Fin animal antenna Final report
Fin antenna to provide optimum patterns for animal packages interrogated from satellite
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Fin antenna to provide optimum patterns for animal packages interrogated from satellite
Pulsed magnetic core memory element with blocking oscillator feedback for interrogation without loss of digital information
Radiolocation equipment used in Interrogation Recording Location System, and results in remote ground, aircraft, and satellite tracking of elk and black bear
Nimbus 4 Interrogation Recording and Location System meteorological experiment for tropical region upper atmosphere information
Oscillator changes resonant frequency of the LC tank circuit by shunting one of a pair of parallel capacitors. Technique reduces amount of hardware required to interrogate and control remote systems.
Preparation for the Mariner Mars 1971 mission is reported, including an extensive training program for operations personnel during which the primary source of spacecraft data was a computer program simulating the spacecraft. The objectives of a simulation model for training purposes differed from objectives appropriate to a design or analysis model. Model subsystems were designed to provide realistic telemetry data reflecting changes due both to commands and environmental parameters affecting the spacecraft at various times during the mission. The spacecraft is modeled along two separate functional lines. Boolean operations are concentrated in the spacecraft logic model, which determines the spacecraft state or mode, while mathematical operations or algorithms are executed in computational subsystem models. Although logic parameters are interrogated as a part of each computational pass, actual logic model processing occurs only when a change-of-state input is generated by the operations organization. The program design, some of the special characteristics of each of the modeled subsystems, and how the model was used in support of mission operations training are presented.
The VHF transponders of the ATS-1 and ATS-3 geostationary satellites were used in ranging and position fixing experiments. An interrogation signal was transmitted from a ground terminal to ATS-3, which relayed it to the vehicle transponders. The vehicle that was addressed repeated the signal and its response was relayed back through both satellites to the ground terminal, where propagation times were measured; lines-of-position and fixes were computed. The 0.43 second tone-code ranging signal contained a single audio tone frequency. Ambiguity was resolved and user craft identified by a simple digital code. Seven vehicles were used in the test: three aircraft, two ships, an oceanographic buoy, and a truck. Ionospheric and multipath effects were studied. It is concluded that a VHF system could have an accuracy of + or - one nautical mile for ships and aircraft if calibration transponders are used to monitor the ionosphere.
The development of a nondestructive test with the capability to interrogate plated-through holes as small as 0.51 millimeters inside diameter is discussed. The system can detect defects such as holes, voids, cracks, and thin spots that reduce the current carrying capability of plates-through interconnects by 20 percent or more. Efforts were directed toward the design and fabrication of magnetic circuitry mutual coupling probes and to evaluate the effectiveness of these devices for detecting in multilayer board plated-through holes.
Radiotracking and monitoring of free-living animals in natural environments is providing an effective new technique for acquiring information on biological processes, including animal orientation and navigation. To test the practicability of extending the technique by using satellite systems for tracking animals, a female elk was instrumented with an electronic collar. It contained both the Interrogation Recording Location System (IRLS) transponder and a Craighead-Varney ground-tracking transmitter. The elk was successfully tracked and monitored by satellite during month of April 1970. This was the first time an animal had been tracked by satellite on the surface of the earth.
The potential usefulness of acoustic methods for the remote probing of the lower atmosphere is reviewed. Starting with a comparison of the effects of temperature, wind, and humidity fluctuations upon the refractive index of air to electromagnetic and acoustic waves, it is shown that the fluctuations in acoustic refractive index may be expected to be about one thousand times stronger than in the radio case. Since the scattered power is proportional to the square of the refractive index fluctuations, the scatter of acoustic waves may be expected to be roughly one million times stronger than for radio waves. In addition, the million-fold ratio between the velocities of electromagnetic and acoustic waves results in an acoustic system requiring one million times less bandwidth to interrogate a given atmospheric volume.
