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ISSUE DATE: MARCH/APRIL 2010 DEFENSE ELECTRONICS SUPPLEMENT | |
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March/April 2010 Defense Electronics Supplement - In This Issue [Cover Story] Producing Power With Tubes And Transistors High-power amplification at RF and microwave frequencies still involves vacuum tubes in many military systems. Such devices as traveling wave tubes (TWTs) in TWT amplifiers (TWTAs) and cross-field amplifiers (CFAs) are capable of hundreds of watts of continuous-wave (CW) power and kilowatts of pulsed (peak) power in ground-based and airborne systems, and they have served as reliable RF/microwave amplifiers even in space-based applications. But in recent years, claims of “vacuum-tube... — Jack Browne [News] CERDEC, NRL Team On “No-Knob” Radio Radio spectrum is a vanishing resource and, for that reason, engineers in the United States Army and Navy are joining forces as part of an effort to develop a next-generation cognitive radio that could benefit commercial and military users alike. The Army’s Communications- Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC), specifically the organization’s Software Defined Radio (SDR) laboratory, will work with the Naval Research Lab... — Jack Browne [Editorial] An Integrated Look At Military Electronics Design engineers working in military and aerospace applications are blessed/cursed with an array of choices in electronic components, devices, materials, design software, services, and test equipment. At one time it was easier: simply look for required parts on the Qualified Products List (QPL) to ensure that they were of a grade suitable for use in a military environment. But that was then, and today’s designer must deal with cost pressures on every... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Latest Maverick Ready For Testing Raytheon Company has declared the AGM-65E2/L, the newest variant of the laser-guided Maverick missile (see figure), on schedule to enter developmental and operational testing. The direct-attack, air-to-ground weapon is used extensively by the United States Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps for precision strikes. This latest version of the Maverick features... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Army’s Computer Game Tests Driving Skills The US Army is using the latest augmented-reality computer programs to educate and attract new recruits. Embodied in the “Army—Race for Strength” program, recently on exhibit at major NASCAR and NHRA events, including NASCAR’s Daytona International, virtual drivers have an opportunity to direct racer Ryan Newman’s No. 39 US Army Chevrolet Impala NASCAR Sprint Cup car to the front of a military convoy. In addition, a downloadable version at ... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Fiber-Optic Connector Aids Tactical Coms The PHD 38999 series of fiber-optic connectors developed by ITT Interconnect Solutions provide the performance of precision fiber-optic interconnects in a rugged circular connector profile capable of withstanding harsh environments. The PHD series fiber-optic connectors are ideal for use in military, aerospace and tactical communications applications. They are compatible with M38999 outside dimensions and... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] BAE Computers Study Solar Effects A trio of space computers from BAE Systems has taken flight aboard a NASA satellite to study the sun’s influence on Earth and the space around Earth. The firm’s RAD750 and RAD6000 computers are being used to process data for NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) in the high-radiation solar environment. Two RAD6000 computers will process data while a RAD750 will run the software that keeps the spacecraft in orbit. Vic... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Lockheed Martin Recognizes QP Semi Lockheed Martin has awarded QP Semiconductor (www.qpsemi.com) Preferred Supplier Status for excellence in engineering design support, delivery, and customer responsiveness. The award is for maintaining 100 percent quality performance and 100 percent on-time delivery during the past two years in support of multiple Lockheed Martin programs. By recognizing QP Semiconductor as a qualified supplier, it allows Lockheed to expand its... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Network Operates Despite Disruptions Raytheon BBN Technologies, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Raytheon Co., successfully transmitted voice and data across a wireless mobile ad hoc network that was in a constant state of flux. The demonstration mimics the challenges faced by military networks under actual tactical conditions. The results represent an achievement for the Wireless Network After Next (WNaN) program, sponsored by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency... — Jack Browne [News Shorts] Rockwell Collins Ships ECCM Modules To India Rockwell Collins was awarded a contract for electronic counter-counter measure (ECCM) radio modules by Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. (ECIL). The hardware cards will be integrated into ground-based UHF radios for use by the Indian Defence for command and control of ground-to-ground and ground-to-air communications. The contract also includes Global Positioning System (GPS) hand-held receivers. Thud Chee “TC” Chan, Vice... — Jack Browne [Contracts] Harris Radios Link Army’s IBCS Harris Corporation has been