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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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Viewgraphs and photographs depict the scope and purpose of the LANDSAT 4 mission as well as all satellite systems. The components and major functions of the flight and ground segments, operational support, communication links, and the hardware and interfaces for processing MSS and TM images are covered.
Conference papers on NASA planning and projected requirements for advanced aerospace electronic systems technology
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Cost effective, safe, and technologically sound applications of automation technology to underground coal mining were identified. The longwall analysis commenced with a general search for government and industry experience of mining automation technology. A brief industry survey was conducted to identify longwall operational, safety, and design problems. The prime automation candidates resulting from the industry experience and survey were: (1) the shearer operation, (2) shield and conveyor pan line advance, (3) a management information system to allow improved mine logistics support, and (4) component fault isolation and diagnostics to reduce untimely maintenance delays. A system network analysis indicated that a 40% improvement in productivity was feasible if system delays associated with all of the above four areas were removed. A technology assessment and conceptual system design of each of the four automation candidate areas showed that state of the art digital computer, servomechanism, and actuator technologies could be applied to automate the longwall system.
This paper reviews recent trends in communications satellites and explains NASA's current interest in geostationary communications platforms. Large communications platforms capable of supporting multiple payloads with common utilities have been examined in a number of studies since 1974 and appear to offer a number of potential advantages. In 1981, an Industry Briefing and Workshop sponsord by NASA focused on the institutional, operational and technical issues that will influence the implementation of geostationary platforms. The workshop identified numerous issues and problem areas that needed more detailed study. To address the issues/problems identified, a NASA geostationary communications platform program has been developed. This program is described, focusing on the initial studies to be performed.
The primary activities carried out for this effort used Mr. Glasgow's communication skills and materials expertise. He worked closely with both the Space Transportation Project Office and the Materials Division, preparing summaries of the weekly Space Transportation Project Office activities for use by the Materials and the Structures Divisions and for distribution to other portions of the GRC. Mr. Glasgow participated in systems analysis and planning sessions of the Program Office, serving as both a representative of the microtechnologists and as a reviewer of the macrotechnologies involved in proposed new launch vehicles. He helped define the technology readiness level of those new vehicle concepts and provided especially critical expertise to provide realistic technical assessments to various vehicle proponents. While a major portion of his work was performed at the GRC site, travel was required to Langley and to Nashville. In addition to the written contributions mentioned above, he presented summaries of Materials Division activities and interests in industry briefings. Mr. Glasgow continued his interest in the copper-chromium-niobium alloy system, a system originally identified by him as a potential rocket engine material and now chosen as baseline for two new rocket engine designs by the leading US builder of rocket engines.
As a research facility, the Glenn Research Center (GRC) trusts and expects all the systems, controlling their facilities to run properly and efficiently in order for their research and operations to occur proficiently and on time. While there are many systems necessary for the operations at GRC, one of those most vital systems is the Central Process Systems (CPS). The CPS controls operations used by GRC's wind tunnels, propulsion systems lab, engine components research lab, and compressor, turbine and combustor test cells. Used widely throughout the lab, it operates equipment such as exhausters, chillers, cooling towers, compressors, dehydrators, and other such equipment. Through parameters such as pressure, temperature, speed, flow, etc., it performs its primary operations on the major systems of Electrical Dispatch (ED), Central Air Dispatch (CAD), Central Air Equipment Building (CAEB), and Engine Research Building (ERB). In order for the CPS to continue its operations at Glenn, a new contract must be awarded. Consequently, one of my primary responsibilities was assisting the Source Evaluation Board (SEB) with the process of awarding the recertification contract of the CPS. The job of the SEB was to evaluate the proposals of the contract bidders and then to present their findings to the Source Selecting Official (SSO). Before the evaluations began, the Center Director established the level of the competition. For this contract, the competition was limited to those companies classified as a small, disadvantaged business. After an industry briefing that explained to qualified companies the CPS and type of work required, each of the interested companies then submitted proposals addressing three components: Mission Suitability, Cost, and Past Performance. These proposals were based off the Statement of Work (SOW) written by the SEB. After companies submitted their proposals, the SEB reviewed all three components and then presented their results to the SSO. While the SEB does not select the company receiving the contract, they can make recommendations based on their findings to the SSO, who actually awards the contract. The SEB began work for this contract in July 2003 by writing the SOW and the selection will tentatively occur July 30, 2004. Contract awarding will take place Aug. 15. Following the awarding, the winning company has a 30-day Phase-in Period beginning Sept. 1,2004 and full performance will begin October 1.
