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At least 163 records · Page 9

Vision Screening by Color Photography

Screening test developed for detecting a range of vision defects in eye, including common precursors to amblyopia. Test noninvasive, safe, and administered easily in field by operator with no medical training. Only minimal momentary cooperation of subject required: Thus, test shows promise for use with very young children. Test produces color-slide images of retinas of eyes under specially-controlled lighting conditions. Trained observer screens five children per minute.

Jayroe, R.↗

NASA Global Hawk: A New Tool for Earth Science Research

This slide presentation reviews the Global Hawk, a unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that NASA plans to use for Earth Sciences research. The Global Hawk is the world's first fully autonomous high-altitude, long-endurance aircraft, and is capable of conducting long duration missions. Plans are being made for the use of the aircraft on missions in the Arctic, Pacific and Western Atlantic Oceans. There are slides showing the Global Hawk Operations Center (GHOC), Flight Control and Air Traffic Control Communications Architecture, and Payload Integration and Accommodations on the Global Hawk. The first science campaign, planned for a study of the Pacific Ocean, is reviewed.

Hall, Phill↗

Medical Operations Support for ISS Operations - The Role of the BME Operations Team Leads

This slide presentation reviews the role of the biomedical flight controllers (BMEs), and BME Operations Team Leads (OTLs) in providing medical support for personnel on the International Space Station. This presentation will concentrate on role of the BME OTLs, who provide the integration function across the integration function across all Crew Health Care System (CHeCS) disciplines for operational products and medical procedures.

Janney, Rob↗

SCI Hazard Report Methodology

This slide presentation reviews the methodology in creating a Source Control Item (SCI) Hazard Report (HR). The SCI HR provides a system safety risk assessment for the following Ares I Upper Stage Production Contract (USPC) components (1) Pyro Separation Systems (2) Main Propulsion System (3) Reaction and Roll Control Systems (4) Thrust Vector Control System and (5) Ullage Settling Motor System components.

Mitchell, Michael S.↗

Hyperstability in variable structure systems

A variable structure control law is a discontinuous feedback law whose coefficients switch on hypersurfaces defined in the state space. Feedback systems with variable structure control laws are often referred to as variable structure systems (VSS). The main feature of VSS is the sliding motion which can occur at the intersection of the switching surfaces. Demonstrating existence and reaching in the case of vector control in n-dimensional space is in general a problem in stability of nonlinear systems. The present investigation is concerned with the projection of motion on an m-dimensional subspace, taking into account aspects of the hyperstability concept in VSS design. The considered concepts are illustrated with the aid of an example.

Calise, A. J.↗

Thermally driven piston assembly and position control therefor

A thermally driven piston assembly's housing has (i) a first material slidingly fitted therein, and (ii) at least one plug of a second material slidingly fitted therein and abutting the first material. The first material is one (e.g., a liquid crystal elastomer) that undergoes a stiffness change and/or a dimensional change when subjected to a temperature change in the temperature range of interest. When subjected to the temperature change while in the housing, the first material is restricted to changing dimensionally along a single dimension. The second material retains its shape and size throughout the temperature range of interest. As a result, the plug moves in the housing in correspondence with the dimensional change of the first material or the plug's movement is damped by the stiffness change of the first material.

Thomsen, III, Donald L.↗

A Modular Approach to Model Oscillating Control Surfaces Using Navier Stokes Equations

The use of active controls for rotorcraft is becoming more important for modern aerospace configurations. Efforts to reduce the vibrations of helicopter blades with use of active-controls are in progress. Modeling oscillating control surfaces using the linear aerodynamics theory is well established. However, higher-fidelity methods are needed to account for nonlinear effects, such as those that occur in transonic flow. The aeroelastic responses of a wing with an oscillating control surface, computed using the transonic small perturbation (TSP) theory, have been shown to cause important transonic flow effects such as a reversal of control surface effectiveness that occurs as the shock wave crosses the hinge line. In order to account for flow complexities such as blade-vortex interactions of rotor blades higher-fidelity methods based on the Navier-Stokes equations are used. Reference 6 presents a procedure that uses the Navier-Stokes equations with moving-sheared grids and demonstrates up to 8 degrees of control-surface amplitude, using a single grid. Later, this procedure was extended to accommodate larger amplitudes, based on sliding grid zones. The sheared grid method implemented in EulerlNavier-Stokes-based aeroelastic code ENS AERO was successfully applied to active control design by industry. Recently there are several papers that present results for oscillating control surface using Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. References 9 and 10 report 2-D cases by filling gaps with overset grids. Reference 9 compares integrated forces with the experiment at low oscillating frequencies whereas Ref. 10 reports parametric studies but with no validation. Reference II reports results for a 3D case by modeling the gap region with a deformed grid and compares force results with the experiment only at the mid-span of flap. In Ref. II grid is deformed to match the control surface deflections at the section where the measurements are made. However, there is no indication in Ref. II that the gaps are explicitly modeled as in Ref. 6. Computations using overset grids are reported in Ref. 12 for a case by adding moving control surface to an existing blade but with no validation either with an experiment or another computation.

Navier↗

Remote manipulator with force feed-back

Controller for remote manipulators gives user "feel" for forces required to lift, slide, turn, and otherwise handle objects. Because operator experiences sensations similar to those he would perceive if he handled objects directly, he needs much less skill and training for manipulator than for one with force feedback. It was developed to handle hazardous materials, such as radioactive substances, explosives, or corrosive chemicals. Other possible uses include tracking moving objects, vehicle control, and human interaction with computers (for example, via three dimensional display of computer model).

Hill, J. W.↗

CCSDS SM and C Mission Operations Interoperability Prototype

This slide presentation reviews the prototype of the Spacecraft Monitor and Control (SM&C) Operations for interoperability among other space agencies. This particular prototype uses the German Space Agency (DLR) to test the ideas for interagency coordination.

