12 CFR 252.143 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... (CONTINUED) ENHANCED PRUDENTIAL STANDARDS (REGULATION YY) Company-Run Stress Test Requirements for Covered... requirements of this subpart beginning with the stress test cycle commencing on October 1, 2013, unless that... stress test cycle commencing on November 15, 2012, unless that time is extended by the Board in writing...

Balanced Flow Metering and Conditioning: Technology for Fluid Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kelley, Anthony R.

2006-01-01

Revolutionary new technology that creates balanced conditions across the face of a multi-hole orifice plate has been developed, patented and exclusively licensed for commercialization. This balanced flow technology simultaneously measures mass flow rate, volumetric flow rate, and fluid density with little or no straight pipe run requirements. Initially, the balanced plate was a drop in replacement for a traditional orifice plate, but testing revealed substantially better performance as compared to the orifice plate such as, 10 times better accuracy, 2 times faster (shorter distance) pressure recovery, 15 times less acoustic noise energy generation, and 2.5 times less permanent pressure loss. During 2004 testing at MSFC, testing revealed several configurations of the balanced flow meter that match the accuracy of Venturi meters while having only slightly more permanent pressure loss. However, the balanced meter only requires a 0.25 inch plate and has no upstream or downstream straight pipe requirements. As a fluid conditioning device, the fluid usually reaches fully developed flow within 1 pipe diameter of the balanced conditioning plate. This paper will describe the basic balanced flow metering technology, provide performance details generated by testing to date and provide implementation details along with calculations required for differing degrees of flow metering accuracy.

12 CFR 252.153 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... (CONTINUED) ENHANCED PRUDENTIAL STANDARDS (REGULATION YY) Company-Run Stress Test Requirements for Banking... December 31, 2012, must comply with the requirements of this subpart beginning with the stress test cycle... the stress test cycle that commences on October 1, 2015, unless that time is extended by the Board in...

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Roper, J; Bradshaw, B; Godette, K

Purpose: To create a knowledge-based algorithm for prostate LDR brachytherapy treatment planning that standardizes plan quality using seed arrangements tailored to individual physician preferences while being fast enough for real-time planning. Methods: A dataset of 130 prior cases was compiled for a physician with an active prostate seed implant practice. Ten cases were randomly selected to test the algorithm. Contours from the 120 library cases were registered to a common reference frame. Contour variations were characterized on a point by point basis using principle component analysis (PCA). A test case was converted to PCA vectors using the same process andmore » then compared with each library case using a Mahalanobis distance to evaluate similarity. Rank order PCA scores were used to select the best-matched library case. The seed arrangement was extracted from the best-matched case and used as a starting point for planning the test case. Computational time was recorded. Any subsequent modifications were recorded that required input from a treatment planner to achieve an acceptable plan. Results: The computational time required to register contours from a test case and evaluate PCA similarity across the library was approximately 10s. Five of the ten test cases did not require any seed additions, deletions, or moves to obtain an acceptable plan. The remaining five test cases required on average 4.2 seed modifications. The time to complete manual plan modifications was less than 30s in all cases. Conclusion: A knowledge-based treatment planning algorithm was developed for prostate LDR brachytherapy based on principle component analysis. Initial results suggest that this approach can be used to quickly create treatment plans that require few if any modifications by the treatment planner. In general, test case plans have seed arrangements which are very similar to prior cases, and thus are inherently tailored to physician preferences.« less

40 CFR 147.3109 - Timing of mechanical integrity test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 22 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Timing of mechanical integrity test... Certain Oklahoma Indian Tribes § 147.3109 Timing of mechanical integrity test. The demonstrations of mechanical integrity required by § 146.14(b)(2) of this chapter prior to approval for the operation of a...

40 CFR 51.365 - Data collection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... test start time and the time final emission scores are determined; (6) Vehicle Identification Number... enforcement of an I/M program. The program shall gather test data on individual vehicles, as well as quality... equipment is required or those test procedures relying upon a vehicle's OBD system). (a) Test data. The goal...

40 CFR 51.365 - Data collection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... test start time and the time final emission scores are determined; (6) Vehicle Identification Number... enforcement of an I/M program. The program shall gather test data on individual vehicles, as well as quality... equipment is required or those test procedures relying upon a vehicle's OBD system). (a) Test data. The goal...

46 CFR 58.30-35 - Testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... components thereof shall be tested as required by this section. (b) Accumulators constructed as pressure... associated equipment components, including hydraulic steering gear, in lieu of being tested at the time of installation, may be shop tested by the manufacturer to 11/2 times the maximum allowable pressure of the system...

46 CFR 58.30-35 - Testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... components thereof shall be tested as required by this section. (b) Accumulators constructed as pressure... associated equipment components, including hydraulic steering gear, in lieu of being tested at the time of installation, may be shop tested by the manufacturer to 11/2 times the maximum allowable pressure of the system...

46 CFR 58.30-35 - Testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... components thereof shall be tested as required by this section. (b) Accumulators constructed as pressure... associated equipment components, including hydraulic steering gear, in lieu of being tested at the time of installation, may be shop tested by the manufacturer to 11/2 times the maximum allowable pressure of the system...

46 CFR 58.30-35 - Testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... components thereof shall be tested as required by this section. (b) Accumulators constructed as pressure... associated equipment components, including hydraulic steering gear, in lieu of being tested at the time of installation, may be shop tested by the manufacturer to 11/2 times the maximum allowable pressure of the system...

46 CFR 58.30-35 - Testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... components thereof shall be tested as required by this section. (b) Accumulators constructed as pressure... associated equipment components, including hydraulic steering gear, in lieu of being tested at the time of installation, may be shop tested by the manufacturer to 11/2 times the maximum allowable pressure of the system...

A generalized memory test algorithm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Milner, E. J.

1982-01-01

A general algorithm for testing digital computer memory is presented. The test checks that (1) every bit can be cleared and set in each memory work, and (2) bits are not erroneously cleared and/or set elsewhere in memory at the same time. The algorithm can be applied to any size memory block and any size memory word. It is concise and efficient, requiring the very few cycles through memory. For example, a test of 16-bit-word-size memory requries only 384 cycles through memory. Approximately 15 seconds were required to test a 32K block of such memory, using a microcomputer having a cycle time of 133 nanoseconds.

In-flight testing of the space shuttle orbiter thermal control system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taylor, J. T.

1985-01-01

In-flight thermal control system testing of a complex manned spacecraft such as the space shuttle orbiter and the considerations attendant to the definition of the tests are described. Design concerns, design mission requirements, flight test objectives, crew vehicle and mission risk considerations, instrumentation, data requirements, and real-time mission monitoring are discussed. An overview of the tests results is presented.

Safety testing of lithium cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liberto, Nick

1991-01-01

Safety testing is intended to simulate, under laboratory conditions and controls, situations that will subject a cell to externally induced stress. The stresses can occur at any time during the useful life of the cell, from the time of manufacture until it is expended during mission deployment. Abuse testing can be divided into three major categories: Electrical, Mechanical, and Thermal. Although electrical abuses are generally found to occur during handling or deployment, Mechanical and Thermal stresses can be induced during transportation and storage. Therefore, it would be prudent to include predicted environmental exposure as part of the test plan. In the selection of a test program. specific test requirements should be tailored to meet the predicted mission requirements.

Safety testing of lithium cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liberto, Nick

1991-05-01

Safety testing is intended to simulate, under laboratory conditions and controls, situations that will subject a cell to externally induced stress. The stresses can occur at any time during the useful life of the cell, from the time of manufacture until it is expended during mission deployment. Abuse testing can be divided into three major categories: Electrical, Mechanical, and Thermal. Although electrical abuses are generally found to occur during handling or deployment, Mechanical and Thermal stresses can be induced during transportation and storage. Therefore, it would be prudent to include predicted environmental exposure as part of the test plan. In the selection of a test program. specific test requirements should be tailored to meet the predicted mission requirements.

49 CFR Appendix A to Part 665 - Tests To Be Performed at the Bus Testing Facility

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

.... Because the operator will not become familiar with the detailed design of all new bus models that are tested, tests to determine the time and skill required to remove and reinstall an engine, a transmission... feasible to conduct statistical reliability tests. The detected bus failures, repair time, and the actions...

49 CFR Appendix A to Part 665 - Tests To Be Performed at the Bus Testing Facility

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

.... Because the operator will not become familiar with the detailed design of all new bus models that are tested, tests to determine the time and skill required to remove and reinstall an engine, a transmission... feasible to conduct statistical reliability tests. The detected bus failures, repair time, and the actions...

49 CFR Appendix A to Part 665 - Tests To Be Performed at the Bus Testing Facility

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

.... Because the operator will not become familiar with the detailed design of all new bus models that are tested, tests to determine the time and skill required to remove and reinstall an engine, a transmission... feasible to conduct statistical reliability tests. The detected bus failures, repair time, and the actions...

40 CFR 63.6105 - What are my general requirements for complying with this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... to you at all times except during startup, shutdown, and malfunctions. (b) If you must comply with... times including during startup, shutdown, and malfunction. Testing and Initial Compliance Requirements ...

40 CFR 63.162 - Standards: General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... the reports required by § 63.182 of this subpart, review of performance test results, and by... that define a period of time for completion of required tasks (e.g., weekly, monthly, quarterly, annual... section. (2) Time periods specified in this subpart for completion of required tasks may be changed by...

Development and Application of Detection Indices for Measuring Guessing Behaviors and Test-Taking Effort in Computerized Adaptive Testing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Shu-Ren; Plake, Barbara S.; Kramer, Gene A.; Lien, Shu-Mei

2011-01-01

This study examined the amount of time that different ability-level examinees spend on questions they answer correctly or incorrectly across different pretest item blocks presented on a fixed-length, time-restricted computerized adaptive testing (CAT). Results indicate that different ability-level examinees require different amounts of time to…

Automated Testing Experience of the Linear Aerospike SR-71 Experiment (LASRE) Controller

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larson, Richard R.

1999-01-01

System controllers must be fail-safe, low cost, flexible to software changes, able to output health and status words, and permit rapid retest qualification. The system controller designed and tested for the aerospike engine program was an attempt to meet these requirements. This paper describes (1) the aerospike controller design, (2) the automated simulation testing techniques, and (3) the real time monitoring data visualization structure. Controller cost was minimized by design of a single-string system that used an off-the-shelf 486 central processing unit (CPU). A linked-list architecture, with states (nodes) defined in a user-friendly state table, accomplished software changes to the controller. Proven to be fail-safe, this system reported the abort cause and automatically reverted to a safe condition for any first failure. A real time simulation and test system automated the software checkout and retest requirements. A program requirement to decode all abort causes in real time during all ground and flight tests assured the safety of flight decisions and the proper execution of mission rules. The design also included health and status words, and provided a real time analysis interpretation for all health and status data.

Higher Education and Disability: Improved Federal Enforcement Needed to Better Protect Students' Rights to Testing Accommodations. Report to Congressional Requesters. GAO-12-40

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, George A.

2011-01-01

Standardized tests are often required to gain admission into postsecondary schools or to obtain professional certifications. Federal disability laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) require entities that administer these tests to provide accommodations, such as extended time or changes in test format, to students with…

Detailed requirements document for the Interactive Financial Management System (IFMS), volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dodson, D. B.

1975-01-01

The detailed requirements for phase 1 (online fund control, subauthorization accounting, and accounts receivable functional capabilities) of the Interactive Financial Management System (IFMS) are described. This includes information on the following: systems requirements, performance requirements, test requirements, and production implementation. Most of the work is centered on systems requirements, and includes discussions on the following processes: resources authority, allotment, primary work authorization, reimbursable order acceptance, purchase request, obligation, cost accrual, cost distribution, disbursement, subauthorization performance, travel, accounts receivable, payroll, property, edit table maintenance, end-of-year, backup input. Other subjects covered include: external systems interfaces, general inquiries, general report requirements, communication requirements, and miscellaneous. Subjects covered under performance requirements include: response time, processing volumes, system reliability, and accuracy. Under test requirements come test data sources, general test approach, and acceptance criteria. Under production implementation come data base establishment, operational stages, and operational requirements.

Evaluation of electrical test conditions in MIL-M-38510 slash sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandgren, K.

1980-08-01

Adequacy of MIL-M-38510 slash sheet requirements for electrical test conditions in an automated test environment were evaluated. Military temperature range commercial devices of 13 types from 6 manufacturers were purchased. Software for testing these devices and for varying the test conditions was written for the Tektronix S-3260 test system. The devices were tested to evaluate the effects of pin-condition settling time, measurement sequence of the same and different D-C parameters, temperature sequence, differently defined temperature ambients, variable measurement conditions, sequence of time measurements, pin-application sequence, and undesignated pin condition ambiguity. An alternative to current tri-state enable and disable time measurements is proposed; S-3260 'open' and 'ground' conditions are characterized; and suggestions for changes in MIL-M-38510 slash sheet specifications and MIL-STD-883 test methods are proposed, both to correct errors and ambiguities and to facilitate the gathering of repeatable data on automated test equipment. Data obtained showed no sensitivity to measurement or temperature sequence nor to temperature ambient, provided that test times were not excessive. V sub ICP tests and some low current measurements required allowance for a pin condition settling time because of the test system speed. Some pin condition application sequences yielded incorrect measurements. Undefined terminal conditions of output pins were found to affect I sub OS and propagation delay time measurements. Truth table test results varied with test frequency and V sub IL for low-power Schottky devices.

Effect of an Individual Readiness Assurance Test on a Team Readiness Assurance Test in the Team-Based Learning of Physiology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gopalan, Chaya; Fox, Dainielle J.; Gaebelein, Claude J.

2013-01-01

We examined whether requiring an individual readiness assurance test (iRAT) before a team readiness assurance test (tRAT) would benefit students in becoming better problem solvers in physiology. It was tested in the form of tRAT scores, the time required to complete the tRAT assignment, and individual performance on the unit examinations. Students…

Induction graphitizing furnace acceptance test report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

The induction furnace was designed to provide the controlled temperature and environment required for the post-cure, carbonization and graphitization processes for the fabrication of a fibrous graphite NERVA nozzle extension. The acceptance testing required six tests and a total operating time of 298 hrs. Low temperature mode operations, 120 to 850 C, were completed in one test run. High temperature mode operations, 120 to 2750 C, were completed during five tests.

76 FR 61476 - Petition for Waiver of Compliance

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-04

... locking; and 236.109, Time releases, timing relays and timing devices; on vital microprocessor-based... microprocessor-based locking systems. These tests, at this interval, would replace the tests currently required... listed in Exhibit B. 2. All future purchases of microprocessor-controlled interlocking locations. 3...

Hypothesis testing and earthquake prediction.

PubMed

Jackson, D D

1996-04-30

Requirements for testing include advance specification of the conditional rate density (probability per unit time, area, and magnitude) or, alternatively, probabilities for specified intervals of time, space, and magnitude. Here I consider testing fully specified hypotheses, with no parameter adjustments or arbitrary decisions allowed during the test period. Because it may take decades to validate prediction methods, it is worthwhile to formulate testable hypotheses carefully in advance. Earthquake prediction generally implies that the probability will be temporarily higher than normal. Such a statement requires knowledge of "normal behavior"--that is, it requires a null hypothesis. Hypotheses can be tested in three ways: (i) by comparing the number of actual earth-quakes to the number predicted, (ii) by comparing the likelihood score of actual earthquakes to the predicted distribution, and (iii) by comparing the likelihood ratio to that of a null hypothesis. The first two tests are purely self-consistency tests, while the third is a direct comparison of two hypotheses. Predictions made without a statement of probability are very difficult to test, and any test must be based on the ratio of earthquakes in and out of the forecast regions.

Hypothesis testing and earthquake prediction.

PubMed Central

Jackson, D D

1996-01-01

Requirements for testing include advance specification of the conditional rate density (probability per unit time, area, and magnitude) or, alternatively, probabilities for specified intervals of time, space, and magnitude. Here I consider testing fully specified hypotheses, with no parameter adjustments or arbitrary decisions allowed during the test period. Because it may take decades to validate prediction methods, it is worthwhile to formulate testable hypotheses carefully in advance. Earthquake prediction generally implies that the probability will be temporarily higher than normal. Such a statement requires knowledge of "normal behavior"--that is, it requires a null hypothesis. Hypotheses can be tested in three ways: (i) by comparing the number of actual earth-quakes to the number predicted, (ii) by comparing the likelihood score of actual earthquakes to the predicted distribution, and (iii) by comparing the likelihood ratio to that of a null hypothesis. The first two tests are purely self-consistency tests, while the third is a direct comparison of two hypotheses. Predictions made without a statement of probability are very difficult to test, and any test must be based on the ratio of earthquakes in and out of the forecast regions. PMID:11607663

Module generation for self-testing integrated systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vanriessen, Ronald Pieter

Hardware used for self test in VLSI (Very Large Scale Integrated) systems is reviewed, and an architecture to control the test hardware in an integrated system is presented. Because of the increase of test times, the use of self test techniques has become practically and economically viable for VLSI systems. Beside the reduction in test times and costs, self test also provides testing at operational speeds. Therefore, a suitable combination of scan path and macrospecific (self) tests is required to reduce test times and costs. An expert system that can be used in a silicon compilation environment is presented. The approach requires a minimum of testability knowledge from a system designer. A user friendly interface was described for specifying and modifying testability requirements by a testability expert. A reason directed backtracking mechanism is used to solve selection failures. Both the hierarchical testable architecture and the design for testability expert system are used in a self test compiler. The definition of a self test compiler was given. A self test compiler is a software tool that selects an appropriate test method for every macro in a design. The hardware to control a macro test will be included in the design automatically. As an example, the integration of the self-test compiler in a silicon compilation system PIRAMID was described. The design of a demonstrator circuit by self test compiler is described. This circuit consists of two self testable macros. Control of the self test hardware is carried out via the test access port of the boundary scan standard.

21 CFR 864.7275 - Euglobulin lysis time tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... time required for the lysis (dissolution) of a clot formed from fibrinogen in the euglobulin fraction (that fraction of the plasma responsible for the formation of plasmin, a clot lysing enzyme). This test evaluates natural fibrinolysis (destruction of a blood clot after bleeding has been arrested). The test also...

21 CFR 864.7275 - Euglobulin lysis time tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... time required for the lysis (dissolution) of a clot formed from fibrinogen in the euglobulin fraction (that fraction of the plasma responsible for the formation of plasmin, a clot lysing enzyme). This test evaluates natural fibrinolysis (destruction of a blood clot after bleeding has been arrested). The test also...

21 CFR 864.7275 - Euglobulin lysis time tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... time required for the lysis (dissolution) of a clot formed from fibrinogen in the euglobulin fraction (that fraction of the plasma responsible for the formation of plasmin, a clot lysing enzyme). This test evaluates natural fibrinolysis (destruction of a blood clot after bleeding has been arrested). The test also...

21 CFR 864.7275 - Euglobulin lysis time tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... time required for the lysis (dissolution) of a clot formed from fibrinogen in the euglobulin fraction (that fraction of the plasma responsible for the formation of plasmin, a clot lysing enzyme). This test evaluates natural fibrinolysis (destruction of a blood clot after bleeding has been arrested). The test also...

GPS Moving Vehicle Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oaks, O. J.; Reid, Wilson; Wright, James; Duffey, Christopher; Williams, Charles; Warren, Hugh; Zeh, Tom; Buisson, James

1996-01-01

The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in the development of timing systems for remote locations, had a technical requirement for a Y code (SA/AS) Global Positioning System (GPS) precise time transfer receiver (TTR) which could be used both in a stationary mode or mobile mode. A contract was awarded to the Stanford Telecommunication Corporation (STEL) to build such a device. The Eastern Range (ER) als had a requirement for such a receiver and entered into the contract with NRL for the procurement of additional receivers. The Moving Vehicle Experiment (MVE) described in this paper is the first in situ test of the STEL Model 5401C Time Transfer System in both stationary and mobile operations. The primary objective of the MVE was to test the timing accuracy of the newly developed GPS TTR aboard a moving vessel. To accomplish this objective, a joint experiment was performed with personnel from NRL and the er at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) test range at Andros Island. Results and discussion of the test are presented in this paper.

How You Can Get the Best Results with Home Use Tests

MedlinePlus

... Use Tests How You Can Get the Best Results With Home Use Tests Share Tweet Linkedin Pin ... follow all test instructions to get an accurate result. Most home tests require specific timing, materials, and ...

Comparison of Fault Detection Algorithms for Real-time Diagnosis in Large-Scale System. Appendix E

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirubarajan, Thiagalingam; Malepati, Venkat; Deb, Somnath; Ying, Jie

2001-01-01

In this paper, we present a review of different real-time capable algorithms to detect and isolate component failures in large-scale systems in the presence of inaccurate test results. A sequence of imperfect test results (as a row vector of I's and O's) are available to the algorithms. In this case, the problem is to recover the uncorrupted test result vector and match it to one of the rows in the test dictionary, which in turn will isolate the faults. In order to recover the uncorrupted test result vector, one needs the accuracy of each test. That is, its detection and false alarm probabilities are required. In this problem, their true values are not known and, therefore, have to be estimated online. Other major aspects in this problem are the large-scale nature and the real-time capability requirement. Test dictionaries of sizes up to 1000 x 1000 are to be handled. That is, results from 1000 tests measuring the state of 1000 components are available. However, at any time, only 10-20% of the test results are available. Then, the objective becomes the real-time fault diagnosis using incomplete and inaccurate test results with online estimation of test accuracies. It should also be noted that the test accuracies can vary with time --- one needs a mechanism to update them after processing each test result vector. Using Qualtech's TEAMS-RT (system simulation and real-time diagnosis tool), we test the performances of 1) TEAMSAT's built-in diagnosis algorithm, 2) Hamming distance based diagnosis, 3) Maximum Likelihood based diagnosis, and 4) HidderMarkov Model based diagnosis.

49 CFR 230.36 - Hydrostatic testing of boilers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Appurtenances Pressure Testing of Boilers § 230.36 Hydrostatic testing of boilers. (a) Time of test. The... to any hydrostatic pressure. Hydrostatic testing required by these rules shall be conducted at 25... following any hydrostatic test where the pressure exceeds MAWP. ...

Test of a hypothesis of realism in quantum theory using a Bayesian approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nikitin, N.; Toms, K.

2017-05-01

In this paper we propose a time-independent equality and time-dependent inequality, suitable for an experimental test of the hypothesis of realism. The derivation of these relations is based on the concept of conditional probability and on Bayes' theorem in the framework of Kolmogorov's axiomatics of probability theory. The equality obtained is intrinsically different from the well-known Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) equality and its variants, because violation of the proposed equality might be tested in experiments with only two microsystems in a maximally entangled Bell state |Ψ-> , while a test of the GHZ equality requires at least three quantum systems in a special state |ΨGHZ> . The obtained inequality differs from Bell's, Wigner's, and Leggett-Garg inequalities, because it deals with spin s =1 /2 projections onto only two nonparallel directions at two different moments of time, while a test of the Bell and Wigner inequalities requires at least three nonparallel directions, and a test of the Leggett-Garg inequalities requires at least three distinct moments of time. Hence, the proposed inequality seems to open an additional experimental possibility to avoid the "contextuality loophole." Violation of the proposed equality and inequality is illustrated with the behavior of a pair of anticorrelated spins in an external magnetic field and also with the oscillations of flavor-entangled pairs of neutral pseudoscalar mesons.

PrismTech Data Distribution Service Java API Evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Riggs, Cortney

2008-01-01

My internship duties with Launch Control Systems required me to start performance testing of an Object Management Group's (OMG) Data Distribution Service (DDS) specification implementation by PrismTech Limited through the Java programming language application programming interface (API). DDS is a networking middleware for Real-Time Data Distribution. The performance testing involves latency, redundant publishers, extended duration, redundant failover, and read performance. Time constraints allowed only for a data throughput test. I have designed the testing applications to perform all performance tests when time is allowed. Performance evaluation data such as megabits per second and central processing unit (CPU) time consumption were not easily attainable through the Java programming language; they required new methods and classes created in the test applications. Evaluation of this product showed the rate that data can be sent across the network. Performance rates are better on Linux platforms than AIX and Sun platforms. Compared to previous C++ programming language API, the performance evaluation also shows the language differences for the implementation. The Java API of the DDS has a lower throughput performance than the C++ API.

Process Improvements in Training Device Acceptance Testing: A Study in Total Quality Management

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-12-12

Quality Management , a small group of Government and industry specialists examined the existing training device acceptance test process for potential improvements. The agreed-to mission of the Air Force/Industry partnership was to continuously identify and promote implementable approaches to minimize the cost and time required for acceptance testing while ensuring that validated performance supports the user training requirements. Application of a Total Quality process improvement model focused on the customers and their requirements, analyzed how work was accomplished, and

A new test environment for the SOFIA secondary mirror assembly to reduce the required time for in-flight testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lammen, Yannick; Reinacher, Andreas; Brewster, Rick; Greiner, Benjamin; Graf, Friederike; Krabbe, Alfred

2016-07-01

The Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) reached its full operational capability in 2014 and takes off from the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center to explore the universe about three times a week. Maximizing the program's scientific output naturally leaves very little flight time for implementation and test of improved soft- and hardware. Consequently, it is very important to have a comparable test environment and infrastructure to perform troubleshooting, verifications and improvements on ground without interfering with science missions. SOFIA's Secondary Mirror Mechanism is one of the most complex systems of the observatory. In 2012 a first simple laboratory mockup of the mechanism was built to perform basic controller tests in the lower frequency band of up to 50Hz. This was a first step to relocate required engineering tests from the active observatory into the laboratory. However, to test and include accurate filters and damping methods as well as to evaluate hardware modifications a more precise mockup is required that represents the system characteristics over a much larger frequency range. Therefore the mockup has been improved in several steps to a full test environment representing the system dynamics with high accuracy. This new ground equipment allows moving almost the entire secondary mirror test activities away from the observatory. As fast actuator in the optical path, the SMM also plays a major role in SOFIA's pointing stabilization concept. To increase the steering bandwidth, hardware changes are required that ultimately need to be evaluated using the telescope optics. One interesting concept presented in this contribution is the in- stallation of piezo stack actuators between the mirror and the chopping mechanism. First successful baseline tests are presented. An outlook is given about upcoming performance tests of the actively controlled piezo stage with local metrology and optical feedback. To minimize the impact on science time, the laboratory test setup will be expanded with an optical measurement system so that it can be used for the vast majority of testing.

Real-time data display for AFTI/F-16 flight testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harney, P. F.

1982-01-01

Advanced fighter technologies to improve air to air and air to surface weapon delivery and survivability is demonstrated. Real time monitoring of aircraft operation during flight testing is necessary not only for safety considerations but also for preliminary evaluation of flight test results. The complexity of the AFTI/F-16 aircraft requires an extensive capability to accomplish real time data goals; that capability and the resultant product are described.

40 CFR 172.3 - Scope of requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... experimental use permit (EUP) is generally required for testing of any unregistered pesticide or any registered... testing for more than one target pest occurs at the same time and in the same locality, the 10 acre... experimental animals unless an appropriate tolerance or exemption from a tolerance has been established under...

40 CFR 172.3 - Scope of requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... experimental use permit (EUP) is generally required for testing of any unregistered pesticide or any registered... testing for more than one target pest occurs at the same time and in the same locality, the 10 acre... experimental animals unless an appropriate tolerance or exemption from a tolerance has been established under...

Dissolution testing of orally disintegrating tablets.

PubMed

Kraemer, Johannes; Gajendran, Jayachandar; Guillot, Alexis; Schichtel, Julian; Tuereli, Akif

2012-07-01

For industrially manufactured pharmaceutical dosage forms, product quality tests and performance tests are required to ascertain the quality of the final product. Current compendial requirements specify a disintegration and/or a dissolution test to check the quality of oral solid dosage forms. These requirements led to a number of compendial monographs for individual products and, at times, the results obtained may not be reflective of the dosage form performance. Although a general product performance test is desirable for orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs), the complexity of the release controlling mechanisms and short time-frame of release make such tests difficult to establish. For conventional oral solid dosage forms (COSDFs), disintegration is often considered to be the prerequisite for subsequent dissolution. Hence, disintegration testing is usually insufficient to judge product performance of COSDFs. Given the very fast disintegration of ODTs, the relationship between disintegration and dissolution is worthy of closer scrutiny. This article reviews the current status of dissolution testing of ODTs to establish the product quality standards. Based on experimental results, it appears that it may be feasible to rely on the dissolution test without a need for disintegration studies for selected ODTs on the market. © 2012 The Authors. JPP © 2012 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Testing homogeneity in Weibull-regression models.

PubMed

Bolfarine, Heleno; Valença, Dione M

2005-10-01

In survival studies with families or geographical units it may be of interest testing whether such groups are homogeneous for given explanatory variables. In this paper we consider score type tests for group homogeneity based on a mixing model in which the group effect is modelled as a random variable. As opposed to hazard-based frailty models, this model presents survival times that conditioned on the random effect, has an accelerated failure time representation. The test statistics requires only estimation of the conventional regression model without the random effect and does not require specifying the distribution of the random effect. The tests are derived for a Weibull regression model and in the uncensored situation, a closed form is obtained for the test statistic. A simulation study is used for comparing the power of the tests. The proposed tests are applied to real data sets with censored data.

Laser Synthesis of Supported Catalysts for Carbon Nanotubes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanderWal, Randall L.; Ticich, Thomas M.; Sherry, Leif J.; Hall, Lee J.; Schubert, Kathy (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

Four methods of laser assisted catalyst generation for carbon nanotube (CNT) synthesis have been tested. These include pulsed laser transfer (PLT), photolytic deposition (PLD), photothermal deposition (PTD) and laser ablation deposition (LABD). Results from each method are compared based on CNT yield, morphology and structure. Under the conditions tested, the PLT was the easiest method to implement, required the least time and also yielded the best pattemation. The photolytic and photothermal methods required organometallics, extended processing time and partial vacuums. The latter two requirements also held for the ablation deposition approach. In addition to control of the substrate position, controlled deposition duration was necessary to achieve an active catalyst layer. Although all methods were tested on both metal and quartz substrates, only the quartz substrates proved to be inactive towards the deposited catalyst particles.

FIELD QUALITY CONTROL STRATEGIES ASSESSING SOLIDIFICATION/STABILIZATION

EPA Science Inventory

Existing regulatory mobility reduction (leaching) tests are not amenable to real time quality control because of the time required to perform sample extraction and chemical analysis. This is of conccern because the leaching test is the most important parameter used to relate trea...

30 CFR 28.41 - Testing requirements; general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...., or 600 volts d.c., depending on the voltage rating of the fuse being tested. (b) Time constant of the circuit (defined as T=L/R, where T is the time in seconds, L is the inductance in henries, and R is the...

30 CFR 28.41 - Testing requirements; general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

...., or 600 volts d.c., depending on the voltage rating of the fuse being tested. (b) Time constant of the circuit (defined as T=L/R, where T is the time in seconds, L is the inductance in henries, and R is the...

30 CFR 28.41 - Testing requirements; general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...., or 600 volts d.c., depending on the voltage rating of the fuse being tested. (b) Time constant of the circuit (defined as T=L/R, where T is the time in seconds, L is the inductance in henries, and R is the...

30 CFR 28.41 - Testing requirements; general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

...., or 600 volts d.c., depending on the voltage rating of the fuse being tested. (b) Time constant of the circuit (defined as T=L/R, where T is the time in seconds, L is the inductance in henries, and R is the...

30 CFR 28.41 - Testing requirements; general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

...., or 600 volts d.c., depending on the voltage rating of the fuse being tested. (b) Time constant of the circuit (defined as T=L/R, where T is the time in seconds, L is the inductance in henries, and R is the...

75 FR 68702 - Regulation SHO

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-09

... extended compliance period will give industry participants additional time for programming and testing for... time for programming and testing for compliance with the Rule's requirements. We have been informed that there have been some delays in the programming process, due in part to certain information, which...

The Use of Environmental Test Facilities for Purposes Beyond Their Original Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fisher, Terry C.; Marner, W. J.

2000-01-01

Increasing demands from space flight project offices are requiring environmental testing facilities to become more versatile with increased capabilities. At the same time, maintaining a cost-effective approach to test operations has driven efforts to use these facilities for purposes beyond their original design. This paper presents an overview of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's efforts to provide JPL's space flight projects with test facilities to meet unique test requirements and to serve the needs of selected outside customers. The large number of recent Mars Missions, including the Mars Pathfinder project, have required testing of components and systems in a Martian surface environment in facilities originally designed for deep space testing. The unique problems associated with performing these tests are discussed, along with practical solutions. Other unique test requirements are discussed including the use of space simulation chambers for testing high altitude balloon gondolas and the use of vacuum chambers for system level test firing of an ion propulsion engine.

Laser diode ignition characteristics of Zirconium Potassium Perchlorate (ZPP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Callaghan, Jerry D.; Tindol, Scot

1993-01-01

Hi-Shear Technology, Corp., (HSTC) has designed and built a Laser equivalent NASA Standard Initiator (LNSI). Langlie tests with a laser diode output initiating ZPP were conducted as a part of this effort. The test parameters include time to first pressure, laser power density requirements, and ignition time. The data from these laser tests on ZPP are presented.

Reactivity, stability, and strength performance capacity in motor sports.

PubMed

Baur, H; Müller, S; Hirschmüller, A; Huber, G; Mayer, F

2006-11-01

Racing drivers require multifaceted cognitive and physical abilities in a multitasking situation. A knowledge of their physical capacities may help to improve fitness and performance. To compare reaction time, stability performance capacity, and strength performance capacity of élite racing drivers with those of age-matched, physically active controls. Eight élite racing drivers and 10 physically active controls matched for age and weight were tested in a reaction and determination test requiring upper and lower extremity responses to visual and audio cues. Further tests comprised evaluation of one-leg postural stability on a two-dimensional moveable platform, measures of maximum strength performance capacity of the extensors of the leg on a leg press, and a test of force capacity of the arms in a sitting position at a steering wheel. An additional arm endurance test consisted of isometric work at the steering wheel at +30 degrees and -30 degrees where an eccentric threshold load of 30 N.m was applied. Subjects had to hold the end positions above this threshold until exhaustion. Univariate one way analysis of variance (alpha = 0.05) including a Bonferroni adjustment was used to detect group differences between the drivers and controls. The reaction time of the racing drivers was significantly faster than the controls (p = 0.004). The following motor reaction time and reaction times in the multiple determination test did not differ between the groups. No significant differences (p>0.05) were found for postural stability, leg extensor strength, or arm strength and endurance. Racing drivers have faster reaction times than age-matched physically active controls. Further development of motor sport-specific test protocols is suggested. According to the requirements of motor racing, strength and sensorimotor performance capacity can potentially be improved.

Physiological Requirements to Perform the Glittre Activities of Daily Living Test by Subjects With Mild-to-Severe COPD.

PubMed

Souza, Gérson F; Moreira, Graciane L; Tufanin, Andréa; Gazzotti, Mariana R; Castro, Antonio A; Jardim, José R; Nascimento, Oliver A

2017-08-01

The Glittre activities of daily living (ADL) test is supposed to evaluate the functional capacity of COPD patients. The physiological requirements of the test and the time taken to perform it by COPD patients in different disease stages are not well known. The objective of this work was to compare the metabolic, ventilatory, and cardiac requirements and the time taken to carry out the Glittre ADL test by COPD subjects with mild, moderate, and severe disease. Spirometry, Medical Research Council questionnaire, cardiopulmonary exercise test, and 2 Glittre ADL tests were evaluated in 62 COPD subjects. Oxygen uptake (V̇ O 2 ), carbon dioxide production, pulmonary ventilation, breathing frequency, heart rate, S pO 2 , and dyspnea were analyzed before and at the end of the tests. Maximum voluntary ventilation, Glittre peak V̇ O 2 /cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) peak V̇ O 2 , Glittre V̇ E /maximum voluntary ventilation, and Glittre peak heart rate/CPET peak heart rate ratios were calculated to analyze their reserves. Subjects carried out the Glittre ADL test with similar absolute metabolic, ventilatory, and cardiac requirements. Ventilatory reserve decreased progressively from mild to severe COPD subjects ( P < .001 for Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease [GOLD] 1 vs GOLD 2, P < .001 for GOLD 1 vs GOLD 3, and P < .001 for GOLD 2 vs GOLD 3). Severe subjects with COPD presented a significantly lower metabolic reserve than the mild and moderate subjects ( P = .006 and P = .043, respectively) and significantly lower Glittre peak heart rate/CPET peak heart rate than mild subjects ( P = .01). Time taken to carry out the Glittre ADL test was similar among the groups ( P = .82 for GOLD 1 vs GOLD 2, P = .19 for GOLD 1 vs GOLD 3, and P = .45 for GOLD 2 vs GOLD 3). As the degree of air-flow obstruction progresses, the COPD subjects present significant lower ventilatory reserve to perform the Glittre ADL test. In addition, metabolic and cardiac reserves may differentiate the severe subjects. These variables may be better measures to differentiate functional performance than Glittre ADL time. Copyright © 2017 by Daedalus Enterprises.

Hypersonic Research Vehicle (HRV) real-time flight test support feasibility and requirements study. Part 1: Real-time flight experiment support

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rediess, Herman A.; Ramnath, Rudrapatna V.; Vrable, Daniel L.; Hirvo, David H.; Mcmillen, Lowell D.; Osofsky, Irving B.

1991-01-01

The results are presented of a study to identify potential real time remote computational applications to support monitoring HRV flight test experiments along with definitions of preliminary requirements. A major expansion of the support capability available at Ames-Dryden was considered. The focus is on the use of extensive computation and data bases together with real time flight data to generate and present high level information to those monitoring the flight. Six examples were considered: (1) boundary layer transition location; (2) shock wave position estimation; (3) performance estimation; (4) surface temperature estimation; (5) critical structural stress estimation; and (6) stability estimation.

Development of small scale cluster computer for numerical analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zulkifli, N. H. N.; Sapit, A.; Mohammed, A. N.

2017-09-01

In this study, two units of personal computer were successfully networked together to form a small scale cluster. Each of the processor involved are multicore processor which has four cores in it, thus made this cluster to have eight processors. Here, the cluster incorporate Ubuntu 14.04 LINUX environment with MPI implementation (MPICH2). Two main tests were conducted in order to test the cluster, which is communication test and performance test. The communication test was done to make sure that the computers are able to pass the required information without any problem and were done by using simple MPI Hello Program where the program written in C language. Additional, performance test was also done to prove that this cluster calculation performance is much better than single CPU computer. In this performance test, four tests were done by running the same code by using single node, 2 processors, 4 processors, and 8 processors. The result shows that with additional processors, the time required to solve the problem decrease. Time required for the calculation shorten to half when we double the processors. To conclude, we successfully develop a small scale cluster computer using common hardware which capable of higher computing power when compare to single CPU processor, and this can be beneficial for research that require high computing power especially numerical analysis such as finite element analysis, computational fluid dynamics, and computational physics analysis.

49 CFR 40.245 - What is the procedure for an alcohol screening test using a saliva ASD or a breath tube ASD?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

...'s directions. The result must be read from the analyzer no earlier then the required incubation time... this section and after having waited the required amount of time directed by the manufacturer for the...

49 CFR 40.245 - What is the procedure for an alcohol screening test using a saliva ASD or a breath tube ASD?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

...'s directions. The result must be read from the analyzer no earlier then the required incubation time... this section and after having waited the required amount of time directed by the manufacturer for the...

49 CFR 40.245 - What is the procedure for an alcohol screening test using a saliva ASD or a breath tube ASD?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

...'s directions. The result must be read from the analyzer no earlier then the required incubation time... this section and after having waited the required amount of time directed by the manufacturer for the...

Integrating Aggregate Exposure Pathway (AEP) and Adverse Outcome Pathway (AOP) Frameworks to Estimate Exposure-relevant Responses

EPA Science Inventory

High throughput toxicity testing (HTT) holds the promise of providing data for tens of thousands of chemicals that currently have no data due to the cost and time required for animal testing. Interpretation of these results require information linking the perturbations seen in vi...

Screening for Learning and Memory Mutations: A New Approach.

PubMed

Gallistel, C R; King, A P; Daniel, A M; Freestone, D; Papachristos, E B; Balci, F; Kheifets, A; Zhang, J; Su, X; Schiff, G; Kourtev, H

2010-01-30

We describe a fully automated, live-in 24/7 test environment, with experimental protocols that measure the accuracy and precision with which mice match the ratio of their expected visit durations to the ratio of the incomes obtained from two hoppers, the progress of instrumental and classical conditioning (trials-to-acquisition), the accuracy and precision of interval timing, the effect of relative probability on the choice of a timed departure target, and the accuracy and precision of memory for the times of day at which food is available. The system is compact; it obviates the handling of the mice during testing; it requires negligible amounts of experimenter/technician time; and it delivers clear and extensive results from 3 protocols within a total of 7-9 days after the mice are placed in the test environment. Only a single 24-hour period is required for the completion of first protocol (the matching protocol), which is strong test of temporal and spatial estimation and memory mechanisms. Thus, the system permits the extensive screening of many mice in a short period of time and in limited space. The software is publicly available.

49 CFR 382.301 - Pre-employment testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... ALCOHOL USE AND TESTING Tests Required § 382.301 Pre-employment testing. (a) Prior to the first time a... 40 of this title, the employer shall conduct a pre-employment controlled substances test. (d) An...: (1) It must conduct a pre-employment alcohol test before the first performance of safety-sensitive...

49 CFR 382.301 - Pre-employment testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... ALCOHOL USE AND TESTING Tests Required § 382.301 Pre-employment testing. (a) Prior to the first time a... 40 of this title, the employer shall conduct a pre-employment controlled substances test. (d) An...: (1) It must conduct a pre-employment alcohol test before the first performance of safety-sensitive...

49 CFR 382.301 - Pre-employment testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... ALCOHOL USE AND TESTING Tests Required § 382.301 Pre-employment testing. (a) Prior to the first time a... 40 of this title, the employer shall conduct a pre-employment controlled substances test. (d) An...: (1) It must conduct a pre-employment alcohol test before the first performance of safety-sensitive...

49 CFR 382.301 - Pre-employment testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... ALCOHOL USE AND TESTING Tests Required § 382.301 Pre-employment testing. (a) Prior to the first time a... 40 of this title, the employer shall conduct a pre-employment controlled substances test. (d) An...: (1) It must conduct a pre-employment alcohol test before the first performance of safety-sensitive...

30 CFR 250.1003 - Installation, testing, and repair requirements for DOI pipelines.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

.... (a)(1) Pipelines greater than 8-5/8 inches in diameter and installed in water depths of less than 200... shall be pressure tested with water at a stabilized pressure of at least 1.25 times the MAOP for at... pressure tested with water or processed natural gas at a minimum stabilized pressure of at least 1.25 times...

High Speed PC Based Data Acquisition and Instrumentation for Measurement of Simulated Low Earth Orbit Thermally Induced Disturbances

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sills, Joel W., Jr.; Griffin, Thomas J. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Disturbance Verification Test (DVT) was conducted to characterize responses of the Observatory's new set of rigid solar array's (SA3) to thermally induced 'creak' or stiction releases. The data acquired in the DVT were used in verification of the HST Pointing Control System on-orbit performance, post-Servicing Mission 3B (SM3B). The test simulated the on-orbit environment on a deployed SA3 flight wing. Instrumentation for this test required pretest simulations in order to select the correct sensitivities. Vacuum compatible, highly accurate accelerometers and force gages were used for this test. The complexity of the test, as well as a short planning schedule, required a data acquisition system that was easy to configure, highly flexible, and extremely robust. A PC Windows oriented data acquisition system meets these requirements, allowing the test engineers to minimize the time required to plan and perform complex environmental test. The SA3 DVT provided a direct practical and complex demonstration of the versatility that PC based data acquisition systems provide. Two PC based data acquisition systems were assembled to acquire, process, distribute, and provide real time processing for several types of transducers used in the SA3 DVT. A high sample rate digital tape recorder was used to archive the sensor signals. The two systems provided multi-channel hardware and software architecture and were selected based on the test requirements. How these systems acquire and processes multiple data rates from different transducer types is discussed, along with the system hardware and software architecture.

Testing of multigap Resistive Plate Chambers for Electron Ion Collider Detector Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamilton, Hannah; Phenix Collaboration

2015-10-01

Despite decades of research on the subject, some details of the spin structure of the nucleon continues to be unknown. To improve our knowledge of the nucleon spin structure, the construction of a new collider is needed. This is one of the primary goals of the proposed Electron Ion Collider (EIC). Planned EIC spectrometers will require good particle identification. This can be provided by time of flight (TOF) detectors with excellent timing resolutions of 10 ps. A potential TOF detector that could meet this requirement is a glass multigap resistive plate chamber (mRPC). These mRPCs can provide excellent timing resolution at a low cost. The current glass mRPC prototypes have a total of twenty 0.1 mm thick gas gaps. In order to test the feasibility of this design, a cosmic test stand was assembled. This stand used the coincidence of scintillators as a trigger, and contains fast electronics. The construction, the method of testing, and the test results of the mRPCs will be presented.

