Alternative Energy and Propulsion Power for Today's U.S. Military

The U.S. military has the most sophisticated weapons systems in the world, but they are fueled and mechanically powered by old technologies. Given the mission of the U.S. military, it is without question the largest oil-using organization of its kind in the world. More than half of the Department ...

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Micro-Propulsion Devices Made of Low-Temperature Co-Fired Ceramics

Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright- Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio

Devices made of LTCCs have significant advantages over silicon devices.

In the satellite industry, the trend is towards decreasing the size of satellites and clustering of small satellites. Technological advancements in microelectronics have made it more economical to launch a cluster of satellites with a single vehicle rather than the ...

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Miniaturized Rad-Hard System Shrinks Propulsion Electronics

Developed by Space Micro (San Diego, CA), a new technology involves the miniaturization and radiation hardening of electronics through a novel means of stacking commercial-off-the-shelf semiconductor materials. The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) funded Space Micro through a 2007 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II contract to develop an electronics ...

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Designing a Sensorless Torque Estimator for Direct Torque Control of an Induction Motor

Naval Research Laboratory, Washington,DC

FPGAs were used to verify the accuracy of the torque estimator.

Induction motors often are the preferred choice among industrial motors due to the modern power electronics that improve their speed control. Vitally important for the speed control of a motor is the accurate estimation of the ...

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