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Circuit indicates when receiver is locked on pseudorandom-noise-coded signal. Circuit is used for reception of such digitally coded signals as scrambled voice messages or scrambled video. Circuit determines when receiver generated code is correct and synchronized with incoming signal so that receiver can track signal.
The relationship between the internal noise environment of helicopters and the ability of personnel to understand commands and instructions was studied. A test program was conducted to relate speech intelligibility to a standard measurement called Articulation Index. An acoustical simulator was used to provide noise environments typical of Army helicopters. Speech material (command sentences and phonetically balanced word lists) were presented at several voice levels in each helicopter environment. Recommended helicopter internal noise criteria, based on speech communication, were derived and the effectiveness of hearing protection devices were evaluated.
Methods of measuring the composite acoustic environment of helicopters in order to quantify the effective acoustic environment of the crewmen and to assess the real acoustic hazards of the personnel are examined. It is indicated that the attenuation characteristics of the helmets and hearing protectors and the variables of the physiology of the human ear be accounted for in determining the effective acoustic environment of Army helicopter crewmen as well as the acoustic hazards of voice communications systems noise.
NATO-3C, the third in a series of NATO defense-related communication satellites, is scheduled to be launched on a delta vehicle from the Eastern Test Range no earlier than November 15, 1978. NATO-3A and -3B were successfully launched by Delta vehicles in April 1976 and January 1977, respectively. The NATO-3C spacecraft will be capable of transmitting voice, data, facsimile, and telex messages among military ground stations. The launch vehicle for the NATO-3C mission will be the Delta 2914 configuration. The launch vehicle is to place the spacecraft in a synchronous transfer orbit. The spacecraft Apogee Kick motor is to be fired at fifth transfer orbit apogee to circularize its orbit at geosynchronous altitude of 35,900 km(22,260 miles) above the equator over the Atlantic Ocean somewhere between 45 and 50 degrees W longitude.
Telesat-D (Anik-B) is the first of a series of three (Telesat-D, -E, -F) second generation satellites developed for Telesat/Canada. These second generation satellites will replace three first generation HS-333 satellites (Telesat-A, -B, -C) developed for Telesat/CNADA AND LAUNCHED BY Delta 2914 vehicles in 1972, 1973, and 1975 and successfully placed in orbit as Anik-A1, -A2, -A3. The Telesat-D(Anik-B) satellite will be place in sync-transfer orbit by a Delta 3914 launch vehicle, currently scheduled for launch on December 15, 1978. The Telesat-E and -F(Anik-C1 and -C2) missions are scheduled for launch on the Space Shuttle in 1981 to replace the function of the Anik-A2 and -A3 (Telesat-B, and -C) satellites. The Anik-B will provide point-to-point voice, TV, and data communications traffic to Canada's ten provinces.
A preliminary engineering model of ionospheric interactions with the pilot beam was established and used to demonstrate that the dual frequency baseline pilot beam system might not be viable in the presence of an unstable transmission path. Alternate approaches to remove this difficulty are described. Although ionospheric fluctuations will not significantly degrade beam pointing or raise the sidelobe levels, they will reduce transmission efficiency by upwards of 25%. Mitigating strategies to substantially reduce this effect are proposed. Based on the Klystron noise spectrum, the pilot beam transmitter power was determined as a function of frequency offset from the power beam carrier frequency. The RFI from the pilot beam, on the ground and at geosynchronous orbit is shown. Noise levels on the earth's surface due to the SPS are presented as a function of frequency and the number of SPS systems. Analysis of the communication subsystem indicates that a standard telemetry line of 1.544 MB/s would satisfy both voice and data link requirements. Additional links would be required for TV and radio transmissions.
During a static ground test of a full-scale SRM, measurements of attenuation of the UHF 416.5 MHz Range Safety Signal, the VHF voice link (230 MHz), and of S-band (c. 2.2. GHz) communications links were undertaken. Analyses of these results indicate that measurable attenuation did occur at all test frequencies. The measured attenuation levels are compared with a simple model in which the received signal is identified as that diffracted about the edge of the highly absorbing plume and the signal level in the shadow zone is evaluated using the formula for diffraction at a straight edge. The comparison is satisfactory at VHF and UHF frequencies, and slightly less so at S-band. Reasons for the discrepancies found at higher frequencies are discussed. A revised procedure which appears to relieve the accuracy problem was developed. This procedure is discussed along with applications to high altitude SRM plume attenuation.
The features of a connector concept with respect to timelines and ease of connection by EVA (extravehicular activity), in various mating orientations were evaluated. The connector tests were conducted by thee EVA astronaut test subjects. Each of four test conditions (baseline, off angle, overhead, and with visual obstruction) were run three times by each of the test subjects. Time data were taken on each test run. Visual and voice communications with the subjects were recorded. The tests demonstrated that EVA personnel can perform connection tasks in relatively short times (generally one minute) and the connector configuration was a reasonable design base for such tasks. The in-situ communications and post-test comments indicated that the connector was generally acceptable but requires improvement to its manual interface features.
