When the interplanetary probe Giotto lost connection with its ground operations while tracking Halley's Comet, recovering the lost satellite became a primary concern for its manufacturer Laben, an Italian aerospace company. Laben engineers surmised that when dust particles from the comet's tail contacted the probe, it caused the misalignment of the onboard aerial with Earth.
Giotto was millions of miles from Earth. Unlike the international space station, which is sometimes maintained by crews of astronauts, Giotto had to rely on its own system design for any chance of recovery.
The on-board data handling (OBDH) system designed with I-DEAS a design and manufacturing application from SDRC (Milford, OH, now called EDS PLM Solutions), became the critical component in the satellite's recovery. "The link absence was detected by the on-board computer, part of the OBDH, and re-established," says Laben's Operations Manager, Demetrio Masaro. "As soon as the connection was lost, the event triggered a software routine that initiated a maneuver to 'search ground'."
The Giotto satellite was later directed toward another comet, Grigg-Skjellerup. Such missions help map the universe for interplanetary space exploration.
For more information about mechanical design software from SDRC: Enter 538
By experimenting with the photovoltaic reaction in solar cells, researchers at MIT have made a breakthrough in energy efficiency that significantly pushes the boundaries of current commercial cells on the market.
In a world that's going green, industrial operations have a problem: Their processes involve materials that are potentially toxic, flammable, corrosive, or reactive. If improperly managed, this can precipitate dangerous health and environmental consequences.
With LEDs dropping in price virtually every year, automakers have begun employing them, not only on luxury vehicles, but on entry-level models, as well.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 4
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A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
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