Extraction-Separation Performance and Dynamic Modeling of Orion Test Vehicles with Adams Simulation: 2nd Edition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fraire, Usbaldo, Jr.; Anderson, Keith; Varela, Jose G.; Bernatovich, Michael A.

2015-01-01

NASA's Orion Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) project has advanced into the third generation of its parachute test campaign and requires technically comprehensive modeling capabilities to simulate multi-body dynamics (MBD) of test articles released from a C-17. Safely extracting a 30,000 lbm mated test article from a C-17 and performing stable mid-air separation maneuvers requires an understanding of the interaction between elements in the test configuration and how they are influenced by extraction parachute performance, aircraft dynamics, aerodynamics, separation dynamics, and kinetic energy experienced by the system. During the real-time extraction and deployment sequences, these influences can be highly unsteady and difficult to bound. An avionics logic window based on time, pitch, and pitch rate is used to account for these effects and target a favorable separation state in real time. The Adams simulation has been employed to fine-tune this window, as well as predict and reconstruct the coupled dynamics of the Parachute Test Vehicle (PTV) and Cradle Platform Separation System (CPSS) from aircraft extraction through the mid-air separation event. The test-technique for the extraction of CPAS test articles has evolved with increased complexity and requires new modeling concepts to ensure the test article is delivered to a stable test condition for the programmer phase. Prompted by unexpected dynamics and hardware malfunctions in drop tests, these modeling improvements provide a more accurate loads prediction by incorporating a spring-damper line-model derived from the material properties. The qualification phase of CPAS testing is on the horizon and modeling increasingly complex test-techniques with Adams is vital to successfully qualify the Orion parachute system for human spaceflight.

Identification of an Abbreviated Test Battery for Detection of HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Impairment in an Early-Managed HIV-Infected Cohort

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-11-01

within the fronto-striatal regions (e.g., processing speed) [5–7] than cortical dementias such as Alzheimer disease. As such, traditional cognitive...Part A, PASAT, and HVLT-R Learning avoids the requirement of having the color stimuli of the Stroop tests and replaces it with the Trail Making Test...assessment time points to avoid practice effect problems; however, this would require those who administer the tests to be trained on a wider range of

50 CFR Appendix A to Part 679 - Performance and Technical Requirements for Scales Used To Weigh Catch at Sea in the Groundfish...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Voltage Variation A.3.4Short Time Power Reduction A.3.5Bursts A.3.6Electrostatic Discharge A.3... time of the test. 2.2.1.2Zero Load Tests. For zero load tests conducted in a laboratory or on a scale... other material weighed on the scale; and vi. The date and time the information is printed. b. For the...

50 CFR Appendix A to Part 679 - Performance and Technical Requirements for Scales Used To Weigh Catch at Sea in the Groundfish...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... Voltage Variation A.3.4Short Time Power Reduction A.3.5Bursts A.3.6Electrostatic Discharge A.3... time of the test. 2.2.1.2Zero Load Tests. For zero load tests conducted in a laboratory or on a scale... other material weighed on the scale; and vi. The date and time the information is printed. b. For the...

50 CFR Appendix A to Part 679 - Performance and Technical Requirements for Scales Used To Weigh Catch at Sea in the Groundfish...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Voltage Variation A.3.4Short Time Power Reduction A.3.5Bursts A.3.6Electrostatic Discharge A.3... time of the test. 2.2.1.2Zero Load Tests. For zero load tests conducted in a laboratory or on a scale... other material weighed on the scale; and vi. The date and time the information is printed. b. For the...

50 CFR Appendix A to Part 679 - Performance and Technical Requirements for Scales Used To Weigh Catch at Sea in the Groundfish...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Voltage Variation A.3.4Short Time Power Reduction A.3.5Bursts A.3.6Electrostatic Discharge A.3... time of the test. 2.2.1.2Zero Load Tests. For zero load tests conducted in a laboratory or on a scale... other material weighed on the scale; and vi. The date and time the information is printed. b. For the...

50 CFR Appendix A to Part 679 - Performance and Technical Requirements for Scales Used To Weigh Catch at Sea in the Groundfish...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... Voltage Variation A.3.4Short Time Power Reduction A.3.5Bursts A.3.6Electrostatic Discharge A.3... time of the test. 2.2.1.2Zero Load Tests. For zero load tests conducted in a laboratory or on a scale... other material weighed on the scale; and vi. The date and time the information is printed. b. For the...

Characterization of quantum well structures using a photocathode electron microscope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spencer, Michael G.; Scott, Craig J.

1989-01-01

Present day integrated circuits pose a challenge to conventional electronic and mechanical test methods. Feature sizes in the submicron and nanometric regime require radical approaches in order to facilitate electrical contact to circuits and devices being tested. In addition, microwave operating frequencies require careful attention to distributed effects when considering the electrical signal paths within and external to the device under test. An alternative testing approach which combines the best of electrical and optical time domain testing is presented, namely photocathode electron microscope quantitative voltage contrast (PEMQVC).

Space Launch System, Core Stage, Structural Test Design and Implementation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shaughnessy, Ray

2017-01-01

As part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Space Launch System (SLS) Program, engineers at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama are working to design, develop and implement the SLS Core Stage structural testing. The SLS will have the capability to return humans to the Moon and beyond and its first launch is scheduled for December of 2017. The SLS Core Stage consist of five major elements; Forward Skirt, Liquid Oxygen (LOX) tank, Intertank (IT), Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) tank and the Engine Section (ES). Structural Test Articles (STA) for each of these elements are being designed and produced by Boeing at Michoud Assembly Facility located in New Orleans, La. The structural test for the Core Stage STAs (LH2, LOX, IT and ES) are to be conducted by the MSFC Test Laboratory. Additionally, the MSFC Test Laboratory manages the Structural Test Equipment (STE) design and development to support the STAs. It was decided early (April 2012) in the project life that the LH2 and LOX tank STAs would require new test stands and the Engine Section and Intertank would be tested in existing facilities. This decision impacted schedules immediately because the new facilities would require Construction of Facilities (C of F) funds that require congressional approval and long lead times. The Engine Section and Intertank structural test are to be conducted in existing facilities which will limit lead times required to support the first launch of SLS. With a SLS launch date of December, 2017 Boeing had a need date for testing to be complete by September of 2017 to support flight certification requirements. The test facilities were required to be ready by October of 2016 to support test article delivery. The race was on to get the stands ready before Test Article delivery and meet the test complete date of September 2017. This paper documents the past and current design and development phases and the supporting processes, tools, and methodology for supporting the SLS Core Stage STA test stands and related STE. The paper will address key requirements, system development activities and project challenges. Additionally, the interrelationships as well as interdependencies within the SLS project will be discussed.

Computer assisted thermal-vacuum testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Petrie, W.; Mikk, G.

1977-01-01

In testing complex systems and components under dynamic thermal-vacuum environments, it is desirable to optimize the environment control sequence in order to reduce test duration and cost. This paper describes an approach where a computer is utilized as part of the test control operation. Real time test data is made available to the computer through time-sharing terminals at appropriate time intervals. A mathematical model of the test article and environmental control equipment is then operated on using the real time data to yield current thermal status, temperature analysis, trend prediction and recommended thermal control setting changes to arrive at the required thermal condition. The data acquisition interface and the time-sharing hook-up to an IBM-370 computer is described along with a typical control program and data demonstrating its use.

The sensitivity of an hydroponic lettuce root elongation bioassay to metals, phenol and wastewaters.

PubMed

Park, Jihae; Yoon, Jeong-Hyun; Depuydt, Stephen; Oh, Jung-Woo; Jo, Youn-Min; Kim, Kyungtae; Brown, Murray T; Han, Taejun

2016-04-01

The root elongation bioassay is one of the most straightforward test methods used for environmental monitoring in terms of simplicity, rapidity and economy since it merely requires filter paper, distilled water and Petri dishes. However, filter paper as a support material is known to be problematic as it can reduce the sensitivity of the test. The newly developed hydroponic method reported here differs from the conventional root elongation method (US EPA filter paper method) in that no support material is used and the exposure time is shorter (48 h in this test versus 120 h in the US EPA test). For metals, the hydroponic test method was 3.3 (for Hg) to 57 (for Cu) times more sensitive than the US EPA method with the rank orders of sensitivity, estimated from EC50 values, being Cu≥Cd>Ni≥Zn≥Hg for the former and Hg≥Cu≥Ni≥Cd≥Zn for the latter methods. For phenol, the results did not differ significantly; EC50 values were 124 mg L(-1) and 108-180 mg L(-1) for the hydroponic and filter paper methods, respectively. Lettuce was less sensitive than daphnids to wastewaters, but the root elongation response appears to be wastewater-specific and is especially sensitive for detecting the presence of fluorine. The new hydroponic test thus provides many practical advantages, especially in terms of cost and time-effectiveness requiring only a well plate, a small volume of distilled water and short exposure period; furthermore, no specialist expertise is required. The method is simpler than the conventional EPA technique in not using filter paper which can influence the sensitivity of the test. Additionally, plant seeds have a long shelf-life and require little or no maintenance. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Timing system for firing widely spaced test nuclear detonations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Partridge, Ralph E.

1992-01-01

The national weapons design laboratories (Los Alamos National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) test fire nuclear devices at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), which is spread over an area of over 1200 square miles. On each test there are hundreds of high time resolution recordings made of nuclear output waveforms and other phenomena. In order to synchronize these recordings with each other, with the nuclear device, and with offsite recordings, there is a requirement that the permanent command center and the outlying temporary firing sites be time tied to each other and to UTC to permit firing the shot at a predetermined time with an accuracy of about a microsecond. Various aspects of the test setup and timing system are discussed.

Digital time stamping system based on open source technologies.

PubMed

Miskinis, Rimantas; Smirnov, Dmitrij; Urba, Emilis; Burokas, Andrius; Malysko, Bogdan; Laud, Peeter; Zuliani, Francesco

2010-03-01

A digital time stamping system based on open source technologies (LINUX-UBUNTU, OpenTSA, OpenSSL, MySQL) is described in detail, including all important testing results. The system, called BALTICTIME, was developed under a project sponsored by the European Commission under the Program FP 6. It was designed to meet the requirements posed to the systems of legal and accountable time stamping and to be applicable to the hardware commonly used by the national time metrology laboratories. The BALTICTIME system is intended for the use of governmental and other institutions as well as personal bodies. Testing results demonstrate that the time stamps issued to the user by BALTICTIME and saved in BALTICTIME's archives (which implies that the time stamps are accountable) meet all the regulatory requirements. Moreover, the BALTICTIME in its present implementation is able to issue more than 10 digital time stamps per second. The system can be enhanced if needed. The test version of the BALTICTIME service is free and available at http://baltictime. pfi.lt:8080/btws/ and http://baltictime.lnmc.lv:8080/btws/.

Real-time simulation of a Doubly-Fed Induction Generator based wind power system on eMEGASimRTM Real-Time Digital Simulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boakye-Boateng, Nasir Abdulai

The growing demand for wind power integration into the generation mix prompts the need to subject these systems to stringent performance requirements. This study sought to identify the required tools and procedures needed to perform real-time simulation studies of Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG) based wind generation systems as basis for performing more practical tests of reliability and performance for both grid-connected and islanded wind generation systems. The author focused on developing a platform for wind generation studies and in addition, the author tested the performance of two DFIG models on the platform real-time simulation model; an average SimpowerSystemsRTM DFIG wind turbine, and a detailed DFIG based wind turbine using ARTEMiSRTM components. The platform model implemented here consists of a high voltage transmission system with four integrated wind farm models consisting in total of 65 DFIG based wind turbines and it was developed and tested on OPAL-RT's eMEGASimRTM Real-Time Digital Simulator.

Autonomous Real Time Requirements Tracing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plattsmier, George I.; Stetson, Howard K.

2014-01-01

One of the more challenging aspects of software development is the ability to verify and validate the functional software requirements dictated by the Software Requirements Specification (SRS) and the Software Detail Design (SDD). Insuring the software has achieved the intended requirements is the responsibility of the Software Quality team and the Software Test team. The utilization of Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) Auto-Procedures for relocating ground operations positions to ISS automated on-board operations has begun the transition that would be required for manned deep space missions with minimal crew requirements. This transition also moves the auto-procedures from the procedure realm into the flight software arena and as such the operational requirements and testing will be more structured and rigorous. The autoprocedures would be required to meet NASA software standards as specified in the Software Safety Standard (NASASTD- 8719), the Software Engineering Requirements (NPR 7150), the Software Assurance Standard (NASA-STD-8739) and also the Human Rating Requirements (NPR-8705). The Autonomous Fluid Transfer System (AFTS) test-bed utilizes the Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) Language for development of autonomous command and control software. The Timeliner- TLX(sup TM) system has the unique feature of providing the current line of the statement in execution during real-time execution of the software. The feature of execution line number internal reporting unlocks the capability of monitoring the execution autonomously by use of a companion Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) sequence as the line number reporting is embedded inside the Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) execution engine. This negates I/O processing of this type data as the line number status of executing sequences is built-in as a function reference. This paper will outline the design and capabilities of the AFTS Autonomous Requirements Tracker, which traces and logs SRS requirements as they are being met during real-time execution of the targeted system. It is envisioned that real time requirements tracing will greatly assist the movement of autoprocedures to flight software enhancing the software assurance of auto-procedures and also their acceptance as reliable commanders

Autonomous Real Time Requirements Tracing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plattsmier, George; Stetson, Howard

2014-01-01

One of the more challenging aspects of software development is the ability to verify and validate the functional software requirements dictated by the Software Requirements Specification (SRS) and the Software Detail Design (SDD). Insuring the software has achieved the intended requirements is the responsibility of the Software Quality team and the Software Test team. The utilization of Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) Auto- Procedures for relocating ground operations positions to ISS automated on-board operations has begun the transition that would be required for manned deep space missions with minimal crew requirements. This transition also moves the auto-procedures from the procedure realm into the flight software arena and as such the operational requirements and testing will be more structured and rigorous. The autoprocedures would be required to meet NASA software standards as specified in the Software Safety Standard (NASASTD- 8719), the Software Engineering Requirements (NPR 7150), the Software Assurance Standard (NASA-STD-8739) and also the Human Rating Requirements (NPR-8705). The Autonomous Fluid Transfer System (AFTS) test-bed utilizes the Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) Language for development of autonomous command and control software. The Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) system has the unique feature of providing the current line of the statement in execution during real-time execution of the software. The feature of execution line number internal reporting unlocks the capability of monitoring the execution autonomously by use of a companion Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) sequence as the line number reporting is embedded inside the Timeliner-TLX(sup TM) execution engine. This negates I/O processing of this type data as the line number status of executing sequences is built-in as a function reference. This paper will outline the design and capabilities of the AFTS Autonomous Requirements Tracker, which traces and logs SRS requirements as they are being met during real-time execution of the targeted system. It is envisioned that real time requirements tracing will greatly assist the movement of autoprocedures to flight software enhancing the software assurance of auto-procedures and also their acceptance as reliable commanders.

49 CFR 238.111 - Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... the times and places of the pre-revenue service tests to permit FRA observation of such tests. For... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. 238... and General Requirements § 238.111 Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. (a) Passenger...

49 CFR 238.111 - Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... the times and places of the pre-revenue service tests to permit FRA observation of such tests. For... 49 Transportation 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. 238... and General Requirements § 238.111 Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. (a) Passenger...

49 CFR 238.111 - Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... the times and places of the pre-revenue service tests to permit FRA observation of such tests. For... 49 Transportation 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. 238... and General Requirements § 238.111 Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. (a) Passenger...

49 CFR 238.111 - Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... the times and places of the pre-revenue service tests to permit FRA observation of such tests. For... 49 Transportation 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. 238... and General Requirements § 238.111 Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. (a) Passenger...

49 CFR 238.111 - Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... the times and places of the pre-revenue service tests to permit FRA observation of such tests. For... 49 Transportation 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. 238... and General Requirements § 238.111 Pre-revenue service acceptance testing plan. (a) Passenger...

Real-Time Aerodynamic Flow and Data Visualization in an Interactive Virtual Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schwartz, Richard J.; Fleming, Gary A.

2005-01-01

Significant advances have been made to non-intrusive flow field diagnostics in the past decade. Camera based techniques are now capable of determining physical qualities such as surface deformation, surface pressure and temperature, flow velocities, and molecular species concentration. In each case, extracting the pertinent information from the large volume of acquired data requires powerful and efficient data visualization tools. The additional requirement for real time visualization is fueled by an increased emphasis on minimizing test time in expensive facilities. This paper will address a capability titled LiveView3D, which is the first step in the development phase of an in depth, real time data visualization and analysis tool for use in aerospace testing facilities.

Rapid diagnosis of tinea incognito using handheld reflectance confocal microscopy: a paradigm shift in dermatology?

PubMed

Navarrete-Dechent, Cristián; Bajaj, Shirin; Marghoob, Ashfaq A; Marchetti, Michael A

2015-06-01

Dermatophytoses are common skin infections. Traditional diagnostic tests such as skin scrapings for light microscopy examination, fungal cultures and biopsies remain imperfect due to false-negative test results, cost, time required to perform the procedure, time delays in test results and/or a requirement for an invasive procedure. Herein, we present a case of an 80-year-old female whose tinea incognito was non-invasively diagnosed within seconds using handheld reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM). As non-invasive skin imaging continues to improve, we expect light-based office microscopy to be replaced with technologies such as RCM, which has multiple and continually expanding diagnostic applications. © 2015 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Rapid phenotypic antimicrobial susceptibility testing using nanoliter arrays.

PubMed

Avesar, Jonathan; Rosenfeld, Dekel; Truman-Rosentsvit, Marianna; Ben-Arye, Tom; Geffen, Yuval; Bercovici, Moran; Levenberg, Shulamit

2017-07-18

Antibiotic resistance is a major global health concern that requires action across all sectors of society. In particular, to allow conservative and effective use of antibiotics clinical settings require better diagnostic tools that provide rapid determination of antimicrobial susceptibility. We present a method for rapid and scalable antimicrobial susceptibility testing using stationary nanoliter droplet arrays that is capable of delivering results in approximately half the time of conventional methods, allowing its results to be used the same working day. In addition, we present an algorithm for automated data analysis and a multiplexing system promoting practicality and translatability for clinical settings. We test the efficacy of our approach on numerous clinical isolates and demonstrate a 2-d reduction in diagnostic time when testing bacteria isolated directly from urine samples.

Real-Time Simulation of Ares I Launch Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tobbe, Patrick; Matras, Alex; Wilson, Heath; Alday, Nathan; Walker, David; Betts, Kevin; Hughes, Ryan; Turbe, Michael

2009-01-01

The Ares Real-Time Environment for Modeling, Integration, and Simulation (ARTEMIS) has been developed for use by the Ares I launch vehicle System Integration Laboratory (SIL) at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). The primary purpose of the Ares SIL is to test the vehicle avionics hardware and software in a hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) environment to certify that the integrated system is prepared for flight. ARTEMIS has been designed to be the real-time software backbone to stimulate all required Ares components through high-fidelity simulation. ARTEMIS has been designed to take full advantage of the advances in underlying computational power now available to support HWIL testing. A modular real-time design relying on a fully distributed computing architecture has been achieved. Two fundamental requirements drove ARTEMIS to pursue the use of high-fidelity simulation models in a real-time environment. First, ARTEMIS must be used to test a man-rated integrated avionics hardware and software system, thus requiring a wide variety of nominal and off-nominal simulation capabilities to certify system robustness. The second driving requirement - derived from a nationwide review of current state-of-the-art HWIL facilities - was that preserving digital model fidelity significantly reduced overall vehicle lifecycle cost by reducing testing time for certification runs and increasing flight tempo through an expanded operational envelope. These two driving requirements necessitated the use of high-fidelity models throughout the ARTEMIS simulation. The nature of the Ares mission profile imposed a variety of additional requirements on the ARTEMIS simulation. The Ares I vehicle is composed of multiple elements, including the First Stage Solid Rocket Booster (SRB), the Upper Stage powered by the J- 2X engine, the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) which houses the crew, the Launch Abort System (LAS), and various secondary elements that separate from the vehicle. At launch, the integrated vehicle stack is composed of these stages, and throughout the mission, various elements separate from the integrated stack and tumble back towards the earth. ARTEMIS must be capable of simulating the integrated stack through the flight as well as propagating each individual element after separation. In addition, abort sequences can lead to other unique configurations of the integrated stack as the timing and sequence of the stage separations are altered.

HMPT: Hazardous Waste Transportation Live 27928, Test 27929

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Simpson, Lewis Edward

2016-03-17

HMPT: Hazardous Waste Transportation (Live 27928, suggested one time and associated Test 27929, required initially and every 36 months) addresses the Department of Transportation (DOT) function-specific training requirements of the hazardous materials packagings and transportation (HMPT) Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) lab-wide training. This course addresses the requirements of the DOT that are unique to hazardous waste shipments. Appendix B provides the Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) reference material needed for this course.

Miscoding and other user errors: importance of ongoing education for proper blood glucose monitoring procedures.

PubMed

Schrock, Linda E

2008-07-01

This article reviews the literature to date and reports on a new study that documented the frequency of manual code-requiring blood glucose (BG) meters that were miscoded at the time of the patient's initial appointment in a hospital-based outpatient diabetes education program. Between January 1 and May 31, 2007, the type of BG meter and the accuracy of the patient's meter code (if required) and procedure for checking BG were checked during the initial appointment with the outpatient diabetes educator. If indicated, reeducation regarding the procedure for the BG meter code entry and/or BG test was provided. Of the 65 patients who brought their meter requiring manual entry of a code number or code chip to the initial appointment, 16 (25%) were miscoded at the time of the appointment. Two additional problems, one of dead batteries and one of improperly stored test strips, were identified and corrected at the first appointment. These findings underscore the importance of checking the patient's BG meter code (if required) and procedure for testing BG at each encounter with a health care professional or providing the patient with a meter that does not require manual entry of a code number or chip to match the container of test strips (i.e., an autocode meter).

Autoverification process improvement by Six Sigma approach: Clinical chemistry & immunoassay.

PubMed

Randell, Edward W; Short, Garry; Lee, Natasha; Beresford, Allison; Spencer, Margaret; Kennell, Marina; Moores, Zoë; Parry, David

2018-05-01

This study examines effectiveness of a project to enhance an autoverification (AV) system through application of Six Sigma (DMAIC) process improvement strategies. Similar AV systems set up at three sites underwent examination and modification to produce improved systems while monitoring proportions of samples autoverified, the time required for manual review and verification, sample processing time, and examining characteristics of tests not autoverified. This information was used to identify areas for improvement and monitor the impact of changes. Use of reference range based criteria had the greatest impact on the proportion of tests autoverified. To improve AV process, reference range based criteria was replaced with extreme value limits based on a 99.5% test result interval, delta check criteria were broadened, and new specimen consistency rules were implemented. Decision guidance tools were also developed to assist staff using the AV system. The mean proportion of tests and samples autoverified improved from <62% for samples and <80% for tests, to >90% for samples and >95% for tests across all three sites. The new AV system significantly decreased turn-around time and total sample review time (to about a third), however, time spent for manual review of held samples almost tripled. There was no evidence of compromise to the quality of testing process and <1% of samples held for exceeding delta check or extreme limits required corrective action. The Six Sigma (DMAIC) process improvement methodology was successfully applied to AV systems resulting in an increase in overall test and sample AV by >90%, improved turn-around time, reduced time for manual verification, and with no obvious compromise to quality or error detection. Copyright © 2018 The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pre-flight testing of preterm infants with neonatal lung disease: a retrospective review.

PubMed

Udomittipong, K; Stick, S M; Verheggen, M; Oostryck, J; Sly, P D; Hall, G L

2006-04-01

The low oxygen environment during air travel may result in hypoxia in patients with respiratory disease. However, little information exists on the oxygen requirements of infants with respiratory disease planning to fly. A study was undertaken to identify the clinical factors predictive of an in-flight oxygen requirement from a retrospective review of hypoxia challenge tests (inhalation of 14-15% oxygen for 20 minutes) in infants referred for fitness to fly assessment. Data from 47 infants (median corrected age 1.4 months) with a history of neonatal lung disease but not receiving supplemental oxygen at the time of hypoxia testing are reported. The neonatal and current clinical information of the infants were analysed in terms of their ability to predict the hypoxia test results. Thirty eight infants (81%) desaturated below 85% and warranted prescription of supplemental in-flight oxygen. Baseline oxygen saturation was >95% in all infants. Age at the time of the hypoxia test, either postmenstrual or corrected, significantly predicted the outcome of the hypoxia test (odds ratio 0.82; 95% confidence intervals 0.62 to 0.95; p = 0.005). Children passing the hypoxia test were significantly older than those requiring in-flight oxygen (median corrected age (10-90th centiles) 12.7 (3.0-43.4) v 0 (-0.9-10.9) months; p < 0.0001). A high proportion of ex-preterm infants not currently requiring supplemental oxygen referred for fitness-to-fly assessment and less than 12 months corrected age are at a high risk of requiring in-flight oxygen. Referral of this patient group for fitness to fly assessment including a hypoxia test may be indicated.

Task 4 supporting technology. Densification requirements definition and test objectives. Propellant densification requirements definition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lak, Tibor; Weeks, D. P.

1995-01-01

The primary challenge of the X-33 CAN is to build and test a prototype LO2 and LH2 densification ground support equipment (GSE) unit, and perform tank thermodynamic testing within the 15 month phase 1 period. The LO2 and LH2 propellant densification system will be scaled for the IPTD LO2 and LH2 tank configurations. The IPTD tanks were selected for the propellant technology demonstration because of the potential benefits to the phase 1 plan: tanks will be built in time to support thermodynamic testing; minimum cost; minimum schedule risk; future testing at MSFC will build on phase 1 data base; and densification system will be available to support X-33 and RLV engine test at IPTD. The objective of the task 1 effort is to define the preliminary requirements of the propellant densification GSE and tank recirculation system. The key densification system design parameters to be established in Task 1 are: recirculation flow rate; heat exchanger inlet temperature; heat exchanger outlet temperature; maximum heat rejection rate; vent flow rate (GN2 and GH2); densification time; and tank pressure level.

Nuclear thermal propulsion test facility requirements and development strategy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allen, George C.; Warren, John; Clark, J. S.

1991-01-01

The Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) subpanel of the Space Nuclear Propulsion Test Facilities Panel evaluated facility requirements and strategies for nuclear thermal propulsion systems development. High pressure, solid core concepts were considered as the baseline for the evaluation, with low pressure concepts an alternative. The work of the NTP subpanel revealed that a wealth of facilities already exists to support NTP development, and that only a few new facilities must be constructed. Some modifications to existing facilities will be required. Present funding emphasis should be on long-lead-time items for the major new ground test facility complex and on facilities supporting nuclear fuel development, hot hydrogen flow test facilities, and low power critical facilities.

40 CFR 280.95 - Financial test of self-insurance.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... least $10 million? ___ 8. Is line 6 at least 10 times line 3? ___ 9. Have financial statements for the.... (f) The Director of the implementing agency may require reports of financial condition at any time... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Financial test of self-insurance. 280...

Comparison of Resource Requirements for a Wind Tunnel Test Designed with Conventional vs. Modern Design of Experiments Methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeLoach, Richard; Micol, John R.

2011-01-01

The factors that determine data volume requirements in a typical wind tunnel test are identified. It is suggested that productivity in wind tunnel testing can be enhanced by managing the inference error risk associated with evaluating residuals in a response surface modeling experiment. The relationship between minimum data volume requirements and the factors upon which they depend is described and certain simplifications to this relationship are realized when specific model adequacy criteria are adopted. The question of response model residual evaluation is treated and certain practical aspects of response surface modeling are considered, including inference subspace truncation. A wind tunnel test plan developed by using the Modern Design of Experiments illustrates the advantages of an early estimate of data volume requirements. Comparisons are made with a representative One Factor At a Time (OFAT) wind tunnel test matrix developed to evaluate a surface to air missile.

DATA QUALITY OBJECTIVES FOR SELECTING WASTE SAMPLES FOR THE BENCH STEAM REFORMER TEST

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

BANNING DL

2010-08-03

This document describes the data quality objectives to select archived samples located at the 222-S Laboratory for Fluid Bed Steam Reformer testing. The type, quantity and quality of the data required to select the samples for Fluid Bed Steam Reformer testing are discussed. In order to maximize the efficiency and minimize the time to treat Hanford tank waste in the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, additional treatment processes may be required. One of the potential treatment processes is the fluid bed steam reformer (FBSR). A determination of the adequacy of the FBSR process to treat Hanford tank waste is required.more » The initial step in determining the adequacy of the FBSR process is to select archived waste samples from the 222-S Laboratory that will be used to test the FBSR process. Analyses of the selected samples will be required to confirm the samples meet the testing criteria.« less

The Relationship between Processing and Storage in Working Memory Span: Not Two Sides of the Same Coin

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maehara, Yukio; Saito, Satoru

2007-01-01

In working memory (WM) span tests, participants maintain memory items while performing processing tasks. In this study, we examined the impact of task processing requirements on memory-storage activities, looking at the stimulus order effect and the impact of storage requirements on processing activities, testing the processing time effect in WM…

30 CFR 250.434 - What are the recordkeeping requirements for diverter actuations and tests?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... diverter actuations and tests? 250.434 Section 250.434 Mineral Resources MINERALS MANAGEMENT SERVICE... for diverter actuations and tests? You must record the time, date, and results of all diverter actuations and tests in the driller's report. In addition, you must: (a) Record the diverter pressure test on...

Instrumentation used for hydraulic testing of potential water-bearing formations at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant site in southeastern New Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Basler, J.A.

1983-01-01

Requirements for testing hydrologic test wells at the proposed Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad, New Mexico, necessitated the use of inflatable formation packers and pressure transducers. Observations during drilling and initial development indicated small formation yields which would require considerable test times by conventional open-casing methods. A pressure-monitoring system was assembled for performance evaluation utilizing commercially available components. Formation pressures were monitored with a down-hole strain-gage transducer. An inflatable packer equipped with a 1/4-inch-diameter steel tube extending through the inflation element permitted sensing formation pressures in isolated test zones. Surface components of the monitoring system provided AC transducer excitation, signal conditioning for recording directly in engineering units, and both analog and digital recording. Continuous surface monitoring of formation pressures provided a means of determining test status and projecting completion times during any phase of testing. Maximum portability was afforded by battery operation with all surface components mounted in a small self-contained trailer. (USGS)

Limitations of Reliability for Long-Endurance Human Spaceflight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Owens, Andrew C.; de Weck, Olivier L.

2016-01-01

Long-endurance human spaceflight - such as missions to Mars or its moons - will present a never-before-seen maintenance logistics challenge. Crews will be in space for longer and be farther way from Earth than ever before. Resupply and abort options will be heavily constrained, and will have timescales much longer than current and past experience. Spare parts and/or redundant systems will have to be included to reduce risk. However, the high cost of transportation means that this risk reduction must be achieved while also minimizing mass. The concept of increasing system and component reliability is commonly discussed as a means to reduce risk and mass by reducing the probability that components will fail during a mission. While increased reliability can reduce maintenance logistics mass requirements, the rate of mass reduction decreases over time. In addition, reliability growth requires increased test time and cost. This paper assesses trends in test time requirements, cost, and maintenance logistics mass savings as a function of increase in Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) for some or all of the components in a system. In general, reliability growth results in superlinear growth in test time requirements, exponential growth in cost, and sublinear benefits (in terms of logistics mass saved). These trends indicate that it is unlikely that reliability growth alone will be a cost-effective approach to maintenance logistics mass reduction and risk mitigation for long-endurance missions. This paper discusses these trends as well as other options to reduce logistics mass such as direct reduction of part mass, commonality, or In-Space Manufacturing (ISM). Overall, it is likely that some combination of all available options - including reliability growth - will be required to reduce mass and mitigate risk for future deep space missions.

Screening for Learning and Memory Mutations: A New Approach

PubMed Central

Gallistel, C. R.; King, A. P.; Daniel, A. M.; Freestone, D.; Papachristos, E. B.; Balci, F.; Kheifets, A.; Zhang, J.; Su, X.; Schiff, G.; Kourtev, H.

2010-01-01

We describe a fully automated, live-in 24/7 test environment, with experimental protocols that measure the accuracy and precision with which mice match the ratio of their expected visit durations to the ratio of the incomes obtained from two hoppers, the progress of instrumental and classical conditioning (trials-to-acquisition), the accuracy and precision of interval timing, the effect of relative probability on the choice of a timed departure target, and the accuracy and precision of memory for the times of day at which food is available. The system is compact; it obviates the handling of the mice during testing; it requires negligible amounts of experimenter/technician time; and it delivers clear and extensive results from 3 protocols within a total of 7–9 days after the mice are placed in the test environment. Only a single 24-hour period is required for the completion of first protocol (the matching protocol), which is strong test of temporal and spatial estimation and memory mechanisms. Thus, the system permits the extensive screening of many mice in a short period of time and in limited space. The software is publicly available. PMID:20352069

[Microbiology--laboratory examinations for bacterias].

PubMed

Hen, Renjun; Imafuku, Yuji; Yoshida, Hiroshi

2002-11-01

As it has been required to identify pathogenic microbes in shorter times, simple and rapid methods have been developed and used. Here, we summarized the present situation of rapid diagnostic testing in clinical microbiology in Japan, and also presented our results on PBP2' detection. The rapid test kits available in Japan for E. coli, Helicobacter pylori, Salmonella, Streptococcus and Staphylococcus aureus were described. Rapid examination methods are based mainly on immunologic reactions, which included slide agglutination using latex particle, immunochromatography and ELISA. Times required for the identification are 10 to 15 minutes. Moreover, rapid test kits employing PCR are also marketed. Further, we evaluated MRSA-LA "Seiken" which is a rapid detection kit for PBP2' produced by MRSA. The test was shown to be highly sensitive and specific. For the rapid identification of pathogenic microbes, simple and rapid test kits described here will be used more in clinical diagnosis.

Pattern Generator for Bench Test of Digital Boards

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berkun, Andrew C.; Chu, Anhua J.

2012-01-01

All efforts to develop electronic equipment reach a stage where they need a board test station for each board. The SMAP digital system consists of three board types that interact with each other using interfaces with critical timing. Each board needs to be tested individually before combining into the integrated digital electronics system. Each board needs critical timing signals from the others to be able to operate. A bench test system was developed to support test of each board. The test system produces all the outputs of the control and timing unit, and is delivered much earlier than the timing unit. Timing signals are treated as data. A large file is generated containing the state of every timing signal at any instant. This file is streamed out to an IO card, which is wired directly to the device-under-test (DUT) input pins. This provides a flexible test environment that can be adapted to any of the boards required to test in a standalone configuration. The problem of generating the critical timing signals is then transferred from a hardware problem to a software problem where it is more easily dealt with.

Life without Scan-Tron: Tests as Thinking.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Posner, Richard

1987-01-01

Claims that written tests are superior to objective, scan-tron tests in literature, composition, and vocabulary because they require students to think on paper. Describes the following types of in-class written tests and examines the advantages of each: literary essay, topical composition, imitation, brief answer, timed rewrites, and vocabulary…

The upgrade system of BESIII ETOF with MRPC technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, X. Z.; Sun, Y. J.; Li, C.; Heng, Y. K.; Wu, Z.; Cao, P.; Dai, H. L.; Ji, X. L.; Gong, W. X.; Liu, Z.; Luo, X. L.; Sun, W. J.; Wang, S. Y.; Wang, Y.; Yang, R. X.; Ye, M.; Zhao, J. L.

2016-08-01

An upgrade, based on Multigap Resistive Plate Chamber (MRPC) technology, of the endcap Time-Of-Flight (ETOF) detector of the Beijing Spectrometer III (BESIII) has been proposed for the replacement of the current scintillator + PMT based ETOF, with the aim of improving the time resolution down to 80 ps sigma. This improvement will enhance the particle identification capability to meet the higher precision requirements of physics. The ETOF system including MRPC modules, Front End Electronics (FEE), CLOCK module, fast control boards and Time to Digital modules (TDIG), has been designed, constructed and parts of the ETOF system have seperately tested. Aiming at examining the quality of entire ETOF system and training the operation of all participated instruments, a cosmic ray test system was built and tested in the laboratory for about three months to guarantee the performance. In this paper the results of the test are presented indicating that the entire ETOF system works well and satisfies the requirements of the upgrade.

Stochastic shock response spectrum decomposition method based on probabilistic definitions of temporal peak acceleration, spectral energy, and phase lag distributions of mechanical impact pyrotechnic shock test data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hwang, James Ho-Jin; Duran, Adam

2016-08-01

Most of the times pyrotechnic shock design and test requirements for space systems are provided in Shock Response Spectrum (SRS) without the input time history. Since the SRS does not describe the input or the environment, a decomposition method is used to obtain the source time history. The main objective of this paper is to develop a decomposition method producing input time histories that can satisfy the SRS requirement based on the pyrotechnic shock test data measured from a mechanical impact test apparatus. At the heart of this decomposition method is the statistical representation of the pyrotechnic shock test data measured from the MIT Lincoln Laboratory (LL) designed Universal Pyrotechnic Shock Simulator (UPSS). Each pyrotechnic shock test data measured at the interface of a test unit has been analyzed to produce the temporal peak acceleration, Root Mean Square (RMS) acceleration, and the phase lag at each band center frequency. Maximum SRS of each filtered time history has been calculated to produce a relationship between the input and the response. Two new definitions are proposed as a result. The Peak Ratio (PR) is defined as the ratio between the maximum SRS and the temporal peak acceleration at each band center frequency. The ratio between the maximum SRS and the RMS acceleration is defined as the Energy Ratio (ER) at each band center frequency. Phase lag is estimated based on the time delay between the temporal peak acceleration at each band center frequency and the peak acceleration at the lowest band center frequency. This stochastic process has been applied to more than one hundred pyrotechnic shock test data to produce probabilistic definitions of the PR, ER, and the phase lag. The SRS is decomposed at each band center frequency using damped sinusoids with the PR and the decays obtained by matching the ER of the damped sinusoids to the ER of the test data. The final step in this stochastic SRS decomposition process is the Monte Carlo (MC) simulation. The MC simulation identifies combinations of the PR and decays that can meet the SRS requirement at each band center frequency. Decomposed input time histories are produced by summing the converged damped sinusoids with the MC simulation of the phase lag distribution.

Shuttle program: OFT ascent/descent ancillary data requirements document

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bond, A. C., Jr.; Knoedler, J.

1980-01-01

Requirements are presented for the ascent/descent (A/D) navigation and attitude-dependent ancillary data products to be generated for the space shuttle orbiter in support of the orbital flight test (OFT) flight test requirements, MPAD guidance and navigation performance assessment, and the mission evaluation team. The A/D ancillary data support for OFT mission evaluation activities is confined to providing postflight position, velocity, attitude, and associated navigation and attitude derived parameters for the Orbiter over particular flight phases and time intervals.

WE-DE-201-04: Cross Validation of Knowledge-Based Treatment Planning for Prostate LDR Brachytherapy Using Principle Component Analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Roper, J; Ghavidel, B; Godette, K

Purpose: To validate a knowledge-based algorithm for prostate LDR brachytherapy treatment planning. Methods: A dataset of 100 cases was compiled from an active prostate seed implant service. Cases were randomized into 10 subsets. For each subset, the 90 remaining library cases were registered to a common reference frame and then characterized on a point by point basis using principle component analysis (PCA). Each test case was converted to PCA vectors using the same process and compared with each library case using a Mahalanobis distance to evaluate similarity. Rank order PCA scores were used to select the best-matched library case. Themore » seed arrangement was extracted from the best-matched case and used as a starting point for planning the test case. Any subsequent modifications were recorded that required input from a treatment planner to achieve V100>95%, V150<60%, V200<20%. To simulate operating-room planning constraints, seed activity was held constant, and the seed count could not increase. Results: The computational time required to register test-case contours and evaluate PCA similarity across the library was 10s. Preliminary analysis of 2 subsets shows that 9 of 20 test cases did not require any seed modifications to obtain an acceptable plan. Five test cases required fewer than 10 seed modifications or a grid shift. Another 5 test cases required approximately 20 seed modifications. An acceptable plan was not achieved for 1 outlier, which was substantially larger than its best match. Modifications took between 5s and 6min. Conclusion: A knowledge-based treatment planning algorithm for prostate LDR brachytherapy is being cross validated using 100 prior cases. Preliminary results suggest that for this size library, acceptable plans can be achieved without planner input in about half of the cases while varying amounts of planner input are needed in remaining cases. Computational time and planning time are compatible with clinical practice.« less

USNO GPS program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Putkovich, K.

1981-01-01

Initial test results indicated that the Global Positioning System/Time Transfer Unit (GPS/TTU) performed well within the + or - 100 nanosecond range required by the original system specification. Subsequent testing involved the verification of GPS time at the master control site via portable clocks and the acquisition and tracking of as many passes of the space vehicles currently in operation as possible. A description and discussion of the testing, system modifications, test results obtained, and an evaluation of both GPS and the GPS/TTU are presented.

Executive Functions of Divers Are Selectively Impaired at 20-Meter Water Depth.

PubMed

Steinberg, Fabian; Doppelmayr, Michael

2017-01-01

Moving and acting underwater within recreational or occupational activities require intact executive functions, since they subserve higher cognitive functions such as successful self-regulation, coping with novel situations, and decision making; all of which could be influenced by nitrogen narcosis due to elevated partial pressure under water. However, specific executive functions that could provide a differentiated view on humans' cognitive performance ability have not yet been systematically analyzed in full-water immersion, which is a research gap addressed within this approach to contribute to a better understanding of nitrogen narcosis. In this study, 20 young, healthy, and certified recreational divers participated and performed three different executive-function tests: the Stroop test (Inhibition), the Number/Letter test (Task switching), the 2-back test (Updating/Working memory), and a simple reaction time test (Psychomotor performance). These tests were performed once on land, at 5-meter (m) water depth, and at 20-meter (m) water depth of an indoor diving facility in standardized test conditions (26°C in all water depths). A water-proofed and fully operational tablet computer was used to present visual stimuli and to register reaction times. Performance of the simple reaction time test was not different between underwater and land testing, suggesting that reaction times were not biased by the utilization of the tablet in water immersion. Executive functions were not affected by the shallow water immersion of 5-m water depth. However, performance scores in 20-m water depth revealed a decreased performance in the incongruent test condition (i.e., an index of inhibitory control ability) of the Stroop test, while all other tests were unaffected. Even though only one out of the three tested cognitive domains was affected, the impairment of inhibitory control ability even in relatively shallow water of 20-m is a critical component that should be considered for diver's safety, since inhibition is required in self-control requiring situations where impulsive and automatic behavior must be inhibited. Our interpretation of these selective impairments is based on a discussion suggesting that different neural networks within the central nervous system, which process specific executive functions, are affected differently by nitrogen narcosis.

[Continuing medical education: how to write multiple choice questions].

PubMed

Soler Fernández, R; Méndez Díaz, C; Rodríguez García, E

2013-06-01

Evaluating professional competence in medicine is a difficult but indispensable task because it makes it possible to evaluate, at different times and from different perspectives, the extent to which the knowledge, skills, and values required for exercising the profession have been acquired. Tests based on multiple choice questions have been and continue to be among the most useful tools for objectively evaluating learning in medicine. When these tests are well designed and correctly used, they can stimulate learning and even measure higher cognitive skills. Designing a multiple choice test is a difficult task that requires knowledge of the material to be tested and of the methodology of test preparation as well as time to prepare the test. The aim of this article is to review what can be evaluated through multiple choice tests, the rules and guidelines that should be taken into account when writing multiple choice questions, the different formats that can be used, the most common errors in elaborating multiple choice tests, and how to analyze the results of the test to verify its quality. Copyright © 2012 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Testing of Performance of a Scroll Pump in Support of Improved Vapor Phase Catalytic Ammonia Removal (VPCAR) Mass Reduction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nahra, Henry K.; Kraft, Thomas G.; Yee, Glenda F.; Jankovsky, Amy L.; Flynn, Michael

2006-01-01

This paper describes the results of ground testing of a scroll pump with a potential of being a substitute for the current vacuum pump of the Vapor Phase Catalytic Ammonia Reduction (VPCAR). Assessments of the pressure-time, pump-down time, pump power and the pump noise were made for three configurations of the pump the first of which was without the gas ballast, the second with the gas ballast installed but not operating and the third with the gas ballast operating. The tested scroll pump exhibited optimum characteristics given its mass and power requirements. The pump down time required to reach a pressure of 50 Torr ranged from 60 minutes without the ballast to about 120 minutes with the gas ballast operational. The noise emission and the pump power were assessed in this paper as well.