The rapid growth of communication traffic (voice, data, and video) requires the development of additional frequency bands before the 1990's. The frequencies currently in use for satellite communications at 6/4 GHz are crowded and demands for 14/12 GHz systems are increasing. Projections are that these bands will be filled to capacity by the late 1980's. The next higher frequency band allocated for satellite communications is at 30/20 GHz. For interrelated reasons of efficiency, power level, and system reliability criteria, a candidate for the downlink amplifier in a 30/20 GHz communications' satellite is a dual mode traveling wave tube (TWT) equipped with a highly efficient depressed collector. A summary is given of the analyses which determine the TWT design requirements. The overall efficiency of such a tube is then inferred from a parametric study and from experimental data on multistaged depressed collectors. The expected TWT efficiency at 4 dB below output saturation is 24 percent in the high mode and 22 percent in the low mode.
Ground antennas from 0.6 to 5.0 meters in diameter were used as remote earth terminals by the United States for both wideband (television) and narrowband (voice, data) communication in conjunction with the Canadian Hermes satellite's high power transmitter. Experiments summarized cover teleconferencing and duplex videoconferencing for medical, educational, and civic purposes, as well as the remote interpretation of multilingual broadcasts from the United Nations. The capabilities of the system during real and simulated disasters at airports are assessed. Particular attention is given to miniexperiments for flood control in the Mississippi River basin and in Johnstown, Pennsylvania during the 1977 flood.
The Public Service Communications Satellite (PSCS) program is intended to develop and demonstrate a space system aimed at stimulating future commercial markets in fixed and mobile applications. The services are envisioned for rural areas, regions beyond access to terrestrial systems, or for continuous cross-country applications. The system incorporates a UHF repeater for mobile voice and data experiments; 8 MHz of spectrum is specified for serving 70 channels. This paper describes the PSCS program and discusses some demonstration experiments. A future concept based on large structure multibeam antennas is also discussed.
NASA conducted a Pilot Project during 1975-1976 to determine the extent to which teleconferencing could replace travel to meetings. The network consisted of approximately 34 teleconference rooms and 50 fast facsimile machines, all interconnected on private lines to a master switchboard in Huntsville, Alabama. In addition, portable conference telephones augmented the voice network and experimental video conferences were attempted. Evaluations showed that the teleconferences saved travel costs approximating 21% of the travel budget at a communications cost of 3% of this budget.
Research work is described that was carried out to develop adaptive delta modulators (ADM) capable of encoding black-and-white and color video signals in the presence of high bit error rates. These were a one-dimensional ADM capable of encoding black-and-white pictures and transmitting digitally encoded voice without increase in bandwidth; an ADM capable of encoding color video signals; and an ADM capable of encoding field-sequential color. For each of these three units, the bit rate could be adjusted within the range from 6 to 24 Mbits/sec. The effects of the bit rate and channel errors on the response of the picture are examined.
The need for high data rates from a variety of experiments on Spacelab/Shuttle produced the requirement for the Spacelab High Rate Multiplexer/Demultiplexer system. This system acquires serial digital data at asynchronous bit rates from up to sixteen experiments, two data buses, three voice links, two tape recorders, and a universal time channel. Experiment data rates may vary from 200 bps to 16 Mbps while recorded data rates range from 250 Kbps to 32 Mbps. The High Rate Multiplexer (HRM) accepts these data inputs and forms a serial PCM output at flexible rates up to 48 Mbps. This PCM output is transmitted to ground by a Ku-Band RF link via the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) or recorded on board for delayed transmission. A complementary ground based High Rate Demultiplexer (HRDM) accepts and demultiplexes the composite PCM data at ground processing locations.
The use of communication satellite systems to provide assistance in disaster relief operations on a global basis is presented. Disaster problem phases such as detection, warning, and relief; requirements for the communication capability including remote data collection, imaging and voice broadcast; and the global disaster network are discussed. Utilization of Intelsat and Marisat systems and the size and type of ground terminals required for satellite access is considered, and estimates of communication requirements for a global system and of costs for satellite services to support relief operations are given. NASA disaster related activities including studies of direct-to-home disaster warning and determination of disaster response times are described, and it is concluded that existing international satellite communication systems offer real potential for the establishment of a reliable and flexible network devoted to disaster related communication services.
Portable digital physiological data telemetry system uses less power, is more compact, and provides better data integrity than two previous systems designed to similar specifications. It has 13 data channels and two-way voice communication.
A mixed-user system is described which provides cost-effective communications services to a wide range of user terminal classes, ranging from one or two voice channel support in a direct-to-user mode, to multiple 500 mbps trunking channel support. Advanced satellite capabilities are utilized to minimize the cost of small terminals. In a system with thousands of small terminals, this approach results in minimum system cost.
The baseline 30/30 GHz satellite communication system, designed for cost-effective communications in the years 1990 to 2000, incorporates on-board satellite demodulation and routing of individual 64 kbps digital voice-grade circuits. This level of routing flexibility is necessary to provide efficient communications to the large number of direct-to-user terminals (DTU) projected. The circuit interfacing hardware is distributed among all the DTU and master control stations. The switching circuitry which provides full interconnectivity between 30 to 45 thousand circuits is in the satellite. The DTU terminal cost, perhaps the largest element in the system cost, represents the largest economic value element of the system because it avoids using terrestrial signal distribution and routing and the charges associated with these functions. Satellite baseline design and power requirements for the system are examined.