level Control of a Planetary Rover

Pseudolites can extend the availability of GPS-type positioning systems to a wide range of applications not possible with satellite-only GPS. One such application is Mars exploration, where the centimeter-level accuracy and high repeatability of CDGPS would make it attractive for rover positioning during autonomous exploration, sample collection, and habitat construction if it were available. Pseudolites distributed on the surface would allow multiple rovers and/or astronauts to share a common navigational reference. This would help enable cooperation for complicated science tasks, reducing the need for instructions from Earth and increasing the likelihood of mission success. Conventional GPS Pseudolite arrays require that the devices be pre-calibrated through a Survey of their locations, typically to sub-centimeter accuracy. This is a problematic task for robots on the surface of another planet. By using the GPS signals that the Pseudolites broadcast, however, it is possible to have the array self-survey its own relative locations, creating a SelfCalibrating Pseudolite Array (SCPA). This requires the use of GPS transceivers instead of standard pseudolites. Surveying can be done either at carrier- or code-phase levels. An overview of SCPA capabilities, system requirements, and self-calibration algorithms is presented in another work. The Aerospace Robotics Laboratory at Statif0id has developed a fully operational prototype SCPA. The array is able to determine the range between any two transceivers with either code- or carrier-phase accuracy, and uses this inter-transceiver ranging to determine the at-ray geometry. This paper presents results from field tests conducted at Stanford University demonstrating the accuracy of inter-transceiver ranging and its viability and utility for array localization, and shows how transceiver motion may be utilized to refine the array estimate by accurately determining carrier-phase integers and line biases. It also summarizes the overall system requirements and architecture, and describes the hardware and software used in the prototype system.

Rock, Stephen M.↗

NASA NTRS2008

Testing guideline for single event gate rupture (SEGR) of power MOSFETs

The purpose of this document is two-fold. First, the document lists and discusses many of the issues important to understand when testing power MOSFETs. Second, the recommended approach for using radiation test data to define the device application requirements is presented. These include SEE rate calculation, data analysis, and derating guidelines. A significant amount of work has been done on the basic effects of SEB and SEGR. References are supplied where seminal work has been done on the topic at hand. The reader is urged to review the references if the testing issues or mission application at hand are complex.

Scheick, Leif↗

NASA NTRS2010

A 311-GHz Fundamental Oscillator Using InP HBT Technology

This oscillator uses a single-emitter 0.3- m InP heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) device with maximum frequency of oscillation (fmax) greater than 500 GHz. Due to high conductor and substrate losses at submillimeterwave frequencies, a primary challenge is to efficiently use the intrinsic device gain. This was done by using a suitable transmission-line media and circuit topology. The passive components of the oscillator are realized in a twometal process with benzocyclobutene (BCB) used as the primary transmission line dielectric. The circuit was designed using microstrip transmission lines. The oscillator is implemented in a common-base topology due to its inherent instability, and the design includes an on-chip resonator, outputmatching circuitry, and an injection-locking port, the port being used to demonstrate the injection-locking prin ciple. A free-running frequency of 311.6 GHz has been measured by down-converting the signal. Ad di tionally, injection locking has been successfully demonstrated with up to 17.8 dB of injection-locking gain. The injection-locking reference signal is generated using a 2 20 GHz frequency synthesizer, followed by a doubler, active tripler, a W-band amplifier, and then a passive tripler. Therefore, the source frequency is multiplied 18 times to obtain a signal above 300 GHz that can be used to injection lock the oscillator. Measurement shows that injection locking has improved the phase noise of the oscillator and can be also used for synchronizing a series of oscillators. A signal conductor is implemented near the BCP -InP interface and the topside of the BCB layer is fully metallized as a signal ground. Because the fields are primarily constrained in the lower permittivity BCB region, this type of transmission line is referred to as an inverted microstrip. In addition, both common-emitter and commonbase circuits were investigated to determine optimum topology for oscillator design. The common -base topology required smaller amount of feedback than the common-emitter design, therefore preserving device gain, and was chosen for the oscillator design. The submillimeter-wave region offers several advantages for sensors and communication systems, such as high resolution and all-weather imaging due to the short-wavelength, and improved communication speeds by access to greater frequency bandwidth. This oscillator circuit is a prototype of the first HBT oscillator operating above 300 GHz. Additional development is necessary to increase the output power of the circuit for radar and imaging applications.

Gaier, Todd↗

NASA NTRS2004

Space Network Devices Developed

The NASA Glenn Research Center through a contract with Spectrum Astro, Inc., has been developing space network hardware as an enabling technology using open systems interconnect (OSI) standards for space-based communications applications. The OSI standard is a well-recognized layered reference model that specifies how data should be sent node to node in a communications network. Because of this research and technology development, a space-qualifiable Ethernet-based network interface card (similar to the type found in a networked personal computer) and the associated four-port hub were designed and developed to flight specifications. During this research and development, there also have been many lessons learned for determining approaches for migrating existing spacecraft architectures to an OSI-network-based platform. Industry has recognized the benefits of targeting hardware developed around OSI standards such as Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or similar protocols for use in future generations of space communication systems. Some of these tangible benefits include overall reductions in mission schedule and cost and in system complexity. This development also brings us a step closer to the realization of a principal investigator on a terrestrial Internet site being able to interact with space platform assets in near real time. To develop this hardware, Spectrum Astro first conducted a technology analysis of alternatives study. For this analysis, they looked at the features of three protocol specifications: Ethernet (IEEE 802.3), Firewire (IEEE 1394), and Spacewire (IEEE 1355). A thorough analysis was performed on the basis of criteria such as current protocol performance and suitability for future space applications. Spectrum Astro also projected future influences such as cost, hardware and software availability, throughput performance, and integration procedures for current and transitive space architectures. After a thorough analysis, Ethernet was chosen because it was seen as the best longer term fit because of the prevalent commercial market; the current and projected availability of hardware, software, and development tools; and the ease of architecture integration.

Jones, Robert E.↗