Experimental Validation of the Dynamic Inertia Measurement Method to Find the Mass Properties of an Iron Bird Test Article

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chin, Alexander W.; Herrera, Claudia Y.; Spivey, Natalie D.; Fladung, William A.; Cloutier, David

2015-01-01

The mass properties of an aerospace vehicle are required by multiple disciplines in the analysis and prediction of flight behavior. Pendulum oscillation methods have been developed and employed for almost a century as a means to measure mass properties. However, these oscillation methods are costly, time consuming, and risky. The NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center has been investigating the Dynamic Inertia Measurement, or DIM method as a possible alternative to oscillation methods. The DIM method uses ground test techniques that are already applied to aerospace vehicles when conducting modal surveys. Ground vibration tests would require minimal additional instrumentation and time to apply the DIM method. The DIM method has been validated on smaller test articles, but has not yet been fully proven on large aerospace vehicles.

Serial and Parallel Attentive Visual Searches: Evidence from Cumulative Distribution Functions of Response Times

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sung, Kyongje

2008-01-01

Participants searched a visual display for a target among distractors. Each of 3 experiments tested a condition proposed to require attention and for which certain models propose a serial search. Serial versus parallel processing was tested by examining effects on response time means and cumulative distribution functions. In 2 conditions, the…

30 CFR 71.701 - Sampling; general requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Sampling; general requirements. 71.701 Section... MINES Airborne Contaminants § 71.701 Sampling; general requirements. (a) Air samples will be taken by... operator shall conduct any additional air sampling tests and analyses as the Secretary may from time to...

30 CFR 71.701 - Sampling; general requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Sampling; general requirements. 71.701 Section... MINES Airborne Contaminants § 71.701 Sampling; general requirements. (a) Air samples will be taken by... operator shall conduct any additional air sampling tests and analyses as the Secretary may from time to...

Examining Changes in Certification/Licensure Requirements and the International Medical Graduate Examinee Pool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKinley, Danette W.; Hess, Brian J.; Boulet, John R.; Lipner, Rebecca S.

2014-01-01

Changes in certification requirements and examinee characteristics are likely to influence the validity of the evidence associated with interpretations made based on test data. We examined whether changes in Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) certification requirements over time were associated with changes in internal…

State-of-the-Art Assessment of Testing and Testability of Custom LSI/VLSI Circuits. Volume VI. Redundancy, Testing Circuits, and Codes.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-10-01

e.g., providing voters in TMR systems and detection-switching requirements in standby-sparing sys- tems. The application of mathematical thoery of...and time redundancy required for error detection and correction, are interrelated. Mathematical modeling, when applied to fault tolerant systems, can...9 1.1 Some Fundamental Principles............................. 11 1.2 Mathematical Theory of

Test techniques for determining laser ranging system performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zagwodzki, T. W.

1981-01-01

Procedures and results of an on going test program intended to evaluate laser ranging system performance levels in the field as well as in the laboratory are summarized. Tests show that laser ranging system design requires consideration of time biases and RMS jitters of individual system components. All simple Q switched lasers tested were found to be inadequate for 10 centimeter ranging systems. Timing discriminators operating over a typical 100:1 dynamic signal range may introduce as much as 7 to 9 centimeters of range bias. Time interval units commercially available today are capable of half centimeter performance and are adequate for all field systems currently deployed. Photomultipliers tested show typical tube time biases of one centimeter with single photoelectron transit time jitter of approximately 10 centimeters. Test results demonstrate that NASA's Mobile Laser Ranging System (MOBLAS) receiver configuration is limiting system performance below the 100 photoelectron level.

A Metallurgical Investigation of Large Forged Discs of Low-carbon N-155 Alloy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cross, Howard C; Freeman, J W

1947-01-01

Research was undertaken to ascertain the properties of better wrought heat resisting alloys in the form of large discs required for gas turbine rotors. The properties of large discs of low carbon N-155 alloy in both the as-forged and water-quenched and aged conditions were determined by means of stress-rupture and creep tests for time periods up to about 2000 hours at 1200, 1350, and 1500 F. Short-time tensile test, impact test, and time-total deformation characteristics are included. The principle results are given.

Impaired Response Selection During Stepping Predicts Falls in Older People-A Cohort Study.

PubMed

Schoene, Daniel; Delbaere, Kim; Lord, Stephen R

2017-08-01

Response inhibition, an important executive function, has been identified as a risk factor for falls in older people. This study investigated whether step tests that include different levels of response inhibition differ in their ability to predict falls and whether such associations are mediated by measures of attention, speed, and/or balance. A cohort study with a 12-month follow-up was conducted in community-dwelling older people without major cognitive and mobility impairments. Participants underwent 3 step tests: (1) choice stepping reaction time (CSRT) requiring rapid decision making and step initiation; (2) inhibitory choice stepping reaction time (iCSRT) requiring additional response inhibition and response-selection (go/no-go); and (3) a Stroop Stepping Test (SST) under congruent and incongruent conditions requiring conflict resolution. Participants also completed tests of processing speed, balance, and attention as potential mediators. Ninety-three of the 212 participants (44%) fell in the follow-up period. Of the step tests, only components of the iCSRT task predicted falls in this time with the relative risk per standard deviation for the reaction time (iCSRT-RT) = 1.23 (95%CI = 1.10-1.37). Multiple mediation analysis indicated that the iCSRT-RT was independently associated with falls and not mediated through slow processing speed, poor balance, or inattention. Combined stepping and response inhibition as measured in a go/no-go test stepping paradigm predicted falls in older people. This suggests that integrity of the response-selection component of a voluntary stepping response is crucial for minimizing fall risk. Copyright © 2017 AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fast Formal Analysis of Requirements via "Topoi Diagrams"

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Menzies, Tim; Powell, John; Houle, Michael E.; Kelly, John C. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Early testing of requirements can decrease the cost of removing errors in software projects. However, unless done carefully, that testing process can significantly add to the cost of requirements analysis. We show here that requirements expressed as topoi diagrams can be built and tested cheaply using our SP2 algorithm, the formal temporal properties of a large class of topoi can be proven very quickly, in time nearly linear in the number of nodes and edges in the diagram. There are two limitations to our approach. Firstly, topoi diagrams cannot express certain complex concepts such as iteration and sub-routine calls. Hence, our approach is more useful for requirements engineering than for traditional model checking domains. Secondly, out approach is better for exploring the temporal occurrence of properties than the temporal ordering of properties. Within these restrictions, we can express a useful range of concepts currently seen in requirements engineering, and a wide range of interesting temporal properties.

Investigation of the performance of the disintegration test for dietary supplements.

PubMed

Almukainzi, May; Salehi, Mahnor; Araci Bou-Chacra, Nadia; Löbenberg, Raimar

2010-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate how beaker size, basket assembly, use of disk, and immersion medium impact the disintegration time of dietary supplements. The disintegration times were determined for five tablet and two capsule products. A two-station disintegration tester was used with Apparatus A or Apparatus B as described in the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) chapters, <701> and <2040>. Two beakers complying with the harmonized specifications were used, one with a volume of 1,000 mL and one with a 1,500-mL volume. The disintegration data were analyzed using ANOVA for the following factors: beaker size, equipment (App A and B) and condition (with/without disk). Two tablet products were not sensitive to any changes in the test conditions or equipment configurations. One product was only partially sensitive to the test conditions. The other products showed impact on the disintegration time for all test conditions. The results revealed that these tablet products might pass or fail current USP disintegration requirements depending on the equipment configuration. Similar results were obtained for the two investigated capsule formulations. One product might fail current USP disintegration requirements if the large beaker was used, but might pass the disintegration requirements when the small beaker was used. Hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose capsules were mostly influenced if sodium instead of a potassium buffer was used as the immersion medium. The results demonstrate that the current harmonized ICH specifications for the disintegration test are insufficient to make the disintegration test into reliable test for dietary supplements.

A High Performance Impedance-based Platform for Evaporation Rate Detection.

PubMed

Chou, Wei-Lung; Lee, Pee-Yew; Chen, Cheng-You; Lin, Yu-Hsin; Lin, Yung-Sheng

2016-10-17

This paper describes the method of a novel impedance-based platform for the detection of the evaporation rate. The model compound hyaluronic acid was employed here for demonstration purposes. Multiple evaporation tests on the model compound as a humectant with various concentrations in solutions were conducted for comparison purposes. A conventional weight loss approach is known as the most straightforward, but time-consuming, measurement technique for evaporation rate detection. Yet, a clear disadvantage is that a large volume of sample is required and multiple sample tests cannot be conducted at the same time. For the first time in literature, an electrical impedance sensing chip is successfully applied to a real-time evaporation investigation in a time sharing, continuous and automatic manner. Moreover, as little as 0.5 ml of test samples is required in this impedance-based apparatus, and a large impedance variation is demonstrated among various dilute solutions. The proposed high-sensitivity and fast-response impedance sensing system is found to outperform a conventional weight loss approach in terms of evaporation rate detection.

Assessing the Performance of LED-Based Flashlights Available in the Kenyan Off-Grid Lighting Market

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tracy, Jennifer; Jacobson, Arne; Mills, Evan

Low cost rechargeable flashlights that use LED technology are increasingly available in African markets. While LED technology holds promise to provide affordable, high quality lighting services, the widespread dissemination of low quality products may make it difficult to realize this potential. This study includes performance results for three brands of commonly available LED flashlights that were purchased in Kenya in 2009. The performance of the flashlights was evaluated by testing five units for each of the three brands. The tests included measurements of battery capacity, time required to charge the battery, maximum illuminance at one meter, operation time and lux-hoursmore » from a fully charged battery, light distribution, and color rendering. All flashlights tested performed well below the manufacturers? rated specifications; the measured battery capacity was 30-50percent lower than the rated capacity and the time required to fully charge the battery was 6-25percent greater than the rated time requirement. Our analysis further shows that within each brand there is considerable variability in each performance indicator. The five samples within a single brand varied from each other by as much as 22percent for battery capacity measurements, 3.6percent for the number of hours required for a full charge, 23percent for maximum initial lux, 38percent for run time, 11percent for light distribution and by as much as 200percent for color rendering. Results obtained are useful for creating a framework for quality assurance of off-grid LED products and will be valuable for informing consumers, distributors and product manufacturers about product performance.« less

Economic and workflow analysis of a blood bank automated system.

PubMed

Shin, Kyung-Hwa; Kim, Hyung Hoi; Chang, Chulhun L; Lee, Eun Yup

2013-07-01

This study compared the estimated costs and times required for ABO/Rh(D) typing and unexpected antibody screening using an automated system and manual methods. The total cost included direct and labor costs. Labor costs were calculated on the basis of the average operator salaries and unit values (minutes), which was the hands-on time required to test one sample. To estimate unit values, workflows were recorded on video, and the time required for each process was analyzed separately. The unit values of ABO/Rh(D) typing using the manual method were 5.65 and 8.1 min during regular and unsocial working hours, respectively. The unit value was less than 3.5 min when several samples were tested simultaneously. The unit value for unexpected antibody screening was 2.6 min. The unit values using the automated method for ABO/Rh(D) typing, unexpected antibody screening, and both simultaneously were all 1.5 min. The total cost of ABO/Rh(D) typing of only one sample using the automated analyzer was lower than that of testing only one sample using the manual technique but higher than that of testing several samples simultaneously. The total cost of unexpected antibody screening using an automated analyzer was less than that using the manual method. ABO/Rh(D) typing using an automated analyzer incurs a lower unit value and cost than that using the manual technique when only one sample is tested at a time. Unexpected antibody screening using an automated analyzer always incurs a lower unit value and cost than that using the manual technique.

The effects of cuing in time-shared tasks. [for aircraft flight route-way-point information

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chechile, R. A.; Sadoski, D. M.

1983-01-01

The results of two divided-attention experiments involving the editing of route-way-point displays on an avionics computer unit are reported. Two side tasks were required of the subjects, and either no cue, verbal cues appearing on the CRT, or symbolic cues (lights on the keyboard adjacent to keys to be used) were given to facilitate the primary editing task. Forty female and 30 male undergraduates were trained in the separate and combined tasks and divided randomly into groups of 25 for the cuing tests. A second test with three 10-subject groups was conducted at least one month later to investigate the efficacy of cuing for infrequently used procedures. It is found that only symbolic cuing significantly improved primary-task performance, increasing editing accuracy in the repetitive tests and reducing editing time in the delayed tests. Verbal cuing, probably because it requires additional cognitive effort, has no significant beneficial effect. These results are considered important for designing instruments for work environments requiring the performance of concurrent tasks, and as aircraft cockpits.

The replacement of dry heat in generic reliability assurance requirements for passive optical components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, Xusheng; Qian, Longsheng; Zhang, Guiyan

2005-12-01

According to Generic Reliability Assurance Requirements for Passive Optical Components GR-1221-CORE (Issue 2, January 1999), reliability determination test of different kinds of passive optical components which using in uncontrolled environments is taken. The test condition of High Temperature Storage Test (Dry Test) and Damp Test is in below sheet. Except for humidity condition, all is same. In order to save test time and cost, after a sires of contrast tests, the replacement of Dry Heat is discussed. Controlling the Failure mechanism of dry heat and damp heat of passive optical components, the contrast test of dry heat and damp heat for passive optical components (include DWDM, CWDM, Coupler, Isolator, mini Isolator) is taken. The test result of isolator is listed. Telcordia test not only test the reliability of the passive optical components, but also test the patience of the experimenter. The cost of Telcordia test in money, manpower and material resources, especially in time is heavy burden for the company. After a series of tests, we can find that Damp heat could factually test the reliability of passive optical components, and equipment manufacturer in accord with component manufacture could omit the dry heat test if damp heat test is taken first and passed.

Mice plan decision strategies based on previously learned time intervals, locations, and probabilities

PubMed Central

Tosun, Tuğçe; Gür, Ezgi; Balcı, Fuat

2016-01-01

Animals can shape their timed behaviors based on experienced probabilistic relations in a nearly optimal fashion. On the other hand, it is not clear if they adopt these timed decisions by making computations based on previously learnt task parameters (time intervals, locations, and probabilities) or if they gradually develop their decisions based on trial and error. To address this question, we tested mice in the timed-switching task, which required them to anticipate when (after a short or long delay) and at which of the two delay locations a reward would be presented. The probability of short trials differed between test groups in two experiments. Critically, we first trained mice on relevant task parameters by signaling the active trial with a discriminative stimulus and delivered the corresponding reward after the associated delay without any response requirement (without inducing switching behavior). During the test phase, both options were presented simultaneously to characterize the emergence and temporal characteristics of the switching behavior. Mice exhibited timed-switching behavior starting from the first few test trials, and their performance remained stable throughout testing in the majority of the conditions. Furthermore, as the probability of the short trial increased, mice waited longer before switching from the short to long location (experiment 1). These behavioral adjustments were in directions predicted by reward maximization. These results suggest that rather than gradually adjusting their time-dependent choice behavior, mice abruptly adopted temporal decision strategies by directly integrating their previous knowledge of task parameters into their timed behavior, supporting the model-based representational account of temporal risk assessment. PMID:26733674

Integrated Analysis Tools for Determination of Structural Integrity and Durability of High temperature Polymer Matrix Composites

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-08-18

fidelity will be used to reduce the massive experimental testing and associated time required for qualification of new materials. Tools and...develping a model of the thermo-oxidative process for polymer systems, that incorporates the effects of reaction rates, Fickian diffusion, time varying...degradation processes. Year: 2005 Month: 12 Not required at this time . AIR FORCE OFFICE OF SCIENTIFIC KESEARCH 04 SEP 2008 Page 2 of 2 DTIC Data

A COMPARISON OF BULK SEDIMENT TOXICITY TESTING METHODS AND SEDIMENT ELUTRIATE TOXICITY

EPA Science Inventory

Bulk sediment toxicity tests are routinely used to assess the level and extent of contamination in natural sediments. While reliable, these tests can be resource intensive, requiring significant outlays of time and materials. The purpose of this study was to compare the results ...

Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) structural verification test report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, T. C.; Lucy, M. H.; Shearer, R. L.

1983-01-01

Structural load tests on the Long Duration Exposure Facility's (LDEF) primary structure were conducted. These tests had three purposes: (1) demonstrate structural adequacy of the assembled LDEF primary structure when subjected to anticipated flight loads; (2) verify analytical models and methods used in loads and stress analysis; and (3) perform tests to comply with the Space Transportation System (STS) requirements. Test loads were based on predicted limit loads which consider all flight events. Good agreement is shown between predicted and observed load, strain, and deflection data. Test data show that the LDEF structure was subjected to 1.2 times limit load to meet the STS requirements. The structural adequacy of the LDEF is demonstrated.

Predicting Assessment Outcomes: The Effect of Full-Time and Part-Time Faculty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerlich, R. Nicholas; Sollosy, Marc

2010-01-01

Assessments have risen in prominence in colleges of business, in response to requirements of accrediting agencies. Among the forms of assessment are embedded exams within courses, often in the form of multiple-choice tests near the end of the semester. These tests can be stand-alone comprehensive exercises, or comprise a small portion of a larger…

40 CFR 1054.145 - Are there interim provisions that apply only for a limited time?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... them to us if we ask for them (see 40 CFR 1068.101(a)(2)). (n) Ethanol-blended test fuel for...) California test fuel. Through model year 2019, you may perform testing with a fuel meeting the requirements... Phase 2 test fuel. Any EPA testing with such an engine family may use either this same certification...

Aligning Scales of Certification Tests. Research Report. ETS RR-10-07

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dorans, Neil J.; Liang, Longjuan; Puhan, Gautam

2010-01-01

Scores are the most visible and widely used products of a testing program. The choice of score scale has implications for test specifications, equating, and test reliability and validity, as well as for test interpretation. At the same time, the score scale should be viewed as infrastructure likely to require repair at some point. In this report…

Observation of a Pharmacist-Conducted Group A Streptococcal Pharyngitis Point-of-Care Test: A Time and Motion Study.

PubMed

Corn, Carolyn E; Klepser, Donald G; Dering-Anderson, Allison M; Brown, Terrence G; Klepser, Michael E; Smith, Jaclyn K

2018-06-01

Acute pharyngitis is among the most common infectious diseases encountered in the United States, resulting in 13 million patient visits annually, with group A streptococcus (GAS) being a common causative pathogen. It is estimated that annual expenditures for the treatment of adult pharyngitis will exceed US$1.2 billion annually. This substantial projection reinforces the need to evaluate diagnosis and treatment of adult pharyngitis in nontraditional settings. The objective of this research is to quantify the amount of pharmacist time required to complete a point-of-care (POC) test for a patient presenting with pharyngitis symptoms. A standardized patient with pharyngitis symptoms visited 11 pharmacies for POC testing services for a total of 33 patient encounters. An observer was present at each encounter and recorded the total encounter time, divided into 9 categories. Pharmacists conducted POC testing in 1 of 2 ways: sequence 1-pharmacists performed all service-related tasks; sequence 2-both pharmacists and pharmacist interns performed service-related tasks. The average time for completion of a POC test for GAS pharyngitis was 25.3 ± 4.8 minutes. The average pharmacist participation time per encounter was 12.7 ± 3.0 minutes (sequence 1), which decreased to 2.6 ± 1.1 minutes when pharmacist interns were involved in the testing (sequence 2). Although additional studies are required to further assess service feasibility, this study indicates that a GAS POC testing service could be implemented in a community pharmacy with limited disruption or change to workflow and staff.

41 CFR 300-90.4 - How many test programs may be authorized by GSA throughout the Government?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

...? No more than 10 telework travel expense test programs may be conducted at the same time. ... Property Management Federal Travel Regulation System GENERAL AGENCY REQUIREMENTS 90-TELEWORK TRAVEL...

40 CFR 80.60 - Test fleet requirements for exhaust emission testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... vehicle with an exhaust total hydrocarbon (THC) emissions rate which is less than or equal to twice the... THC emissions rate which is greater than two times the applicable emissions standard shall be placed...

40 CFR 80.60 - Test fleet requirements for exhaust emission testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... vehicle with an exhaust total hydrocarbon (THC) emissions rate which is less than or equal to twice the... THC emissions rate which is greater than two times the applicable emissions standard shall be placed...

40 CFR 80.60 - Test fleet requirements for exhaust emission testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... vehicle with an exhaust total hydrocarbon (THC) emissions rate which is less than or equal to twice the... THC emissions rate which is greater than two times the applicable emissions standard shall be placed...

40 CFR 80.60 - Test fleet requirements for exhaust emission testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... vehicle with an exhaust total hydrocarbon (THC) emissions rate which is less than or equal to twice the... THC emissions rate which is greater than two times the applicable emissions standard shall be placed...

40 CFR 80.60 - Test fleet requirements for exhaust emission testing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... vehicle with an exhaust total hydrocarbon (THC) emissions rate which is less than or equal to twice the... THC emissions rate which is greater than two times the applicable emissions standard shall be placed...

Power Hardware-in-the-Loop Evaluation of PV Inverter Grid Support on Hawaiian Electric Feeders: Preprint

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nelson, Austin; Prabakar, Kumaraguru; Nagarajan, Adarsh

As more grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) inverters become compliant with evolving interconnections requirements, there is increased interest from utilities in understanding how to best deploy advanced grid-support functions (GSF) in the field. One efficient and cost-effective method to examine such deployment options is to leverage power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) testing methods. Two Hawaiian Electric feeder models were converted to real-time models in the OPAL-RT real-time digital testing platform, and integrated with models of GSF capable PV inverters that were modeled from characterization test data. The integrated model was subsequently used in PHIL testing to evaluate the effects of different fixed power factormore » and volt-watt control settings on voltage regulation of the selected feeders. The results of this study were provided as inputs for field deployment and technical interconnection requirements for grid-connected PV inverters on the Hawaiian Islands.« less

Validity of the Instrumented Push and Release Test to Quantify Postural Responses in Persons With Multiple Sclerosis.

PubMed

El-Gohary, Mahmoud; Peterson, Daniel; Gera, Geetanjali; Horak, Fay B; Huisinga, Jessie M

2017-07-01

To test the validity of wearable inertial sensors to provide objective measures of postural stepping responses to the push and release clinical test in people with multiple sclerosis. Cross-sectional study. University medical center balance disorder laboratory. Total sample N=73; persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) n=52; healthy controls n=21. Stepping latency, time and number of steps required to reach stability, and initial step length were calculated using 3 inertial measurement units placed on participants' lumbar spine and feet. Correlations between inertial sensor measures and measures obtained from the laboratory-based systems were moderate to strong and statistically significant for all variables: time to release (r=.992), latency (r=.655), time to stability (r=.847), time of first heel strike (r=.665), number of steps (r=.825), and first step length (r=.592). Compared with healthy controls, PwMS demonstrated a longer time to stability and required a larger number of steps to reach stability. The instrumented push and release test is a valid measure of postural responses in PwMS and could be used as a clinical outcome measures for patient care decisions or for clinical trials aimed at improving postural control in PwMS. Copyright © 2016 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The analysis of axisymmetric viscoelasticity, time-dependent recovery, and hydration in rat tail intervertebral discs by radial compression test.

PubMed

Lin, Leou-Chyr; Hedman, Thomas P; Wang, Shyu-Jye; Huoh, Michael; Chang, Shih-Youeng

2009-05-01

The goal of this study was to develop a nondestructive radial compression technique and to investigate the viscoelastic behavior of the rat tail disc under repeated radial compression. Rat tail intervertebral disc underwent radial compression relaxation testing and creep testing using a custom-made gravitational creep machine. The axisymmetric viscoelasticity and time-dependent recovery were determined. Different levels of hydration (with or without normal saline spray) were supplied to evaluate the effect of changes in viscoelastic properties. Viscoelasticity was found to be axisymmetric in rat-tail intervertebral discs at four equidistant locations. Complete relaxation recovery was found to take 20 min, whereas creep recovery required 25 min. Hydration was required for obtaining viscoelastic axisymmetry and complete viscoelastic recovery.

46 CFR 61.35-3 - Required tests and checks.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... heaters without water level controls) must be tested by interrupting the feed water supply. Manual reset... alarm and visible indicator must be verified. The shutdown times must be verified. (3) Fuel supply... draft loss interlock switch must be tested to ensure proper operation. The draft limit control must...

Accelerated Colorimetric Micro-assay for Screening Mold Inhibitors

Treesearch

Carol A. Clausen; Vina W. Yang

2014-01-01

Rapid quantitative laboratory test methods are needed to screen potential antifungal agents. Existing laboratory test methods are relatively time consuming, may require specialized test equipment and rely on subjective visual ratings. A quantitative, colorimetric micro-assay has been developed that uses XTT tetrazolium salt to metabolically assess mold spore...

System performance testing of the DSN radio science system, Mark 3-78

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berman, A. L.; Mehta, J. S.

1978-01-01

System performance tests are required to evaluate system performance following initial system implementation and subsequent modification, and to validate system performance prior to actual operational usage. Non-real-time end-to-end Radio Science system performance tests are described that are based on the comparison of open-loop radio science data to equivalent closed-loop radio metric data, as well as an abbreviated Radio Science real-time system performance test that validates critical Radio Science System elements at the Deep Space Station prior to actual operational usage.

Circadian time-place (or time-route) learning in rats with hippocampal lesions.

PubMed

Cole, Emily; Mistlberger, Ralph E; Merza, Devon; Trigiani, Lianne J; Madularu, Dan; Simundic, Amanda; Mumby, Dave G

2016-12-01

Circadian time-place learning (TPL) is the ability to remember both the place and biological time of day that a significant event occurred (e.g., food availability). This ability requires that a circadian clock provide phase information (a time tag) to cognitive systems involved in linking representations of an event with spatial reference memory. To date, it is unclear which neuronal substrates are critical in this process, but one candidate structure is the hippocampus (HPC). The HPC is essential for normal performance on tasks that require allocentric spatial memory and exhibits circadian rhythms of gene expression that are sensitive to meal timing. Using a novel TPL training procedure and enriched, multidimensional environment, we trained rats to locate a food reward that varied between two locations relative to time of day. After rats acquired the task, they received either HPC or SHAM lesions and were re-tested. Rats with HPC lesions were initially impaired on the task relative to SHAM rats, but re-attained high scores with continued testing. Probe tests revealed that the rats were not using an alternation strategy or relying on light-dark transitions to locate the food reward. We hypothesize that transient disruption and recovery reflect a switch from HPC-dependent allocentric navigation (learning places) to dorsal striatum-dependent egocentric spatial navigation (learning routes to a location). Whatever the navigation strategy, these results demonstrate that the HPC is not required for rats to find food in different locations using circadian phase as a discriminative cue. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

24 CFR 3280.207 - Requirements for foam plastic thermal insulating materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... include intensity of cavity fire (temperature-time) and post-test damage. (iii) Post-test damage... Technology Research Institute (IIT) Report, “Development of Mobile Home Fire Test Methods to Judge the Fire... Project J-6461, 1979” or other full-scale fire tests accepted by HUD, and it is installed in a manner...

24 CFR 3280.207 - Requirements for foam plastic thermal insulating materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... include intensity of cavity fire (temperature-time) and post-test damage. (iii) Post-test damage... Technology Research Institute (IIT) Report, “Development of Mobile Home Fire Test Methods to Judge the Fire... Project J-6461, 1979” or other full-scale fire tests accepted by HUD, and it is installed in a manner...

24 CFR 3280.207 - Requirements for foam plastic thermal insulating materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... include intensity of cavity fire (temperature-time) and post-test damage. (iii) Post-test damage... Technology Research Institute (IIT) Report, “Development of Mobile Home Fire Test Methods to Judge the Fire... Project J-6461, 1979” or other full-scale fire tests accepted by HUD, and it is installed in a manner...

24 CFR 3280.207 - Requirements for foam plastic thermal insulating materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... include intensity of cavity fire (temperature-time) and post-test damage. (iii) Post-test damage... Technology Research Institute (IIT) Report, “Development of Mobile Home Fire Test Methods to Judge the Fire... Project J-6461, 1979” or other full-scale fire tests accepted by HUD, and it is installed in a manner...

24 CFR 3280.207 - Requirements for foam plastic thermal insulating materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... include intensity of cavity fire (temperature-time) and post-test damage. (iii) Post-test damage... Technology Research Institute (IIT) Report, “Development of Mobile Home Fire Test Methods to Judge the Fire... Project J-6461, 1979” or other full-scale fire tests accepted by HUD, and it is installed in a manner...

40 CFR 63.11094 - What are my recordkeeping requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...: Test pressure; pressure or vacuum change, mm of water; time period of test; number of leaks found with... § 63.11092(f)(1) and periodic railcar bubble leak testing performed under § 63.11092(f)(2). (2) The... Certification Test—Method 27 or Periodic Railcar Bubble Leak Test Procedure. (ii) Cargo tank owner's name and...

33 CFR 159.129 - Safety: Ignition prevention test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... must pass the test in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section or meet the requirements of paragraph (d) or... indicate a leakage less than 20 percent of the lower explosive limit of the mixture in the chamber. (c... protected void, the test installed ignition source must be activated 50 times. (3) The tests paragraphs (c...

DATA QUALITY OBJECTIVES FOR SELECTING WASTE SAMPLES FOR BENCH-SCALE REFORMER TREATABILITY STUDIES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

BANNING DL

2011-02-11

This document describes the data quality objectives to select archived samples located at the 222-S Laboratory for Bench-Scale Reforming testing. The type, quantity, and quality of the data required to select the samples for Fluid Bed Steam Reformer testing are discussed. In order to maximize the efficiency and minimize the time to treat Hanford tank waste in the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, additional treatment processes may be required. One of the potential treatment processes is the fluidized bed steam reformer. A determination of the adequacy of the fluidized bed steam reformer process to treat Hanford tank waste is required.more » The initial step in determining the adequacy of the fluidized bed steam reformer process is to select archived waste samples from the 222-S Laboratory that will be used in a bench scale tests. Analyses of the selected samples will be required to confirm the samples meet the shipping requirements and for comparison to the bench scale reformer (BSR) test sample selection requirements.« less

[Point-of-Care Testing in Trauma Patients - Methods and Evidence].

PubMed

Dirkmann, Daniel; Britten, Martin W; Frey, Ulrich H

2018-06-01

In severely injured patients, trauma-induced coagulopathy (TIC) present at hospital admission is associated with increased transfusion requirements, morbidity and mortality. Early and effective treatment contributes to improved survival rates. Laboratory coagulation assays have long turn-around times and evidence for their usefulness, especially in the context of TIC, is weak. Due to the lack of appropriate guidance, transfusion of allogeneic blood products frequently follows a ratio-based concept (e.g., transfusion of erythrocytes and plasma in a 1 : 1 ratio). Point-of-care (PoC) tests enable the assessment of prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time in few minutes. However, although normal PT in these tests allows to rule out relevant effects of several anticoagulants, they are not able to detect patients with TIC and/or requiring subsequent massive transfusion. Viscoelastic tests (VETs) make it possible to assess defects in thrombin generation, hypofibrinogenaemia, thrombocytopenia, and hyperfibrinolysis, and thus enable targeted therapy. Impairment of platelet function is the common blind spot not detectable using both standard laboratory-based tests and VETs. However, PoC platelet function tests enable to detect platelet defects and patients taking anti-platelet. Furthermore, impaired platelet function has been identified as a strong predictor for coagulopathy and massive transfusion in trauma patients. In other clinical settings, coagulation management based on VETs is associated with decreased transfusion requirements, incidence of acute kidney failure, and mortality, respectively. Data of the first small prospective randomised trial indicate superiority of VET guided coagulation management solely using coagulation factor concentrates, when compared to plasma transfusions in severe trauma. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Reliability program requirements for aeronautical and space system contractors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

General reliability program requirements for NASA contracts involving the design, development, fabrication, test, and/or use of aeronautical and space systems including critical ground support equipment are prescribed. The reliability program requirements require (1) thorough planning and effective management of the reliability effort; (2) definition of the major reliability tasks and their place as an integral part of the design and development process; (3) planning and evaluating the reliability of the system and its elements (including effects of software interfaces) through a program of analysis, review, and test; and (4) timely status indication by formal documentation and other reporting to facilitate control of the reliability program.

Design for improved maintenance of the fiber-optic cable system (As carried out in a concurrent engineering environment)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tremoulet, P. C.

The author describes a number of maintenance improvements in the Fiber Optic Cable System (FOCS). They were achieved during a production phase pilot concurrent engineering program. Listed in order of importance (saved maintenance time and material) by maintenance level, they are: (1) organizational level: improved fiber optic converter (FOC) BITE; (2) Intermediate level: reduced FOC adjustments from 20 to 2; partitioned FOC into electrical and optical parts; developed cost-effective fault isolation test points and test using standard test equipment; improved FOC chassis to have lower mean time to repair; and (3) depot level: revised test requirements documents (TRDs) for common automatic test equipment and incorporated ATE testability into circuit and assemblies and application-specific integrated circuits. These improvements met this contract's tailored logistics MIL-STD 1388-1A requirements of monitoring the design for supportability and determining the most effective support equipment. Important logistics lessons learned while accomplishing these maintainability and supportability improvements on the pilot concurrent engineering program are also discussed.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Boverhof, Joshua R.; Agawal, Deborah A.; Jackson, Keith R.

Nettest is a secure, real-time network utility. The nettest framework is designed to incorporate existing and new network tests, and be run as a daemon or an interactive process. Requests for network tests are received via a SSL connection or the user interface and are authorized using a ACL list (in the future authorization using Akenti will also be supported). For tests that require coordination between the two ends of the test, Nettest establishes an SSL connection to accomplish this coordination. A test between two remote computers can be requested via the user interlace if the Nettest daemon is runningmore » on both remote machines and the user is authorized. Authorization for the test is through a chain of trust estabtished by the nettest daemons. Nettest is responsible for determining if the test request is authorized, but it does nothing further to secure the test once the test is running. Currently the Nettest framework incorporates lperf-vl.2, a simple ping type test, and a tuned TCP test that uses a given required throughput and ping results to determine the round trip time to set a buffer size (based on the delay bandwidth product) and then performs an iperf TCP throughput test. Additional network test tools can be integrated into the Nettest framework in the future.« less

Evaluation of the advantageous anesthetic properties of dexmedetomidine used as hypotensive agent compared with nitroglycerin in orthognathic surgery.

PubMed

Rummasak, Duangdee; Apipan, Benjamas

2014-12-01

To evaluate the advantageous anesthetic properties, such as the decrease of intraoperative analgesic requirement, time to extubation and recovery, and early postoperative pain, of dexmedetomidine used as hypotensive agent compared with nitroglycerin in orthognathic surgery. The authors implemented a prospective, single-blinded, randomized clinical trial. The sample was composed of healthy patients who were admitted for bimaxillary osteotomies and were assigned to 1 of 2 groups by a computer-generated random number and blinded to the group. Dexmedetomidine or nitroglycerin was used as the hypotensive drug for each group. All patients underwent hypotensive anesthesia and surgery according to standard protocol. Intraoperative amount of fentanyl, time to eye opening, time to follow basic verbal commands, time to extubation, early postoperative pain scores, and analgesics were recorded. Compared means were analyzed using the unpaired Student t test. A 2-sided statistical test was used. A P value less than .05 was considered significant. The sample was composed of 40 participants. The intraoperative fentanyl requirement was significantly lower in the dexmedetomidine group than in the nitroglycerin group (168.75±56.29 and 222.50±96.12 μg, respectively; P=.037). Times to eye opening and following commands were considerably longer in the dexmedetomidine group, but the time to extubation showed no meaningful difference. Early postoperative pain after 30 and 60 minutes and the requirement for meperidine were not meaningfully different between the 2 groups. Dexmedetomidine, used as a hypotensive drug, has anesthetic benefits compared with nitroglycerin. Dexmedetomidine decreases the intraoperative fentanyl requirement and does not meaningfully change the time to extubation, early postoperative pain, and analgesic drug requirement. Copyright © 2014 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instruments Module (ISIM) Electronics Compartment (IEC) Conformal Shields Composite Bond Structure Qualification Test Method

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yew, Calinda; Stephens, Matt

2015-01-01

The JWST IEC conformal shields are mounted onto a composite frame structure that must undergo qualification testing to satisfy mission assurance requirements. The composite frame segments are bonded together at the joints using epoxy, EA 9394. The development of a test method to verify the integrity of the bonded structure at its operating environment introduces challenges in terms of requirements definition and the attainment of success criteria. Even though protoflight thermal requirements were not achieved, the first attempt in exposing the structure to cryogenic operating conditions in a thermal vacuum environment resulted in approximately 1 bonded joints failure during mechanical pull tests performed at 1.25 times the flight loads. Failure analysis concluded that the failure mode was due to adhesive cracks that formed and propagated along stress concentrated fillets as a result of poor bond squeeze-out control during fabrication. Bond repairs were made and the structures successfully re-tested with an improved LN2 immersion test method to achieve protoflight thermal requirements.

49 CFR 180.407 - Requirements for test and inspection of specification cargo tanks.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... greater. MC 304, 307 275.8 kPa (40 psig) or 1.5 times the design pressure, whichever is greater. MC 310, 311, 312 20.7 kPa (3 psig) or 1.5 times the design pressure, whichever is greater. MC 330, 331 1.5... than its design pressure or MAWP. (3) A person witnessing or performing a test or inspection specified...

SMC Standard: Evaluation and Test Requirements for Liquid Rocket Engines

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-07-26

Run -Time Trends .................................................................................................... 53 7.2.4 Steady State Analytical...Administration, 2008. 22. M. Singh, J. Vargo, D. Schiffer and J. Dello, “Safe Diagram – A Design and Reliability Tool for Turbine Blading ,” Dresser-Rand...allowed starts and run ‐time including ground acceptance testing, on‐pad firings/aborts, and flight exposure. Part: A single piece (or two or more

Platform for real-time simulation of dynamic systems and hardware-in-the-loop for control algorithms.

PubMed

de Souza, Isaac D T; Silva, Sergio N; Teles, Rafael M; Fernandes, Marcelo A C

2014-10-15

The development of new embedded algorithms for automation and control of industrial equipment usually requires the use of real-time testing. However, the equipment required is often expensive, which means that such tests are often not viable. The objective of this work was therefore to develop an embedded platform for the distributed real-time simulation of dynamic systems. This platform, called the Real-Time Simulator for Dynamic Systems (RTSDS), could be applied in both industrial and academic environments. In industrial applications, the RTSDS could be used to optimize embedded control algorithms. In the academic sphere, it could be used to support research into new embedded solutions for automation and control and could also be used as a tool to assist in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching related to the development of projects concerning on-board control systems.

Platform for Real-Time Simulation of Dynamic Systems and Hardware-in-the-Loop for Control Algorithms

PubMed Central

de Souza, Isaac D. T.; Silva, Sergio N.; Teles, Rafael M.; Fernandes, Marcelo A. C.

2014-01-01

The development of new embedded algorithms for automation and control of industrial equipment usually requires the use of real-time testing. However, the equipment required is often expensive, which means that such tests are often not viable. The objective of this work was therefore to develop an embedded platform for the distributed real-time simulation of dynamic systems. This platform, called the Real-Time Simulator for Dynamic Systems (RTSDS), could be applied in both industrial and academic environments. In industrial applications, the RTSDS could be used to optimize embedded control algorithms. In the academic sphere, it could be used to support research into new embedded solutions for automation and control and could also be used as a tool to assist in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching related to the development of projects concerning on-board control systems. PMID:25320906

CON4EI: CONsortium for in vitro Eye Irritation testing strategy - EpiOcular™ time-to-toxicity (EpiOcular ET-50) protocols for hazard identification and labelling of eye irritating chemicals.

PubMed

Kandarova, Helena; Letasiova, Silvia; Adriaens, Els; Guest, Robert; Willoughby, Jamin A; Drzewiecka, Agnieszka; Gruszka, Katarzyna; Alépée, Nathalie; Verstraelen, Sandra; Van Rompay, An R

2018-06-01

Assessment of acute eye irritation potential is part of the international regulatory requirements for testing of chemicals. The objective of the CON4EI (CONsortium for in vitro Eye Irritation testing strategy) project was to develop tiered testing strategies for eye irritation assessment for all drivers of classification. A set of 80 reference chemicals (38 liquids and 42 solids) was tested with eight different alternative methods. Here, the results obtained with reconstructed human cornea-like epithelium (RhCE) EpiOcular™ in the EpiOcular time-to-toxicity Tests (Neat and Dilution ET-50 protocols) are presented. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate whether test methods can discriminate chemicals not requiring classification for serious eye damage/eye irritancy (No Category) from chemicals requiring classification and labelling for Category 1 and Category 2. In addition, the predictive capacity in terms of in vivo drivers of classification was investigated. The chemicals were tested in two independent runs by MatTek In Vitro Life Science Laboratories. Results of this study demonstrate very high specificity of both test protocols. With the existing prediction models described in the SOPs, the specificity of the Neat and Dilution method was 87% and 100%, respectively. The Dilution method was able to correctly predicting 66% of GHS Cat 2 chemicals, however, prediction of GHS Cat 1 chemicals was only 47%-55% using the current protocols. In order to achieve optimal prediction for all three classes, a testing strategy was developed which combines the most predictive time-points of both protocols and for tests liquids and solids separately. Using this new testing strategy, the sensitivity for predicting GHS Cat 1 and GHS Cat 2 chemicals was 73% and 64%, respectively and the very high specificity of 97% was maintained. None of the Cat 1 chemicals was underpredicted as GHS No Category. Further combination of the EpiOcular time-to-toxicity protocols with other validated in vitro systems evaluated in this project, should enable significant reduction and even possible replacement of the animal tests for the final assessment of the irritation potential in all of the GHS classes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Quality Surveillance Project No. 38-- Mk 9 MC-97 and MC-98 Fuze Setting-Torque Test

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sandia Corporation Surveillance Department

1954-08-01

To determine the effects of stockpile storage on the torque required to set the functioning time on the MC-97 (Mechanical T-215 Time Fuze) and the MC-98 Mechanical T-220 Time Fuze). There were reports that the tool for setting the fuze time was breaking.

Service Life Extension of the Propulsion System of Long-Term Manned Orbital Stations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kamath, Ulhas; Kuznetsov, Sergei; Spencer, Victor

2014-01-01

One of the critical non-replaceable systems of a long-term manned orbital station is the propulsion system. Since the propulsion system operates beginning with the launch of station elements into orbit, its service life determines the service life of the station overall. Weighing almost a million pounds, the International Space Station (ISS) is about four times as large as the Russian space station Mir and about five times as large as the U.S. Skylab. Constructed over a span of more than a decade with the help of over 100 space flights, elements and modules of the ISS provide more research space than any spacecraft ever built. Originally envisaged for a service life of fifteen years, this Earth orbiting laboratory has been in orbit since 1998. Some elements that have been launched later in the assembly sequence were not yet built when the first elements were placed in orbit. Hence, some of the early modules that were launched at the inception of the program were already nearing the end of their design life when the ISS was finally ready and operational. To maximize the return on global investments on ISS, it is essential for the valuable research on ISS to continue as long as the station can be sustained safely in orbit. This paper describes the work performed to extend the service life of the ISS propulsion system. A system comprises of many components with varying failure rates. Reliability of a system is the probability that it will perform its intended function under encountered operating conditions, for a specified period of time. As we are interested in finding out how reliable a system would be in the future, reliability expressed as a function of time provides valuable insight. In a hypothetical bathtub shaped failure rate curve, the failure rate, defined as the number of failures per unit time that a currently healthy component will suffer in a given future time interval, decreases during infant-mortality period, stays nearly constant during the service life and increases at the end when the design service life ends and wear-out phase begins. However, the component failure rates do not remain constant over the entire cycle life. The failure rate depends on various factors such as design complexity, current age of the component, operating conditions, severity of environmental stress factors, etc. Development, qualification and acceptance test processes provide rigorous screening of components to weed out imperfections that might otherwise cause infant mortality failures. If sufficient samples are tested to failure, the failure time versus failure quantity can be analyzed statistically to develop a failure probability distribution function (PDF), a statistical model of the probability of failure versus time. Driven by cost and schedule constraints however, spacecraft components are generally not tested in large numbers. Uncertainties in failure rate and remaining life estimates increase when fewer units are tested. To account for this, spacecraft operators prefer to limit useful operations to a period shorter than the maximum demonstrated service life of the weakest component. Running each component to its failure to determine the maximum possible service life of a system can become overly expensive and impractical. Spacecraft operators therefore, specify the required service life and an acceptable factor of safety (FOS). The designers use these requirements to limit the life test duration. Midway through the design life, when benefits justify additional investments, supplementary life test may be performed to demonstrate the capability to safely extend the service life of the system. An innovative approach is required to evaluate the entire system, without having to go through an elaborate test program of propulsion system elements. Evaluating every component through a brute force test program would be a cost prohibitive and time consuming endeavor. ISS propulsion system components were designed and built decades ago. There are no representative ground test articles for some of the components. A 'test everything' approach would require manufacturing new test articles. The paper outlines some of the techniques used for selective testing, by way of cherry picking candidate components based on failure mode effects analysis, system level impacts, hazard analysis, etc. The type of testing required for extending the service life depends on the design and criticality of the component, failure modes and failure mechanisms, life cycle margin provided by the original certification, operational and environmental stresses encountered, etc. When specific failure mechanism being considered and the underlying relationship of that mode to the stresses provided in the test can be correlated by supporting analysis, time and effort required for conducting life extension testing can be significantly reduced. Exposure to corrosive propellants over long periods of time, for instance, lead to specific failure mechanisms in several components used in the propulsion system. Using Arrhenius model, which is tied to chemically dependent failure mechanisms such as corrosion or chemical reactions, it is possible to subject carefully selected test articles to accelerated life test. Arrhenius model reflects the proportional relationship between time to failure of a component and the exponential of the inverse of absolute temperature acting on the component. The acceleration factor is used to perform tests at higher stresses that allow direct correlation between the times to failure at a high test temperature to the temperatures to be expected in actual use. As long as the temperatures are such that new failure mechanisms are not introduced, this becomes a very useful method for testing to failure a relatively small sample of items for a much shorter amount of time. In this article, based on the example of the propulsion system of the first ISS module Zarya, theoretical approaches and practical activities of extending the service life of the propulsion system are reviewed with the goal of determining the maximum duration of its safe operation.