Lucord, Steven A.↗

Recrystallization as a controlling process in the wear of some f.c.c. metals

Detailed examination of copper specimens after sliding against 440 C steel in liquid methane at speeds up to 25 m/s and loads of up to 2 kg showed the metal comprising the wear surface to possess a fine cell recrystallized structure. Wear proceeded by the plastic shearing of metal in this near surface region without the occurrence of visible metal transfer. A dynamic balance between the intense shear process at the surface and the nucleation of recrystallized grains was proposed to account for the behavior of the metal at the wear surface. Sliding wear experiments were also conducted on Ag, Cu-10% Al, Cu-10% Sn, Ni and Al. It was found that low wear and the absence of heavy metal transfer were associated with those metals observed to undergo recrystallization nucleation without prior recovery.

Bill, R. C.↗

Hot stage and sample cell design for the solidification of transparent materials with and without forced convection

A temperature gradient stage design for optical microscopy is described. Exceptional thermal stability is the major feature. The stage is used to study crystal growth phenomena occurring at the solid-liquid interface. The apparatus is designed to use transparent organic solutions as models for the study of metal-like solidification. The stage provides a controlled thermal environment for unidirectional solidification of low melting temperature materials. Freezing rate is regulated by mechanically sliding in the stage a thin glass cell containing the materials being studied. Two cell assemblies are described. One type is used for convection-free and the other for controlled forced convection studies of the solidification interface.

Kaukler, W. F.↗

Automated single-slide staining device

An automatic single-slide Gram staining device is described. A timer-actuated solenoid controls the dispensing of gentian violet, Gram iodine solution, decolorizer, and 1% aqueous safranin in proper sequence and for the time required for optimum staining. The amount of stain or reagent delivered is controlled by means of stopcocks below each solenoid. Used stains and reagents can be flushed automatically or manually. Smears Gram stained automatically are equal in quality to those prepared manually. The time to complete one Gram cycle is 4.80 min.

Wilkins, J. R.↗

Experiments with diamond-turned metal X-ray mirrors

It is noted that the primary advantages of diamond turning technology for the fabrication of X-ray telescope mirrors is in the smoothness of the finished surface and the control of the position of the cutter afforded by the precision slides and computer-assisted positioners which form the surface. The paper summarizes the Caltech work in attempting to make Wolter Type I telescope mirrors using the diamond turning facilities at the Oak Ridge Y-12 laboratory. Attention is given to such factors as the use of aluminum with copper plating and electroless nickel coating. It is found that although the diamond turning capability of the Y-12 lab is capable of making good X-ray mirror contours, there are problems in the process which have limited the accuracy achieved by this technique.

Garmire, G. P.↗

Construction of a 2- by 2-foot transonic adaptive-wall test section at the NASA Ames Research Center

The development of a new production-size, two-dimensional, adaptive-wall test section with ventilated walls at the NASA Ames Research Center is described. The new facility incorporates rapid closed-loop operation, computer/sensor integration, and on-line interference assessment and wall corrections. Air flow through the test section is controlled by a series of plenum compartments and three-way slide vales. A fast-scan laser velocimeter was built to measure velocity boundary conditions for the interference assessment scheme. A 15.2-cm- (6.0-in.-) chord NACA 0012 airfoil model will be used in the first experiments during calibration of the facility.

Morgan, Daniel G.↗

A segmented mirror antenna for radiometers

An antenna is designed for the radiometer application of the planned NASA Earth Science Geostationary Platforms in the 1990's. The antenna consists of two parts: a regular parabolic dish of 5 meters in diameter which converts the radiation from feeds into a collimated beam, and a movable mirror that redirects the beam to a prescribed scan direction. The mirror is composed of 28 segmented planar conducting plates, mostly one square meter in size. The secondary pattern of the antenna was analyzed based on a physical optics analysis. For frequencies between 50 and 230 GHz, and for a scan range of + or -8 deg (270 beamwidths scan at 230 GHz), the worst calculated beam efficiency is 95 percent. To cover such a wide frequency and scan range, each of the 28 plates is individually controlled for a tilting less than 4 deg, and for a sliding less than 0.5 cm. The sliding is done at discrete steps. At 230 GHz, a step size of 2 mil is sufficient. The plate positions must be reset for each frequency and for each scan direction. Once the position is set, the frequency bandwidth of the antenna is very narrow.

Lee, S. W.↗

Numerical Implementation of Ice Rheology for Europa's Shell

We present a discussion of approximations to the temperature dependent part of the rheology of ice. We have constructed deformation maps using the superplastic rheology of Goldsby & Kohlstedt and find that the rheologies that control convective flow in the Europa's are likely grain boundary sliding and basal slip for a range of grain sizes 0.1 mm < d < 1 cm. We compare the relative merits of two different approximations to the temperature dependence of viscosity and argue that for temperature ranges appropriate to Europa, implementing the non-Newtonian, lab-derived flow law directly is required to accurately judge the onset of convection in the ice shell and temperature gradient in the near-surface ice.

Barr, A. C.↗

Advanced Ceramic Wafer Seals Demonstrated at 2000 deg. F

Durable, high-temperature sliding seals are required in advanced hypersonic engines and around movable control surfaces on future vehicles. These seals must operate at temperatures of 2000 to 2500 F, limit hot gas flow, remain resilient for multiple cycles, and resist scrubbing damage against rough surfaces. Current seal designs do not meet these demanding requirements, so the NASA Glenn Research Center is developing advanced seals and preload devices to overcome these shortfalls. An advanced ceramic wafer seal design and two silicon nitride compression spring designs were evaluated in a series of compression, scrub, and flow tests.

Dunlap, Patrick H.↗