Design and performance of an analytical system for the evaluation of certain environmental constituents in critical environmental areas of the Quality Reliability and Assurance Laboratory are reported. Developed was a self-contained, integrated, minimum sized unit that detects, interrogates, and records those parameters of the environment dictated for control in large storage facilities, clean rooms, temporarily curtained enclosures, and special working benches. The system analyzes humidity, temperature, hydrocarbons particle size, and particle count within prescribed clean areas.
Test methods and results are presented for the equivalent average input rate of a single-degree-of-freedom gyroscope operated both open loop and with a ternary-logic pulse-torque-to-balance loop during multiaxis angular oscillation. For the open-loop tests, good agreement was obtained with theoretical results. Two-axis testing was performed for oscillations about the Input-Output axes, the Input-Spin axes, and the Spin-Output axes. These tests run in the torque-to-balance mode revealed significant departures from open-loop results in the induced drift rate. An analysis is developed explaining much of the closed-loop data presented. Test data for the gryoscope in a ternary torque-to-balance loop with constant input rates is presented. The tests demonstrate that the instrument rate linearity does not change with interrogation frequency from 3,600 to 14,400 Hz if the torque coil is tuned to offer a resistive load to the current switch. Analysis cited shows that gyroscope lag compensation eliminates multiple pulsing and other equivalent forms of degraded resolution in a wide variety of quantizing loops. This result is test verified for the ternary delta-modulator loop.
Laser velocimeter provides simultaneous orthogonal measurements in manner which minimizes many problems attending prior systems, and allows spatial traversing of flowfield in order to obtain velocity profiles. Velocimeter permits rapid interrogation of unsteady flows where area of interest is of the order of one meter in extent and flow does not vary appreciably over time of about one second.
PL360 is a phrase-structured programming language which provides the facilities of a symbolic machine language for the IBM 360 computers. An automatic process, syntax-directed documentation, is described which acquires programming documentation through the syntactical analysis of a program, followed by the interrogation of the originating programmer. This documentation can be dispensed through reports of file query replies when other programmers later need to know the program structure and its details. A key principle of the programming documentation process is that it is managed solely on the basis of the syntax of programs.
The principles involved in the angular alignment of the inertial reference by nondirectional data from radio aids are developed and compared with conventional methods of alignment such as gyro-compassing and pendulous vertical determination. The specific problem is considered of the space shuttle reentry and a proposed technique for the alignment of the inertial reference system some time before landing. A description is given of the digital simulation of a transponder interrogation system and of its interaction with the inertial navigation system. Data from reentry simulations are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of in-flight inertial system alignment. Concluding remarks refer to other potential applications such as space shuttle orbit insertion and air navigation of conventional aircraft.
A total of 70 individual nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques are described. Information is presented that permits ease of comparison of the merits and limitations of each technique with respect to various NDE problems. An NDE technique classification system is presented. It is based on the system that was adopted by the National Materials Advisory Board (NMAB). The classification system presented follows the NMAB system closely with the exception of additional categories that have been added to cover more advanced techniques presently in use. The rationale of the technique is explained. The format provides for a concise description of each technique, the physical principles involved, objectives of interrogation, example applications, limitations of each technique, a schematic illustration, and key reference material. Cross-index tabulations are also provided so that particular NDE problems can be referred to appropriate techniques.
During each 4-min satellite interrogation period the Explorer 32 density gages measured the atmospheric density approximately every 2 sec. Over certain segments of the satellite orbit these measurements determined the neutral atmospheric density scale height. The scale heights measured at an altitude of 400 (plus or minus 50) km have been analyzed to infer thermospheric temperatures. The results confirm an earlier conclusion from the density data of the same experiment that the diurnal temperature variation is latitude dependent.
Switch presently provides remote control switching, by radio signals, or pollution sampling devices. Can be used for remote weather station interrogation, firing of pyrotechnics, control of dangerous equipment, or control of device in location where it is impractical to run metallic conductors because of time limitations, distance, or terrain.