Flight Test Results of a GPS-Based Pitot-Static Calibration Method Using Output-Error Optimization for a Light Twin-Engine Airplane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martos, Borja; Kiszely, Paul; Foster, John V.

2011-01-01

As part of the NASA Aviation Safety Program (AvSP), a novel pitot-static calibration method was developed to allow rapid in-flight calibration for subscale aircraft while flying within confined test areas. This approach uses Global Positioning System (GPS) technology coupled with modern system identification methods that rapidly computes optimal pressure error models over a range of airspeed with defined confidence bounds. This method has been demonstrated in subscale flight tests and has shown small 2- error bounds with significant reduction in test time compared to other methods. The current research was motivated by the desire to further evaluate and develop this method for full-scale aircraft. A goal of this research was to develop an accurate calibration method that enables reductions in test equipment and flight time, thus reducing costs. The approach involved analysis of data acquisition requirements, development of efficient flight patterns, and analysis of pressure error models based on system identification methods. Flight tests were conducted at The University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI) utilizing an instrumented Piper Navajo research aircraft. In addition, the UTSI engineering flight simulator was used to investigate test maneuver requirements and handling qualities issues associated with this technique. This paper provides a summary of piloted simulation and flight test results that illustrates the performance and capabilities of the NASA calibration method. Discussion of maneuver requirements and data analysis methods is included as well as recommendations for piloting technique.

49 CFR 178.277 - Requirements for the design, construction, inspection and testing of portable tanks intended for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... design pressure in the ASME Code, Section VIII (IBR, see § 171.7 of this subchapter). Holding time is the... 49 Transportation 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Requirements for the design, construction... FOR PACKAGINGS Specifications for Portable Tanks § 178.277 Requirements for the design, construction...

49 CFR 178.277 - Requirements for the design, construction, inspection and testing of portable tanks intended for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... design pressure in the ASME Code, Section VIII (IBR, see § 171.7 of this subchapter). Holding time is the... 49 Transportation 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Requirements for the design, construction... FOR PACKAGINGS Specifications for Portable Tanks § 178.277 Requirements for the design, construction...

49 CFR 178.277 - Requirements for the design, construction, inspection and testing of portable tanks intended for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... design pressure in the ASME Code, Section VIII (IBR, see § 171.7 of this subchapter). Holding time is the... 49 Transportation 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Requirements for the design, construction... FOR PACKAGINGS Specifications for Portable Tanks § 178.277 Requirements for the design, construction...

49 CFR 178.277 - Requirements for the design, construction, inspection and testing of portable tanks intended for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... design pressure in the ASME Code, Section VIII (IBR, see § 171.7 of this subchapter). Holding time is the... 49 Transportation 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Requirements for the design, construction... FOR PACKAGINGS Specifications for Portable Tanks § 178.277 Requirements for the design, construction...

49 CFR 178.277 - Requirements for the design, construction, inspection and testing of portable tanks intended for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... design pressure in the ASME Code, Section VIII (IBR, see § 171.7 of this subchapter). Holding time is the... 49 Transportation 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Requirements for the design, construction... FOR PACKAGINGS Specifications for Portable Tanks § 178.277 Requirements for the design, construction...

Water management requirements for animal and plant maintenance on the Space Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, C. C.; Rasmussen, D.; Curran, G.

1987-01-01

Long-duration Space Station experiments that use animals and plants as test specimens will require increased automation and advanced technologies for water management in order to free scientist-astronauts from routine but time-consuming housekeeping tasks. The three areas that have been identified as requiring water management and that are discusseed are: (1) drinking water and humidity condensate of the animals, (2) nutrient solution and transpired water of the plants, and (3) habitat cleaning methods. Automation potential, technology assessment, crew time savings, and resupply penalties are also discussed.

Design of an MR image processing module on an FPGA chip

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Limin; Wyrwicz, Alice M.

2015-06-01

We describe the design and implementation of an image processing module on a single-chip Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for real-time image processing. We also demonstrate that through graphical coding the design work can be greatly simplified. The processing module is based on a 2D FFT core. Our design is distinguished from previously reported designs in two respects. No off-chip hardware resources are required, which increases portability of the core. Direct matrix transposition usually required for execution of 2D FFT is completely avoided using our newly-designed address generation unit, which saves considerable on-chip block RAMs and clock cycles. The image processing module was tested by reconstructing multi-slice MR images from both phantom and animal data. The tests on static data show that the processing module is capable of reconstructing 128 × 128 images at speed of 400 frames/second. The tests on simulated real-time streaming data demonstrate that the module works properly under the timing conditions necessary for MRI experiments.

Design of an MR image processing module on an FPGA chip

PubMed Central

Li, Limin; Wyrwicz, Alice M.

2015-01-01

We describe the design and implementation of an image processing module on a single-chip Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for real-time image processing. We also demonstrate that through graphical coding the design work can be greatly simplified. The processing module is based on a 2D FFT core. Our design is distinguished from previously reported designs in two respects. No off-chip hardware resources are required, which increases portability of the core. Direct matrix transposition usually required for execution of 2D FFT is completely avoided using our newly-designed address generation unit, which saves considerable on-chip block RAMs and clock cycles. The image processing module was tested by reconstructing multi-slice MR images from both phantom and animal data. The tests on static data show that the processing module is capable of reconstructing 128 × 128 images at speed of 400 frames/second. The tests on simulated real-time streaming data demonstrate that the module works properly under the timing conditions necessary for MRI experiments. PMID:25909646

A Timing Synchronizer System for Beam Test Setups Requiring Galvanic Isolation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meder, Lukas Dominik; Emschermann, David; Frühauf, Jochen; Müller, Walter F. J.; Becker, Jürgen

2017-07-01

In beam test setups detector elements together with a readout composed of frontend electronics (FEE) and usually a layer of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are being analyzed. The FEE is in this scenario often directly connected to both the detector and the FPGA layer what in many cases requires sharing the ground potentials of these layers. This setup can become problematic if parts of the detector need to be operated at different high-voltage potentials, since all of the FPGA boards need to receive a common clock and timing reference for getting the readout synchronized. Thus, for the context of the compressed baryonic matter experiment a versatile timing synchronizer (TS) system was designed providing galvanically isolated timing distribution links over twisted-pair cables. As an electrical interface the so-called timing data processing board FPGA mezzanine card was created for being mounted onto FPGA-based advanced mezzanine cards for mTCA.4 crates. The FPGA logic of the TS system connects to this card and can be monitored and controlled through IPBus slow-control links. Evaluations show that the system is capable of stably synchronizing the FPGA boards of a beam test setup being integrated into a hierarchical TS network.

Hot-bench simulation of the active flexible wing wind-tunnel model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buttrill, Carey S.; Houck, Jacob A.

1990-01-01

Two simulations, one batch and one real-time, of an aeroelastically-scaled wind-tunnel model were developed. The wind-tunnel model was a full-span, free-to-roll model of an advanced fighter concept. The batch simulation was used to generate and verify the real-time simulation and to test candidate control laws prior to implementation. The real-time simulation supported hot-bench testing of a digital controller, which was developed to actively control the elastic deformation of the wind-tunnel model. Time scaling was required for hot-bench testing. The wind-tunnel model, the mathematical models for the simulations, the techniques employed to reduce the hot-bench time-scale factors, and the verification procedures are described.

Exploration of US men's professional sport organization concussion policies.

PubMed

Cochrane, Graham Dean; Owen, Matthew; Ackerson, Joseph D; Hale, Matthew H; Gould, Sara

2017-05-01

Concussion policies are increasingly being developed and adopted among professional sports organizations. We sought to compare the policies of the National Hockey League (NHL), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Football League (NFL), and Major League Baseball (MLB). Our objective was to summarize each policy and evaluate the extent to which each policy is organization-specific and/or consistent with medical guidelines. We visited websites for the NHL, NBA, NFL, and MLB. We searched media articles reporting concussion policy. We utilized only publically available data. We collected information on each league's approach to the definition of concussion, education provided about concussion, baseline testing requirements, minimum return to play time and return to play protocol. We found that concussion policies vary across these organizations. Most organizations utilize the Concussion in Sport Group (CISG) definition (2013) to define concussion. The NFL and NBA mandate preseason education. All organizations require some type of baseline testing. All organizations require sideline evaluation after suspected concussion. The NFL and MLB require Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT) testing for sideline evaluation of suspected concussion. MLB is the only organization to require minimum time before return to play. There is a return to play protocol in place for each organization. The NFL and MLB require independent neurologic consultation as part of their return to play protocol. There is variability in concussion policy among the professional sports organizations. The most pronounced variation from the CISG consensus statement is the variability in the minimum time to return to play. Further, the rules of the individual sports have a role in how concussion policy can be designed and implemented. Professional sports set an example for thousands of recreational sports enthusiasts so their publically available policies on concussion have a large impact.

40 CFR 60.2695 - How are the performance test data used?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) STANDARDS OF PERFORMANCE FOR NEW STATIONARY SOURCES Emissions Guidelines and Compliance Times for Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration Units Model Rule-Performance Testing.... [76 FR 15773, Mar. 21, 2011] Model Rule—Initial Compliance Requirements ...

40 CFR 60.2695 - How are the performance test data used?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) STANDARDS OF PERFORMANCE FOR NEW STATIONARY SOURCES Emissions Guidelines and Compliance Times for Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration Units Model Rule-Performance Testing.... [76 FR 15773, Mar. 21, 2011] Model Rule—Initial Compliance Requirements ...

Testing for Seed Quality in Southern Oaks

Treesearch

F.T. Bonner

1984-01-01

Expressions of germination rate, such as peak value (PV) or mean germination time (MGT), provide good estimates of acorn quality, but test completion requires a minimum of 3 weeks. For more rapid estimates, tetrazolium staining is recommended. Some seed test results were significantly correlated with nursery germination of cherrybark and water oaks, but not with...

21 CFR 864.6700 - Erythrocyte sedimentation rate test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... sedimentation rate test. (a) Identification. An erythrocyte sedimentation rate test is a device that measures the length of time required for the red cells in a blood sample to fall a specified distance or a... device is exempt from the premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter...

21 CFR 864.6700 - Erythrocyte sedimentation rate test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... sedimentation rate test. (a) Identification. An erythrocyte sedimentation rate test is a device that measures the length of time required for the red cells in a blood sample to fall a specified distance or a... device is exempt from the premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter...

21 CFR 864.6700 - Erythrocyte sedimentation rate test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... sedimentation rate test. (a) Identification. An erythrocyte sedimentation rate test is a device that measures the length of time required for the red cells in a blood sample to fall a specified distance or a... device is exempt from the premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter...

21 CFR 864.6700 - Erythrocyte sedimentation rate test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... sedimentation rate test. (a) Identification. An erythrocyte sedimentation rate test is a device that measures the length of time required for the red cells in a blood sample to fall a specified distance or a... device is exempt from the premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter...

21 CFR 864.6700 - Erythrocyte sedimentation rate test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... sedimentation rate test. (a) Identification. An erythrocyte sedimentation rate test is a device that measures the length of time required for the red cells in a blood sample to fall a specified distance or a... device is exempt from the premarket notification procedures in subpart E of part 807 of this chapter...

Real Improvement for Real Students: Test Smarter, Serve Better

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sternberg, Betty J.

2006-01-01

In this essay, Betty J. Sternberg argues that the increased money and time spent on meeting the summative testing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) adds little to the existing "gold standard" testing conducted by the State of Connecticut. Sternberg highlights the challenges faced by one state in meeting the requirements…

40 CFR 63.9306 - What are my continuous parameter monitoring system (CPMS) installation, operation, and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Engine Test Cells/Stands General Compliane Requirements § 63.9306... at all times that an engine test cell/stand is operating, except during monitoring malfunctions... engine test cell/stand is operating. You must inspect the automatic shutdown system at least once every...

40 CFR 63.9306 - What are my continuous parameter monitoring system (CPMS) installation, operation, and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Engine Test Cells/Stands General Compliane Requirements § 63.9306... at all times that an engine test cell/stand is operating, except during monitoring malfunctions... engine test cell/stand is operating. You must inspect the automatic shutdown system at least once every...

Experimentation and evaluation of advanced integrated system concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ross, M.; Garrigus, K.; Gottschalck, J.; Rinearson, L.; Longee, E.

1980-09-01

This final report examines the implementation of a time-phased test bed for experimentation and evaluation of advanced system concepts relative to the future Defense Switched Network (DSN). After identifying issues pertinent to the DSN, a set of experiments which address these issues are developed. Experiments are ordered based on their immediacy and relative importance to DSN development. The set of experiments thus defined allows requirements for a time phased implementation of a test bed to be identified, and several generic test bed architectures which meet these requirements are examined. Specific architecture implementations are costed and cost/schedule profiles are generated as a function of experimental capability. The final recommended system consists of two separate test beds: a circuit switch test bed, configured around an off-the-shelf commercial switch, and directed toward the examination of nearer term and transitional issues raised by the evolving DSN; and a packet/hybrid test bed, featuring a discrete buildup of new hardware and software modules, and directed toward examination of the more advanced integrated voice and data telecommunications issues and concepts.

75 FR 72944 - Third Party Testing for Certain Children's Products; Mattresses, Mattress Pads, and/or Mattress...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-29

... Standard prescribes a full-scale test using a pair of T-shaped gas burners designed to represent burning... Group sought an additional one year for manufacturers to comply with the third party testing requirement... accredited by an ILAC-MRA member at the time of the test. For firewalled conformity assessment bodies, the...

Reciprocity testing of Kodak film type SO-289 multispectral infrared aerial film

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lockwood, H. E.

1975-01-01

Kodak multispectral infrared aerial film type SO-289 was tested for reciprocity characteristics because of the variance between the I-B sensitometer exposure times (8 seconds and 4 seconds) and the camera exposure time (1/500 second) used on the ASTP stratospheric aerosol measurement project. Test exposures were made on the flight emulsion using a Mead star system sensitometer, the films were processed to ASTP control standards, and the resulting densities read and reciprocity data calculated. It was found that less exposure was required to produce a typical density (1.3) at 1/500 second exposure time than at an 8 second exposure time. This exposure factor was 2.8.

Removal torque of nail interlocking screws is related to screw proximity to the fracture and screw breakage.

PubMed

White, Alexander A; Kubacki, Meghan R; Samona, Jason; Telehowski, Paul; Atkinson, Patrick J

2016-06-01

Studies have shown that titanium implants can be challenging to explant due to the material's excellent biocompatibility and resulting osseointegration. Clinically, titanium alloy nail interlocking screws may require removal to dynamize a construct or revise the nail due to nonunion, infection, pain, or periprosthetic fracture. This study was designed to determine what variables influence the removal torque for titanium alloy interlocking screws. An intramedullary nail with four interlocking screws was used to stabilize a 1-cm segmental femoral defect in a canine model for 16 weeks. The animals were observed to be active following a several-day recovery after surgery. In six animals, the femora and implanted nail/screws were first tested to failure in torsion to simulate periprosthetic fracture of an implant after which the screws were then removed. In four additional animals, the screws were removed without mechanical testing. Both intraoperative insertional and extraction torques were recorded for all screws. Mechanical testing to failure broke 10/24 screws. On average, the intact screws required 70% of the insertional torque during removal while broken screws only required 16% of the insertional torque (p < 0.001). In addition, intact screws closer to the fracture required 2.8 times more removal torque than the outboard distal screw (p < 0.005). On average, the angle of rotation to peak torque was ∼80°. The peak axial load did not significantly correlate with the torque required to remove the screws. On average, the removal torque was lower than at the time of insertion, and less torque was required to remove broken screws and screws remote to the fracture. However, broken screws will require additional time to retrieve the remaining screw fragment. This study suggests that broken screws and screws in prematurely active patients will require less torque to remove. © IMechE 2016.

Reliability of fitness tests using methods and time periods common in sport and occupational management.

PubMed

Burnstein, Bryan D; Steele, Russell J; Shrier, Ian

2011-01-01

Fitness testing is used frequently in many areas of physical activity, but the reliability of these measurements under real-world, practical conditions is unknown. To evaluate the reliability of specific fitness tests using the methods and time periods used in the context of real-world sport and occupational management. Cohort study. Eighteen different Cirque du Soleil shows. Cirque du Soleil physical performers who completed 4 consecutive tests (6-month intervals) and were free of injury or illness at each session (n = 238 of 701 physical performers). Performers completed 6 fitness tests on each assessment date: dynamic balance, Harvard step test, handgrip, vertical jump, pull-ups, and 60-second jump test. We calculated the intraclass coefficient (ICC) and limits of agreement between baseline and each time point and the ICC over all 4 time points combined. Reliability was acceptable (ICC > 0.6) over an 18-month time period for all pairwise comparisons and all time points together for the handgrip, vertical jump, and pull-up assessments. The Harvard step test and 60-second jump test had poor reliability (ICC < 0.6) between baseline and other time points. When we excluded the baseline data and calculated the ICC for 6-month, 12-month, and 18-month time points, both the Harvard step test and 60-second jump test demonstrated acceptable reliability. Dynamic balance was unreliable in all contexts. Limit-of-agreement analysis demonstrated considerable intraindividual variability for some tests and a learning effect by administrators on others. Five of the 6 tests in this battery had acceptable reliability over an 18-month time frame, but the values for certain individuals may vary considerably from time to time for some tests. Specific tests may require a learning period for administrators.

Model-Based Thermal System Design Optimization for the James Webb Space Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cataldo, Giuseppe; Niedner, Malcolm B.; Fixsen, Dale J.; Moseley, Samuel H.

2017-01-01

Spacecraft thermal model validation is normally performed by comparing model predictions with thermal test data and reducing their discrepancies to meet the mission requirements. Based on thermal engineering expertise, the model input parameters are adjusted to tune the model output response to the test data. The end result is not guaranteed to be the best solution in terms of reduced discrepancy and the process requires months to complete. A model-based methodology was developed to perform the validation process in a fully automated fashion and provide mathematical bases to the search for the optimal parameter set that minimizes the discrepancies between model and data. The methodology was successfully applied to several thermal subsystems of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Global or quasiglobal optimal solutions were found and the total execution time of the model validation process was reduced to about two weeks. The model sensitivities to the parameters, which are required to solve the optimization problem, can be calculated automatically before the test begins and provide a library for sensitivity studies. This methodology represents a crucial commodity when testing complex, large-scale systems under time and budget constraints. Here, results for the JWST Core thermal system will be presented in detail.

Model-based thermal system design optimization for the James Webb Space Telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cataldo, Giuseppe; Niedner, Malcolm B.; Fixsen, Dale J.; Moseley, Samuel H.

2017-10-01

Spacecraft thermal model validation is normally performed by comparing model predictions with thermal test data and reducing their discrepancies to meet the mission requirements. Based on thermal engineering expertise, the model input parameters are adjusted to tune the model output response to the test data. The end result is not guaranteed to be the best solution in terms of reduced discrepancy and the process requires months to complete. A model-based methodology was developed to perform the validation process in a fully automated fashion and provide mathematical bases to the search for the optimal parameter set that minimizes the discrepancies between model and data. The methodology was successfully applied to several thermal subsystems of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Global or quasiglobal optimal solutions were found and the total execution time of the model validation process was reduced to about two weeks. The model sensitivities to the parameters, which are required to solve the optimization problem, can be calculated automatically before the test begins and provide a library for sensitivity studies. This methodology represents a crucial commodity when testing complex, large-scale systems under time and budget constraints. Here, results for the JWST Core thermal system will be presented in detail.

40 CFR 63.6105 - What are my general requirements for complying with this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... limitations which apply to you at all times except during startup, shutdown, and malfunctions. (b) If you must... emissions at all times including during startup, shutdown, and malfunction. Testing and Initial Compliance...

40 CFR 63.6105 - What are my general requirements for complying with this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... limitations which apply to you at all times except during startup, shutdown, and malfunctions. (b) If you must... emissions at all times including during startup, shutdown, and malfunction. Testing and Initial Compliance...

40 CFR 63.6105 - What are my general requirements for complying with this subpart?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... limitations which apply to you at all times except during startup, shutdown, and malfunctions. (b) If you must... emissions at all times including during startup, shutdown, and malfunction. Testing and Initial Compliance...

Accentra Pharmaceuticals: Thrashing through ERP Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradds, Nathan; Hills, Emily; Masters, Kelly; Weiss, Kevin; Havelka, Douglas

2017-01-01

Implementing and integrating an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system into an organization is an enormous undertaking that requires substantial cash outlays, time commitments, and skilled IT and business personnel. It requires careful and detailed planning, thorough testing and training, and a change management process that creates a…

Techniques for optimizing human-machine information transfer related to real-time interactive display systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Granaas, Michael M.; Rhea, Donald C.

1989-01-01

The requirements for the development of real-time displays are reviewed. Of particular interest are the psychological aspects of design such as the layout, color selection, real-time response rate, and the interactivity of displays. Some existing Western Aeronautical Test Range displays are analyzed.

An investigation of several numerical procedures for time-asymptotic compressible Navier-Stokes solutions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rudy, D. H.; Morris, D. J.; Blanchard, D. K.; Cooke, C. H.; Rubin, S. G.

1975-01-01

The status of an investigation of four numerical techniques for the time-dependent compressible Navier-Stokes equations is presented. Results for free shear layer calculations in the Reynolds number range from 1000 to 81000 indicate that a sequential alternating-direction implicit (ADI) finite-difference procedure requires longer computing times to reach steady state than a low-storage hopscotch finite-difference procedure. A finite-element method with cubic approximating functions was found to require excessive computer storage and computation times. A fourth method, an alternating-direction cubic spline technique which is still being tested, is also described.

Choosing the Most Effective Pattern Classification Model under Learning-Time Constraint.

PubMed

Saito, Priscila T M; Nakamura, Rodrigo Y M; Amorim, Willian P; Papa, João P; de Rezende, Pedro J; Falcão, Alexandre X

2015-01-01

Nowadays, large datasets are common and demand faster and more effective pattern analysis techniques. However, methodologies to compare classifiers usually do not take into account the learning-time constraints required by applications. This work presents a methodology to compare classifiers with respect to their ability to learn from classification errors on a large learning set, within a given time limit. Faster techniques may acquire more training samples, but only when they are more effective will they achieve higher performance on unseen testing sets. We demonstrate this result using several techniques, multiple datasets, and typical learning-time limits required by applications.

Analysis of Accelerometer Data from a Woven Inflatable Creep Burst Test

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

James, George H.; Grygier, Michael; Selig, Molly M.

2015-01-01

Accelerometers were used to montor an inflatable test article during a creep test to failure. The test article experienced impulse events that were classified based on the response of the sensors and their time-dependent manifestation. These impulse events required specialized techniques to process the structural dynamics data. However, certain phenomena were defined as worthy of additional study. An assessment of one phenomena (a frequency near 1000Hz) showed a time dependent frequency and an amplitude that increased significantly near the end of the test. Hence, these observations are expected to drive future understanding of and utility in inflatable space structures.

Design and characterization of an irradiation facility with real-time monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braisted, Jonathan David

Radiation causes performance degradation in electronics by inducing atomic displacements and ionizations. While radiation hardened components are available, non-radiation hardened electronics can be preferable because they are generally more compact, require less power, and less expensive than radiation tolerant equivalents. It is therefore important to characterize the performance of electronics, both hardened and non-hardened, to prevent costly system or mission failures. Radiation effects tests for electronics generally involve a handful of step irradiations, leading to poorly-resolved data. Step irradiations also introduce uncertainties in electrical measurements due to temperature annealing effects. This effect may be intensified if the time between exposure and measurement is significant. Induced activity in test samples also complicates data collection of step irradiated test samples. The University of Texas at Austin operates a 1.1 MW Mark II TRIGA research reactor. An in-core irradiation facility for radiation effects testing with a real-time monitoring capability has been designed for the UT TRIGA reactor. The facility is larger than any currently available non-central location in a TRIGA, supporting testing of larger electronic components as well as other in-core irradiation applications requiring significant volume such as isotope production or neutron transmutation doping of silicon. This dissertation describes the design and testing of the large in-core irradiation facility and the experimental campaign developed to test the real-time monitoring capability. This irradiation campaign was performed to test the real-time monitoring capability at various reactor power levels. The device chosen for characterization was the 4N25 general-purpose optocoupler. The current transfer ratio, which is an important electrical parameter for optocouplers, was calculated as a function of neutron fluence and gamma dose from the real-time voltage measurements. The resultant radiation effects data was seen to be repeatable and exceptionally finely-resolved. Therefore, the capability at UT TRIGA has been proven competitive with world-class effects characterization facilities.

Energy and time modelling of kerbside waste collection: Changes incurred when adding source separated food waste.

PubMed

Edwards, Joel; Othman, Maazuza; Burn, Stewart; Crossin, Enda

2016-10-01

The collection of source separated kerbside municipal FW (SSFW) is being incentivised in Australia, however such a collection is likely to increase the fuel and time a collection truck fleet requires. Therefore, waste managers need to determine whether the incentives outweigh the cost. With literature scarcely describing the magnitude of increase, and local parameters playing a crucial role in accurately modelling kerbside collection; this paper develops a new general mathematical model that predicts the energy and time requirements of a collection regime whilst incorporating the unique variables of different jurisdictions. The model, Municipal solid waste collect (MSW-Collect), is validated and shown to be more accurate at predicting fuel consumption and trucks required than other common collection models. When predicting changes incurred for five different SSFW collection scenarios, results show that SSFW scenarios require an increase in fuel ranging from 1.38% to 57.59%. There is also a need for additional trucks across most SSFW scenarios tested. All SSFW scenarios are ranked and analysed in regards to fuel consumption; sensitivity analysis is conducted to test key assumptions. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spaceport Command and Control System Automated Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stein, Meriel

2017-01-01

The Spaceport Command and Control System (SCCS) is the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) launch control system for the Orion capsule and Space Launch System, the next generation manned rocket currently in development. This large system requires high quality testing that will properly measure the capabilities of the system. Automating the test procedures would save the project time and money. Therefore, the Electrical Engineering Division at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) has recruited interns for the past two years to work alongside full-time engineers to develop these automated tests, as well as innovate upon the current automation process.

Algebraic method for parameter identification of circuit models for batteries under non-zero initial condition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devarakonda, Lalitha; Hu, Tingshu

2014-12-01

This paper presents an algebraic method for parameter identification of Thevenin's equivalent circuit models for batteries under non-zero initial condition. In traditional methods, it was assumed that all capacitor voltages have zero initial conditions at the beginning of each charging/discharging test. This would require a long rest time between two tests, leading to very lengthy tests for a charging/discharging cycle. In this paper, we propose an algebraic method which can extract the circuit parameters together with initial conditions. This would theoretically reduce the rest time to 0 and substantially accelerate the testing cycles.

Spaceport Command and Control System Automation Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hwang, Andrew

2017-01-01

The Spaceport Command and Control System (SCCS) is the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) launch control system for the Orion capsule and Space Launch System, the next generation manned rocket currently in development. This large system requires high quality testing that will properly measure the capabilities of the system. Automating the test procedures would save the project time and money. Therefore, the Electrical Engineering Division at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) has recruited interns for the past two years to work alongside full-time engineers to develop these automated tests, as well as innovate upon the current automation process.

Requirements Analysis for Large Ada Programs: Lessons Learned on CCPDS- R

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-12-01

when the design had matured and This approach was not optimal from the formal the SRS role was to be the tester’s contract, implemen- testing and...on the software development CPU processing load. These constraints primar- process is the necessity to include sufficient testing ily affect algorithm...allocations and timing requirements are by-products of the software design process when multiple CSCls are a P R StrR eSOFTWARE ENGINEERING executed within

Rapid extraction of virus-contaminated hemocytes from oysters

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Rapid viral detection methods are necessary to employ diagnostic testing for viral contamination in shellfish to prevent and control foodborne illness. Current shellfish viral RNA extraction methods, which are time-consuming and not applicable for routine monitoring, require the testing of whole or ...

COMPUTATIONAL TOXICOLOGY - OBJECTIVE 2: DEVELOPING APPROACHES FOR PRIORITIZING CHEMICALS FOR SUBSEQUENT SCREENING AND TESTING

EPA Science Inventory

One of the strategic objectives of the Computational Toxicology Program is to develop approaches for prioritizing chemicals for subsequent screening and testing. Approaches currently available for this process require extensive resources. Therefore, less costly and time-extensi...

Assessing personality in San Joaquin kit fox in situ: efficacy of field-based experimental methods and implications for conservation management.

PubMed

Bremner-Harrison, Samantha; Cypher, Brian L; Van Horn Job, Christine; Harrison, Stephen W R

2018-01-01

Utilisation of animal personality has potential benefit for conservation management. Due to logistics of robust behavioural evaluation in situ, the majority of studies on wild animals involve taking animals into captivity for testing, potentially compromising results. Three in situ tests for evaluation of boldness in San Joaquin kit fox ( Vulpes macrotis mutica ) were developed (ENOT: extended novel object test; RNOT: rapid novel object test; TH: trap/handling test). Each test successfully identified variation in boldness within its target age class(es). The TH test was suitable for use across all age classes. Tests were assessed for in situ suitability and for quantity/quality of data yielded. ENOT was rated as requiring high levels of time, cost and labour with greater likelihood of failure. However, it was rated highly for data quantity/quality. The TH test was rated as requiring little time, labour and cost, but yielding lower quality data. RNOT was rated in the middle. Each test had merit and could be adapted to suit project or species constraints. We recommend field-based evaluation of personality, reducing removal of animals from the wild and facilitating routine incorporation of personality assessment into conservation projects.

Real-Time Extended Interface Automata for Software Testing Cases Generation

PubMed Central

Yang, Shunkun; Xu, Jiaqi; Man, Tianlong; Liu, Bin

2014-01-01

Testing and verification of the interface between software components are particularly important due to the large number of complex interactions, which requires the traditional modeling languages to overcome the existing shortcomings in the aspects of temporal information description and software testing input controlling. This paper presents the real-time extended interface automata (RTEIA) which adds clearer and more detailed temporal information description by the application of time words. We also establish the input interface automaton for every input in order to solve the problems of input controlling and interface covering nimbly when applied in the software testing field. Detailed definitions of the RTEIA and the testing cases generation algorithm are provided in this paper. The feasibility and efficiency of this method have been verified in the testing of one real aircraft braking system. PMID:24892080

Evaluation of the New B-REX Fatigue Testing System for Multi-Megawatt Wind Turbine Blades: Preprint

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

White, D.; Musial, W.; Engberg, S.

2004-12-01

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) recently developed a new hybrid fatigue testing system called the Blade Resonance Excitation (B-REX) test system. The new system uses 65% less energy to test large wind turbine blades in half the time of NREL's dual-axis forced-displacement test method with lower equipment and operating costs. The B-REX is a dual-axis test system that combines resonance excitation with forced hydraulic loading to reduce the total test time required while representing the operating strains on the critical inboard blade stations more accurately than a single-axis test system. The analysis and testing required to fully implement themore » B-REX was significant. To control unanticipated blade motion and vibrations caused by dynamic coupling between the flap, lead-lag, and torsional directions, we needed to incorporate additional test hardware and control software. We evaluated the B-REX test system under stable operating conditions using a combination of various sensors. We then compared our results with results from the same blade, tested previously using NREL's dual-axis forced-displacement test method. Experimental results indicate that strain levels produced by the B-REX system accurately replicated the forced-displacement method. This paper describes the challenges we encountered while developing the new blade fatigue test system and the experimental results that validate its accuracy.« less

Vehicle Armor Structure and Testing for Future Combat System

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-06-03

Attached Hose ........................................................................ 45  Figure 2.9-4: Time-Temperature Results for Test 3 in Table 2.9...is within t at allow the er to perform h hoses that ed hoses is Figure 2. he chamber chamber to the enviro attach to the shown in Fig 9-1...nd Attache stron Mach d Hose ine UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED 46 Thermal studies were conducted to determine the time required to subject

Developments in Test Facility and Data Networking for the Altitude Test Stand at the John C. Stennis Space Center, MS - A General Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hebert, Phillip W., Sr.

2008-01-01

May 2007, NASA's Constellation Program selected John C Stennis Space Center (SSC) near Waveland Mississippi as the site to construct an altitude test facility for the developmental and qualification testing of the Ares1 upper stage (US) engine. Test requirements born out of the Ares1 US propulsion system design necessitate exceptional Data Acquisition System (DAS) design solutions that support facility and propellant systems conditioning, test operations control and test data analysis. This paper reviews the new A3 Altitude Test Facility's DAS design requirements for real-time deterministic digital data, DAS technology enhancements, system trades, technology validation activities, and the current status of this system's new architecture. Also to be discussed will be current network technologies to improve data transfer.

Implementing routine blood-borne virus testing for HCV, HBV and HIV at a London Emergency Department - uncovering the iceberg?

PubMed

Parry, S; Bundle, N; Ullah, S; Foster, G R; Ahmad, K; Tong, C Y W; Balasegaram, S; Orkin, C

2018-06-01

UK guidelines recommend routine HIV testing in high prevalence emergency departments (ED) and targeted testing for HBV and HCV. The 'Going Viral' campaign implemented opt-out blood-borne virus (BBV) testing in adults in a high prevalence ED, to assess seroprevalence, uptake, linkage to care (LTC) rates and staff time taken to achieve LTC. Diagnosis status (new/known/unknown), current engagement in care, and severity of disease was established. LTC was defined as patient informed plus ⩾1 clinic visit. A total of 6211/24 981 ED attendees were tested (uptake 25%); 257 (4.1%) were BBV positive (15 co-infected), 84 (33%) required LTC. 100/147 (68%) HCV positives were viraemic; 44 (30%) required LTC (13 new, 16 disengaged). 26/54 (48%) HBV required LTC (seven new, 11 disengaged). 16/71 (23%) HIV required LTC (10 new, five disengaged). 26/84 (31%) patients requiring LTC had advanced disease (CD4 1, Fibroscan F3/F4 or liver cancer), including five with AIDS-defining conditions and three hepatocellular carcinomas. There were five BBV-related deaths. BBV prevalence was high (4.1%); most were HCV (2.4%). HIV patients were more successfully and quickly LTC than HBV or HCV patients. ED testing was valuable as one-third of those requiring LTC (new, disengaged or unknown status patients) had advanced disease.

Excitations for Rapidly Estimating Flight-Control Parameters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moes, Tim; Smith, Mark; Morelli, Gene

2006-01-01

A flight test on an F-15 airplane was performed to evaluate the utility of prescribed simultaneous independent surface excitations (PreSISE) for real-time estimation of flight-control parameters, including stability and control derivatives. The ability to extract these derivatives in nearly real time is needed to support flight demonstration of intelligent flight-control system (IFCS) concepts under development at NASA, in academia, and in industry. Traditionally, flight maneuvers have been designed and executed to obtain estimates of stability and control derivatives by use of a post-flight analysis technique. For an IFCS, it is required to be able to modify control laws in real time for an aircraft that has been damaged in flight (because of combat, weather, or a system failure). The flight test included PreSISE maneuvers, during which all desired control surfaces are excited simultaneously, but at different frequencies, resulting in aircraft motions about all coordinate axes. The objectives of the test were to obtain data for post-flight analysis and to perform the analysis to determine: 1) The accuracy of derivatives estimated by use of PreSISE, 2) The required durations of PreSISE inputs, and 3) The minimum required magnitudes of PreSISE inputs. The PreSISE inputs in the flight test consisted of stacked sine-wave excitations at various frequencies, including symmetric and differential excitations of canard and stabilator control surfaces and excitations of aileron and rudder control surfaces of a highly modified F-15 airplane. Small, medium, and large excitations were tested in 15-second maneuvers at subsonic, transonic, and supersonic speeds. Typical excitations are shown in Figure 1. Flight-test data were analyzed by use of pEst, which is an industry-standard output-error technique developed by Dryden Flight Research Center. Data were also analyzed by use of Fourier-transform regression (FTR), which was developed for onboard, real-time estimation of the derivatives.

Fire extinguishing agents for oxygen-enriched atmospheres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plugge, M. A.; Wilson, C. W.; Zallen, D. M.; Walker, J. L.

1985-12-01

Fire-suppression agent requirements for extinguishing fires in oxygen-enriched atmospheres were determined employing small-, medium-, large-, and full-scale test apparatuses. The small- and medium-scale tests showed that a doubling of the oxygen concentration required five times more HALON for extinguishment. For fires of similar size and intensity, the effect of oxygen enrichment of the diluent volume in the HC-131A was not as grate as in the smaller compartments of the B-52 which presented a higher damage scenario. The full-scale tests showed that damage to the airframe was as important a factor in extinguishment as oxygen enrichment.

On time discretizations for spectral methods. [numerical integration of Fourier and Chebyshev methods for dynamic partial differential equations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gottlieb, D.; Turkel, E.

1980-01-01

New methods are introduced for the time integration of the Fourier and Chebyshev methods of solution for dynamic differential equations. These methods are unconditionally stable, even though no matrix inversions are required. Time steps are chosen by accuracy requirements alone. For the Fourier method both leapfrog and Runge-Kutta methods are considered. For the Chebyshev method only Runge-Kutta schemes are tested. Numerical calculations are presented to verify the analytic results. Applications to the shallow water equations are presented.

Measuring Attention in Rodents: Comparison of a Modified Signal Detection Task and the 5-Choice Serial Reaction Time Task

PubMed Central

Turner, Karly M.; Peak, James; Burne, Thomas H. J.

2016-01-01

Neuropsychiatric research has utilized cognitive testing in rodents to improve our understanding of cognitive deficits and for preclinical drug development. However, more sophisticated cognitive tasks have not been as widely exploited due to low throughput and the extensive training time required. We developed a modified signal detection task (SDT) based on the growing body of literature aimed at improving cognitive testing in rodents. This study directly compares performance on the modified SDT with a traditional test for measuring attention, the 5-choice serial reaction time task (5CSRTT). Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained on either the 5CSRTT or the SDT. Briefly, the 5CSRTT required rodents to pay attention to a spatial array of five apertures and respond with a nose poke when an aperture was illuminated. The SDT required the rat to attend to a light panel and respond either left or right to indicate the presence of a signal. In addition, modifications were made to the reward delivery, timing, control of body positioning, and the self-initiation of trials. It was found that less training time was required for the SDT, with both sessions to criteria and daily session duration significantly reduced. Rats performed with a high level of accuracy (>87%) on both tasks, however omissions were far more frequent on the 5CSRTT. The signal duration was reduced on both tasks as a manipulation of task difficulty relevant to attention and a similar pattern of decreasing accuracy was observed on both tasks. These results demonstrate some of the advantages of the SDT over the traditional 5CSRTT as being higher throughput with reduced training time, fewer omission responses and their body position was controlled at stimulus onset. In addition, rats performing the SDT had comparable high levels of accuracy. These results highlight the differences and similarities between the 5CSRTT and a modified SDT as tools for assessing attention in preclinical animal models. PMID:26834597

Design Evaluation of High Reliability Lithium Batteries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buchman, R. C.; Helgeson, W. D.; Istephanous, N. S.

1985-01-01

Within one year, a lithium battery design can be qualified for device use through the application of accelerated discharge testing, calorimetry measurements, real time tests and other supplemental testing. Materials and corrosion testing verify that the battery components remain functional during expected battery life. By combining these various methods, a high reliability lithium battery can be manufactured for applications which require zero defect battery performance.

A Comparison of Three IRT Approaches to Examinee Ability Change Modeling in a Single-Group Anchor Test Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paek, Insu; Park, Hyun-Jeong; Cai, Li; Chi, Eunlim

2014-01-01

Typically a longitudinal growth modeling based on item response theory (IRT) requires repeated measures data from a single group with the same test design. If operational or item exposure problems are present, the same test may not be employed to collect data for longitudinal analyses and tests at multiple time points are constructed with unique…

Lunar module voice recorder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1974-01-01

A feasibility unit suitable for use as a voice recorder on the space shuttle was developed. A modification, development, and test program is described. A LM-DSEA recorder was modified to achieve the following goals: (1) redesign case to allow in-flight cartridge change; (2) time code change from LM code to IRIG-B 100 pps code; (3) delete cold plate requirements (also requires deletion of long-term thermal vacuum operation at 0.00001 MMHg); (4) implement track sequence reset during cartridge change; (5) reduce record time per cartridge because of unavailability of LM thin-base tape; and (6) add an internal Vox key circuit to turn on/off transport and electronics with voice data input signal. The recorder was tested at both the LM and shuttle vibration levels. The modified recorder achieved the same level of flutter during vibration as the DSEA recorder prior to modification. Several improvements were made over the specification requirements. The high manufacturing cost is discussed.

50 CFR 216.165 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... which case post-test survey dates must be extended, and (v) for a period of 7 days after the last..., of marine mammals in the Safety Range at the time of detonation based on post-test aerial monitoring... area off Mayport, FL. (2) The test area must be monitored by aerial and shipboard monitoring for the...

50 CFR 216.165 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... which case post-test survey dates must be extended, and (v) for a period of 7 days after the last..., of marine mammals in the Safety Range at the time of detonation based on post-test aerial monitoring... area off Mayport, FL. (2) The test area must be monitored by aerial and shipboard monitoring for the...

50 CFR 216.165 - Requirements for monitoring and reporting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... which case post-test survey dates must be extended, and (v) for a period of 7 days after the last..., of marine mammals in the Safety Range at the time of detonation based on post-test aerial monitoring... area off Mayport, FL. (2) The test area must be monitored by aerial and shipboard monitoring for the...

77 FR 12373 - Pilot Certification and Qualification Requirements for Air Carrier Operations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-29

... section of this document. Privacy: We will post all comments we receive, without change, to http://www... Certification rating, pass a Training Program knowledge test before taking the and practical ATP knowledge test, test, and have and have a minimum at least 1,500 of 50 hours in class hours total time of airplane. as...

Automation of the novel object recognition task for use in adolescent rats

PubMed Central

Silvers, Janelle M.; Harrod, Steven B.; Mactutus, Charles F.; Booze, Rosemarie M.

2010-01-01

The novel object recognition task is gaining popularity for its ability to test a complex behavior which relies on the integrity of memory and attention systems without placing undue stress upon the animal. While the task places few requirements upon the animal, it traditionally requires the experimenter to observe the test phase directly and record behavior. This approach can severely limit the number of subjects which can be tested in a reasonable period of time, as training and testing occur on the same day and span several hours. The current study was designed to test the feasibility of automation of this task for adolescent rats using standard activity chambers, with the goals of increased objectivity, flexibility, and throughput of subjects. PMID:17719091

The strong Bell inequalities: A proposed experimental test

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fry, Edward S.

1994-01-01

All previous experimental tests of Bell inequalities have required additional assumptions. The strong Bell inequalities (i.e. those requiring no additional assumptions) have never been tested. An experiment has been designed that can, for the first time, provide a definitive test of the strong Bell inequalities. Not only will the detector efficiency loophole be closed; but the locality condition will also be rigorously enforced. The experiment involves producing two Hg-199 atoms by a resonant Raman dissociation of a mercury dimer ((199)Hg2) that is in an electronic and nuclear spin singlet state. Bell inequalities can be tested by measuring angular momentum correlations between the spin one-half nuclei of the two Hg-199 atoms. The method used to make these latter measurements will be described.

