Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Berkebile, M. J..
Inexpensive internal coating improves reliability of plastic-packaged parts. Coating protects device from effects of humidity and heat and acts as barrier between device and harmful substances generated by plastic-packaging material.
A Solder Committee designated to investigate a solder cracking phenomena occurring on the SATURN electrical/electronic hardware found the cause to be induced stress in the soldered connections rather than faulty soldering techniques. The design of the printed circuit (PC) board assemblies did not allow for thermal expansion of the boards that occurred during normal operation. The difference between the thermal expansion properties of the boards and component lead materials caused stress and cracking in the soldered connections. The failure mechanism and various PC boards component mounting configurations are examined in this report. Effective rework techniques using flanged tubelets, copper tubelets, and soft copper wiring are detailed. Future design considerations to provide adequate strain relief in mounting configurations are included to ensure successful solder terminations.
Inspection and quality control of NASA vehicle and space booster designs
Improved nondestructive test methods using infrared radiation and radioisotope tracers for seal defects and integrated circuit quality control