awarded a $25-million contract by Northrop Grumman for high-band networked radios for the United States Army’s new Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS). The system is designed to integrate the fire-control networks of current and future air and missile defense systems, operating with any combination of sensors and... — Jack Browne [Contracts] Herley’s Assemblies Arm Navy’s P-8A Herley Industries has earned a contract valued at approximately $1.5 million for the production of integrated microwave assemblies to be used in the US Navy’s P-8A aircraft. Under the terms of the contract, Herley will supply integrated assemblies to a major US prime contractor for installation in the P-8A Poseidon, a long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft... — Jack Browne [Contracts] Northrop Grumman Ships AN/SPQ-9B Radars Northrop Grumman has received a full-rate production contract from the US Naval Sea Systems Command for its AN/SPQ-9B shipboard radar systems. Under the fixed-price $26.2-million contract, Northrop Grumman’s Naval and Marine Systems Division facility (Melville, NY) will supply four ship sets. The contract includes options that could bring the total value to $281.5 million. Options encompass a wide range of US aircraft carriers, cruisers, and amphibious assault ships, as well as the US... — Jack Browne [Contracts] Irvine Sensors Supplies Clip-On Thermal Imagers As a result of a modification to an existing purchase order with Optics 1 (Manchester, NH) Irvine Sensors Corp. will supply that firm Clip-On Thermal Imager (COTI) systems as part of the Optics 1’s $37.8-million contract with the Naval Surface Warfare Center (Crane, IN). Irvine Sensors will produce COTI devices that augment the capabilities of existing military night vision goggles, providing thermal images in... — Jack Browne [Design & Technology] Hybrid Devices Help Protect Radar Systems Radar limiters are designed to protect the components, mainly in the receiver, from damage due to high-level pulses. Large signals can come from a variety of sources, including the radar’s own transmitter and electromagnetic (EM) bombs.1-6 Filtering should be provided for these undesired signals, which may differ from useful signals by power level, polarization, spectrum distribution, and direction of arrival (DOA). This report will review the... — Piotr Dyderski [Design & Technology] Generating Stable Voltage For Multiple Applications Voltage regulators and voltage references are essential to most electronic circuits, whether analog, digital, or a combination of the two. Although these circuits can appear deceivingly simple, much experience in worst-case analysis has shown them to also be the source of a large percentage of problems or issues as part of larger circuit designs. Often, these issues are due in part to a lack of understanding of the actual complexities of these seemingly... — Steven M. Sandler [Design & Technology] Fast Synthesizers Serve EW Systems Frequency synthesizers for electronic- warfare (EW) systems must meet one of the more rigorous sets of specifications for any application. Such parameters as fast switching speed and low phase noise have always been important in EW systems, but with a trend toward increasing integration in military electronics systems, designers of frequency synthesizers are now being asked to deliver high performance levels in smaller packages, and with less power ... — Jack Browne [Design & Technology] Tools Tackle Radar Testing Radar pulses must be characterized to determine the health of a new prototype design or an existing system. Measurements can be made with such RF/microwave test instruments as oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers, although it helps to understand the capabilities of these instruments and how to specify enough performance for a given set of pulse characteristics. Some useful guidance for this can be found in a 28-page application note from ... — Jack Browne [Product Feature] DTO Steps Quickly Across 9 To 15 GHz Fast tuning oscillators are vital to many systems, including radar simulators and electronic-warfare (EW) platforms. In modern applications, such sources must settle on a new frequency quickly, without generating unwanted spurious signal products that can not only compromise performance as well as mission success, in the case of an EW system. The DTO- 12000-50M digitally tuned oscillator (DTO) from Phase Matrix (www.phasematrix. com)... — Jack Browne [Product Feature] Lithium-Polymer Battery Backs Light-Weight System Power systems for the Medium Armored Vehicle (MAV) must be robust, yet light in weight, often conflicting requirements in a battery pack. One supplier of MAV power systems, Falcon Electric, has developed a light-weight rechargeable uninterruptible-power-supply (UPS) battery system based on lithium-ion-polymer technology, which is less than one-half the weight of comparably powered lead-acid battery... — Jack Browne [Products] Products PMC/XMC Card Holds Transceiver The model 7158 data converter is a full-function transceiver module housed in a PMC/XMC format. Ideal for military and COTS applications including wideband radar countermeasures, tracking, and UAV surveillance activities, it is a dual-channel, 12-b, 500-MHz-sampling-rate data converter based on two Virtex-5 field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) from Xilinx. Using Pentek’s GateFlow FPGA Design Kit, customers... — Jack Browne |
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