10 CFR 431.17 - Determination of efficiency.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... different horsepowers without duplication; (C) The basic models should be of different frame number series... be produced over a reasonable period of time (approximately 180 days), then each unit shall be tested... design may be substituted without requiring additional testing if the represented measures of energy...

Testing a potential alternative to traditional identification procedures: Reaction time-based concealed information test does not work for lineups with cooperative witnesses.

PubMed

Sauerland, Melanie; Wolfs, Andrea C F; Crans, Samantha; Verschuere, Bruno

2017-11-27

Direct eyewitness identification is widely used, but prone to error. We tested the validity of indirect eyewitness identification decisions using the reaction time-based concealed information test (CIT) for assessing cooperative eyewitnesses' face memory as an alternative to traditional lineup procedures. In a series of five experiments, a total of 401 mock eyewitnesses watched one of 11 different stimulus events that depicted a breach of law. Eyewitness identifications in the CIT were derived from longer reaction times as compared to well-matched foil faces not encountered before. Across the five experiments, the weighted mean effect size d was 0.14 (95% CI 0.08-0.19). The reaction time-based CIT seems unsuited for testing cooperative eyewitnesses' memory for faces. The careful matching of the faces required for a fair lineup or the lack of intent to deceive may have hampered the diagnosticity of the reaction time-based CIT.

Evaluation of eddy-current proximity devices for measuring thin potassium film thicknesses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Asadourian, A. S.

1972-01-01

Two eddy current proximity probe systems were tested over a range of 0 to 508 micrometers (0 to 20 mils) of simulated potassium film thicknesses for simulated temperatures of 66 C (150 F), 232 C (450 F), and 666 C (1230 F). The results of short time calibration tests are presented. Instrument drift was a problem throughout the testing and, without correction, may limit the use of such systems to short periods of time. Additional development will be required prior to their being usable as practical instrumentation systems.

Real-time dynamics simulation of the Cassini spacecraft using DARTS. Part 1: Functional capabilities and the spatial algebra algorithm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jain, A.; Man, G. K.

1993-01-01

This paper describes the Dynamics Algorithms for Real-Time Simulation (DARTS) real-time hardware-in-the-loop dynamics simulator for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Cassini spacecraft. The spacecraft model consists of a central flexible body with a number of articulated rigid-body appendages. The demanding performance requirements from the spacecraft control system require the use of a high fidelity simulator for control system design and testing. The DARTS algorithm provides a new algorithmic and hardware approach to the solution of this hardware-in-the-loop simulation problem. It is based upon the efficient spatial algebra dynamics for flexible multibody systems. A parallel and vectorized version of this algorithm is implemented on a low-cost, multiprocessor computer to meet the simulation timing requirements.

The Planning and Implementation of Test Facility Improvements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oberlander, Larry

2008-01-01

As engineering programs develop, and product testing begins, ideas for process improvement soon become obvious. Engineers envision new holding and handling fixtures. Additional custom-made support equipment may be needed. Perhaps modifications to the building or modifications to facility hardware are the order of the day. This is where a flexible creative test organization is needed. We need not be content with the status quo. All of these desired test innovations can make the difficult easy and improve the work flow. At times, implementing these new ideas demands more time or specialized expertise than test team members have. Through the coordinated use of labor resources, the needed improvements can still be made and in a timely fashion that supports program schedules. This presentation provides practical advice and a method whereby test personnel can creatively develop facility improvements and manage them from start to finish. You can control just how much time you invest and what part of your concepts you will personally design. By wisely defining the requirements and presenting them to the appropriate help sources (vendors, contractors, coworkers, and support departments), you can get the help you need to bring the improvements you have conceived, into fruition. Aspects of this presentation include defining requirements for test facility improvements, choosing labor resources, writing a statement of work, determining cost and benefits, securing department approval, coordinating procurement, managing the project, and training the end users. The process of successfully implementing test facility improvements is thoroughly explained. It has been tried, proven and improved over nearly 25 years of use. Whether considering a $50 improvement or a $50 million dollar improvement, this discussion will provide helpful pointers. Examples of improvements made through this process and their illustration will be included.

HMPT: Basic Radioactive Material Transportation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hypes, Philip A.

2016-02-29

Hazardous Materials and Packaging and Transportation (HMPT): Basic Radioactive Material Transportation Live (#30462, suggested one time) and Test (#30463, required initially and every 36 months) address the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) function-specific [required for hazardous material (HAZMAT) handlers, packagers, and shippers] training requirements of the HMPT Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Labwide training. This course meets the requirements of 49 CFR 172, Subpart H, Section 172.704(a)(ii), Function-Specific Training.

THE DYNAMIC LEAP AND BALANCE TEST (DLBT): A TEST-RETEST RELIABILITY STUDY

PubMed Central

Newman, Thomas M.; Smith, Brent I.; John Miller, Sayers

2017-01-01

Background There is a need for new clinical assessment tools to test dynamic balance during typical functional movements. Common methods for assessing dynamic balance, such as the Star Excursion Balance Test, which requires controlled movement of body segments over an unchanged base of support, may not be an adequate measure for testing typical functional movements that involve controlled movement of body segments along with a change in base of support. Purpose/hypothesis The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of the Dynamic Leap and Balance Test (DLBT) by assessing its test-retest reliability. It was hypothesized that there would be no statistically significant differences between testing days in time taken to complete the test. Study Design Reliability study Methods Thirty healthy college aged individuals participated in this study. Participants performed a series of leaps in a prescribed sequence, unique to the DLBT test. Time required by the participants to complete the 20-leap task was the dependent variable. Subjects leaped back and forth from peripheral to central targets alternating weight bearing from one leg to the other. Participants landed on the central target with the tested limb and were required to stabilize for two seconds before leaping to the next target. Stability was based upon qualitative measures similar to Balance Error Scoring System. Each assessment was comprised of three trials and performed on two days with a separation of at least six days. Results Two-way mixed ANOVA was used to analyze the differences in time to complete the sequence between the three trial averages of the two testing sessions. Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC3,1) was used to establish between session test-retest reliability of the test trial averages. Significance was set a priori at p ≤ 0.05. No significant differences (p > 0.05) were detected between the two testing sessions. The ICC was 0.93 with a 95% confidence interval from 0.84 to 0.96. Conclusion This test is a cost-effective, easy to administer and clinically relevant novel measure for assessing dynamic balance that has excellent test-retest reliability. Clinical relevance As a new measure of dynamic balance, the DLBT has the potential to be a cost-effective, challenging and functional tool for clinicians. Level of Evidence 2b PMID:28900556

NASA Data Acquisition System Software Development for Rocket Propulsion Test Facilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herbert, Phillip W., Sr.; Elliot, Alex C.; Graves, Andrew R.

2015-01-01

Current NASA propulsion test facilities include Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, Plum Brook Station in Ohio, and White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. Within and across these centers, a diverse set of data acquisition systems exist with different hardware and software platforms. The NASA Data Acquisition System (NDAS) is a software suite designed to operate and control many critical aspects of rocket engine testing. The software suite combines real-time data visualization, data recording to a variety formats, short-term and long-term acquisition system calibration capabilities, test stand configuration control, and a variety of data post-processing capabilities. Additionally, data stream conversion functions exist to translate test facility data streams to and from downstream systems, including engine customer systems. The primary design goals for NDAS are flexibility, extensibility, and modularity. Providing a common user interface for a variety of hardware platforms helps drive consistency and error reduction during testing. In addition, with an understanding that test facilities have different requirements and setups, the software is designed to be modular. One engine program may require real-time displays and data recording; others may require more complex data stream conversion, measurement filtering, or test stand configuration management. The NDAS suite allows test facilities to choose which components to use based on their specific needs. The NDAS code is primarily written in LabVIEW, a graphical, data-flow driven language. Although LabVIEW is a general-purpose programming language; large-scale software development in the language is relatively rare compared to more commonly used languages. The NDAS software suite also makes extensive use of a new, advanced development framework called the Actor Framework. The Actor Framework provides a level of code reuse and extensibility that has previously been difficult to achieve using LabVIEW. The

A Standard for Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) Test Data Representation to Integrate with High-Performance Data Reduction

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-01

events was ad - hoc and problematic due to time constraints and changing requirements. Determining errors in context and heuristics required expertise...area code ) 410-278-4678 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8/98) Prescribed by ANSI Std. Z39.18 iii Contents List of Figures iv 1. Introduction 1...reduction code ...........8 1 1. Introduction Data reduction for analysis of Command, Control, Communications, and Computer (C4) network tests

Usability of Optical Mark Reader Sheet as an Answering Tool in Testing.

PubMed

Booka, Masayuki; Oku, Hidehisa; Scheller, Andreas; Yamaoka, Shintaro

2017-01-01

The research result on usability of Optical Mark Reader Sheet (OMRS) being used as the standard answering tool is reported. The use of OMRS significantly requires more answer time than the answer time without OMRS, and the use of assistive devices for OMRS has the possibility to reduce the answer time.

Equivalence of Students' Scores on Timed and Untimed Anatomy Practical Examinations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Guiyun; Fenderson, Bruce A.; Schmidt, Richard R.; Veloski, J. Jon

2013-01-01

Untimed examinations are popular with students because there is a perception that first impressions may be incorrect, and that difficult questions require more time for reflection. In this report, we tested the hypothesis that timed anatomy practical examinations are inherently more difficult than untimed examinations. Students in the Doctor of…

Power Hardware-in-the-Loop Evaluation of PV Inverter Grid Support on Hawaiian Electric Feeders

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nelson, Austin A; Prabakar, Kumaraguru; Nagarajan, Adarsh

As more grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) inverters become compliant with evolving interconnections requirements, there is increased interest from utilities in understanding how to best deploy advanced grid-support functions (GSF) in the field. One efficient and cost-effective method to examine such deployment options is to leverage power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) testing methods, which combine the fidelity of hardware tests with the flexibility of computer simulation. This paper summarizes a study wherein two Hawaiian Electric feeder models were converted to real-time models using an OPAL-RT real-time digital testing platform, and integrated with models of GSF capable PV inverters based on characterization test data. Themore » integrated model was subsequently used in PHIL testing to evaluate the effects of different fixed power factor and volt-watt control settings on voltage regulation of the selected feeders using physical inverters. Selected results are presented in this paper, and complete results of this study were provided as inputs for field deployment and technical interconnection requirements for grid-connected PV inverters on the Hawaiian Islands.« less

40 CFR 75.48 - Petition for an alternative monitoring system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... method of ensuring an accurate assessment of operating hourly conditions on a real-time basis. (9) A...) Hourly test data for the alternative monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type... continuous emissions monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type. The fuel type...

40 CFR 75.48 - Petition for an alternative monitoring system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... method of ensuring an accurate assessment of operating hourly conditions on a real-time basis. (9) A...) Hourly test data for the alternative monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type... continuous emissions monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type. The fuel type...

40 CFR 75.48 - Petition for an alternative monitoring system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... method of ensuring an accurate assessment of operating hourly conditions on a real-time basis. (9) A...) Hourly test data for the alternative monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type... continuous emissions monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type. The fuel type...

40 CFR 75.48 - Petition for an alternative monitoring system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... method of ensuring an accurate assessment of operating hourly conditions on a real-time basis. (9) A...) Hourly test data for the alternative monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type... continuous emissions monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type. The fuel type...

46 CFR 131.513 - Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 46 Shipping 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Verification of compliance with applicable stability...) OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSELS OPERATIONS Tests, Drills, and Inspections § 131.513 Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements. (a) After loading but before departure, and at other times necessary to...

46 CFR 131.513 - Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 46 Shipping 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Verification of compliance with applicable stability...) OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSELS OPERATIONS Tests, Drills, and Inspections § 131.513 Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements. (a) After loading but before departure, and at other times necessary to...

46 CFR 131.513 - Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 46 Shipping 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Verification of compliance with applicable stability...) OFFSHORE SUPPLY VESSELS OPERATIONS Tests, Drills, and Inspections § 131.513 Verification of compliance with applicable stability requirements. (a) After loading but before departure, and at other times necessary to...

40 CFR Table 4 to Subpart Zzzz of... - Requirements for Performance Tests

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... determine O2 concentration must be made at the same time as the measurements for formaldehyde or THC... formaldehyde or THC concentration. iv. If demonstrating compliance with the formaldehyde percent reduction...-hour or longer runs. v. If demonstrating compliance with the THC percent reduction requirement, measure...

40 CFR Table 4 to Subpart Zzzz of... - Requirements for Performance Tests

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... determine O2 concentration must be made at the same time as the measurements for formaldehyde or THC... formaldehyde or THC concentration. iv. If demonstrating compliance with the formaldehyde percent reduction...-hour or longer runs. v. If demonstrating compliance with the THC percent reduction requirement, measure...

40 CFR 75.48 - Petition for an alternative monitoring system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... method of ensuring an accurate assessment of operating hourly conditions on a real-time basis. (9) A...) Hourly test data for the alternative monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type... continuous emissions monitoring system at each required operating level and fuel type. The fuel type...

Project development laboratories energy fuels and oils based on NRU “MPEI”

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burakov, I. A.; Burakov, A. Y.; Nikitina, I. S.; Khomenkov, A. M.; Paramonova, A. O.; Khtoo Naing, Aung

2017-11-01

In the process of improving the efficiency of power plants a hot topic is the use of high-quality fuels and lubricants. In the process of transportation, preparation for use, storage and maintenance of the properties of fuels and lubricants may deteriorate, which entails a reduction in the efficiency of power plants. One of the ways to prevent the deterioration of the properties is a timely analysis of the relevant laboratories. In this day, the existence of laboratories of energy fuels and energy laboratory oil at thermal power stations is satisfactory character. However, the training of qualified personnel to work in these laboratories is a serious problem, as the lack of opportunities in these laboratories a complete list of required tests. The solution to this problem is to explore the possibility of application of methods of analysis of the properties of fuels and lubricants in the stage of training and re-training of qualified personnel. In this regard, on the basis of MPEI developed laboratory projects of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels, power and energy oils and lubricants. Projects allow for a complete list of tests required for the timely control of properties and prevent the deterioration of these properties. Assess the financial component of the implementation of the developed projects based on the use of modern equipment used for tests. Projects allow for a complete list of tests required for the timely control of properties and prevent the deterioration of these properties.

Manned remote work station development article. Volume 2: Simulation requirements. Appendix A: Open cherry picker development test articles specification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

A manned remote work station (MRWS) mission scenario, broken down into the three time phases was selected as the basis for analysis of the MRWS flight article requirements and concepts. The mission roles for the three time phases, supporting tradeoff and evaluation studies, was used to identify key issues requiring simulation. The MRWS is discussed in terms of its capability to perform such operations as support of Spacelab experiments, servicing and repair of satellites, and construction. Future considerations for the use of the MRWS are also given.

How many research nurses for how many clinical trials in an oncology setting? Definition of the Nursing Time Required by Clinical Trial-Assessment Tool (NTRCT-AT).

PubMed

Milani, Alessandra; Mazzocco, Ketti; Stucchi, Sara; Magon, Giorgio; Pravettoni, Gabriella; Passoni, Claudia; Ciccarelli, Chiara; Tonali, Alessandra; Profeta, Teresa; Saiani, Luisa

2017-02-01

Few resources are available to quantify clinical trial-associated workload, needed to guide staffing and budgetary planning. The aim of the study is to describe a tool to measure clinical trials nurses' workload expressed in time spent to complete core activities. Clinical trials nurses drew up a list of nursing core activities, integrating results from literature searches with personal experience. The final 30 core activities were timed for each research nurse by an outside observer during daily practice in May and June 2014. Average times spent by nurses for each activity were calculated. The "Nursing Time Required by Clinical Trial-Assessment Tool" was created as an electronic sheet that combines the average times per specified activities and mathematic functions to return the total estimated time required by a research nurse for each specific trial. The tool was tested retrospectively on 141 clinical trials. The increasing complexity of clinical research requires structured approaches to determine workforce requirements. This study provides a tool to describe the activities of a clinical trials nurse and to estimate the associated time required to deliver individual trials. The application of the proposed tool in clinical research practice could provide a consistent structure for clinical trials nursing workload estimation internationally. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

A multi-frequency fatigue testing method for wind turbine rotor blades

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eder, M. A.; Belloni, F.; Tesauro, A.; Hanis, T.

2017-02-01

Rotor blades are among the most delicate components of modern wind turbines. Reliability is a crucial aspect, since blades shall ideally remain free of failure under ultra-high cycle loading conditions throughout their designated lifetime of 20-25 years. Full-scale blade tests are the most accurate means to experimentally simulate damage evolution under operating conditions, and are therefore used to demonstrate that a blade type fulfils the reliability requirements to an acceptable degree of confidence. The state-of-the-art testing method for rotor blades in industry is based on resonance excitation where typically a rotating mass excites the blade close to its first natural frequency. During operation the blade response due to external forcing is governed by a weighted combination of its eigenmodes. Current test methodologies which only utilise the lowest eigenfrequency induce a fictitious damage where additional tuning masses are required to recover the desired damage distribution. Even with the commonly adopted amplitude upscaling technique fatigue tests remain a time-consuming and costly endeavour. The application of tuning masses increases the complexity of the problem by lowering the natural frequency of the blade and therefore increasing the testing time. The novel method presented in this paper aims at shortening the duration of the state-of-the-art fatigue testing method by simultaneously exciting the blade with a combination of two or more eigenfrequencies. Taking advantage of the different shapes of the excited eigenmodes, the actual spatial damage distribution can be more realistically simulated in the tests by tuning the excitation force amplitudes rather than adding tuning masses. This implies that in portions of the blade the lowest mode is governing the damage whereas in others higher modes contribute more significantly due to their higher cycle count. A numerical feasibility study based on a publicly available large utility rotor blade is used to demonstrate the ability of the proposed approach to outperform the state-of-the-art testing method without compromising fatigue test requirements. It will be shown that the novel method shortens the testing time and renders the damage evolution with a higher degree of fidelity.

On-field mounting position estimation of a lidar sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Owes; Bergelt, René; Hardt, Wolfram

2017-10-01

In order to retrieve a highly accurate view of their environment, autonomous cars are often equipped with LiDAR sensors. These sensors deliver a three dimensional point cloud in their own co-ordinate frame, where the origin is the sensor itself. However, the common co-ordinate system required by HAD (Highly Autonomous Driving) software systems has its origin at the center of the vehicle's rear axle. Thus, a transformation of the acquired point clouds to car co-ordinates is necessary, and thereby the determination of the exact mounting position of the LiDAR system in car coordinates is required. Unfortunately, directly measuring this position is a time-consuming and error-prone task. Therefore, different approaches have been suggested for its estimation which mostly require an exhaustive test-setup and are again time-consuming to prepare. When preparing a high number of LiDAR mounted test vehicles for data acquisition, most approaches fall short due to time or money constraints. In this paper we propose an approach for mounting position estimation which features an easy execution and setup, thus making it feasible for on-field calibration.

Rapid Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing of Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis, and Burkholderia pseudomallei by Use of Laser Light Scattering Technology.

PubMed

Bugrysheva, Julia V; Lascols, Christine; Sue, David; Weigel, Linda M

2016-06-01

Rapid methods to determine antimicrobial susceptibility would assist in the timely distribution of effective treatment or postexposure prophylaxis in the aftermath of the release of bacterial biothreat agents such as Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis, or Burkholderia pseudomallei Conventional susceptibility tests require 16 to 48 h of incubation, depending on the bacterial species. We evaluated a method that is based on laser light scattering technology that measures cell density in real time. We determined that it has the ability to rapidly differentiate between growth (resistant) and no growth (susceptible) of several bacterial threat agents in the presence of clinically relevant antimicrobials. Results were available in <4 h for B. anthracis and <6 h for Y. pestis and B. pseudomallei One exception was B. pseudomallei in the presence of ceftazidime, which required >10 h of incubation. Use of laser scattering technology decreased the time required to determine antimicrobial susceptibility by 50% to 75% for B. anthracis, Y. pestis, and B. pseudomallei compared to conventional methods. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

When access is an issue: exploring barriers to predictive testing for Huntington disease in British Columbia, Canada.

PubMed

Hawkins, Alice K; Creighton, Susan; Hayden, Michael R

2013-02-01

Predictive testing (PT) for Huntington disease (HD) requires several in-person appointments. This requirement may be a barrier to testing so that at risk individuals do not realize the potential benefits of PT. To understand the obstacles to PT in terms of the accessibility of services, as well as exploring mechanisms by which this issue may be addressed, we conducted an interview study of individuals at risk for HD throughout British Columbia, Canada. Results reveal that the accessibility of PT can be a barrier for two major reasons: distance and the inflexibility of the testing process. Distance is a structural barrier, and relates to the time and travel required to access PT, the financial and other opportunity costs associated with taking time away from work and family to attend appointments and the stress of navigating urban centers. The inflexibility of the testing process barrier relates to the emotional and psychological accessibility of PT. The results of the interview study reveal that there are access barriers to PT that deter individuals from receiving the support, information and counseling they require. What makes accessibility of PT services important is not just that it may result in differences in quality of life and care, but because these differences may be addressed with creative and adaptable solutions in the delivery of genetic services. The study findings underscore the need for us to rethink and personalize the way we deliver such services to improve access issues to prevent inequities in the health care system.

Risk/Requirements Trade-off Guidelines for Low Cost Satellite Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cornford, Steven L.; Man, Kin F.

1996-01-01

The accelerating trend toward faster, better, cheaper missions places increasing emphasis on the trade-offs between requirements and risk to reduce cost and development times, while still improving quality and reliability. The Risk/Requirement Trade-off Guidelines discussed in this paper are part of an integrated approach to address the main issues by focusing on the sum of prevention, analysis, control, or test (PACT) processes.

An Occupational Performance Test Validation Program for Fire Fighters at the Kennedy Space Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schonfeld, Brian R.; Doerr, Donald F.; Convertino, Victor A.

1990-01-01

We evaluated performance of a modified Combat Task Test (CTT) and of standard fitness tests in 20 male subjects to assess the prediction of occupational performance standards for Kennedy Space Center fire fighters. The CTT consisted of stair-climbing, a chopping simulation, and a victim rescue simulation. Average CTT performance time was 3.61 +/- 0.25 min (SEM) and all CTT tasks required 93% to 97% maximal heart rate. By using scores from the standard fitness tests, a multiple linear regression model was fitted to each parameter: the stairclimb (r(exp 2) = .905, P less than .05), the chopping performance time (r(exp 2) = .582, P less than .05), the victim rescue time (r(exp 2) = .218, P = not significant), and the total performance time (r(exp 2) = .769, P less than .05). Treadmill time was the predominant variable, being the major predictor in two of four models. These results indicated that standardized fitness tests can predict performance on some CTT tasks and that test predictors were amenable to exercise training.

Purple L1 Milestone Review Panel GPFS Functionality and Performance

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Loewe, W E

2006-12-01

The GPFS deliverable for the Purple system requires the functionality and performance necessary for ASC I/O needs. The functionality includes POSIX and MPIIO compatibility, and multi-TB file capability across the entire machine. The bandwidth performance required is 122.15 GB/s, as necessary for productive and defensive I/O requirements, and the metadata performance requirement is 5,000 file stats per second. To determine success for this deliverable, several tools are employed. For functionality testing of POSIX, 10TB-files, and high-node-count capability, the parallel file system bandwidth performance test IOR is used. IOR is an MPI-coordinated application that can write and then read to amore » single shared file or to an individual file per process and check the data integrity of the file(s). The MPIIO functionality is tested with the MPIIO test suite from the MPICH library. Bandwidth performance is tested using IOR for the required 122.15 GB/s sustained write. All IOR tests are performanced with data checking enabled. Metadata performance is tested after ''aging'' the file system with 80% data block usage and 20% inode usage. The fdtree metadata test is expected to create/remove a large directory/file structure in under 20 minutes time, akin to interactive metadata usage. Multiple (10) instances of ''ls -lR'', each performing over 100K stats, are run concurrently in different large directories to demonstrate 5,000 stats/sec.« less

Evaluation of non-extracted genital swabs for real-time HSV PCR.

PubMed

Miari, Victoria F; Wall, Gavin R; Clark, Duncan A

2015-01-01

Nucleic acid extraction of clinical samples is accepted as a key requirement in molecular diagnostics. At Barts Health NHS Trust, swabs taken from patients with clinical suspicion of HSV infection were routinely extracted on the Qiagen MDx BioRobot prior to testing with a real-time triplex PCR for HSV1, HSV2, and VZV. The aim of this study was to adapt an existing HSV1/HSV2/VZV real-time PCR by replacing VZV with phocine herpesvirus 1 (PhHV) as an internal control (IC) and evaluate whether this adapted assay required the nucleic acid extraction step for predominantly genital swabs. First 313 non-extracted and extracted swabs were tested in parallel with the existing triplex HSV1/HSV2/VZV real-time PCR. The second stage involved testing 176 non-extracted swabs using a triplex real-time PCR for HSV1, HSV2, and PhHV and comparing the results with the samples extracted and tested by the original triplex assay. The results correlated well when the existing assay was used, with only three non-extracted samples that would have been reported as negative compared to the extracted sample result (Cq s 33, 39, 35-two samples HSV1, one sample HSV2). In the evaluation using the adapted assay containing the IC, two of 176 samples were discordant, where a HSV negative non-extracted sample result would have been reported differently to the extracted sample result (Cq s 32, 33-both HSV1). This study demonstrated that it is feasible to test non-extracted swabs for HSV in a real-time PCR that includes an IC. J. Med. Virol. 87: 125-129, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

High-visibility time-bin entanglement for testing chained Bell inequalities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomasin, Marco; Mantoan, Elia; Jogenfors, Jonathan; Vallone, Giuseppe; Larsson, Jan-Åke; Villoresi, Paolo

2017-03-01

The violation of Bell's inequality requires a well-designed experiment to validate the result. In experiments using energy-time and time-bin entanglement, initially proposed by Franson in 1989, there is an intrinsic loophole due to the high postselection. To obtain a violation in this type of experiment, a chained Bell inequality must be used. However, the local realism bound requires a high visibility in excess of 94.63% in the time-bin entangled state. In this work, we show how such a high visibility can be reached in order to violate a chained Bell inequality with six, eight, and ten terms.

Stability of human sera collected for clinical chemistry determinations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Townsend, F. M.

1969-01-01

Problems in collecting and shipping human sera for clinical chemical analyses affect their stability and require proper preservation methods. It is shown that glutamic pyruvate transaminase is very unstable and serum cannot be shipped unless the shipping time is carefully controlled and is less than two days under refrigeration. A limit of four days handling time and avoidance of light exposure are required in bilirubin testing of specimens. Addition of 11 mg of a 10 to 1 mixture of finely powdered sodium fluoride and thymol per ml of blood to preserve specimen stability en route to a central laboratory prevents glycolysis. A citrate buffer at pH 6.2 in serum to be tested for alkaline phosphatase lessens decline at room temperature.

Long working distance incoherent interference microscope

DOEpatents

Sinclair, Michael B [Albuquerque, NM; De Boer, Maarten P [Albuquerque, NM

2006-04-25

A full-field imaging, long working distance, incoherent interference microscope suitable for three-dimensional imaging and metrology of MEMS devices and test structures on a standard microelectronics probe station. A long working distance greater than 10 mm allows standard probes or probe cards to be used. This enables nanometer-scale 3-dimensional height profiles of MEMS test structures to be acquired across an entire wafer while being actively probed, and, optionally, through a transparent window. An optically identical pair of sample and reference arm objectives is not required, which reduces the overall system cost, and also the cost and time required to change sample magnifications. Using a LED source, high magnification (e.g., 50.times.) can be obtained having excellent image quality, straight fringes, and high fringe contrast.

Block 4 solar cell module design and test specification for intermediate load center applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

Requirements for performance of terrestrial solar cell modules intended for use in various test applications are established. During the 1979-80 time period, such applications are expected to be in the 20 to 500 kilowatt size range. A series of characterization and qualification tests necessary to certify the module design for production, and the necessary performance test for acceptance of modules are specified.

Design and testing of a functional arm orthosis in patients with neuromuscular diseases.

PubMed

Rahman, Tariq; Sample, Whitney; Seliktar, Rahamim; Scavina, Mena T; Clark, Alisa L; Moran, Kacy; Alexander, Michael A

2007-06-01

The objective of this study was to determine the utility of a passive gravity-balanced arm orthosis, the Wilmington robotic exoskeleton (WREX), for patients with neuromuscular diseases. The WREX, a four-degrees-of-freedom functional orthosis, is energized by rubber bands to eliminate gravity and is attached to the wheelchair. The development and clinical testing of WREX is described in this report. Seventeen patients (14 boys and 3 girls) with muscular disabilities participated in the study. Ages ranged from 4 to 20 years. Criteria for inclusion included a weakened arm, use of a wheelchair, the ability to grasp and release objects, and the ability to provide feedback on device use. Testing consisted of administering the Jebsen test of hand function without WREX and then testing again after approximately two weeks of wearing the WREX orthosis. The timed results of each task within the test then were compared. Specific tasks related to vertical movement required less time to perform with the WREX. A large number of subjects were able to perform the Jebsen tasks with the WREX, where they were unable to perform the task without the WREX. Patients can benefit from WREX because it increases their performance in daily living activities and makes many tasks possible. The range-of-motion in the patients' arms increased considerably, while the time required to complete some of the Jebsen test tasks decreased. Most patients were very receptive to WREX, although a few were ambivalent.

Protective Skins for Composite Airliners

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Vicki S.; Boone, Richard L.; Jones, Shannon; Pendse, Vandana; Hayward, Greg

2014-01-01

Traditional composite aircraft structures are designed for load bearing and then overdesigned for impact damage and hot humid environments. Seeking revolutionary improvement in the performance and weight of composite structures, Cessna Aircraft Company, with sponsorship from the NASA Fundamental Aeronautics Program/Subsonic Fixed Wing Project, has developed and tested a protective skin concept which would allow the primary composite structure to carry only load and would meet the impact, hot and humid, and other requirements through protective skins. A key requirement for the protective skins is to make any impact damage requiring repair visible. Testing from the first generation of skins helped identify the most promising materials which were used in a second generation of test articles. This report summarizes lessons learned from the first generation of protective skins, the design and construction of the second-generation test articles, test results from the second generation for impact, electromagnetic effects, aesthetics and smoothing, thermal, and acoustic (for the first time), and an assessment of the feasibility of the protective skin concept.

Small-scale dynamic confinement gap test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, Malcolm

2011-06-01

Gap tests are routinely used to ascertain the shock sensitiveness of new explosive formulations. The tests are popular since that are easy and relatively cheap to perform. However, with modern insensitive formulations with big critical diameters, large test samples are required. This can make testing and screening of new formulations expensive since large quantities of test material are required. Thus a new test that uses significantly smaller sample quantities would be very beneficial. In this paper we describe a new small-scale test that has been designed using our CHARM ignition and growth routine in the DYNA2D hydrocode. The new test is a modified gap test and uses detonating nitromethane to provide dynamic confinement (instead of a thick metal case) whilst exposing the sample to a long duration shock wave. The long duration shock wave allows less reactive materials that are below their critical diameter, more time to react. We present details on the modelling of the test together with some preliminary experiments to demonstrate the potential of the new test method.

Ability of walking without a walking device in patients with spinal cord injury as determined using data from functional tests

PubMed Central

Poncumhak, Puttipong; Saengsuwan, Jiamjit; Amatachaya, Sugalya

2014-01-01

Background/Objectives More than half of independent ambulatory patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) need a walking device to promote levels of independence. However, long-lasting use of a walking device may introduce negative impacts for the patients. Using a standard objective test relating to the requirement of a walking device may offer a quantitative criterion to effectively monitor levels of independence of the patients. Therefore, this study investigated (1) ability of the three functional tests, including the five times sit-to-stand test (FTSST), timed up and go test (TUGT), and 10-meter walk test (10MWT) to determine the ability of walking without a walking device, and (2) the inter-tester reliability of the tests to assess functional ability in patients with SCI. Methods Sixty independent ambulatory patients with SCI, who walked with and without a walking device (30 subjects/group), were assessed cross-sectionally for their functional ability using the three tests. The first 20 subjects also participated in the inter-tester reliability test. Results The time required to complete the FTSST <14 seconds, the TUGT < 18 seconds, and the 10MWT < 6 seconds had good-to-excellent capability to determine the ability of walking without a walking device of subjects with SCI. These tests also showed excellent inter-tester reliability. Conclusions Methods of clinical evaluation for walking are likely performed using qualitative observation, which makes the results difficult to compare among testers and test intervals. Findings of this study offer a quantitative target criterion or a clear level of ability that patients with SCI could possibly walk without a walking device, which would benefit monitoring process for the patients. PMID:24621030

Testing under the Microscope: How Common Core-Aligned Assessments Place Demands on Time, Technology, and Connectivity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stephens, Wendy

2014-01-01

School librarians and other specialists should take note of the new wave of computer-based assessments required by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), testing that is only now beginning to get off the ground. The new testing necessitates that districts possess the right hardware, install the requisite software, and, in some cases, create…

Application of DPIV to Enhanced Mixing Heated Nozzle Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wernet, Mark P.; Bridges, James

2002-01-01

Digital Particle Imaging Velocimetry (DPIV) is a planar velocity measurement technique that continues to be applied to new and challenging engineering research facilities while significantly reducing facility test time. DPIV was used in the GRC Nozzle Acoustic Test Rig (NATR) to characterize the high temperature (560 C), high speed (is greater than 500 m/s) flow field properties of mixing enhanced jet engine nozzles. The instantaneous velocity maps obtained using DPIV were used to determine mean velocity, rms velocity and two-point correlation statistics to verify the true turbulence characteristics of the flow. These measurements will ultimately be used to properly validate aeroacoustic model predictions by verifying CFD input to these models. These turbulence measurements have previously not been possible in hot supersonic jets. Mapping the nozzle velocity field using point based techniques requires over 60 hours of test time, compared to less than 45 minutes using DPIV, yielding a significant reduction in testing time. A dual camera DPIV configuration was used to maximize the field of view and further minimize the testing time required to map the nozzle flow. The DPIV system field of view covered 127 by 267 mm. Data were acquired at 19 axial stations providing coverage of the flow from the nozzle exit to 2.37 in downstream. At each measurement station, 400 image frame pairs were acquired from each camera. The DPIV measurements of the mixing enhanced nozzle designs illustrate the changes in the flow field resulting in the reduced noise signature.

Purging of multilayer insulation by gas diffusion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sumner, I. E.; Spuckler, C. M.

1976-01-01

An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the time required to purge a multilayer insulation (MLI) panel with gaseous helium by means of gas diffusion to obtain a condensable (nitrogen) gas concentration of less than 1 percent within the panel. Two flat, rectangular MLI panel configurations, one incorporating a butt joint, were tested. The insulation panels consisted of 15 double-aluminized Mylar radiation shields separated by double silk net spacers. The test results indicated that the rate which the condensable gas concentration at the edge or at the butt joint of an MLI panel was reduced was a significant factor in the total time required to reduce the condensable gas concentration within the panel to less than 1 percent. The experimental data agreed well with analytical predictions made by using a simple, one-dimensional gas diffusion model in which the boundary conditions at the edge of the MLI panel were time dependent.

Wildlife specimen collection, preservation, and shipment

USGS Publications Warehouse

White, C. LeAnn; Dusek, Robert J.; Franson, J. Christian; Friend, Milton; Gibbs, Samantha E.J.; Wild, Margaret A.

2015-01-01

Prior to collecting samples, it is important to determine the capabilities and submission criteria of the laboratory receiving the samples. Some laboratories may specialize in a limited number of tests, be equipped to accept only certain types of tissues (instead of entire carcasses), or specialize in particular species or group of animals (e.g., reptiles, birds, mammals). Diagnostic laboratories have specific requirements regarding preparation, labeling, and shipping of samples. Adherence to these requirements helps ensure the usefulness of any submitted specimens. Although laboratories may vary in the cost and turnaround times for diagnostic tests, some laboratories may be able to prioritize samples and accommodate accelerated time frames if communicated at the time of submission. Keeping a prepacked kit with basic carcass-collection supplies, including a paper copy of the specimen history form (available for download from the Web sites of most diagnostic laboratories), in the office or vehicle will decrease the chances of forgetting an essential item and decrease response time for arriving at an event.

An empirical comparison of statistical tests for assessing the proportional hazards assumption of Cox's model.

PubMed

Ng'andu, N H

1997-03-30

In the analysis of survival data using the Cox proportional hazard (PH) model, it is important to verify that the explanatory variables analysed satisfy the proportional hazard assumption of the model. This paper presents results of a simulation study that compares five test statistics to check the proportional hazard assumption of Cox's model. The test statistics were evaluated under proportional hazards and the following types of departures from the proportional hazard assumption: increasing relative hazards; decreasing relative hazards; crossing hazards; diverging hazards, and non-monotonic hazards. The test statistics compared include those based on partitioning of failure time and those that do not require partitioning of failure time. The simulation results demonstrate that the time-dependent covariate test, the weighted residuals score test and the linear correlation test have equally good power for detection of non-proportionality in the varieties of non-proportional hazards studied. Using illustrative data from the literature, these test statistics performed similarly.

Design of an MR image processing module on an FPGA chip.

PubMed

Li, Limin; Wyrwicz, Alice M

2015-06-01

We describe the design and implementation of an image processing module on a single-chip Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for real-time image processing. We also demonstrate that through graphical coding the design work can be greatly simplified. The processing module is based on a 2D FFT core. Our design is distinguished from previously reported designs in two respects. No off-chip hardware resources are required, which increases portability of the core. Direct matrix transposition usually required for execution of 2D FFT is completely avoided using our newly-designed address generation unit, which saves considerable on-chip block RAMs and clock cycles. The image processing module was tested by reconstructing multi-slice MR images from both phantom and animal data. The tests on static data show that the processing module is capable of reconstructing 128×128 images at speed of 400 frames/second. The tests on simulated real-time streaming data demonstrate that the module works properly under the timing conditions necessary for MRI experiments. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Interspecific competition between Solenopsis invicta and two native ant species, Pheidole fervens and Monomorium chinense.

PubMed

Chen, Yin-Cheng; Kafle, Lekhnath; Shih, Cheng-Jen

2011-04-01

This study was designed to understand the effects of the interspecific competition between red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren and two native ant species, Pheidole fervens Smith and Monomorium chinense Santschi, by conducting colony interference and individual confrontation tests under laboratory conditions. The colony interference test showed that both native ant species, owing to their numerical advantage, killed the Solenopsis invicta virus-1 (SINV-1)-infected or healthy queens of S. invicta. Significantly less time was required for M. chinense to kill all SINV-1-infected S. invicta compared with the time required to kill the healthy S. invicta. Compared with healthy S. invicta, SINV-1-infected S. invicta spent a longer time eliminating the P. fervens colonies. In confrontation tests, M. chinense killed a significantly higher number of infected S. invicta minors than they did healthy minors, but the number of S. invicta majors (either infected or healthy) killed was substantially less. This study found that the viral infection weakened the competitive ability of S. invicta and made them prone to be eliminated by M. chinense but not by P. fervens.

Evaluation of the concept of pressure proof testing fuselage structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, Charles E.; Orringer, Oscar

1991-01-01

The FAA and NASA have recently completed independent technical evaluations of the concept of pressure proof testing the fuselage of commercial transport airplanes. The results of these evaluations are summarized. The objectives of the evaluations were to establish the potential benefit of the pressure proof test, to quantify the most desirable proof test pressure, and to quantify the required proof test interval. The focus of the evaluations was on multiple-site cracks extending from adjacent rivet holes of a typical fuselage longitudinal lap splice joint. The FAA and NASA do not support pressure proof testing the fuselage of aging commercial transport aircraft. The argument against proof testing is as follows: (1) a single proof test does not insure an indefinite life; therefore, the proof test must be repeated at regular intervals; (2) for a proof factor of 1.33, the required proof test interval must be below 300 flights to account for uncertainties in the evaluation; (3) conducting the proof test at a proof factor of 1.5 would considerably exceed the fuselage design limit load; therefore, it is not consistent with accepted safe practices; and (4) better safety can be assured by implementing enhanced nondestructive inspection requirements, and adequate reliability can be achieved by an inspection interval several times longer than the proof test interval.

Hippocampal activation during the recall of remote spatial memories in radial maze tasks.

PubMed

Schlesiger, Magdalene I; Cressey, John C; Boublil, Brittney; Koenig, Julie; Melvin, Neal R; Leutgeb, Jill K; Leutgeb, Stefan

2013-11-01

Temporally graded retrograde amnesia is observed in human patients with medial temporal lobe lesions as well as in animal models of medial temporal lobe lesions. A time-limited role for these structures in memory recall has also been suggested by the observation that the rodent hippocampus and entorhinal cortex are activated during the retrieval of recent but not of remote memories. One notable exception is the recall of remote memories for platform locations in the water maze, which requires an intact hippocampus and results in hippocampal activation irrespective of the age of the memory. These findings raise the question whether the hippocampus is always involved in the recall of spatial memories or, alternatively, whether it might be required for procedural computations in the water maze task, such as for calculating a path to a hidden platform. We performed spatial memory testing in radial maze tasks to distinguish between these possibilities. Radial maze tasks require a choice between spatial locations on a center platform and thus have a lesser requirement for navigation than the water maze. However, we used a behavioral design in the radial maze that retained other aspects of the standard water maze task, such as the use of multiple start locations and retention testing in a single trial. Using the immediate early gene c-fos as a marker for neuronal activation, we found that all hippocampal subregions were more activated during the recall of remote compared to recent spatial memories. In areas CA3 and CA1, activation during remote memory testing was higher than in rats that were merely reexposed to the testing environment after the same time interval. Conversely, Fos levels in the dentate gyrus were increased after retention testing to the extent that was also observed in the corresponding exposure control group. This pattern of hippocampal activation was also obtained in a second version of the task that only used a single start arm instead of multiple start arms. The CA3 and CA1 activation during remote memory recall is consistent with the interpretation that an older memory might require increased pattern completion and/or relearning after longer time intervals. Irrespective of whether the hippocampus is required for remote memory recall, the hippocampus might engage in computations that either support recall of remote memories or that update remote memories. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Proposed phase 2/ step 2 in-vitro test on basis of EN 14561 for standardised testing of the wound antiseptics PVP-iodine, chlorhexidine digluconate, polihexanide and octenidine dihydrochloride.

PubMed

Schedler, Kathrin; Assadian, Ojan; Brautferger, Uta; Müller, Gerald; Koburger, Torsten; Classen, Simon; Kramer, Axel

2017-02-13

Currently, there is no agreed standard for exploring the antimicrobial activity of wound antiseptics in a phase 2/ step 2 test protocol. In the present study, a standardised in-vitro test is proposed, which allows to test potential antiseptics in a more realistically simulation of conditions found in wounds as in a suspension test. Furthermore, factors potentially influencing test results such as type of materials used as test carrier or various compositions of organic soil challenge were investigated in detail. This proposed phase 2/ step 2 test method was modified on basis of the EN 14561 by drying the microbial test suspension on a metal carrier for 1 h, overlaying the test wound antiseptic, washing-off, neutralization, and dispersion at serial dilutions at the end of the required exposure time yielded reproducible, consistent test results. The difference between the rapid onset of the antiseptic effect of PVP-I and the delayed onset especially of polihexanide was apparent. Among surface-active antimicrobial compounds, octenidine was more effective than chlorhexidine digluconate and polihexanide, with some differences depending on the test organisms. However, octenidine and PVP-I were approximately equivalent in efficiency and microbial spectrum, while polihexanide required longer exposure times or higher concentrations for a comparable antimicrobial efficacy. Overall, this method allowed testing and comparing differ liquid and gel based antimicrobial compounds in a standardised setting.

10 CFR 72.82 - Inspections and tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Inspections and tests. 72.82 Section 72.82 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (CONTINUED) LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INDEPENDENT STORAGE OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL... site with a single storage installation the space provided shall be adequate to accommodate a full-time...

Analysis of repeated network-level testing by the falling weight deflectometer on I-81 in the Virginia Department of Transportation's Bristol District.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-11-01

This study was undertaken in an effort to determine the required time between subsequent rounds of network-level pavement deflection testing using a falling weight deflectometer (FWD) on the Virginia Department of Transportations (VDOTs) inters...

46 CFR 169.247 - Firefighting equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... certification and periodic inspection and at such other times as considered necessary all fire-extinguishing... condition of the equipment. The inspector verifies that the tests and inspections required in Tables 169.247.... Table 169.247(a)(1)—Portable Extinguishers Type unit Test Foam Discharge. Clean hose and inside of...