This briefing covers Industrial Control System (ICS) best practices for enhancing cyber protection. The briefing provides a very high-level overview of best practices currently being pursued by NASA as well as by other US government agencies such as NIST and DHS ICS-CERT. All information presented in this slide deck is publicly available and no sensitive information is provided in these slides. These slides will be used to generate discussion around best practices within the international community in the area of ICS cyber protections.
A brief overview of space flight activities is presented. West German contributions to satellite mapping, communication satellites, navigation, Spacelab, diffusion under weightlessness, crystal growth in space, metal bonding, and biochemistry are described. The future of the research in the space station is analyzed.
Our mission is to provide the expertise and infrastructure to test and evaluate spacecraft materials, components, and propulsion systems to enable the safe exploration and use of space.
Silicon material research in the Republic of China (ROC) parallels its development in the electronic industry. A brief outline of the historical development in ROC silicon material research is given. Emphasis is placed on the recent Silane Project managed by the National Science Council, ROC, including project objectives, task forces, and recent accomplishments. An introduction is also given to industrialization of the key technologies developed in this project.
This slide presentation reviews the vision of the Office of JPL's Chief Information Officer for future of information technology (IT) at JPL. This includes a strong working relation with industry to provide cost efficient and effective IT services. This includes a vision of taking desktop to the next level and the process to achieve it and ensuring that JPL becomes a world class IT provider.
Statistics on NASA program of disseminating educational monographs and visual briefs to industries and universities
The Technology Application Center reviewed abstracted literature sources, and selected document data and data gathering techniques which were performed or obtained remotely from space, aircraft or groundbased stations. All of the documentation was related to remote sensing sensors or the remote sensing of the natural resources. Sensors were primarily those operating within the 10 to the minus 8 power to 1 meter wavelength band. Included are NASA Tech Briefs, ARAC Industrial Applications Reports, U.S. Navy Technical Reports, U.S. Patent reports, and other technical articles and reports.
In comparison to current state-of-the-art metallic alloys, ceramic matrix composites (CMC) offer a variety of performance advantages, such as higher temperature capability (greater than the approx.2100 F capability for best metallic alloys), lower density (approx.30-50% metal density), and lower thermal expansion. In comparison to other competing high-temperature materials, CMC are also capable of providing significantly better static and dynamic toughness than un-reinforced monolithic ceramics and significantly better environmental resistance than carbon-fiber reinforced composites. Because of these advantages, NASA, the Air Force, and other U.S. government agencies and industries are currently seeking to implement these advanced materials into hot-section components of gas turbine engines for both propulsion and power generation. For applications such as these, CMC are expected to result in many important performance benefits, such as reduced component cooling air requirements, simpler component design, reduced weight, improved fuel efficiency, reduced emissions, higher blade frequencies, reduced blade clearances, and higher thrust. Although much progress has been made recently in the development of CMC constituent materials and fabrication processes, major challenges still remain for implementation of these advanced composite materials into viable engine components. The objective of this presentation is to briefly review some of those challenges that are generally related to the need to develop physics-based computational approaches to allow CMC fabricators and designers to model (1) CMC processes for fiber architecture formation and matrix infiltration, (2) CMC properties of high technical interest such as multidirectional creep, thermal conductivity, matrix cracking stress, damage accumulation, and degradation effects in aggressive environments, and (3) CMC component life times when all of these effects are interacting in a complex stress and service environment. To put these computational issues in perspective, the various modeling needs within these three areas are briefly discussed in terms of their technical importance and their key controlling mechanistic factors as we know them today. Emphasis is placed primarily on the SiC/SiC ceramic composite system because of its higher temperature capability and enhanced development within the CMC industry. A brief summary is then presented concerning on-going property studies aimed at addressing these CMC modeling needs within NASA in terms of their computational approaches and recent important results. Finally an overview perspective is presented on those key areas where further CMC computational studies are needed today to enhance the viability of CMC structural components for high-temperature applications.
A special focus in this issue is Data acquisition and analysis. Topics covered include : Electronic Components and Circuits; Electronic Systems; Physical Sciences; Materials; Life Sciences; Mechanics; Machinery; Fabrication Technology; and Mathematics and Information Sciences. Also included in this issue are Laser Tech Briefs and Industry Focus: Motion Control/ Positioning Equipment
This paper gives an overview of industrial applications of real-time knowledge based expert systems (KBES's) in the process industries. After a brief overview of the features of a KBES useful in process applications, the general roles of KBES's are covered. A particular focus is diagnostic applications, one of the major applications areas. Many applications are seen as an expansion of supervisory control. The lessons learned from numerous online applications are summarized.