Title :
DC-XA engine plume diagnostics: data collection utilizing a COTS PC
Author :
Patrick, M. Clinton
Author_Institution :
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL, USA
Abstract :
Marshall Space Flight Center´s Optical Plume Anomaly Detection (OPAD) systems have been developed for the purpose of monitoring rocket engine health by identifying and quantifying trace elements in exhaust plumes. The opportunity to put an OPAD instrument aboard the DC-XA test vehicle afforded a valuable first chance to test the technology in an environment for which it is ultimately intended. Methods used to accomplish this are discussed herein, with a focus on the miniaturized personal computer used for data collection. Also, a brief examination is made of test results
Keywords :
aerospace instrumentation; aerospace test facilities; calibration; chemical variables measurement; computerised instrumentation; data acquisition; fault diagnosis; microcomputer applications; rocket engines; spectrochemical analysis; spectrometers; COTS PC; DC-XA engine plume diagnostics; DC-XA test vehicle; Marshall Space Flight Center; data collection; exhaust plumes; miniaturized personal computer; monitoring; optical plume anomaly detection; rocket engine health; trace elements; Aerospace electronics; Central Processing Unit; Engines; Instruments; Optical detectors; Optical sensors; Rockets; Space technology; Testing; Vehicles;
Conference_Titel :
Digital Avionics Systems Conference, 1997. 16th DASC., AIAA/IEEE
Conference_Location :
Irvine, CA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-4150-3
DOI :
10.1109/DASC.1997.637257