46 CFR 169.247 - Firefighting equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... certification and periodic inspection and at such other times as considered necessary all fire-extinguishing... condition of the equipment. The inspector verifies that the tests and inspections required in Tables 169.247.... Table 169.247(a)(1)—Portable Extinguishers Type unit Test Foam Discharge. Clean hose and inside of...

12 CFR 1238.8 - Additional implementing action.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 10 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Additional implementing action. 1238.8 Section 1238.8 Banks and Banking FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY ENTITY REGULATIONS STRESS TESTING OF REGULATED..., require any regulated entity not subject to this part to conduct stress testing hereunder; and from time...

Rhythms of Mental Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valdez, Pablo; Reilly, Thomas; Waterhouse, Jim

2008-01-01

Cognitive performance is affected by an individual's characteristics and the environment, as well as by the nature of the task and the amount of practice at it. Mental performance tests range in complexity and include subjective estimates of mood, simple objective tests (reaction time), and measures of complex performance that require decisions to…

The clinical application of the 100mL water swallow test in head and neck cancer.

PubMed

Patterson, Joanne M; Hildreth, Anthony; McColl, Elaine; Carding, Paul N; Hamilton, David; Wilson, Janet A

2011-03-01

Water swallow tests have been used as to screen patients with neurological dysphagia who are at risk of aspiration. This study examines the clinical utility of the 100mL water swallow test (WST) in head and neck cancer, by measuring its sensitivity and specificity for identifying aspiration and for monitoring swallow performance up to one year following (chemo)radiotherapy. Patients referred for (chemo)radiotherapy were assessed on the WST (n=173) pre-treatment and 3, 6 and 12months post-treatment. Patients failed the test if they coughed or had a wet voice quality post swallow or were unable to finish the task. A Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing was conducted at the same time points, to test for the presence of aspiration. The WST was timed and the number of swallows required was recorded. Sensitivity of the WST for predicting aspiration was >67%, specificity >46%. There was marked deterioration from pre- to 3months post-treatment for the time taken to drink 100mL (p=0.005), but this improved over the first year (p=0.001). Disease characteristics, patient demographics, radiotherapy dose, or treatment volume were not predictors of this improvement. The 100mL WST is a quick and simple assessment for identifying patients with aspiration, post (chemo)radiotherapy. This test is a useful adjunct to a clinical examination, helping to highlight patients who require an instrumental assessment such as videofluoroscopy. Furthermore, quantitative measures can be derived from this test, which can be used as a measure of swallow performance over time. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Zika Virus Testing Considerations: Lessons Learned from the First 80 Real-Time Reverse Transcription-PCR-Positive Cases Diagnosed in New York State.

PubMed

St George, Kirsten; Sohi, Inderbir S; Dufort, Elizabeth M; Dean, Amy B; White, Jennifer L; Limberger, Ronald; Sommer, Jamie N; Ostrowski, Stephanie; Wong, Susan J; Backenson, P Bryon; Kuhles, Daniel; Blog, Debra; Taylor, Jill; Hutton, Brad; Zucker, Howard A

2017-02-01

The performance and interpretation of laboratory tests for Zika virus (ZKV) continue to be evaluated. Serology is cross-reactive, laborious, and frequently difficult to interpret, and serum was initially solely recommended for molecular diagnosis. ZKV testing was initiated in January 2016 in New York State for symptomatic patients, pregnant women, their infants, and patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome who had traveled to areas with ZKV transmission. Subsequently, eligibility was expanded to pregnant women with sexual partners with similar travel histories. Serum and urine collected within 4 weeks of symptom onset or within 6 weeks of travel were tested with real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) assays targeting the ZKV envelope and NS2B genes. In this review of lessons learned from the first 80 positive cases in NYS, ZKV RNA was detected in urine only in 50 patients, in serum only in 19 patients, and in both samples concurrently in 11 patients, with average viral loads in urine a log higher than those in serum. Among 93 positive samples from the 80 patients, 41 were positive on both gene assays, 52 were positive on the envelope only, and none were positive on the NS2B only. Of the 80 infected patients, test results for 74 (93%) would have defined their infection status as not detected or equivocal if the requirement for positive results from two assay targets (two-target-positive requirement) in the initial federal guidance to public health laboratories was enforced, if urine was not tested, or if the extended eligibility time for molecular testing was not implemented. These changes facilitated more extensive molecular diagnosis of ZKV, reducing reliance on time-consuming and potentially inconclusive serology. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

Reliability of Fitness Tests Using Methods and Time Periods Common in Sport and Occupational Management

PubMed Central

Burnstein, Bryan D.; Steele, Russell J.; Shrier, Ian

2011-01-01

Context: Fitness testing is used frequently in many areas of physical activity, but the reliability of these measurements under real-world, practical conditions is unknown. Objective: To evaluate the reliability of specific fitness tests using the methods and time periods used in the context of real-world sport and occupational management. Design: Cohort study. Setting: Eighteen different Cirque du Soleil shows. Patients or Other Participants: Cirque du Soleil physical performers who completed 4 consecutive tests (6-month intervals) and were free of injury or illness at each session (n = 238 of 701 physical performers). Intervention(s): Performers completed 6 fitness tests on each assessment date: dynamic balance, Harvard step test, handgrip, vertical jump, pull-ups, and 60-second jump test. Main Outcome Measure(s): We calculated the intraclass coefficient (ICC) and limits of agreement between baseline and each time point and the ICC over all 4 time points combined. Results: Reliability was acceptable (ICC > 0.6) over an 18-month time period for all pairwise comparisons and all time points together for the handgrip, vertical jump, and pull-up assessments. The Harvard step test and 60-second jump test had poor reliability (ICC < 0.6) between baseline and other time points. When we excluded the baseline data and calculated the ICC for 6-month, 12-month, and 18-month time points, both the Harvard step test and 60-second jump test demonstrated acceptable reliability. Dynamic balance was unreliable in all contexts. Limit-of-agreement analysis demonstrated considerable intraindividual variability for some tests and a learning effect by administrators on others. Conclusions: Five of the 6 tests in this battery had acceptable reliability over an 18-month time frame, but the values for certain individuals may vary considerably from time to time for some tests. Specific tests may require a learning period for administrators. PMID:22488138

Capillary Suction Time. Operational Control Tests for Wastewater Treatment Facilities. Instructor's Manual [and] Student Workbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wooley, John F.

Capillary suction time is time required for the liquid phase of a treated sludge to travel through 1 centimeter of media (blotter or filter paper). Designed for individuals who have completed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) level 1 laboratory training skills, this module provides waste water treatment plant operators with…

Utilizing Response Time Distributions for Item Selection in CAT

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fan, Zhewen; Wang, Chun; Chang, Hua-Hua; Douglas, Jeffrey

2012-01-01

Traditional methods for item selection in computerized adaptive testing only focus on item information without taking into consideration the time required to answer an item. As a result, some examinees may receive a set of items that take a very long time to finish, and information is not accrued as efficiently as possible. The authors propose two…

Real-Time Hardware-in-the-Loop Simulation of Ares I Launch Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tobbe, Patrick; Matras, Alex; Walker, David; Wilson, Heath; Fulton, Chris; Alday, Nathan; Betts, Kevin; Hughes, Ryan; Turbe, Michael

2009-01-01

The Ares Real-Time Environment for Modeling, Integration, and Simulation (ARTEMIS) has been developed for use by the Ares I launch vehicle System Integration Laboratory at the Marshall Space Flight Center. The primary purpose of the Ares System Integration Laboratory is to test the vehicle avionics hardware and software in a hardware - in-the-loop environment to certify that the integrated system is prepared for flight. ARTEMIS has been designed to be the real-time simulation backbone to stimulate all required Ares components for verification testing. ARTE_VIIS provides high -fidelity dynamics, actuator, and sensor models to simulate an accurate flight trajectory in order to ensure realistic test conditions. ARTEMIS has been designed to take advantage of the advances in underlying computational power now available to support hardware-in-the-loop testing to achieve real-time simulation with unprecedented model fidelity. A modular realtime design relying on a fully distributed computing architecture has been implemented.

AGARD Flight Test Techniques Series. Volume 7. Air-to-Air Radar Flight Testing

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-06-01

enters the beam ), a different tilt angle should be used. The emphasis on setting the tilt angle may require a non - standard high accuracy tilt angle...is: the time from pilot designation on a non -maneuvering target to the time that the system achieves target range, range rate and angle tracking...minimal attenuation, distortion, or boresight Shift effects on the radar beam . Thus, radome design for airborne application io largely a process of

Versatile Software Package For Near Real-Time Analysis of Experimental Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wieseman, Carol D.; Hoadley, Sherwood T.

1998-01-01

This paper provides an overview of a versatile software package developed for time- and frequency-domain analyses of experimental wind-tunnel data. This package, originally developed for analyzing data in the NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT), is applicable for analyzing any time-domain data. A Matlab-based software package, TDT-analyzer, provides a compendium of commonly-required dynamic analysis functions in a user-friendly interactive and batch processing environment. TDT-analyzer has been used extensively to provide on-line near real-time and post-test examination and reduction of measured data acquired during wind tunnel tests of aeroelastically-scaled models of aircraft and rotorcraft as well as a flight test of the NASA High Alpha Research Vehicle (HARV) F-18. The package provides near real-time results in an informative and timely manner far exceeding prior methods of data reduction at the TDT.

Precise time dissemination and applications development on the Bonneville Power Administration system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martin, Ken E.; Esztergalyos, J.

1992-01-01

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) uses IRIG-B transmitted over microwave as its primary system time dissemination. Problems with accuracy and reliability have led to ongoing research into better methods. BPA has also developed and deployed a unique fault locator which uses precise clocks synchronized by a pulse over microwaves. It automatically transmits the data to a central computer for analysis. A proposed system could combine fault location timing and time dissemination into a Global Position System (GPS) timing receiver and close the verification loop through a master station at the Dittmer Control Center. Such a system would have many advantages, including lower cost, higher reliability, and wider industry support. Test results indicate the GPS has sufficient accuracy and reliability for this and other current timing requirements including synchronous phase angle measurements. A phasor measurement system which provides phase angle has recently been tested with excellent results. Phase angle is a key parameter in power system control applications including dynamic braking, DC modulation, remedial action schemes, and system state estimation. Further research is required to determine the applications which can most effectively use real-time phase angle measurements and the best method to apply them.

Precise time dissemination and applications development on the Bonneville Power Administration system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, Ken E.; Esztergalyos, J.

1992-07-01

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) uses IRIG-B transmitted over microwave as its primary system time dissemination. Problems with accuracy and reliability have led to ongoing research into better methods. BPA has also developed and deployed a unique fault locator which uses precise clocks synchronized by a pulse over microwaves. It automatically transmits the data to a central computer for analysis. A proposed system could combine fault location timing and time dissemination into a Global Position System (GPS) timing receiver and close the verification loop through a master station at the Dittmer Control Center. Such a system would have many advantages, including lower cost, higher reliability, and wider industry support. Test results indicate the GPS has sufficient accuracy and reliability for this and other current timing requirements including synchronous phase angle measurements. A phasor measurement system which provides phase angle has recently been tested with excellent results. Phase angle is a key parameter in power system control applications including dynamic braking, DC modulation, remedial action schemes, and system state estimation. Further research is required to determine the applications which can most effectively use real-time phase angle measurements and the best method to apply them.

SiPM photosensors and fast timing readout for the Barrel Time-of-Flight detector in bar PANDA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzuki, K.

2018-03-01

The Barrel Time-of-Flight detector system will be installed in the upcoming bar PANDA experiment at FAIR in Germany. The detector has a barrel shape of phi=0.5 m and 1.8 m long, covering about 5 m2, which corresponds to the laboratory polar angle coverage of 22o<θ<140o. The detector is a scintillation tile hodoscope. A single scintillation tile segment has a dimension of 90× 30 mm2 and 5 mm thickness, and photons are detected by Silicon Photomultipliers at both ends. 4 Silicon Photomultipliers are combined to work as a single sensor in order to increase the sensitive area and to improve the timing performance. In total, the system consists of 1920 scintillator tiles, 3840 readout channels, and makes use of 15360 Silicon Photomultiplier sensors. In this paper, the requirement, design and the result of an actual performance test of the bar PANDA Barrel Time-of-Flight detector are presented. The test shows that the current design fulfils satisfactorily the required timing performance (σt~ 56 ps) and the timing performance depends little on the hit position on the surface.

40 CFR 60.5225 - What are the monitoring and calibration requirements for compliance with my operating limits?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... SOURCES Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Existing Sewage Sludge Incineration Units Model Rule... monitoring system according to your monitoring plan required under § 60.4880. Additionally: (i) For carrier gas flow rate monitors (for activated carbon injection), during the performance test conducted...

A Framework for Examining the Utility of Technology-Enhanced Items

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Russell, Michael

2016-01-01

Interest in and use of technology-enhanced items has increased over the past decade. Given the additional time required to administer many technology-enhanced items and the increased expense required to develop them, it is important for testing programs to consider the utility of technology-enhanced items. The Technology-Enhanced Item Utility…

Acoustic Doppler discharge-measurement system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Simpson, Michael R.; Oltmann, Richard N.; ,

1990-01-01

A discharge-measurement system that uses a vessel-mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler has been developed and tested by the U.S. Geological Survey. Discharge measurements using the system require a fraction of the time needed for conventional current-meter discharge measurements and do not require shore-based navigational aids or tag lines for positioning the vessel.

The Crosstalk Hypothesis: Why Language Interferes with Driving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bergen, Benjamin; Medeiros-Ward, Nathan; Wheeler, Kathryn; Drews, Frank; Strayer, David

2013-01-01

Performing two cognitive tasks at the same time can degrade performance for either domain-general reasons (e.g., both tasks require attention) or domain-specific reasons (e.g., both tasks require visual working memory). We tested predictions of these two accounts of interference on the task of driving while using language, a naturally occurring…

Use of COTS Batteries on ISS and Shuttle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jeevarajan, Judith A.

2004-01-01

This presentation focuses on COTS Battery testing for energy content, toxicity, hazards, failures modes and controls for different battery chemistries. It also discusses the current program requirements, challenges with COTS Batteries in manned vehicle COTS methodology, JSC test details, and gives a list of incidents from consumer protection safety commissions. The Battery test process involved testing new batteries for engineering certification, qualification of batteries, flight acceptance, cell and battery, environment, performance and abuse. Their conclusions and recommendations were that: high risk is undertaken with the use of COTS batteries, hazard control verification is required to allow the use of these batteries on manned space flights, failures during use cannot be understood if different scenarios of failure are not tested on the ground, and that testing is performed on small sample numbers due to restrictions on cost and time. They recommend testing of large sample size to gain more confidence in the operation of the hazard controls.

Development of a timing detector for the TOTEM experiment at the LHC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Minafra, Nicola

2017-09-01

The upgrade program of the TOTEM experiment will include the installation of timing detectors inside vertical Roman Pots to allow the reconstruction of the longitudinal vertex position in the presence of event pile-up in high- β^{\\ast} dedicated runs. The small available space inside the Roman Pot, optimized for high-intensity LHC runs, and the required time precision led to the study of a solution using single crystal CVD diamonds. The sensors are read out using fast low-noise front-end electronics developed by the TOTEM Collaboration, achieving a signal-to-noise ratio larger than 20 for MIPs. A prototype was designed, manufactured and tested during a test beam campaign, proving a time precision below 100ps and an efficiency above 99%. The geometry of the detector has been designed to guarantee uniform occupancy in the expected running conditions keeping, at the same time, the number of channels below 12. The read-out electronics was developed during an extensive campaign of beam tests dedicated first to the characterization of existing solution and then to the optimization of the electronics designed within the Collaboration. The detectors were designed to be read out using the SAMPIC chip, a fast sampler designed specifically for picosecond timing measurements with high-rate capabilities; later, a modified version was realized using the HPTDC to achieve the higher trigger rates required for the CT-PPS experiment. The first set of prototypes was successfully installed and tested in the LHC in November 2015; moreover the detectors modified for CT-PPS are successfully part of the global CMS data taking since October 2016.

Gas-Dynamic Designing of the Exhaust System for the Air Brake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Novikova, Yu; Goriachkin, E.; Volkov, A.

2018-01-01

Each gas turbine engine is tested some times during the life-cycle. The test equipment includes the air brake that utilizes the power produced by the gas turbine engine. In actual conditions, the outlet pressure of the air brake does not change and is equal to atmospheric pressure. For this reason, for the air brake work it is necessary to design the special exhaust system. Mission of the exhaust system is to provide the required level of backpressure at the outlet of the air brake. The backpressure is required for the required power utilization by the air brake (the air brake operation in the required points on the performance curves). The paper is described the development of the gas dynamic canal, designing outlet guide vane and the creation of a unified exhaust system for the air brake. Using a unified exhaust system involves moving the operating point to the performance curve further away from the calculated point. However, the applying of one exhaust system instead of two will significantly reduce the cash and time costs.

Modeling Complex Workflow in Molecular Diagnostics

PubMed Central

Gomah, Mohamed E.; Turley, James P.; Lu, Huimin; Jones, Dan

2010-01-01

One of the hurdles to achieving personalized medicine has been implementing the laboratory processes for performing and reporting complex molecular tests. The rapidly changing test rosters and complex analysis platforms in molecular diagnostics have meant that many clinical laboratories still use labor-intensive manual processing and testing without the level of automation seen in high-volume chemistry and hematology testing. We provide here a discussion of design requirements and the results of implementation of a suite of lab management tools that incorporate the many elements required for use of molecular diagnostics in personalized medicine, particularly in cancer. These applications provide the functionality required for sample accessioning and tracking, material generation, and testing that are particular to the evolving needs of individualized molecular diagnostics. On implementation, the applications described here resulted in improvements in the turn-around time for reporting of more complex molecular test sets, and significant changes in the workflow. Therefore, careful mapping of workflow can permit design of software applications that simplify even the complex demands of specialized molecular testing. By incorporating design features for order review, software tools can permit a more personalized approach to sample handling and test selection without compromising efficiency. PMID:20007844

Test aspects of the JPL Viterbi decoder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Breuer, M. A.

1989-01-01

The generation of test vectors and design-for-test aspects of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Viterbi decoder chip is discussed. Each processor integrated circuit (IC) contains over 20,000 gates. To achieve a high degree of testability, a scan architecture is employed. The logic has been partitioned so that very few test vectors are required to test the entire chip. In addition, since several blocks of logic are replicated numerous times on this chip, test vectors need only be generated for each block, rather than for the entire circuit. These unique blocks of logic have been identified and test sets generated for them. The approach employed for testing was to use pseudo-exhaustive test vectors whenever feasible. That is, each cone of logid is tested exhaustively. Using this approach, no detailed logic design or fault model is required. All faults which modify the function of a block of combinational logic are detected, such as all irredundant single and multiple stuck-at faults.

Flight Tests of a Remaining Flying Time Prediction System for Small Electric Aircraft in the Presence of Faults

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogge, Edward F.; Kulkarni, Chetan S.; Vazquez, Sixto L.; Smalling, Kyle M.; Strom, Thomas H.; Hill, Boyd L.; Quach, Cuong C.

2017-01-01

This paper addresses the problem of building trust in the online prediction of a battery powered aircraft's remaining flying time. A series of flight tests is described that make use of a small electric powered unmanned aerial vehicle (eUAV) to verify the performance of the remaining flying time prediction algorithm. The estimate of remaining flying time is used to activate an alarm when the predicted remaining time is two minutes. This notifies the pilot to transition to the landing phase of the flight. A second alarm is activated when the battery charge falls below a specified limit threshold. This threshold is the point at which the battery energy reserve would no longer safely support two repeated aborted landing attempts. During the test series, the motor system is operated with the same predefined timed airspeed profile for each test. To test the robustness of the prediction, half of the tests were performed with, and half were performed without, a simulated powertrain fault. The pilot remotely engages a resistor bank at a specified time during the test flight to simulate a partial powertrain fault. The flying time prediction system is agnostic of the pilot's activation of the fault and must adapt to the vehicle's state. The time at which the limit threshold on battery charge is reached is then used to measure the accuracy of the remaining flying time predictions. Accuracy requirements for the alarms are considered and the results discussed.

Neuropsychology of selective attention and magnetic cortical stimulation.

PubMed

Sabatino, M; Di Nuovo, S; Sardo, P; Abbate, C S; La Grutta, V

1996-01-01

Informed volunteers were asked to perform different neuropsychological tests involving selective attention under control conditions and during transcranial magnetic cortical stimulation. The tests chosen involved the recognition of a specific letter among different letters (verbal test) and the search for three different spatial orientations of an appendage to a square (visuo-spatial test). For each test the total time taken and the error rate were calculated. Results showed that cortical stimulation did not cause a worsening in performance. Moreover, magnetic stimulation of the temporal lobe neither modified completion time in both verbal and visuo-spatial tests nor changed error rate. In contrast, magnetic stimulation of the pre-frontal area induced a significant reduction in the performance time of both the verbal and visuo-spatial tests always without an increase in the number of errors. The experimental findings underline the importance of the pre-frontal area in performing tasks requiring a high level of controlled attention and suggest the need to adopt an interdisciplinary approach towards the study of neurone/mind interface mechanisms.

Estimation of lifetime distributions on 1550-nm DFB laser diodes using Monte-Carlo statistic computations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deshayes, Yannick; Verdier, Frederic; Bechou, Laurent; Tregon, Bernard; Danto, Yves; Laffitte, Dominique; Goudard, Jean Luc

2004-09-01

High performance and high reliability are two of the most important goals driving the penetration of optical transmission into telecommunication systems ranging from 880 nm to 1550 nm. Lifetime prediction defined as the time at which a parameter reaches its maximum acceptable shirt still stays the main result in terms of reliability estimation for a technology. For optoelectronic emissive components, selection tests and life testing are specifically used for reliability evaluation according to Telcordia GR-468 CORE requirements. This approach is based on extrapolation of degradation laws, based on physics of failure and electrical or optical parameters, allowing both strong test time reduction and long-term reliability prediction. Unfortunately, in the case of mature technology, there is a growing complexity to calculate average lifetime and failure rates (FITs) using ageing tests in particular due to extremely low failure rates. For present laser diode technologies, time to failure tend to be 106 hours aged under typical conditions (Popt=10 mW and T=80°C). These ageing tests must be performed on more than 100 components aged during 10000 hours mixing different temperatures and drive current conditions conducting to acceleration factors above 300-400. These conditions are high-cost, time consuming and cannot give a complete distribution of times to failure. A new approach consists in use statistic computations to extrapolate lifetime distribution and failure rates in operating conditions from physical parameters of experimental degradation laws. In this paper, Distributed Feedback single mode laser diodes (DFB-LD) used for 1550 nm telecommunication network working at 2.5 Gbit/s transfer rate are studied. Electrical and optical parameters have been measured before and after ageing tests, performed at constant current, according to Telcordia GR-468 requirements. Cumulative failure rates and lifetime distributions are computed using statistic calculations and equations of drift mechanisms versus time fitted from experimental measurements.

Safe Operation of Mobile Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-07-13

vehicle could go during uncommanded movement and full throttle acceleration. 4. TEST PROCEDURES. 4.1 Vehicle Subsystem Tests. These tests identify...time required to go from straight ahead to full deflection in one direction. (sec) i. Observations on ability of the remote operator to maintain...were well below the lateral acceleration limits of the vehicle resulting in very predictable handling traits. The primary concern , albeit subjective

Accelerated testing of an optimized closing system for automotive fuel tank

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gligor, A.; Ilie, S.; Nicolae, V.; Mitran, G.

2015-11-01

Taking into account the legal prescriptions which are in force and the new regulatory requirements that will be mandatory to implement in the near future regarding testing characteristics of automotive fuel tanks, resulted the necessity to develop a new testing methodology which allows to estimate the behaviour of the closing system of automotive fuel tank over a long period of time (10-15 years). Thus, were designed and conducted accelerated tests under extreme assembling and testing conditions (high values for initial tightening torques, extreme values of temperature and pressure). In this paper are presented two of durability tests which were performed on an optimized closing system of fuel tank: (i) the test of exposure to temperature with cyclical variation and (ii) the test of continuous exposure to elevated temperature. In these experimental tests have been used main components of the closing system manufactured of two materials variants, both based on the polyoxymethylene, material that provides higher mechanical stiffness and strength in a wide temperature range, as well as showing increased resistance to the action of chemical agents and fuels. The tested sample included a total of 16 optimized locking systems, 8 of each of 2 versions of material. Over deploying the experiments were determined various parameters such as: the initial tightening torque, the tightening torque at different time points during measurements, the residual tightening torque, defects occurred in the system components (fissures, cracks, ruptures), the sealing conditions of system at the beginning and at the end of test. Based on obtained data were plotted the time evolution diagrams of considered parameter (the residual tightening torque of the system consisting of locking nut and threaded ring), in different temperature conditions, becoming possible to make pertinent assessments on the choice between the two types of materials. By conducting these tests and interpreting the obtained results, it can be created a clear picture of the capacity of closing system of fuel tank to fulfil the functional requirements following the exposure to values of testing parameters significantly above the values that may appear throughout the entire service life of the vehicle. The proposed accelerated testing method shows the main advantage of simulation in a limited time all the situations which may be encountered in a much longer period of time, namely the service life of the vehicle.

In-Flight System Identification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morelli, Eugene A.

1998-01-01

A method is proposed and studied whereby the system identification cycle consisting of experiment design and data analysis can be repeatedly implemented aboard a test aircraft in real time. This adaptive in-flight system identification scheme has many advantages, including increased flight test efficiency, adaptability to dynamic characteristics that are imperfectly known a priori, in-flight improvement of data quality through iterative input design, and immediate feedback of the quality of flight test results. The technique uses equation error in the frequency domain with a recursive Fourier transform for the real time data analysis, and simple design methods employing square wave input forms to design the test inputs in flight. Simulation examples are used to demonstrate that the technique produces increasingly accurate model parameter estimates resulting from sequentially designed and implemented flight test maneuvers. The method has reasonable computational requirements, and could be implemented aboard an aircraft in real time.

Component Prioritization Schema for Achieving Maximum Time and Cost Benefits from Software Testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Srivastava, Praveen Ranjan; Pareek, Deepak

Software testing is any activity aimed at evaluating an attribute or capability of a program or system and determining that it meets its required results. Defining the end of software testing represents crucial features of any software development project. A premature release will involve risks like undetected bugs, cost of fixing faults later, and discontented customers. Any software organization would want to achieve maximum possible benefits from software testing with minimum resources. Testing time and cost need to be optimized for achieving a competitive edge in the market. In this paper, we propose a schema, called the Component Prioritization Schema (CPS), to achieve an effective and uniform prioritization of the software components. This schema serves as an extension to the Non Homogenous Poisson Process based Cumulative Priority Model. We also introduce an approach for handling time-intensive versus cost-intensive projects.

A rule-based system for real-time analysis of control systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larson, Richard R.; Millard, D. Edward

1992-10-01

An approach to automate the real-time analysis of flight critical health monitoring and system status is being developed and evaluated at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility. A software package was developed in-house and installed as part of the extended aircraft interrogation and display system. This design features a knowledge-base structure in the form of rules to formulate interpretation and decision logic of real-time data. This technique has been applied for ground verification and validation testing and flight testing monitoring where quick, real-time, safety-of-flight decisions can be very critical. In many cases post processing and manual analysis of flight system data are not required. The processing is described of real-time data for analysis along with the output format which features a message stack display. The development, construction, and testing of the rule-driven knowledge base, along with an application using the X-31A flight test program, are presented.

A rule-based system for real-time analysis of control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larson, Richard R.; Millard, D. Edward

1992-01-01

An approach to automate the real-time analysis of flight critical health monitoring and system status is being developed and evaluated at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility. A software package was developed in-house and installed as part of the extended aircraft interrogation and display system. This design features a knowledge-base structure in the form of rules to formulate interpretation and decision logic of real-time data. This technique has been applied for ground verification and validation testing and flight testing monitoring where quick, real-time, safety-of-flight decisions can be very critical. In many cases post processing and manual analysis of flight system data are not required. The processing is described of real-time data for analysis along with the output format which features a message stack display. The development, construction, and testing of the rule-driven knowledge base, along with an application using the X-31A flight test program, are presented.

Automated Test for NASA CFS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McComas, David C.; Strege, Susanne L.; Carpenter, Paul B. Hartman, Randy

2015-01-01

The core Flight System (cFS) is a flight software (FSW) product line developed by the Flight Software Systems Branch (FSSB) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The cFS uses compile-time configuration parameters to implement variable requirements to enable portability across embedded computing platforms and to implement different end-user functional needs. The verification and validation of these requirements is proving to be a significant challenge. This paper describes the challenges facing the cFS and the results of a pilot effort to apply EXB Solution's testing approach to the cFS applications.

Applications and requirements for real-time simulators in ground-test facilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arpasi, Dale J.; Blech, Richard A.

1986-01-01

This report relates simulator functions and capabilities to the operation of ground test facilities, in general. The potential benefits of having a simulator are described to aid in the selection of desired applications for a specific facility. Configuration options for integrating a simulator into the facility control system are discussed, and a logical approach to configuration selection based on desired applications is presented. The functional and data path requirements to support selected applications and configurations are defined. Finally, practical considerations for implementation (i.e., available hardware and costs) are discussed.

Design of Ablation Test Device for Brick Coating of Gun

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

shirui, YAO; yongcai, CHEN; fei, WANG; jianxin, ZHAO

2018-03-01

As a result of the live ammunition test conditions, the barrel resistance of the barrel coating has high cost, time consuming, low efficiency and high test site requirements. This article designed a simple, convenient and efficient test device. Through the internal trajectory calculation by Matlab, the ablation environment produced by the ablation test device has achieved the expected effect, which is consistent with the working condition of the tube in the launching state, which can better reflect the ablation of the coating.

IRIS thermal balance test within ESTEC LSS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Messidoro, Piero; Ballesio, Marino; Vessaz, J. P.

1988-01-01

The Italian Research Interim Stage (IRIS) thermal balance test was successfully performed in the ESTEC Large Space Simulator (LSS) to qualify the thermal design and to validate the thermal mathematical model. Characteristics of the test were the complexity of the set-up required to simulate the Shuttle cargo bay and allowing IRIS mechanism actioning and operation for the first time in the new LSS facility. Details of the test are presented, and test results for IRIS and the LSS facility are described.

Real-Time Dynamic Modeling - Data Information Requirements and Flight Test Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morelli, Eugene A.; Smith, Mark S.

2008-01-01

Practical aspects of identifying dynamic models for aircraft in real time were studied. Topics include formulation of an equation-error method in the frequency domain to estimate non-dimensional stability and control derivatives in real time, data information content for accurate modeling results, and data information management techniques such as data forgetting, incorporating prior information, and optimized excitation. Real-time dynamic modeling was applied to simulation data and flight test data from a modified F-15B fighter aircraft, and to operational flight data from a subscale jet transport aircraft. Estimated parameter standard errors and comparisons with results from a batch output-error method in the time domain were used to demonstrate the accuracy of the identified real-time models.

Real-Time Dynamic Modeling - Data Information Requirements and Flight Test Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morelli, Eugene A.; Smith, Mark S.

2010-01-01

Practical aspects of identifying dynamic models for aircraft in real time were studied. Topics include formulation of an equation-error method in the frequency domain to estimate non-dimensional stability and control derivatives in real time, data information content for accurate modeling results, and data information management techniques such as data forgetting, incorporating prior information, and optimized excitation. Real-time dynamic modeling was applied to simulation data and flight test data from a modified F-15B fighter aircraft, and to operational flight data from a subscale jet transport aircraft. Estimated parameter standard errors, prediction cases, and comparisons with results from a batch output-error method in the time domain were used to demonstrate the accuracy of the identified real-time models.

On-Line, Self-Learning, Predictive Tool for Determining Payload Thermal Response

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jen, Chian-Li; Tilwick, Leon

2000-01-01

This paper will present the results of a joint ManTech / Goddard R&D effort, currently under way, to develop and test a computer based, on-line, predictive simulation model for use by facility operators to predict the thermal response of a payload during thermal vacuum testing. Thermal response was identified as an area that could benefit from the algorithms developed by Dr. Jeri for complex computer simulations. Most thermal vacuum test setups are unique since no two payloads have the same thermal properties. This requires that the operators depend on their past experiences to conduct the test which requires time for them to learn how the payload responds while at the same time limiting any risk of exceeding hot or cold temperature limits. The predictive tool being developed is intended to be used with the new Thermal Vacuum Data System (TVDS) developed at Goddard for the Thermal Vacuum Test Operations group. This model can learn the thermal response of the payload by reading a few data points from the TVDS, accepting the payload's current temperature as the initial condition for prediction. The model can then be used as a predictive tool to estimate the future payload temperatures according to a predetermined shroud temperature profile. If the error of prediction is too big, the model can be asked to re-learn the new situation on-line in real-time and give a new prediction. Based on some preliminary tests, we feel this predictive model can forecast the payload temperature of the entire test cycle within 5 degrees Celsius after it has learned 3 times during the beginning of the test. The tool will allow the operator to play "what-if' experiments to decide what is his best shroud temperature set-point control strategy. This tool will save money by minimizing guess work and optimizing transitions as well as making the testing process safer and easier to conduct.

Assessing Sustainability When Data Availability Limits Real-Time Estimates: Using Near-Time Indicators to Extend Sustainability Metrics

EPA Science Inventory

We produced a scientifically defensible methodology to assess whether a regional system is on a sustainable path. The approach required readily available data, metrics applicable to the relevant scale, and results useful to decision makers. We initiated a pilot project to test ...

Manure storage capacity and application timing influence watershed-level nutrient losses

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Current concerns over water quality requires best management practices for land-applied manure. One important strategy is to apply manure at right timing, which though is often greatly affected by manure generation and storage capacities in a given watershed. This study was to test the hypotheses: (...

An evaluation of grease type ball bearing lubricants operating in various environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcmurtrey, E. L.

1981-01-01

Because many future spacecraft or space stations will require mechanisms to operate for long periods of time in environments which are adverse to most bearing lubricants, a series of tests is continuing to evaluate 38 grease type lubricants in R-4 size bearings in five different environments for a 1 year period. Four repetitions of each test are made to provide statistical samples. These tests were used to select four lubricants for 5 year tests in selected environments with five repetitions of each test for statistical samples. At the present time, 100 test sets are completed and 22 test sets are underway. Three 5 year tests were started in (1) continuous operation and (2) start-stop operation, with both in vacuum at ambient temperatures, and (3) continuous operation at 93.3 C. In the 1 year tests the best results to date in all environments were obtained with a high viscosity index perfluoroalkylpolyether (PFPE) grease.

A two-fold reduction in measurement time for neutron assay: Initial tests of a prototype dual-gated shift register

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stewart, J.E.; Bourret, S.C.; Krick, M.S.

1996-09-01

Neutron coincidence counting (NCC) is used routinely around the world for nondestructive mass assay of uranium and plutonium in many forms, including waste. Compared with other methods, NCC is generally the most flexible, economic, and rapid. Many applications of NCC would benefit from a reduction in counting time required for a fixed random error. We have developed and tested the first prototype of a dual- gated, shift-register-based electronics unit that offers the potential of decreased measurement time for all passive and active NCC applications.

A two-fold reduction in measurement time for neutron assay: Initial tests of a prototype dual-gated shift register

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stewart, J.E.; Bourret, S.C.; Krick, M.S.

1996-12-31

Neutron coincidence counting (NCC) is used routinely around the world for nondestructive mass assay of uranium and plutonium in many forms, including waste. Compared with other methods, NCC is generally the most flexible, economic, and rapid. Many applications of NCC would benefit from a reduction in counting time required for a fixed random error. The authors have developed and tested the first prototype of a dual-gated, shift-register-based electronics unit that offers the potential of decreased measurement time for all passive and active NCC applications.

Fast cooldown coaxial pulse tube microcooler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nast, T.; Olson, J. R.; Champagne, P.; Roth, E.; Kaldas, G.; Saito, E.; Loung, V.; McCay, B. S.; Kenton, A. C.; Dobbins, C. L.

2016-05-01

We report the development and initial testing of the Lockheed Martin first-article, single-stage, compact, coaxial, Fast Cooldown Pulse Tube Microcryocooler (FC-PTM). The new cryocooler supports cooling requirements for emerging large, high operating temperature (105-150K) infrared focal plane array sensors with nominal cooling loads of ~300 mW @105K @293K ambient. This is a sequel development that builds on our inline and coaxial pulse tube microcryocoolers reported at CEC 20137, ICC188,9, and CEC201510. The new FC-PTM and the prior units all share our long life space technology attributes, which typically have 10 year life requirements1. The new prototype microcryocooler builds on the previous development by incorporating cold head design improvements in two key areas: 1) reduced cool-down time and 2) novel repackaging that greatly reduces envelope. The new coldhead and Dewar were significantly redesigned from the earlier versions in order to achieve a cooldown time of 2-3 minutes-- a projected requirement for tactical applications. A design approach was devised to reduce the cold head length from 115mm to 55mm, while at the same time reducing cooldown time. We present new FC-PTM performance test measurements with comparisons to our previous pulse-tube microcryocooler measurements and design predictions. The FC-PTM exhibits attractive small size, volume, weight, power and cost (SWaP-C) features with sufficient cooling capacity over required ambient conditions that apply to an increasing variety of space and tactical applications.

Fast cool-down coaxial pulse tube microcooler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nast, T.; Olson, J. R.; Champagne, P.; Roth, E.; Kaldas, G.; Saito, E.; Loung, V.; McCay, B. S.; Kenton, A. C.; Dobbins, C. L.

2016-09-01

We report the development and initial testing of the Lockheed Martin first-article, single-stage, compact, coaxial, Fast Cooldown Pulse Tube Microcryocooler (FC-PTM). The new cryocooler supports cooling requirements for emerging large, high operating temperature (105-150K) infrared focal plane array sensors with nominal cooling loads of 300 mW @105K @293K ambient. This is a sequel development that builds on our inline and coaxial pulse tube microcryocoolers reported at CEC 20137, ICC188,9, and CEC201510. The new FC-PTM and the prior units all share our long life space technology attributes, which typically have 10 year life requirements1. The new prototype microcryocooler builds on the previous development by incorporating cold head design improvements in two key areas: 1) reduced cool-down time and 2) novel repackaging that greatly reduces envelope. The new coldhead and Dewar were significantly redesigned from the earlier versions in order to achieve a cooldown time of 2-3 minutes- a projected requirement for tactical applications. A design approach was devised to reduce the cold head length from 115mm to 55mm, while at the same time reducing cooldown time. We present new FC-PTM performance test measurements with comparisons to our previous pulse-tube microcryocooler measurements and design predictions. The FC-PTM exhibits attractive small size, volume, weight, power and cost (SWaP-C) features with sufficient cooling capacity over required ambient conditions that apply to an increasing variety of space and tactical applications.

A self-testing dynamic RAM chip

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

You, Y.; Hayes, J. P.

1985-02-01

A novel approach to making very large dynamic RAM chips self-testing is presented. It is based on two main concepts: on-chip generation of regular test sequences with very high fault coverage, and concurrent testing of storage-cell arrays to reduce overall testing time. The failure modes of a typical 64 K RAM employing one-transistor cells are analyzed to identify their test requirements. A comprehensive test generation algorithm that can be implemented with minimal modification to a standard cell layout is derived. The self-checking peripheral circuits necessary to implement this testing algorithm are described, and the self-testing RAM is briefly evaluated.

30 CFR 18.68 - Tests for intrinsic safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... requirements may be added at any time if features of construction or use or both indicate them to be necessary.... They shall be designed to withstand a test voltage of 1,500 volts. (4) Intrinsically safe circuits shall be so designed that after failure of a single component, and subsequent failures resulting from...

40 CFR 790.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... substance or mixture is able to represent or substitute for another in a test or series of tests, and that... submitted to EPA and ends after an amount of time equal to that which had been required to develop data or after five years, whichever is later. Sponsor means the person or persons who design, direct and finance...

30 CFR 18.68 - Tests for intrinsic safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... requirements may be added at any time if features of construction or use or both indicate them to be necessary.... They shall be designed to withstand a test voltage of 1,500 volts. (4) Intrinsically safe circuits shall be so designed that after failure of a single component, and subsequent failures resulting from...

40 CFR 790.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... represent or substitute for another in a test or series of tests, and that the data from one substance can... and ends after an amount of time equal to that which had been required to develop data or after five years, whichever is later. Sponsor means the person or persons who design, direct and finance the...

30 CFR 18.68 - Tests for intrinsic safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... requirements may be added at any time if features of construction or use or both indicate them to be necessary.... They shall be designed to withstand a test voltage of 1,500 volts. (4) Intrinsically safe circuits shall be so designed that after failure of a single component, and subsequent failures resulting from...

40 CFR 790.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... substance or mixture is able to represent or substitute for another in a test or series of tests, and that... submitted to EPA and ends after an amount of time equal to that which had been required to develop data or after five years, whichever is later. Sponsor means the person or persons who design, direct and finance...

40 CFR 790.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... substance or mixture is able to represent or substitute for another in a test or series of tests, and that... submitted to EPA and ends after an amount of time equal to that which had been required to develop data or after five years, whichever is later. Sponsor means the person or persons who design, direct and finance...

30 CFR 18.68 - Tests for intrinsic safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... requirements may be added at any time if features of construction or use or both indicate them to be necessary.... They shall be designed to withstand a test voltage of 1,500 volts. (4) Intrinsically safe circuits shall be so designed that after failure of a single component, and subsequent failures resulting from...

40 CFR 60.2870 - What are the recordkeeping and reporting requirements for air curtain incinerators?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... SOURCES Emissions Guidelines and Compliance Times for Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration... records of results of all initial and annual opacity tests onsite in either paper copy or electronic... annual opacity test reports as electronic or paper copy on or before the applicable submittal date and...

40 CFR 60.2870 - What are the recordkeeping and reporting requirements for air curtain incinerators?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... SOURCES Emissions Guidelines and Compliance Times for Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration... records of results of all initial and annual opacity tests onsite in either paper copy or electronic... annual opacity test reports as electronic or paper copy on or before the applicable submittal date and...

46 CFR 61.15-1 - Scope.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... of Piping Systems § 61.15-1 Scope. In conducting hydrostatic tests on piping, the required test pressure shall be maintained for a sufficient length of time to permit an inspection to be made of all... establishing the maximum allowable working pressure of the system. [CGFR 68-82, 33 FR 18890, Dec. 18, 1968, as...

The Influence of Classroom Instruction and Test Preparation on School Accountability Levels

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryant, Karen Adair Carter

2012-01-01

Federal and state educational agencies provide guidelines for public schools across the United States to follow (Linn, 2008; Levy, 2008). During a time of high-stakes testing fueled by school accountability standards, educators strive to meet requirements for academic growth in order to maintain a successful accountability level and avoid being…

76 FR 56661 - Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedures for General Service Fluorescent Lamps, General...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-14

... designed to improve energy efficiency and established the Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products... prescribed or amended under this section must be reasonably designed to produce test results which measure... conservation standards for GSILs which include for the first time minimum rated lifetime requirements that are...

Assessment of Competence in Clinical Reasoning and Decision-Making under Uncertainty: The Script Concordance Test Method

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramaekers, Stephan; Kremer, Wim; Pilot, Albert; van Beukelen, Peter; van Keulen, Hanno

2010-01-01

Real-life, complex problems often require that decisions are made despite limited information or insufficient time to explore all relevant aspects. Incorporating authentic uncertainties into an assessment, however, poses problems in establishing results and analysing their methodological qualities. This study aims at developing a test on clinical…

40 CFR 1054.350 - What records must I keep?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... CONTROLS CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW, SMALL NONROAD SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES AND EQUIPMENT Production-line... section. We may review your records at any time. (b) Keep paper or electronic records of your production-line testing for eight years after you complete all the testing required for an engine family in a...

40 CFR 1054.350 - What records must I keep?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... CONTROLS CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW, SMALL NONROAD SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES AND EQUIPMENT Production-line... section. We may review your records at any time. (b) Keep paper or electronic records of your production-line testing for eight years after you complete all the testing required for an engine family in a...

40 CFR 1054.350 - What records must I keep?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... CONTROLS CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW, SMALL NONROAD SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES AND EQUIPMENT Production-line... section. We may review your records at any time. (b) Keep paper or electronic records of your production-line testing for eight years after you complete all the testing required for an engine family in a...

40 CFR 1054.350 - What records must I keep?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... CONTROLS CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW, SMALL NONROAD SPARK-IGNITION ENGINES AND EQUIPMENT Production-line... section. We may review your records at any time. (b) Keep paper or electronic records of your production-line testing for eight years after you complete all the testing required for an engine family in a...

A rapid colorimetric assay for mold spore germination using XTT tetrazolium salt

Treesearch

Carol A. Clausen; Vina W. Yang

2011-01-01

Current laboratory test methods to measure efficacy of new mold inhibitors are time consuming, some require specialized test equipment and ratings are subjective. Rapid, simple quantitative assays to measure the efficacy of mold inhibitors are needed. A quantitative, colorimetric microassay was developed using XTT tetrazolium salt to metabolically assess mold spore...

Implementation of a system for controlling the lateral position of a moving vehicle : and field testing of ODOT sensor-assisted steering system

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2002-07-01

The overall objective was to design, implement, and test sensor-assisted driver control of an ODOT dump truck. Requirements included repeatably steering a loaded or unloaded truck over embedded sensors to a lateral accuracy of +/- one inch, time-shar...

Emergency medicine resident attitudes and perceptions of HIV testing before and after a focused training program and testing implementation.

PubMed

Hsieh, Yu-Hsiang; Jung, Julianna J; Shahan, Judy B; Moring-Parris, Daniel; Kelen, Gabor D; Rothman, Richard E

2009-11-01

The objectives were to determine attitudes and perceptions (A&P) of emergency medicine (EM) residents toward emergency department (ED) routine provider-driven rapid HIV testing services and the impact of both a focused training program (FTP) and implementation of HIV testing on A&P. A three-phase, consecutive, anonymous, identity-unlinked survey was conducted pre-FTP, post-FTP, and 6 months postimplementation. The survey was designed to assess residents' A&P using a five-point Likert scale. A preimplementation FTP provided both the rationale for the HIV testing program and the planned operational details of the intervention. The HIV testing program used only indigenous ED staff to deliver HIV testing as part of standard-of-care in an academic ED. The impact of the FTP and implementation on A&P were analyzed by multivariate regression analysis using generalized estimating equations to control for repeated measurements in the same individuals. A "favorable" A&P was operationally defined as a mean score of >3.5, "neutral" as mean score of 2.5 to 3.5, and "unfavorable" as mean score of <2.5. Thirty of 36 residents (83.3%) participated in all three phases. Areas of favorable A&P found in phase I and sustained through phases II and III included "ED serving as a testing venue" (score range = 3.7-4.1) and "emergency medicine physicians offering the test" (score range = 3.9-4.1). Areas of unfavorable and neutral A&P identified in phase I were all operational barriers and included required paperwork (score = 3.2), inadequate staff support (score = 2.2), counseling and referral requirements (score range = 2.2-3.1), and time requirements (score = 2.9). Following the FTP, significant increases in favorable A&P were observed with regard to impact of the intervention on modification of patient risk behaviors, decrease in rates of HIV transmission, availability of support staff, and self-confidence in counseling and referral (p < 0.05). At 6 months postimplementation, all A&P except for time requirements and lack of support staff scored favorably or neutral. During the study period, 388 patients were consented for and received HIV testing; six (1.5%) were newly confirmed HIV positive. Emergency medicine residents conceptually supported HIV testing services. Most A&P were favorably influenced by both the FTP and the implementation. All areas of negative A&P involved operational requirements, which may have influenced the low overall uptake of HIV testing during the study period. (c) 2009 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.

Recent Cycle Time Reduction at Langley Research Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kegelman, Jerome T.

2000-01-01

The NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has been engaged in an effort to reduce wind tunnel test cycle time in support of Agency goals and to satisfy the wind tunnel testing needs of the commercial and military aerospace communities. LaRC has established the Wind Tunnel Enterprise (WTE), with goals of reducing wind tunnel test cycle time by an order of magnitude by 2002, and by two orders of magnitude by 2010. The WTE also plans to meet customer expectations for schedule integrity, as well as data accuracy and quality assurance. The WTE has made progress towards these goals over the last year with a focused effort on technological developments balanced by attention to process improvements. This paper presents a summary of several of the WTE activities over the last year that are related to test cycle time reductions at the Center. Reducing wind tunnel test cycle time, defined here as the time between the freezing of loft lines and delivery of test data, requires that the relationship between high productivity and data quality assurance be considered. The efforts have focused on all of the drivers for test cycle time reduction, including process centered improvements, facility upgrades, technological improvements to enhance facility readiness and productivity, as well as advanced measurement techniques. The application of internet tools and computer modeling of facilities to allow a virtual presence of the customer team is also presented.

Disintegration of sublingual tablets: proposal for a validated test method and acceptance criterion.

PubMed

Weda, M; van Riet-Nales, D A; van Aalst, P; de Kaste, D; Lekkerkerker, J F F

2006-12-01

In the Netherlands the market share of isosorbide dinitrate 5 mg sublingual tablets is dominated by 2 products (A and B). In the last few years complaints have been received from health care professionals on product B. During patient use the disintegration of the tablet was reported to be slow and/or incomplete, and ineffectiveness was experienced. In the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) no requirement is present for the disintegration time of sublingual tablets. The purpose of this study was to compare the in vitro disintegration time of products A and B, and to establish a suitable test method and acceptance criterion. A and B were tested with the Ph. Eur. method described in the monograph on disintegration of tablets and capsules as well as with 3 modified tests using the same Ph. Eur. apparatus, but without movement of the basket-rack assembly. In modified test 1 and modified test 2 water was used as medium (900 ml and 50 ml respectively), whereas in modified test 3 artificial saliva was used (50 ml). In addition, disintegration was tested in Nessler tubes with 0.5 and 2 ml of water. Finally, the Ph. Eur. method was also applied to other sublingual tablets with other drug substances on the Dutch market. With modified test 3 no disintegration could be achieved within 20 min. With the Ph. Eur. method and modified tests 1 and 2 product A and B differed significantly (p < 0. 001), with product B having longer disintegration times. These 3 methods were capable of discriminating between products and between batches. The time measured with the Ph. Eur. method was significantly lower compared to modified tests 1 and 2 (p < 0.001) and correlated well with the Nessler tube results. It is concluded that the in vivo complaints on product B could be related to the in vitro data. Furthermore, it is proposed that for immediate release of sublingual tablets the disintegration time should be tested. The Ph. Eur. method is considered suitable for this test. In view of the products currently on the market and taking into consideration requirements in the United States Pharmacopeia and Japanese Pharmacopoeia, an acceptance criterion of not more than 2 min is proposed.

It's Time to Develop a New "Draft Test Protocol" for a Mars Sample Return Mission (or Two…).

PubMed

Rummel, John D; Kminek, Gerhard

2018-04-01

The last time NASA envisioned a sample return mission from Mars, the development of a protocol to support the analysis of the samples in a containment facility resulted in a "Draft Test Protocol" that outlined required preparations "for the safe receiving, handling, testing, distributing, and archiving of martian materials here on Earth" (Rummel et al., 2002 ). This document comprised a specific protocol to be used to conduct a biohazard test for a returned martian sample, following the recommendations of the Space Studies Board of the US National Academy of Sciences. Given the planned launch of a sample-collecting and sample-caching rover (Mars 2020) in 2 years' time, and with a sample return planned for the end of the next decade, it is time to revisit the Draft Test Protocol to develop a sample analysis and biohazard test plan to meet the needs of these future missions. Key Words: Biohazard detection-Mars sample analysis-Sample receiving facility-Protocol-New analytical techniques-Robotic sample handling. Astrobiology 18, 377-380.

Time required to stabilize thermographic images at rest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marins, João Carlos Bouzas; Moreira, Danilo Gomes; Cano, Sergio Piñonosa; Quintana, Manuel Sillero; Soares, Danusa Dias; Fernandes, Alex de Andrade; Silva, Fabrício Sousa da; Costa, Carlos Magno Amaral; Amorim, Paulo Roberto dos Santos

2014-07-01

Thermography for scientific research and practical purposes requires a series of procedures to obtain images that should be standardized; one of the most important is the time required for acclimatization in the controlled environment. Thus, the objective of this study was to identify the appropriate acclimatization time in rest to reach a thermal balance on young people skin. Forty-four subjects participated in the study, 18 men (22.3 ± 3.1 years) and 26 women (21.7 ± 2.5 years). Thermographic images were collected using a thermal imager (Fluke®), totaling 44 images over a period of 20 min. The skin temperature (TSK) was measured at the point of examination which included the 0 min, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20. The body regions of interest (ROI) analyzed included the hands, forearms, arms, thighs, legs, chest and abdomen. We used the Friedman test with post hoc Dunn's in order to establish the time at rest required to obtain a TSK balance and the Mann-Whitney test was used to compare age, BMI, body fat percentage and temperature variations between men and women, considering always a significance level of p < 0.05. Results showed that women had significantly higher temperature variations than men (p < 0.01) along the time. In men, only the body region of the abdomen obtained a significant variance (p < 0.05) on the analyzed period, both in the anterior and posterior part. In women, the anterior abdomen and thighs, and the posterior part of the hands, forearms and abdomen showed significant differences (p < 0.05). Based on our results, it can be concluded that the time in rest condition required reaching a TSK balance in young men and women is variable, but for whole body analysis it is recommended at least 10 min for both sexes.

Conversion-Integration of MSFC Nonlinear Signal Diagnostic Analysis Algorithms for Realtime Execution of MSFC's MPP Prototype System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jong, Jen-Yi

1996-01-01

NASA's advanced propulsion system Small Scale Magnetic Disturbances/Advanced Technology Development (SSME/ATD) has been undergoing extensive flight certification and developmental testing, which involves large numbers of health monitoring measurements. To enhance engine safety and reliability, detailed analysis and evaluation of the measurement signals are mandatory to assess its dynamic characteristics and operational condition. Efficient and reliable signal detection techniques will reduce the risk of catastrophic system failures and expedite the evaluation of both flight and ground test data, and thereby reduce launch turn-around time. During the development of SSME, ASRI participated in the research and development of several advanced non- linear signal diagnostic methods for health monitoring and failure prediction in turbomachinery components. However, due to the intensive computational requirement associated with such advanced analysis tasks, current SSME dynamic data analysis and diagnostic evaluation is performed off-line following flight or ground test with a typical diagnostic turnaround time of one to two days. The objective of MSFC's MPP Prototype System is to eliminate such 'diagnostic lag time' by achieving signal processing and analysis in real-time. Such an on-line diagnostic system can provide sufficient lead time to initiate corrective action and also to enable efficient scheduling of inspection, maintenance and repair activities. The major objective of this project was to convert and implement a number of advanced nonlinear diagnostic DSP algorithms in a format consistent with that required for integration into the Vanderbilt Multigraph Architecture (MGA) Model Based Programming environment. This effort will allow the real-time execution of these algorithms using the MSFC MPP Prototype System. ASRI has completed the software conversion and integration of a sequence of nonlinear signal analysis techniques specified in the SOW for real-time execution on MSFC's MPP Prototype. This report documents and summarizes the results of the contract tasks; provides the complete computer source code; including all FORTRAN/C Utilities; and all other utilities/supporting software libraries that are required for operation.

Fetal well-being: nonimaging assessment and the biophysical profile.

PubMed

Jackson, G M; Forouzan, I; Cohen, A W

1991-01-01

All of the testing methods described above are very good at predicting continued fetal health when test results are reassuring. Each test also suffers from a very poor ability to predict compromise when results are abnormal. Thus, the primary value of antepartum fetal monitoring is in identifying those pregnancies that do not require immediate intervention and may be allowed to continue. Certainly, all pregnant women (regardless of risk status) should monitor fetal movement as part of their fetal surveillance. For patients at risk, a variety of testing schemes are available using combinations of the NST, CST and BPP. There are several reasons for using the NST as the primary testing method for those at risk. Even a small antenatal testing area can accommodate three or four FHR monitors, and a single antenatal testing nurse can perform several NSTs at a time. Because the BPP requires an ultrasound machine and a trained technician to perform, and because only one BPP can be done at a time, many obstetricians who do their own in-office fetal testing are unable to adopt BPP testing as their primary means of surveillance. Additionally, it is more economical to use the NST than the BPP for first-line testing. Assuming charges of $150 and $300 for the NST and BPP, respectively, and assuming that 20% of NSTs are nonreactive and require a BPP for second-line testing, the weekly cost of testing 100 patients is $21,000 for the NST and $37,500 for the BPP. This increase-in-testing cost must be balanced against the small improvement in perinatal mortality rates achieved with the use of the BPP. Because it must be performed in a hospital setting and takes an average of 90 minutes to complete, the CST is more expensive and time-consuming than either the NST or BPP and it is less frequently used as the primary method of fetal testing. In the past the CST was the most commonly used secondary test after a nonreactive NST, but use of the BPP in this situation has now become commonplace. Although the CST still has an important role in fetal testing, the BPP is better suited for use in this setting because of its technical ease and low incidence of abnormal results. Thus, many centers use the NST as the primary mode of testing for the fetus at risk, often with a sonographic assessment of AFV.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

A Physics-Based Temperature Stabilization Criterion for Thermal Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rickman, Steven L.; Ungar, Eugene K.

2009-01-01

Spacecraft testing specifications differ greatly in the criteria they specify for stability in thermal balance tests. Some specify a required temperature stabilization rate (the change in temperature per unit time, dT/dt), some specify that the final steady-state temperature be approached to within a specified difference, delta T , and some specify a combination of the two. The particular values for temperature stabilization rate and final temperature difference also vary greatly between specification documents. A one-size-fits-all temperature stabilization rate requirement does not yield consistent results for all test configurations because of differences in thermal mass and heat transfer to the environment. Applying a steady-state temperature difference requirement is problematic because the final test temperature is not accurately known a priori, especially for powered configurations. In the present work, a simplified, lumped-mass analysis has been used to explore the applicability of these criteria. A new, user-friendly, physics-based approach is developed that allows the thermal engineer to determine when an acceptable level of temperature stabilization has been achieved. The stabilization criterion can be predicted pre-test but must be refined during test to allow verification that the defined level of temperature stabilization has been achieved.

Impact of Salt Waste Processing Facility Streams on the Nitric-Glycolic Flowsheet in the Chemical Processing Cell

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Martino, C.

An evaluation of the previous Chemical Processing Cell (CPC) testing was performed to determine whether the planned concurrent operation, or “coupled” operations, of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) with the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) has been adequately covered. Tests with the nitricglycolic acid flowsheet, which were both coupled and uncoupled with salt waste streams, included several tests that required extended boiling times. This report provides the evaluation of previous testing and the testing recommendation requested by Savannah River Remediation. The focus of the evaluation was impact on flammability in CPC vessels (i.e., hydrogen generation rate, SWPF solvent components,more » antifoam degradation products) and processing impacts (i.e., acid window, melter feed target, rheological properties, antifoam requirements, and chemical composition).« less

Predicting Operator Execution Times Using CogTool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Santiago-Espada, Yamira; Latorella, Kara A.

2013-01-01

Researchers and developers of NextGen systems can use predictive human performance modeling tools as an initial approach to obtain skilled user performance times analytically, before system testing with users. This paper describes the CogTool models for a two pilot crew executing two different types of a datalink clearance acceptance tasks, and on two different simulation platforms. The CogTool time estimates for accepting and executing Required Time of Arrival and Interval Management clearances were compared to empirical data observed in video tapes and registered in simulation files. Results indicate no statistically significant difference between empirical data and the CogTool predictions. A population comparison test found no significant differences between the CogTool estimates and the empirical execution times for any of the four test conditions. We discuss modeling caveats and considerations for applying CogTool to crew performance modeling in advanced cockpit environments.

Factors influencing extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa staining of rat testes.

PubMed

Bassey, R B; Bakare, A A; Peter, A I; Oremosu, A A; Osinubi, A A

2012-08-01

Some plant extracts can be used in biology and medicine to reveal or identify cellular components and tissues. We investigated the effects of time and concentration on staining of histological sections of rat testes by an acidified extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa. An ethanolic extract of H. sabdariffa was diluted using 1% acetic acid in 70% ethanol to stain histological sections of testes at concentrations of 0.2, 0.1 and 0.05 g/ml for 5, 10, 15, 30, 45 and 60 min. The sections of testes were stained deep red. The staining efficiency of H. sabdariffa was greater at a high concentration and required less time to achieve optimal staining. H. sabdariffa is a strongly basic dye that can be used for various diagnostic purposes. Staining time and concentration must be considered to achieve optimal results.

Machinability of some dentin simulating materials.

PubMed

Möllersten, L

1985-01-01

Machinability in low speed drilling was investigated for pure aluminium, Frasaco teeth, ivory, plexiglass and human dentin. The investigation was performed in order to find a suitable test material for drilling experiments using paralleling instruments. A material simulating human dentin in terms of cuttability at low drilling speeds was sought. Tests were performed using a specially designed apparatus. Holes to a depth of 2 mm were drilled with a twist drill using a constant feeding force. The time required was registered. The machinability of the materials tested was determined by direct comparison of the drilling times. As regards cuttability, first aluminium and then ivory were found to resemble human dentin most closely. By comparing drilling time variances the homogeneity of the materials tested was estimated. Aluminium, Frasaco teeth and plexiglass demonstrated better homogeneity than ivory and human dentin.

Computer model to simulate testing at the National Transonic Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mineck, Raymond E.; Owens, Lewis R., Jr.; Wahls, Richard A.; Hannon, Judith A.

1995-01-01

A computer model has been developed to simulate the processes involved in the operation of the National Transonic Facility (NTF), a large cryogenic wind tunnel at the Langley Research Center. The simulation was verified by comparing the simulated results with previously acquired data from three experimental wind tunnel test programs in the NTF. The comparisons suggest that the computer model simulates reasonably well the processes that determine the liquid nitrogen (LN2) consumption, electrical consumption, fan-on time, and the test time required to complete a test plan at the NTF. From these limited comparisons, it appears that the results from the simulation model are generally within about 10 percent of the actual NTF test results. The use of actual data acquisition times in the simulation produced better estimates of the LN2 usage, as expected. Additional comparisons are needed to refine the model constants. The model will typically produce optimistic results since the times and rates included in the model are typically the optimum values. Any deviation from the optimum values will lead to longer times or increased LN2 and electrical consumption for the proposed test plan. Computer code operating instructions and listings of sample input and output files have been included.

Engineering-scale experiments of solar photocatalytic oxidation of trichloroethylene

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pacheco, J.; Prairie, M.; Evans, L.

1990-01-01

A photocatalytic process is being developed to destroy organic contaminants in water. Tests with a common water pollutant, trichlorethylene (TCE), were conducted at the Solar Thermal Test Facility at Sandia with trough systems. Tests at this scale provide verification of laboratory studies and allow examination of design and operation issues that only arise in experiments on a realistic scale. The catalyst, titanium dioxide (TiO{sub 2}), is a harmless material found in paint, cosmetics and even toothpaste. We examined the effect of initial contaminant concentration and the effect of hydrogen peroxide on the photocatalytic decomposition of trichlorethylene (TCE). An aqueous solutionmore » of 5000 parts per billion (ppB) TCE with 0.1 weight {percent} suspended titanium dioxide catalyst required approximately 4.2 minutes of exposure to destroy the TCE to a detection limit of 5 ppB. For a 300 ppB TCE solution, the time required was only 2.5 minutes to reach the same level of destruction. Adding 250 parts per million (ppM) of hydrogen peroxide reduced the time required by about 1 minute. A two parameter Langmuir Hinshelwood model was able to describe the data. A simple flow apparatus was built to test four fixed catalyst supports and to measure their pressure drop and assess their ability to withstand flow conditions typical of a full-sized system. In this paper, we summarize the engineering-scale testing and results. 16 refs., 5 figs.« less

Generic Helicopter-Based Testbed for Surface Terrain Imaging Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alexander, James; Goldberg, Hannah; Montgomery, James; Spiers, Gary; Liebe, Carl; Johnson, Andrew; Gromov, Konstantin; Konefat, Edward; Lam, Raymond; Meras, Patrick

2008-01-01

To be certain that a candidate sensor system will perform as expected during missions, we have developed a field test system and have executed test flights with a helicopter-mounted sensor platform over desert terrains, which simulate Lunar features. A key advantage to this approach is that different sensors can be tested and characterized in an environment relevant to the flight needs prior to flight. Testing the various sensors required the development of a field test system, including an instrument to validate the truth of the sensor system under test. The field test system was designed to be flexible enough to cover the test needs of many sensors (lidar, radar, cameras) that require an aerial test platform, including helicopters, airplanes, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), or balloons. To validate the performance of the sensor under test, the dynamics of the test platform must be known with sufficient accuracy to provide accurate models for input into algorithm development. The test system provides support equipment to measure the dynamics of the field test sensor platform, and allow computation of the truth position, velocity, attitude, and time.

Comparison of the Modified-Hodge test, Carba NP test, and carbapenem inactivation method as screening methods for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae.

PubMed

Yamada, Kageto; Kashiwa, Machiko; Arai, Katsumi; Nagano, Noriyuki; Saito, Ryoichi

2016-09-01

We compared three screening methods for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae. While the Modified-Hodge test and Carba NP test produced false-negative results for OXA-48-like and mucoid NDM producers, the carbapenem inactivation method (CIM) showed positive results for these isolates. Although the CIM required cultivation time, it is well suited for general clinical laboratories. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Signatures of ecological processes in microbial community time series.

PubMed

Faust, Karoline; Bauchinger, Franziska; Laroche, Béatrice; de Buyl, Sophie; Lahti, Leo; Washburne, Alex D; Gonze, Didier; Widder, Stefanie

2018-06-28

Growth rates, interactions between community members, stochasticity, and immigration are important drivers of microbial community dynamics. In sequencing data analysis, such as network construction and community model parameterization, we make implicit assumptions about the nature of these drivers and thereby restrict model outcome. Despite apparent risk of methodological bias, the validity of the assumptions is rarely tested, as comprehensive procedures are lacking. Here, we propose a classification scheme to determine the processes that gave rise to the observed time series and to enable better model selection. We implemented a three-step classification scheme in R that first determines whether dependence between successive time steps (temporal structure) is present in the time series and then assesses with a recently developed neutrality test whether interactions between species are required for the dynamics. If the first and second tests confirm the presence of temporal structure and interactions, then parameters for interaction models are estimated. To quantify the importance of temporal structure, we compute the noise-type profile of the community, which ranges from black in case of strong dependency to white in the absence of any dependency. We applied this scheme to simulated time series generated with the Dirichlet-multinomial (DM) distribution, Hubbell's neutral model, the generalized Lotka-Volterra model and its discrete variant (the Ricker model), and a self-organized instability model, as well as to human stool microbiota time series. The noise-type profiles for all but DM data clearly indicated distinctive structures. The neutrality test correctly classified all but DM and neutral time series as non-neutral. The procedure reliably identified time series for which interaction inference was suitable. Both tests were required, as we demonstrated that all structured time series, including those generated with the neutral model, achieved a moderate to high goodness of fit to the Ricker model. We present a fast and robust scheme to classify community structure and to assess the prevalence of interactions directly from microbial time series data. The procedure not only serves to determine ecological drivers of microbial dynamics, but also to guide selection of appropriate community models for prediction and follow-up analysis.

Screening for tinea unguium by Dermatophyte Test Strip.

PubMed

Tsunemi, Y; Takehara, K; Miura, Y; Nakagami, G; Sanada, H; Kawashima, M

2014-02-01

The direct microscopy, fungal culture and histopathology that are necessary for the definitive diagnosis of tinea unguium are disadvantageous in that detection sensitivity is affected by the level of skill of the person who performs the testing, and the procedures take a long time. The Dermatophyte Test Strip, which was developed recently, can simply and easily detect filamentous fungi in samples in a short time, and there are expectations for its use as a method for tinea unguium screening. With this in mind, we examined the detection capacity of the Dermatophyte Test Strip for tinea unguium. The presence or absence of fungal elements was judged by direct microscopy and Dermatophyte Test Strip in 165 nail samples obtained from residents in nursing homes for the elderly. Moreover, the minimum sample amount required for positive determination was estimated using 32 samples that showed positive results by Dermatophyte Test Strip. The Dermatophyte Test Strip showed 98% sensitivity, 78% specificity, 84·8% positive predictive value, 97% negative predictive value and a positive and negative concordance rate of 89·1%. The minimum sample amount required for positive determination was 0·002-0·722 mg. The Dermatophyte Test Strip showed very high sensitivity and negative predictive value, and was considered a potentially useful method for tinea unguium screening. Positive determination was considered to be possible with a sample amount of about 1 mg. © 2013 British Association of Dermatologists.

Bacteria-powered battery on paper.

PubMed

Fraiwan, Arwa; Choi, Seokheun

2014-12-21

Paper-based devices have recently emerged as simple and low-cost paradigms for fluid manipulation and analytical/clinical testing. However, there are significant challenges in developing paper-based devices at the system level, which contain integrated paper-based power sources. Here, we report a microfabricated paper-based bacteria-powered battery that is capable of generating power from microbial metabolism. The battery on paper showed a very short start-up time relative to conventional microbial fuel cells (MFCs); paper substrates eliminated the time traditional MFCs required to accumulate and acclimate bacteria on the anode. Only four batteries connected in series provided desired values of current and potential to power an LED for more than 30 minutes. The battery featured (i) a low-cost paper-based proton exchange membrane directly patterned on commercially available parchment paper and (ii) paper reservoirs for holding the anolyte and the catholyte for an extended period of time. Based on this concept, we also demonstrate the use of paper-based test platforms for the rapid characterization of electricity-generating bacteria. This paper-based microbial screening tool does not require external pumps/tubings and represents the most rapid test platform (<50 min) compared with the time needed by using traditional screening tools (up to 103 days) and even recently proposed MEMS arrays (< 2 days).

Development of fast-timing microchannel plate photomultiplier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Junqi

2017-09-01

Planar microchannel plate photomultipliers (MCP-PMTs) with bialkali photocathodes are able to achieve single photon detection with excellent time (picosecond) and spatial (millimeter) resolution. They have recently drawn great interests in experiments requiring time of flight (TOF) measurement and/or Cherenkov imaging. The Argonne MCP-PMT detector group has recently designed and fabricated 6 cm × 6 cm MCP-PMTs. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) method is used to grow resistive and secondary emission layers to functionalize the glass capillary array. Initial characterization indicates that these MCP-PMTs exhibits a transit-time spread of 57 psec at single photoelectron detection mode and of 27 psec at multi photoelectron mode ( 100 photoelectrons). The MCP-PMTs were also tested at Fermilab test beam facility for its particle detection performance and rate capability, showing high rate capability up to 75 kHz/cm2 , higher than the requirement for future electron-ion collider (EIC) experiment. A recent magnetic field test at ANL g-2 magnetic facility shows that the gain of MCP-PMT does not degrade until 0.75 Tesla, comparable to the current commercially available MCP-PMTs. Further improvement of its magnetic field performance is currently under developing by reducing the MCP pore size and spacing between inside components. The progress on the MCP-PMT development at ANL will be presented and discussed in the presentation.

Efficient analytical implementation of the DOT Riemann solver for the de Saint Venant-Exner morphodynamic model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carraro, F.; Valiani, A.; Caleffi, V.

2018-03-01

Within the framework of the de Saint Venant equations coupled with the Exner equation for morphodynamic evolution, this work presents a new efficient implementation of the Dumbser-Osher-Toro (DOT) scheme for non-conservative problems. The DOT path-conservative scheme is a robust upwind method based on a complete Riemann solver, but it has the drawback of requiring expensive numerical computations. Indeed, to compute the non-linear time evolution in each time step, the DOT scheme requires numerical computation of the flux matrix eigenstructure (the totality of eigenvalues and eigenvectors) several times at each cell edge. In this work, an analytical and compact formulation of the eigenstructure for the de Saint Venant-Exner (dSVE) model is introduced and tested in terms of numerical efficiency and stability. Using the original DOT and PRICE-C (a very efficient FORCE-type method) as reference methods, we present a convergence analysis (error against CPU time) to study the performance of the DOT method with our new analytical implementation of eigenstructure calculations (A-DOT). In particular, the numerical performance of the three methods is tested in three test cases: a movable bed Riemann problem with analytical solution; a problem with smooth analytical solution; a test in which the water flow is characterised by subcritical and supercritical regions. For a given target error, the A-DOT method is always the most efficient choice. Finally, two experimental data sets and different transport formulae are considered to test the A-DOT model in more practical case studies.

High throughput screening (HTS) for phototoxicity hazard using the in vitro 3T3 neutral red uptake assay.

PubMed

Jones, P A; King, A V

2003-01-01

Testing for phototoxic hazard is usually carried out for product ingredients intended for use on skin, which may be exposed to sunlight. Unilever currently uses the validated in vitro 3T3 Neutral Red Uptake phototoxicity test (NRU PT). This protocol involves 2-3 experiments, each taking 3 days to perform. One person can test up to seven test materials plus positive control at any one time, requiring approximately 0.5 g test material. Higher throughput is required where libraries of potential actives are being generated and screening for potential phototoxicants is required. A proposed HTS protocol would use the NRU PT, but only one concentration (10 microg/ml) in a single experiment. The validity of the HTS protocol was investigated by a retrospective examination of data from 86 materials previously tested. Phototoxic hazard predictions made using the conventional NRU PT were compared with those obtained if only data at 10 microg/ml were considered. A majority of 73 materials (84.9%) gave agreement in predictions between the two protocols; for 13 materials (15.1%) the assessments did not agree. There were no false positives; however, there were some false negatives, i.e., predicted as phototoxic from the conventional assay, but non-phototoxic at 10 microg/ml. As this protocol is intended for screening purposes only it is considered that this would be acceptable at this stage in material selection. One person could screen 128 test materials in 3 days, requiring <1 mg test material, giving a substantial increase in productivity. Any material selected for further development and inclusion in a formulation may require further confirmatory testing, e.g. using a human skin model assay for phototoxicity.

Test-Retest Reliability of the Short-Form Survivor Unmet Needs Survey.

PubMed

Taylor, Karen; Bulsara, Max; Monterosso, Leanne

2018-01-01

Reliable and valid needs assessment measures are important assessment tools in cancer survivorship care. A new 30-item short-form version of the Survivor Unmet Needs Survey (SF-SUNS) was developed and validated with cancer survivors, including hematology cancer survivors; however, test-retest reliability has not been established. The objective of this study was to assess the test-retest reliability of the SF-SUNS with a cohort of lymphoma survivors ( n = 40). Test-retest reliability of the SF-SUNS was conducted at two time points: baseline (time 1) and 5 days later (time 2). Test-retest data were collected from lymphoma cancer survivors ( n = 40) in a large tertiary cancer center in Western Australia. Intraclass correlation analyses compared data at time 1 (baseline) and time 2 (5 days later). Cronbach's alpha analyses were performed to assess the internal consistency at both time points. The majority (23/30, 77%) of items achieved test-retest reliability scores 0.45-0.74 (fair to good). A high degree of overall internal consistency was demonstrated (time 1 = 0.92, time 2 = 0.95), with scores 0.65-0.94 across subscales for both time points. Mixed test-retest reliability of the SF-SUNS was established. Our results indicate the SF-SUNS is responsive to the changing needs of lymphoma cancer survivors. Routine use of cancer survivorship specific needs-based assessments is required in oncology care today. Nurses are well placed to administer these assessments and provide tailored information and resources. Further assessment of test-retest reliability in hematology and other cancer cohorts is warranted.

A further test of the linearity of temporal summation in forward masking.

PubMed

Plack, Christopher J; Carcagno, Samuele; Oxenham, Andrew J

2007-10-01

An experiment tested the hypothesis that the masking effects of two nonoverlapping forward maskers are summed linearly over time. First, the levels of individual noise maskers required to mask a brief 4-kHz signal presented at 10-, 20-, 30-, or 40-dB sensation level (SL) were found. The hypothesis predicts that a combination of the first masker presented at the level required to mask the 10-dB SL signal and the second masker presented at the level required to mask the 20-dB SL signal, should produce the same amount of masking as the converse situation (i.e., the first masker presented at the level required to mask the 20-dB SL signal and the second masker presented at the level required to mask the 10-dB SL signal), and similarly for the 30- and 40-dB SL signals. The results were consistent with the predictions.

Model-Based GUI Testing Using Uppaal at Novo Nordisk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hjort, Ulrik H.; Illum, Jacob; Larsen, Kim G.; Petersen, Michael A.; Skou, Arne

This paper details a collaboration between Aalborg University and Novo Nordiskin developing an automatic model-based test generation tool for system testing of the graphical user interface of a medical device on an embedded platform. The tool takes as input an UML Statemachine model and generates a test suite satisfying some testing criterion, such as edge or state coverage, and converts the individual test case into a scripting language that can be automatically executed against the target. The tool has significantly reduced the time required for test construction and generation, and reduced the number of test scripts while increasing the coverage.

When is Testing Sufficient

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenberg, Linda H.; Arthur, James D.; Stapko, Ruth K.; Davani, Darush

1999-01-01

The Software Assurance Technology Center (SATC) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has been investigating how projects can determine when sufficient testing has been completed. For most projects, schedules are underestimated, and the last phase of the software development, testing, must be decreased. Two questions are frequently asked: "To what extent is the software error-free? " and "How much time and effort is required to detect and remove the remaining errors? " Clearly, neither question can be answered with absolute certainty. Nonetheless, the ability to answer these questions with some acceptable level of confidence is highly desirable. First, knowing the extent to which a product is error-free, we can judge when it is time to terminate testing. Secondly, if errors are judged to be present, we can perform a cost/benefit trade-off analysis to estimate when the software will be ready for use and at what cost. This paper explains the efforts of the SATC to help projects determine what is sufficient testing and when is the most cost-effective time to stop testing.

Flight control system design factors for applying automated testing techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sitz, Joel R.; Vernon, Todd H.

1990-01-01

The principal design features and operational experiences of the X-29 forward-swept-wing aircraft and F-18 high alpha research vehicle (HARV) automated test systems are discussed. It is noted that operational experiences in developing and using these automated testing techniques have highlighted the need for incorporating target system features to improve testability. Improved target system testability can be accomplished with the addition of nonreal-time and real-time features. Online access to target system implementation details, unobtrusive real-time access to internal user-selectable variables, and proper software instrumentation are all desirable features of the target system. Also, test system and target system design issues must be addressed during the early stages of the target system development. Processing speeds of up to 20 million instructions/s and the development of high-bandwidth reflective memory systems have improved the ability to integrate the target system and test system for the application of automated testing techniques. It is concluded that new methods of designing testability into the target systems are required.

Flight test experience using advanced airborne equipment in a time-based metered traffic environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morello, S. A.

1980-01-01

A series of test flights have demonstrated that time-based metering guidance and control was acceptable to pilots and air traffic controllers. The descent algorithm of the technique, with good representation of aircraft performance and wind modeling, yielded arrival time accuracy within 12 sec. It is expected that this will represent significant fuel savings (1) through a reduction of the time error dispersions at the metering fix for the entire fleet, and (2) for individual aircraft as well, through the presentation of guidance for a fuel-efficient descent. Air traffic controller workloads were also reduced, in keeping with the reduction of required communications resulting from the transfer of navigation responsibilities to pilots. A second series of test flights demonstrated that an existing flight management system could be modified to operate in the new mode.

40 CFR 86.1917 - How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the emission-related warranty in Section 207...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES (CONTINUED) Manufacturer-Run In-Use Testing Program for Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines § 86.1917 How does in-use testing under this subpart relate... would also require one of the following things: (1) That, at the time of sale, the engine or vehicle was...

40 CFR 86.1917 - How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the emission-related warranty in Section 207...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES (CONTINUED) Manufacturer-Run In-Use Testing Program for Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines § 86.1917 How does in-use testing under this subpart relate... would also require one of the following things: (1) That, at the time of sale, the engine or vehicle was...

40 CFR 86.1917 - How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the emission-related warranty in Section 207...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES Manufacturer-Run In-Use Testing Program for Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines § 86.1917 How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the... require one of the following things: (1) That, at the time of sale, the engine or vehicle was designed...

40 CFR 86.1917 - How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the emission-related warranty in Section 207...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES (CONTINUED) Manufacturer-Run In-Use Testing Program for Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines § 86.1917 How does in-use testing under this subpart relate... would also require one of the following things: (1) That, at the time of sale, the engine or vehicle was...

40 CFR 86.1917 - How does in-use testing under this subpart relate to the emission-related warranty in Section 207...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

...) CONTROL OF EMISSIONS FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY VEHICLES AND ENGINES (CONTINUED) Manufacturer-Run In-Use Testing Program for Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines § 86.1917 How does in-use testing under this subpart relate... would also require one of the following things: (1) That, at the time of sale, the engine or vehicle was...

An Examination of the Perceived Importance of Technical Competence in Acquisition Project Management

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-09-01

Develop (First Draft) Instructions Critique (Revision) Answerability Pilot Test (Second Draft) Analysis Response Mode Revision Useability Preparation...appropriate questionnaire items. Initially, the set of questions developed for the study reflected a few shortcomings. A pilot test of the first draft among...resulted. First, feedback from the pilot test indicated a need to reduce the completion time. Because the multiple choice format required several

Testing Times: The Place of the Citizenship Test in the UK Immigration Regime and New Citizens’ Responses to it

PubMed Central

Byrne, Bridget

2016-01-01

Citizenship tests are designed to ensure that new citizens have the knowledge required for successful ‘integration’. This article explores what those who have taken the test thought about its content. It argues that new citizens had high levels of awareness of debates about immigration and anti-immigration sentiment. Considering new citizens’ views of the test, the article shows how many of them are aware of the role of the test in reassuring existing citizens of their fitness to be citizens. However, some new citizens contest this positioning in ‘acts of citizenship’ where they assert claims to citizenship which are not necessarily those constructed by the state and implied in the tests. The article will argue that the tests and the nature of the knowledge required to pass them serve to retain new citizens in a position of less-than-equal citizenship which is at risk of being discursively (if less often legally) revoked. PMID:28490819

Environmental degradation of composites for marine structures: new materials and new applications

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

This paper describes the influence of seawater ageing on composites used in a range of marine structures, from boats to tidal turbines. Accounting for environmental degradation is an essential element in the multi-scale modelling of composite materials but it requires reliable test data input. The traditional approach to account for ageing effects, based on testing samples after immersion for different periods, is evolving towards coupled studies involving strong interactions between water diffusion and mechanical loading. These can provide a more realistic estimation of long-term behaviour but still require some form of acceleration if useful data, for 20 year lifetimes or more, are to be obtained in a reasonable time. In order to validate extrapolations from short to long times, it is essential to understand the degradation mechanisms, so both physico-chemical and mechanical test data are required. Examples of results from some current studies on more environmentally friendly materials including bio-sourced composites will be described first. Then a case study for renewable marine energy applications will be discussed. In both cases, studies were performed first on coupons at the material level, then during structural testing and analysis of large components, in order to evaluate their long-term behaviour. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Multiscale modelling of the structural integrity of composite materials’. PMID:27242304

Modified Composite Materials Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dicus, D. L. (Compiler)

1978-01-01

The reduction or elimination of the hazard which results from accidental release of graphite fibers from composite materials was studied at a workshop. At the workshop, groups were organized to consider six topics: epoxy modifications, epoxy replacement, fiber modifications, fiber coatings and new fibers, hybrids, and fiber release testing. Because of the time required to develop a new material and acquire a design data base, most of the workers concluded that a modified composite material would require about four to five years of development and testing before it could be applied to aircraft structures. The hybrid working group considered that some hybrid composites which reduce the risk of accidental fiber release might be put into service over the near term. The fiber release testing working group recommended a coordinated effort to define a suitable laboratory test.

Computerized Maze Navigation and On-Road Performance by Drivers With Dementia

PubMed Central

Ott, Brian R.; Festa, Elena K.; Amick, Melissa M.; Grace, Janet; Davis, Jennifer D.; Heindel, William C.

2012-01-01

This study examined the ability of computerized maze test performance to predict the road test performance of cognitively impaired and normal older drivers. The authors examined 133 older drivers, including 65 with probable Alzheimer disease, 23 with possible Alzheimer disease, and 45 control subjects without cognitive impairment. Subjects completed 5 computerized maze tasks employing a touch screen and pointer as well as a battery of standard neuropsychological tests. Parameters measured for mazes included errors, planning time, drawing time, and total time. Within 2 weeks, subjects were examined by a professional driving instructor on a standardized road test modeled after the Washington University Road Test. Road test total score was significantly correlated with total time across the 5 mazes. This maze score was significant for both Alzheimer disease subjects and control subjects. One maze in particular, requiring less than 2 minutes to complete, was highly correlated with driving performance. For the standard neuropsychological tests, highest correlations were seen with Trail Making A (TrailsA) and the Hopkins Verbal Learning Tests Trial 1 (HVLT1). Multiple regression models for road test score using stepwise subtraction of maze and neuropsychological test variables revealed significant independent contributions for total maze time, HVLT1, and TrailsA for the entire group; total maze time and HVLT1 for Alzheimer disease subjects; and TrailsA for normal subjects. As a visual analog of driving, a brief computerized test of maze navigation time compares well to standard neuropsychological tests of psychomotor speed, scanning, attention, and working memory as a predictor of driving performance by persons with early Alzheimer disease and normal elders. Measurement of maze task performance appears to be useful in the assessment of older drivers at risk for hazardous driving. PMID:18287166

Smart Sensor Node Development, Testing and Implementation for Rocket Propulsion Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mengers, Timothy R.; Shipley, John; Merrill, Richard; Eggett, Leon; Johnson, Mont; Morris, Jonathan; Figueroa, Fernando; Schmalzel, John; Turowski, Mark P.

2007-01-01

Successful design and implementation of an Integrated System Health Management (ISHM) approach for rocket propulsion systems requires the capability improve the reliability of complex systems by detecting and diagnosing problems. One of the critical elements in the ISHM is an intelligent sensor node for data acquisition that meets specific requirements for rocket motor testing including accuracy, sample rate and size/weight. Traditional data acquisition systems are calibrated in a controlled environment and guaranteed to perform bounded by their tested conditions. In a real world ISHM system, the data acquisition and signal conditioning needs to function in an uncontrolled environment. Development and testing of this sensor node focuses on a design with the ability to self check in order to extend calibration times, report internal faults and drifts and notify the overall system when the data acquisition is not performing as it should. All of this will be designed within a system that is flexible, requiring little re-design to be deployed on a wide variety of systems. Progress in this design and initial testing of prototype units will be reported.

Treating the right patient at the right time: Access to specialist consultation and noninvasive testing

PubMed Central

Knudtson, Merril L; Beanlands, Rob; Brophy, James M; Higginson, Lyall; Munt, Brad; Rottger, John

2006-01-01

The Council of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society commissioned working groups to examine issues of access to, and wait times for, various aspects of cardiovascular care. The present article summarizes the deliberations on targets for medically acceptable wait times for access to cardiovascular specialist evaluation and on the performance of non-invasive testing needed to complete this evaluation. Three categories of referral indications were identified: those requiring hospitalization due to substantial ongoing risk of mortality and morbidity; those requiring an expedited early review in an ambulatory setting; and, finally, a larger category in which delays of two to six weeks can be justified. The proposed wait time targets will provide guidance on the timeliness of care to busy clinicians charged with the care of patients with cardiovascular disease, help policy makers appreciate the clinical challenges in providing access to high quality care, and highlight the critical need for a thoughtful review of cardiology human resource requirements. Wait time implementation suggestions are also included, such as the innovative use of disease management and special need clinics. The times proposed assume that available clinical practice guidelines are followed for clinical coronary syndrome management and for treatment of associated conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, renal disease, smoking cessation and lipid disorders. Although media attention tends to focus on wait times for higher profile surgical procedures and high technology imaging, it is likely that patients face the greatest wait-related risk at the earlier phases of care, before the disease has been adequately characterized. PMID:16957798

Electronic camera-management system for 35-mm and 70-mm film cameras

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nielsen, Allan

1993-01-01

Military and commercial test facilities have been tasked with the need for increasingly sophisticated data collection and data reduction. A state-of-the-art electronic control system for high speed 35 mm and 70 mm film cameras designed to meet these tasks is described. Data collection in today's test range environment is difficult at best. The need for a completely integrated image and data collection system is mandated by the increasingly complex test environment. Instrumentation film cameras have been used on test ranges to capture images for decades. Their high frame rates coupled with exceptionally high resolution make them an essential part of any test system. In addition to documenting test events, today's camera system is required to perform many additional tasks. Data reduction to establish TSPI (time- space-position information) may be performed after a mission and is subject to all of the variables present in documenting the mission. A typical scenario would consist of multiple cameras located on tracking mounts capturing the event along with azimuth and elevation position data. Corrected data can then be reduced using each camera's time and position deltas and calculating the TSPI of the object using triangulation. An electronic camera control system designed to meet these requirements has been developed by Photo-Sonics, Inc. The feedback received from test technicians at range facilities throughout the world led Photo-Sonics to design the features of this control system. These prominent new features include: a comprehensive safety management system, full local or remote operation, frame rate accuracy of less than 0.005 percent, and phase locking capability to Irig-B. In fact, Irig-B phase lock operation of multiple cameras can reduce the time-distance delta of a test object traveling at mach-1 to less than one inch during data reduction.

A Tool for Requirements-Based Programming

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rash, James L.; Hinchey, Michael G.; Rouff, Christopher A.; Gracanin, Denis; Erickson, John

2005-01-01

Absent a general method for mathematically sound, automated transformation of customer requirements into a formal model of the desired system, developers must resort to either manual application of formal methods or to system testing (either manual or automated). While formal methods have afforded numerous successes, they present serious issues, e.g., costs to gear up to apply them (time, expensive staff), and scalability and reproducibility when standards in the field are not settled. The testing path cannot be walked to the ultimate goal, because exhaustive testing is infeasible for all but trivial systems. So system verification remains problematic. System or requirements validation is similarly problematic. The alternatives available today depend on either having a formal model or pursuing enough testing to enable the customer to be certain that system behavior meets requirements. The testing alternative for non-trivial systems always have some system behaviors unconfirmed and therefore is not the answer. To ensure that a formal model is equivalent to the customer s requirements necessitates that the customer somehow fully understands the formal model, which is not realistic. The predominant view that provably correct system development depends on having a formal model of the system leads to a desire for a mathematically sound method to automate the transformation of customer requirements into a formal model. Such a method, an augmentation of requirements-based programming, will be briefly described in this paper, and a prototype tool to support it will be described. The method and tool enable both requirements validation and system verification for the class of systems whose behavior can be described as scenarios. An application of the tool to a prototype automated ground control system for NASA mission is presented.

Comparison of calculation and simulation of evacuation in real buildings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szénay, Martin; Lopušniak, Martin

2018-03-01

Each building must meet requirements for safe evacuation in order to prevent casualties. Therefore methods for evaluation of evacuation are used when designing buildings. In the paper, calculation methods were tested on three real buildings. The testing used methods of evacuation time calculation pursuant to Slovak standards and evacuation time calculation using the buildingExodus simulation software. If calculation methods have been suitably selected taking into account the nature of evacuation and at the same time if correct values of parameters were entered, we will be able to obtain almost identical times of evacuation in comparison with real results obtained from simulation. The difference can range from 1% to 27%.

Solving large mixed linear models using preconditioned conjugate gradient iteration.

PubMed

Strandén, I; Lidauer, M

1999-12-01

Continuous evaluation of dairy cattle with a random regression test-day model requires a fast solving method and algorithm. A new computing technique feasible in Jacobi and conjugate gradient based iterative methods using iteration on data is presented. In the new computing technique, the calculations in multiplication of a vector by a matrix were recorded to three steps instead of the commonly used two steps. The three-step method was implemented in a general mixed linear model program that used preconditioned conjugate gradient iteration. Performance of this program in comparison to other general solving programs was assessed via estimation of breeding values using univariate, multivariate, and random regression test-day models. Central processing unit time per iteration with the new three-step technique was, at best, one-third that needed with the old technique. Performance was best with the test-day model, which was the largest and most complex model used. The new program did well in comparison to other general software. Programs keeping the mixed model equations in random access memory required at least 20 and 435% more time to solve the univariate and multivariate animal models, respectively. Computations of the second best iteration on data took approximately three and five times longer for the animal and test-day models, respectively, than did the new program. Good performance was due to fast computing time per iteration and quick convergence to the final solutions. Use of preconditioned conjugate gradient based methods in solving large breeding value problems is supported by our findings.

A Framework for Robust Multivariable Optimization of Integrated Circuits in Space Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DuMonthier, Jeffrey; Suarez, George

2013-01-01

Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) design for space applications involves multiple challenges of maximizing performance, minimizing power and ensuring reliable operation in extreme environments. This is a complex multidimensional optimization problem which must be solved early in the development cycle of a system due to the time required for testing and qualification severely limiting opportunities to modify and iterate. Manual design techniques which generally involve simulation at one or a small number of corners with a very limited set of simultaneously variable parameters in order to make the problem tractable are inefficient and not guaranteed to achieve the best possible results within the performance envelope defined by the process and environmental requirements. What is required is a means to automate design parameter variation, allow the designer to specify operational constraints and performance goals, and to analyze the results in a way which facilitates identifying the tradeoffs defining the performance envelope over the full set of process and environmental corner cases. The system developed by the Mixed Signal ASIC Group (MSAG) at the Goddard Space Flight Center is implemented as framework of software modules, templates and function libraries. It integrates CAD tools and a mathematical computing environment, and can be customized for new circuit designs with only a modest amount of effort as most common tasks are already encapsulated. Customization is required for simulation test benches to determine performance metrics and for cost function computation. Templates provide a starting point for both while toolbox functions minimize the code required. Once a test bench has been coded to optimize a particular circuit, it is also used to verify the final design. The combination of test bench and cost function can then serve as a template for similar circuits or be re-used to migrate the design to different processes by re-running it with the new process specific device models. The system has been used in the design of time to digital converters for laser ranging and time-of-flight mass spectrometry to optimize analog, mixed signal and digital circuits such as charge sensitive amplifiers, comparators, delay elements, radiation tolerant dual interlocked (DICE) flip-flops and two of three voter gates.

High current superconductors for tokamak toroidal field coils

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fietz, W.A.

1976-01-01

Conductors rated at 10,000 A for 8 T and 4.2 K are being purchased for the first large coil segment tests at ORNL. Requirements for these conductors, in addition to the high current rating, are low pulse losses, cryostatic stability, and acceptable mechanical properties. The conductors are required to have losses less than 0.4 W/m under pulsed fields of 0.5 T with a rise time of 1 sec in an ambient 8-T field. Methods of calculating these losses and techniques for verifying the performance by direct measurement are discussed. Conductors stabilized by two different cooling methods, pool boiling and forcedmore » helium flow, have been proposed. Analysis of these conductors is presented and a proposed definition and test of stability is discussed. Mechanical property requirements, tensile and compressive, are defined and test methods are discussed.« less

24 CFR 3280.401 - Structural load tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... sustaining its dead load plus superimposed live loads equal to 1.75 times the required live loads for a... in 1/4 design live load increments at 10-minute intervals until 1.25 times design live load plus dead... load plus dead load has been reached. Assembly failure shall be considered as design live load...

24 CFR 3280.401 - Structural load tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... sustaining its dead load plus superimposed live loads equal to 1.75 times the required live loads for a... in 1/4 design live load increments at 10-minute intervals until 1.25 times design live load plus dead... load plus dead load has been reached. Assembly failure shall be considered as design live load...

24 CFR 3280.401 - Structural load tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... sustaining its dead load plus superimposed live loads equal to 1.75 times the required live loads for a... in 1/4 design live load increments at 10-minute intervals until 1.25 times design live load plus dead... load plus dead load has been reached. Assembly failure shall be considered as design live load...

24 CFR 3280.401 - Structural load tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... sustaining its dead load plus superimposed live loads equal to 1.75 times the required live loads for a... in 1/4 design live load increments at 10-minute intervals until 1.25 times design live load plus dead... load plus dead load has been reached. Assembly failure shall be considered as design live load...

24 CFR 3280.401 - Structural load tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... sustaining its dead load plus superimposed live loads equal to 1.75 times the required live loads for a... in 1/4 design live load increments at 10-minute intervals until 1.25 times design live load plus dead... load plus dead load has been reached. Assembly failure shall be considered as design live load...

76 FR 28470 - Biweekly Notice; Applications and Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses Involving No...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-17

... feedwater valves isolation times to the Licensee Controlled Document that is referenced in the Bases and... Document that is referenced in the Bases. The requirements to perform the testing of these isolation valves... feedwater valve isolation times to the Licensee Controlled Document that is referenced in the Bases. In...

Developing a Computerised Multiple Elements Test for Organisational Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hynes, Sinead M.; Fish, Jessica; Evans, Jonathan J.; Manly, Tom

2015-01-01

Executive function is best measured in loosely structured, multi-component tasks that reflect real-life demands. These tasks require participants to develop a strategy, keep a plan in mind and monitor time. Errors include ignoring stated goals ("goal neglect"), over-allocation of time to one task and violating rules. Teasing apart such…

Interlaboratory validation of quantitative duplex real-time PCR method for screening analysis of genetically modified maize.

PubMed

Takabatake, Reona; Koiwa, Tomohiro; Kasahara, Masaki; Takashima, Kaori; Futo, Satoshi; Minegishi, Yasutaka; Akiyama, Hiroshi; Teshima, Reiko; Oguchi, Taichi; Mano, Junichi; Furui, Satoshi; Kitta, Kazumi

2011-01-01

To reduce the cost and time required to routinely perform the genetically modified organism (GMO) test, we developed a duplex quantitative real-time PCR method for a screening analysis simultaneously targeting an event-specific segment for GA21 and Cauliflower Mosaic Virus 35S promoter (P35S) segment [Oguchi et al., J. Food Hyg. Soc. Japan, 50, 117-125 (2009)]. To confirm the validity of the method, an interlaboratory collaborative study was conducted. In the collaborative study, conversion factors (Cfs), which are required to calculate the GMO amount (%), were first determined for two real-time PCR instruments, the ABI PRISM 7900HT and the ABI PRISM 7500. A blind test was then conducted. The limit of quantitation for both GA21 and P35S was estimated to be 0.5% or less. The trueness and precision were evaluated as the bias and reproducibility of the relative standard deviation (RSD(R)). The determined bias and RSD(R) were each less than 25%. We believe the developed method would be useful for the practical screening analysis of GM maize.

Preliminary flight evaluation of F100 engine model derivative airstart capability in an F-15 airplane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cho, T. K.; Burcham, F. W., Jr.

1984-01-01

A series of airstarts was conducted in an F-15 airplane with two prototype F100 engine model derivative (EMD) engines equipped with digital electronic engine control (DEEC) systems. The airstart envelope and time required for airstarts were defined. The success of an airstart is most heavily dependent on airspeed. Spooldown airstarts at 200 knots and higher were all successful. Spooldown airstart times ranged from 53 sec at 250 knots to 170 sec at 175 knots. Jet fuel starter (JFS) assisted airstarts were conducted at 175 knots at two altitudes, and airstart times were 50 and 60 sec, significantly faster than unassisted airstart. The effect of altitude on airstarts was small. In addition, the airstart characteristics of the two test engines were found to closely resemble each other. The F100 EMD airstart characteristics were very similar to the DEEC equipped F100 engine tested previously. Finally, the time required to spool down from intermediate power compressor rotor speed to a given compressor rotor speed was found to be a strong function of altitude and a weaker function of airspeed.

Development of a semi-automated model identification and calibration tool for conceptual modelling of sewer systems.

PubMed

Wolfs, Vincent; Villazon, Mauricio Florencio; Willems, Patrick

2013-01-01

Applications such as real-time control, uncertainty analysis and optimization require an extensive number of model iterations. Full hydrodynamic sewer models are not sufficient for these applications due to the excessive computation time. Simplifications are consequently required. A lumped conceptual modelling approach results in a much faster calculation. The process of identifying and calibrating the conceptual model structure could, however, be time-consuming. Moreover, many conceptual models lack accuracy, or do not account for backwater effects. To overcome these problems, a modelling methodology was developed which is suited for semi-automatic calibration. The methodology is tested for the sewer system of the city of Geel in the Grote Nete river basin in Belgium, using both synthetic design storm events and long time series of rainfall input. A MATLAB/Simulink(®) tool was developed to guide the modeller through the step-wise model construction, reducing significantly the time required for the conceptual modelling process.

New Model Exhaust System Supports Testing in NASA Lewis' 10- by 10-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roeder, James W., Jr.

1998-01-01

In early 1996, the ability to run NASA Lewis Research Center's Abe Silverstein 10- by 10- Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel (10x10) at subsonic test section speeds was reestablished. Taking advantage of this new speed range, a subsonic research test program was scheduled for the 10x10 in the fall of 1996. However, many subsonic aircraft test models require an exhaust source to simulate main engine flow, engine bleed flows, and other phenomena. This was also true of the proposed test model, but at the time the 10x10 did not have a model exhaust capability. So, through an in-house effort over a period of only 5 months, a new model exhaust system was designed, installed, checked out, and made ready in time to support the scheduled test program.

78 FR 23116 - Basis Reporting by Securities Brokers and Basis Determination for Debt Instruments and Options...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-18

... in the burden on Form 1099-B, ``Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions,'' when revised... not provide them sufficient time to build and test the systems required to implement the reporting... to allow brokers to test and refine their reporting systems. In response to these comments, as was...

Experimental Validation of the Half-Length Force Concept Inventory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Jing; Koenig, Kathleen; Cui, Lili; Fritchman, Joseph; Li, Dan; Sun, Wanyi; Fu, Zhao; Bao, Lei

2016-01-01

In a recent study, the 30-question Force Concept Inventory (FCI) was theoretically split into two 14-question "half-length" tests (HFCIs) covering the same set of concepts and producing mean scores that can be equated to those of the original FCI. The HFCIs require less administration time and reduce test-retest issues when different…

21 CFR 1271.80 - What are the general requirements for donor testing?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... ADMINISTRATION HUMAN CELLS, TISSUES, AND CELLULAR AND TISSUE-BASED PRODUCTS Donor Eligibility § 1271.80 What are... donor specimen for testing at the time of recovery of cells or tissue from the donor; or up to 7 days before or after recovery, except: (1) For donors of peripheral blood stem/progenitor cells, bone marrow...

Profiling System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

A non-destructive testing system, originally developed for Langley Research Center, is sold commercially. The DyLASP Profilometer locates defects in composite and metallic materials and assemblies. It operates in real time and displays results as a contour map of the assembly with defects indicated by size and location. Applications are in non-destructive testing and evaluation, and the company will customize to user requirements.

21 CFR 1271.80 - What are the general requirements for donor testing?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... donor specimen for testing at the time of recovery of cells or tissue from the donor; or up to 7 days before or after recovery, except: (1) For donors of peripheral blood stem/progenitor cells, bone marrow... ADMINISTRATION HUMAN CELLS, TISSUES, AND CELLULAR AND TISSUE-BASED PRODUCTS Donor Eligibility § 1271.80 What are...

21 CFR 1271.80 - What are the general requirements for donor testing?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... donor specimen for testing at the time of recovery of cells or tissue from the donor; or up to 7 days before or after recovery, except: (1) For donors of peripheral blood stem/progenitor cells, bone marrow... ADMINISTRATION HUMAN CELLS, TISSUES, AND CELLULAR AND TISSUE-BASED PRODUCTS Donor Eligibility § 1271.80 What are...

21 CFR 1271.80 - What are the general requirements for donor testing?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... donor specimen for testing at the time of recovery of cells or tissue from the donor; or up to 7 days before or after recovery, except: (1) For donors of peripheral blood stem/progenitor cells, bone marrow... ADMINISTRATION HUMAN CELLS, TISSUES, AND CELLULAR AND TISSUE-BASED PRODUCTS Donor Eligibility § 1271.80 What are...

21 CFR 1271.80 - What are the general requirements for donor testing?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... donor specimen for testing at the time of recovery of cells or tissue from the donor; or up to 7 days before or after recovery, except: (1) For donors of peripheral blood stem/progenitor cells, bone marrow... ADMINISTRATION HUMAN CELLS, TISSUES, AND CELLULAR AND TISSUE-BASED PRODUCTS Donor Eligibility § 1271.80 What are...

50 CFR 680.23 - Equipment and operational requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... (882 lb) of crab or an alternative material supplied by the scale manufacturer on the scale under test... bottom of the hopper unless an alternative testing method is approved by NMFS. The MPE for the daily at... delivery. The scale operator may write this information on the scale printout in ink at the time of landing...

Contracted time and expanded space: The impact of circumnavigation on judgements of space and time.

PubMed

Brunec, Iva K; Javadi, Amir-Homayoun; Zisch, Fiona E L; Spiers, Hugo J

2017-09-01

The ability to estimate distance and time to spatial goals is fundamental for survival. In cases where a region of space must be navigated around to reach a location (circumnavigation), the distance along the path is greater than the straight-line Euclidean distance. To explore how such circumnavigation impacts on estimates of distance and time, we tested participants on their ability to estimate travel time and Euclidean distance to learned destinations in a virtual town. Estimates for approximately linear routes were compared with estimates for routes requiring circumnavigation. For all routes, travel times were significantly underestimated, and Euclidean distances overestimated. For routes requiring circumnavigation, travel time was further underestimated and the Euclidean distance further overestimated. Thus, circumnavigation appears to enhance existing biases in representations of travel time and distance. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Time delay and integration array (TDI) using charge transfer device technology. Phase 2, volume 1: Technical

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

The 20x9 TDI array was developed to meet the LANDSAT Thematic Mapper Requirements. This array is based upon a self-aligned, transparent gate, buried channel process. The process features: (1) buried channel, four phase, overlapping gate CCD's for high transfer efficiency without fat zero; (2) self-aligned transistors to minimize clock feedthrough and parasitic capacitance; and (3) transparent tin oxide electrode for high quantum efficiency with front surface irradiation. The requirements placed on the array and the performance achieved are summarized. This data is the result of flat field measurements only, no imaging or dynamic target measurements were made during this program. Measurements were performed with two different test stands. The bench test equipment fabricated for this program operated at the 8 micro sec line time and employed simple sampling of the gated MOSFET output video signal. The second stand employed Correlated Doubled Sampling (CDS) and operated at 79.2 micro sec line time.

Umbilical Connect Techniques Improvement-Technology Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Valkema, Donald C.

1972-01-01

The objective of this study was to develop concepts, specifications, designs, techniques, and procedures capable of significantly reducing the time required to connect and verify umbilicals for ground services to the space shuttle. The desired goal was to reduce the current time requirement of several shifts for the Saturn 5/Apollo to an elapsed time of less than one hour to connect and verify all of the space shuttle ground service umbilicals. The study was conducted in four phases: (1) literature and hardware examination, (2) concept development, (3) concept evaluation and tradeoff analysis, and (4) selected concept design. The final product of this study was a detail design of a rise-off disconnect panel prototype test specimen for a LO2/LH2 booster (or an external oxygen/hydrogen tank for an orbiter), a detail design of a swing-arm mounted preflight umbilical carrier prototype test specimen, and a part 1 specification for the umbilical connect and verification design for the vehicles as defined in the space shuttle program.

Disk Diffusion Testing Using Candida sp. Colonies Taken Directly from CHROMagar Candida Medium May Decrease Time Required To Obtain Results

PubMed Central

Klevay, Michael; Ebinger, Alex; Diekema, Daniel; Messer, Shawn; Hollis, Richard; Pfaller, Michael

2005-01-01

We compared results of disk diffusion antifungal susceptibility testing from Candida sp. strains passaged on CHROMagar and on potato dextrose agar. The overall categorical agreements for fluconazole and voriconazole disk testing were 95% and 98% with 0% and 0.5% very major errors, respectively. Disk diffusion testing by the CLSI (formerly NCCLS) M44-A method can be performed accurately by taking inocula directly from CHROMagar. PMID:16000489

Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) Activities on White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-05-01

taggants south of Mockingbird Gap and the limited number of simulants met the Agency requirements. It was recognized at that time if either situation...from attack. * A new test bed for HTD testing is proposed at Mockingbird South. Alternative one, the preferred alternative, would allow DTRA to expand...HTD tests, and explosive tests have the potential to directly injure or kill native fauna from flying debris and blast overpressure. Craters

Engineering and fabrication cost considerations for cryogenic wind tunnel models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boykin, R. M., Jr.; Davenport, J. B., Jr.

1983-01-01

Design and fabrication cost drivers for cryogenic transonic wind tunnel models are defined. The major cost factors for wind tunnel models are model complexity, tolerances, surface finishes, materials, material validation, and model inspection. The cryogenic temperatures require the use of materials with relatively high fracture toughness but at the same time high strength. Some of these materials are very difficult to machine, requiring extensive machine hours which can add significantly to the manufacturing costs. Some additional engineering costs are incurred to certify the materials through mechanical tests and nondestructive evaluation techniques, which are not normally required with conventional models. When instrumentation such as accelerometers and electronically scanned pressure modules is required, temperature control of these devices needs to be incorporated into the design, which requires added effort. Additional thermal analyses and subsystem tests may be necessary, which also adds to the design costs. The largest driver to the design costs is potentially the additional static and dynamic analyses required to insure structural integrity of the model and support system.

15 CFR 200.110 - Priorities and time of completion.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... calibrations and other tests will generally be made in the order in which confirmed requests are received... considerably longer, particularly if their abnormal behavior requires reruns to check reliability. The customer...

10 CFR 712.18 - Transferring HRP certification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... into a designated HRP position; (2) Incorporate the individual into the new site's alcohol and drug-testing program; (3) Ensure that the 12-month time period for HRP requirements that was established at the...

Thermo-Mechanical Fatigue Crack Growth of RR1000

PubMed Central

Pretty, Christopher John; Whitaker, Mark Thomas; Williams, Steve John

2017-01-01

Non-isothermal conditions during flight cycles have long led to the requirement for thermo-mechanical fatigue (TMF) evaluation of aerospace materials. However, the increased temperatures within the gas turbine engine have meant that the requirements for TMF testing now extend to disc alloys along with blade materials. As such, fatigue crack growth rates are required to be evaluated under non-isothermal conditions along with the development of a detailed understanding of related failure mechanisms. In the current work, a TMF crack growth testing method has been developed utilising induction heating and direct current potential drop techniques for polycrystalline nickel-based superalloys, such as RR1000. Results have shown that in-phase (IP) testing produces accelerated crack growth rates compared with out-of-phase (OOP) due to increased temperature at peak stress and therefore increased time dependent crack growth. The ordering of the crack growth rates is supported by detailed fractographic analysis which shows intergranular crack growth in IP test specimens, and transgranular crack growth in 90° OOP and 180° OOP tests. Isothermal tests have also been carried out for comparison of crack growth rates at the point of peak stress in the TMF cycles. PMID:28772394

Practical challenges related to point of care testing.

PubMed

Shaw, Julie L V

2016-04-01

Point of care testing (POCT) refers to laboratory testing that occurs near to the patient, often at the patient bedside. POCT can be advantageous in situations requiring rapid turnaround time of test results for clinical decision making. There are many challenges associated with POCT, mainly related to quality assurance. POCT is performed by clinical staff rather than laboratory trained individuals which can lead to errors resulting from a lack of understanding of the importance of quality control and quality assurance practices. POCT is usually more expensive than testing performed in the central laboratory and requires a significant amount of support from the laboratory to ensure the quality testing and meet accreditation requirements. Here, specific challenges related to POCT compliance with accreditation standards are discussed along with strategies that can be used to overcome these challenges. These areas include: documentation of POCT orders, charting of POCT results as well as training and certification of individuals performing POCT. Factors to consider when implementing connectivity between POCT instruments and the electronic medical record are also discussed in detail and include: uni-directional versus bidirectional communication, linking patient demographic information with POCT software, the importance of positive patient identification and considering where to chart POCT results in the electronic medical record.

Reliability of the Timed Up and Go test and Ten-Metre Timed Walk Test in Pregnant Women with Pelvic Girdle Pain.

PubMed

Evensen, Natalie M; Kvåle, Alice; Braekken, Ingeborg H

2015-09-01

There is a lack of functional objective tests available to measure functional status in women with pelvic girdle pain (PGP). The purpose of this study was to establish test-retest and intertester reliability of the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test and Ten-metre Timed Walk Test (10mTWT) in pregnant women with PGP. A convenience sample of women was recruited over a 4-month period and tested on two occasions, 1 week apart to determine test-retest reliability. Intertester reliability was established between two assessors at the first testing session. Subjects were instructed to undertake the TUG and 10mTWT at maximum speed. One practise trial and two timed trials for each walking test was undertaken on Day 1 and one practise trial and one timed trial on Day 2. Seventeen women with PGP aged 31.1 years (SD [standard deviation] = 2.3) and 28.7 weeks pregnant (SD = 7.4) completed gait testing. Test-retest reliability using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was excellent for the TUG (0.88) and good for the 10mTWT (0.74). Intertester reliability was determined in the first 13 participants with excellent ICC values being found for both walking tests (TUG: 0.95; 10mTWT: 0.94). This study demonstrated that the TUG and 10mTWT undertaken at fast pace are reliable, objective functional tests in pregnant women with PGP. While both tests are suitable for use in the clinical and research settings, we would recommend the TUG given the findings of higher test-retest reliability and as this test requires less space and time to set up and score. Future studies in a larger sample size are warranted to confirm the results of this study. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Theater Blood Application Was Not Effectively Developed and Implemented

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-07-17

blood product by unit; and • monitor non- Food and Drug Administration Blood Product Testing. The CONOPS document also identified over 400 specific...time of a transfusion. However, this requirement was not identified in the CONOPS document. Further, PEO DHCS officials provided a traceability ...the CONOPS document, requirements management database, and the traceability matrix increased the risk that the Theater Blood Application

Guidelines for a Training Program for Audiometric Technicians. Report of Working Group 66.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glorig, Aram, Ed.; And Others

The document outlines a course designed to train audiometric technicians who will conduct pure-tone conduction tests as part of a program on hearing conservation in noise. A minimum of two days is required for the completion of the course. The outline of the training program presents nine topics with an indication of the minimum time required for…

Experimental verification of clock noise transfer and components for space based gravitational wave detectors.

PubMed

Sweeney, Dylan; Mueller, Guido

2012-11-05

The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) and other space based gravitational wave detector designs require a laser communication subsystem to, among other things, transfer clock signals between spacecraft (SC) in order to cancel clock noise in post-processing. The original LISA baseline design requires frequency synthesizers to convert each SC clock into a 2 GHz signal, and electro-optic modulators (EOMs) to modulate this 2 GHz clock signal onto the laser light. Both the frequency synthesizers and the EOMs must operate with a phase fidelity of 2×10(-4)cycles/√Hz. In this paper we present measurements of the phase fidelity of frequency synthesizers and EOMs. We found that both the frequency synthesizers and the EOMs meet the requirement when tested independently and together. We also performed an electronic test of the clock noise transfer using frequency synthesizers and the University of Florida LISA Interferometry (UFLIS) phasemeter. We found that by applying a time varying fractional delay filter we could suppress the clock noise to a level below our measurement limit, which is currently determined by timing jitter and is less than an order of magnitude above the LISA requirement for phase measurements.

Use of software tools in the development of real time software systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garvey, R. C.

1981-01-01

The transformation of a preexisting software system into a larger and more versatile system with different mission requirements is discussed. The history of this transformation is used to illustrate the use of structured real time programming techniques and tools to produce maintainable and somewhat transportable systems. The predecessor system is a single ground diagnostic system; its purpose is to exercise a computer controlled hardware set prior to its deployment in its functional environment, as well as test the equipment set by supplying certain well known stimulas. The successor system (FTE) is required to perform certain testing and control functions while this hardware set is in its functional environment. Both systems must deal with heavy user input/output loads and a new I/O requirement is included in the design of the FTF system. Human factors are enhanced by adding an improved console interface and special function keyboard handler. The additional features require the inclusion of much new software to the original set from which FTF was developed. As a result, it is necessary to split the system into a duel programming configuration with high rates of interground communications. A generalized information routing mechanism is used to support this configuration.

An Open-Source Hardware and Software System for Acquisition and Real-Time Processing of Electrophysiology during High Field MRI

PubMed Central

Purdon, Patrick L.; Millan, Hernan; Fuller, Peter L.; Bonmassar, Giorgio

2008-01-01

Simultaneous recording of electrophysiology and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique of growing importance in neuroscience. Rapidly evolving clinical and scientific requirements have created a need for hardware and software that can be customized for specific applications. Hardware may require customization to enable a variety of recording types (e.g., electroencephalogram, local field potentials, or multi-unit activity) while meeting the stringent and costly requirements of MRI safety and compatibility. Real-time signal processing tools are an enabling technology for studies of learning, attention, sleep, epilepsy, neurofeedback, and neuropharmacology, yet real-time signal processing tools are difficult to develop. We describe an open source system for simultaneous electrophysiology and fMRI featuring low-noise (< 0.6 uV p-p input noise), electromagnetic compatibility for MRI (tested up to 7 Tesla), and user-programmable real-time signal processing. The hardware distribution provides the complete specifications required to build an MRI-compatible electrophysiological data acquisition system, including circuit schematics, print circuit board (PCB) layouts, Gerber files for PCB fabrication and robotic assembly, a bill of materials with part numbers, data sheets, and vendor information, and test procedures. The software facilitates rapid implementation of real-time signal processing algorithms. This system has used in human EEG/fMRI studies at 3 and 7 Tesla examining the auditory system, visual system, sleep physiology, and anesthesia, as well as in intracranial electrophysiological studies of the non-human primate visual system during 3 Tesla fMRI, and in human hyperbaric physiology studies at depths of up to 300 feet below sea level. PMID:18761038

An open-source hardware and software system for acquisition and real-time processing of electrophysiology during high field MRI.

PubMed

Purdon, Patrick L; Millan, Hernan; Fuller, Peter L; Bonmassar, Giorgio

2008-11-15

Simultaneous recording of electrophysiology and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique of growing importance in neuroscience. Rapidly evolving clinical and scientific requirements have created a need for hardware and software that can be customized for specific applications. Hardware may require customization to enable a variety of recording types (e.g., electroencephalogram, local field potentials, or multi-unit activity) while meeting the stringent and costly requirements of MRI safety and compatibility. Real-time signal processing tools are an enabling technology for studies of learning, attention, sleep, epilepsy, neurofeedback, and neuropharmacology, yet real-time signal processing tools are difficult to develop. We describe an open-source system for simultaneous electrophysiology and fMRI featuring low-noise (<0.6microV p-p input noise), electromagnetic compatibility for MRI (tested up to 7T), and user-programmable real-time signal processing. The hardware distribution provides the complete specifications required to build an MRI-compatible electrophysiological data acquisition system, including circuit schematics, print circuit board (PCB) layouts, Gerber files for PCB fabrication and robotic assembly, a bill of materials with part numbers, data sheets, and vendor information, and test procedures. The software facilitates rapid implementation of real-time signal processing algorithms. This system has been used in human EEG/fMRI studies at 3 and 7T examining the auditory system, visual system, sleep physiology, and anesthesia, as well as in intracranial electrophysiological studies of the non-human primate visual system during 3T fMRI, and in human hyperbaric physiology studies at depths of up to 300 feet below sea level.

Sensitivity, specificity, and reproducibility of four measures of laboratory turnaround time.

PubMed

Valenstein, P N; Emancipator, K

1989-04-01

The authors studied the performance of four measures of laboratory turnaround time: the mean, median, 90th percentile, and proportion of tests reported within a predetermined cut-off interval (proportion of acceptable tests [PAT]). Measures were examined with the use of turnaround time data from 11,070 stat partial thromboplastin times, 16,761 urine cultures, and 28,055 stat electrolyte panels performed by a single laboratory. For laboratories with long turnaround times, the most important quality of a turnaround time measure is high reproducibility, so that improvement in reporting speed can be distinguished from random variation resulting from sampling. The mean was found to be the most reproducible of the four measures, followed by the median. The mean achieved acceptable precision with sample sizes of 100-500 tests. For laboratories with normally rapid turnaround times, the most important quality of a measure is high sensitivity and specificity for detecting whether turnaround time has dropped below standards. The PAT was found to be the best measure of turnaround time in this setting but required sample sizes of at least 500 tests to achieve acceptable accuracy. Laboratory turnaround time may be measured for different reasons. The method of measurement should be chosen with an eye toward its intended application.

Development and Testing of High Current Hollow Cathodes for High Power Hall Thrusters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kamhawi, Hani; Van Noord, Jonathan

2012-01-01

NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist In-Space Propulsion project is sponsoring the testing and development of high power Hall thrusters for implementation in NASA missions. As part of the project, NASA Glenn Research Center is developing and testing new high current hollow cathode assemblies that can meet and exceed the required discharge current and life-time requirements of high power Hall thrusters. This paper presents test results of three high current hollow cathode configurations. Test results indicated that two novel emitter configurations were able to attain lower peak emitter temperatures compared to state-of-the-art emitter configurations. One hollow cathode configuration attained a cathode orifice plate tip temperature of 1132 degC at a discharge current of 100 A. More specifically, test and analysis results indicated that a novel emitter configuration had minimal temperature gradient along its length. Future work will include cathode wear tests, and internal emitter temperature and plasma properties measurements along with detailed physics based modeling.

Timing resolution studies of the optical part of the AFP Time-of-flight detector

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chytka, L.; Avoni, G.; Brandt, A.

We present results of the timing performance studies of the optical part and front-end electronics of the time-of-flight subdetector prototype for the ATLAS Forward Proton (AFP) detector obtained during the test campaigns at the CERN-SPS test-beam facility (120 GeV π + particles) in July 2016 and October 2016. The time-of-flight (ToF) detector in conjunction with a 3D silicon pixel tracker will tag and measure protons originating in central exclusive interactions p + p → p + X + p, where the two outgoing protons are scattered in the very forward directions. The ToF is required to reduce so-called pileup backgroundsmore » that arise from multiple proton interactions in the same bunch crossing at high luminosity. The background can fake the signal of interest, and the extra rejection from the ToF allows the proton tagger to operate at the high luminosity required for the measurement of the processes. The prototype detector uses fused silica bars emitting Cherenkov radiation as a relativistic particle passes through them. The emitted Cherenkov photons are detected by a multi-anode micro-channel plate photomultiplier tube (MCP-PMT) and processed by fast electronics.« less

Timing resolution studies of the optical part of the AFP Time-of-flight detector

DOE PAGES

Chytka, L.; Avoni, G.; Brandt, A.; ...

2018-04-02

We present results of the timing performance studies of the optical part and front-end electronics of the time-of-flight subdetector prototype for the ATLAS Forward Proton (AFP) detector obtained during the test campaigns at the CERN-SPS test-beam facility (120 GeV π + particles) in July 2016 and October 2016. The time-of-flight (ToF) detector in conjunction with a 3D silicon pixel tracker will tag and measure protons originating in central exclusive interactions p + p → p + X + p, where the two outgoing protons are scattered in the very forward directions. The ToF is required to reduce so-called pileup backgroundsmore » that arise from multiple proton interactions in the same bunch crossing at high luminosity. The background can fake the signal of interest, and the extra rejection from the ToF allows the proton tagger to operate at the high luminosity required for the measurement of the processes. The prototype detector uses fused silica bars emitting Cherenkov radiation as a relativistic particle passes through them. The emitted Cherenkov photons are detected by a multi-anode micro-channel plate photomultiplier tube (MCP-PMT) and processed by fast electronics.« less

Antenna Test Facility (ATF): User Test Planning Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Greg

2011-01-01

Test process, milestones and inputs are unknowns to first-time users of the ATF. The User Test Planning Guide aids in establishing expectations for both NASA and non-NASA facility customers. The potential audience for this guide includes both internal and commercial spaceflight hardware/software developers. It is intended to assist their test engineering personnel in test planning and execution. Material covered includes a roadmap of the test process, roles and responsibilities of facility and user, major milestones, facility capabilities, and inputs required by the facility. Samples of deliverables, test article interfaces, and inputs necessary to define test scope, cost, and schedule are included as an appendix to the guide.

Radiant Heat Test Facility (RHTF): User Test Planning Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DelPapa, Steven

2011-01-01

Test process, milestones and inputs are unknowns to first-time users of the RHTF. The User Test Planning Guide aids in establishing expectations for both NASA and non- NASA facility customers. The potential audience for this guide includes both internal and commercial spaceflight hardware/software developers. It is intended to assist their test engineering personnel in test planning and execution. Material covered includes a roadmap of the test process, roles and responsibilities of facility and user, major milestones, facility capabilities, and inputs required by the facility. Samples of deliverables, test article interfaces, and inputs necessary to define test scope, cost, and schedule are included as an appendix to the guide.

Electronic Systems Test Laboratory (ESTL) User Test Planning Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robinson, Neil

2011-01-01

Test process, milestones and inputs are unknowns to first-time users of the ESTL. The User Test Planning Guide aids in establishing expectations for both NASA and non-NASA facility customers. The potential audience for this guide includes both internal and commercial spaceflight hardware/software developers. It is intended to assist their test engineering personnel in test planning and execution. Material covered includes a roadmap of the test process, roles and responsibilities of facility and user, major milestones, facility capabilities, and inputs required by the facility. Samples of deliverables, test article interfaces, and inputs necessary to define test scope, cost, and schedule are included as an appendix to the guide.

Structures Test Laboratory (STL). User Test Planning Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zipay, John J.

2011-01-01

Test process, milestones and inputs are unknowns to first-time users of the STL. The User Test Planning Guide aids in establishing expectations for both NASA and non-NASA facility customers. The potential audience for this guide includes both internal and commercial spaceflight hardware/software developers. It is intended to assist their test engineering personnel in test planning and execution. Material covered includes a roadmap of the test process, roles and responsibilities of facility and user, major milestones, facility capabilities, and inputs required by the facility. Samples of deliverables, test article interfaces, and inputs necessary to define test scope, cost, and schedule are included as an appendix to the guide.

A study of total space life performance of GSFC spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Timmins, A. R.

1975-01-01

The space life performance of 57 Goddard Space Flight Center spacecraft is given. The time distribution of 449 malfunctions, of which 248 were classified as failures, is presented. Test data were available for 39 of the spacecraft and permitted a comparison of system test performance with the first-day, first-month, and total space life performance. The failures per spacecraft for the system environmental tests and the three time periods in space were 12, 0.9, 1.7, and 5.0, respectively. Relevance of the data to the pre-shuttle and shuttle eras is discussed. Classifications of failures by type of device and spacecraft subsystem are included. A continuation of the Goddard philosophy of requiring a system-level environmental test program is justified.

On-line analysis capabilities developed to support the AFW wind-tunnel tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wieseman, Carol D.; Hoadley, Sherwood T.; Mcgraw, Sandra M.

1992-01-01

A variety of on-line analysis tools were developed to support two active flexible wing (AFW) wind-tunnel tests. These tools were developed to verify control law execution, to satisfy analysis requirements of the control law designers, to provide measures of system stability in a real-time environment, and to provide project managers with a quantitative measure of controller performance. Descriptions and purposes of the developed capabilities are presented along with examples. Procedures for saving and transferring data for near real-time analysis, and descriptions of the corresponding data interface programs are also presented. The on-line analysis tools worked well before, during, and after the wind tunnel test and proved to be a vital and important part of the entire test effort.

Eglin virtual range database for hardware-in-the-loop testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Talele, Sunjay E.; Pickard, J. W., Jr.; Owens, Monte A.; Foster, Joseph; Watson, John S.; Amick, Mary Amenda; Anthony, Kenneth

1998-07-01

Realistic backgrounds are necessary to support high fidelity hardware-in-the-loop testing. Advanced avionics and weapon system sensors are driving the requirement for higher resolution imagery. The model-test-model philosophy being promoted by the T&E community is resulting in the need for backgrounds that are realistic or virtual representations of actual test areas. Combined, these requirements led to a major upgrade of the terrain database used for hardware-in-the-loop testing at the Guided Weapons Evaluation Facility (GWEF) at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. This paper will describe the process used to generate the high-resolution (1-foot) database of ten sites totaling over 20 square kilometers of the Eglin range. this process involved generating digital elevation maps from stereo aerial imagery and classifying ground cover material using the spectral content. These databases were then optimized for real-time operation at 90 Hz.

Results of Long Term Life Tests of Large Scale Lithium-Ion Cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Inoue, Takefumi; Imamura, Nobutaka; Miyanaga, Naozumi; Yoshida, Hiroaki; Komada, Kanemi

2008-09-01

High energy density Li-ion cells have been introduced to latest satellites and another space usage. We have started development of large scale Li-ion cells for space applications in 1997. The chemical design was fixed in 1999.It is very important to confirm life performance to apply satellite applications because it requires long mission life such as 15 years for GEO and 5 to 7 years for LEO. Therefore we started life test at various conditions. And the tests have reached 8 to 9 years in actual calendar time. Semi - accelerated GEO tests which gives both calendar and cycle loss have been reached 42 season that corresponds 21 years in orbit. The specific energy range is 120 - 130 Wh/kg at EOL. According to the test results, we have confirmed that our Li-ion cell meets general requirements for space application such as GEO and LEO with quite high specific energy.

Space station software reliability analysis based on failures observed during testing at the multisystem integration facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tamayo, Tak Chai

1987-01-01

Quality of software not only is vital to the successful operation of the space station, it is also an important factor in establishing testing requirements, time needed for software verification and integration as well as launching schedules for the space station. Defense of management decisions can be greatly strengthened by combining engineering judgments with statistical analysis. Unlike hardware, software has the characteristics of no wearout and costly redundancies, thus making traditional statistical analysis not suitable in evaluating reliability of software. A statistical model was developed to provide a representation of the number as well as types of failures occur during software testing and verification. From this model, quantitative measure of software reliability based on failure history during testing are derived. Criteria to terminate testing based on reliability objectives and methods to estimate the expected number of fixings required are also presented.

ICESat-2 ATLAS Beam Steering Mechanism (BSM)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hinkle, Matthew

2015-01-01

This work covers the design and test of a beam steering mechanism (BSM) used to accurately guide a laser on the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS) down to Earth in order to measure elevation. It describes the main components in the BSM that allows it to perform and meet stringent requirements. Requirements of the BSM include two-axis steering of the transmitted laser beam, +-5000 uRad mechanical motion in each axis, and 1.5 uRad RMS pointing stability among many other requirements. The BSM uses four voice coil actuators in order to locate the mirror at the angle we need. There are four Differential Position Sensors that determine the position and angle of the mirror at all times. These sensors were verified through optical testing in both ambient and thermal conditions. Testing and extensive analyses were performed on the two-axis flexure throughout the program to check flexure thickness, positive margins, and infinite life. The mirror mount design has been modified to eliminate radial preload, while incorporating a titanium wave spring to provide an axial preload of 10.8N. The BSM underwent multiple tests in order to verify all components work as required under various conditions.

Open Architecture Data System for NASA Langley Combined Loads Test System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lightfoot, Michael C.; Ambur, Damodar R.

1998-01-01

The Combined Loads Test System (COLTS) is a new structures test complex that is being developed at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) to test large curved panels and cylindrical shell structures. These structural components are representative of aircraft fuselage sections of subsonic and supersonic transport aircraft and cryogenic tank structures of reusable launch vehicles. Test structures are subjected to combined loading conditions that simulate realistic flight load conditions. The facility consists of two pressure-box test machines and one combined loads test machine. Each test machine possesses a unique set of requirements or research data acquisition and real-time data display. Given the complex nature of the mechanical and thermal loads to be applied to the various research test articles, each data system has been designed with connectivity attributes that support both data acquisition and data management functions. This paper addresses the research driven data acquisition requirements for each test machine and demonstrates how an open architecture data system design not only meets those needs but provides robust data sharing between data systems including the various control systems which apply spectra of mechanical and thermal loading profiles.

A new modified wetting test and an alternative disintegration test for orally disintegrating tablets.

PubMed

Hooper, Patrick; Lasher, Jason; Alexander, Kenneth S; Baki, Gabriella

2016-02-20

Industrial manufacturing of solid oral dosage forms require quality tests, such as friability, hardness, and disintegration. The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) disintegration test uses 900mL of water. However, recent studies of orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs) have shown that this volume does not accurately portray the oral environment. In our study, various tests were conducted with a more moderate amount of water that accurately resembles the oral environment. A simulated wetting test was performed to calculate the water absorption ratio. Results showed that wetting was comparable to disintegration. Although the wetting test worked for most types of ODTs, it had limitations that produced inaccurate results. This led to the use of a modified shaking water bath test. This test was found to work for all types of ODT products and was not subject to the limitations of the wetting test. The shake test could provide disintegration times rather than water permeation times; however, it could not be used to calculate the water absorption ratio. A strong correlation was observed between the standardized shake test and the USP disintegration times for the tablets. This shake test could be used during the development stages and quality tests for ODTs with relative ease. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effect of modeled absolute timing variability and relative timing variability on observational learning.

PubMed

Grierson, Lawrence E M; Roberts, James W; Welsher, Arthur M

2017-05-01

There is much evidence to suggest that skill learning is enhanced by skill observation. Recent research on this phenomenon indicates a benefit of observing variable/erred demonstrations. In this study, we explore whether it is variability within the relative organization or absolute parameterization of a movement that facilitates skill learning through observation. To do so, participants were randomly allocated into groups that observed a model with no variability, absolute timing variability, relative timing variability, or variability in both absolute and relative timing. All participants performed a four-segment movement pattern with specific absolute and relative timing goals prior to and following the observational intervention, as well as in a 24h retention test and transfers tests that featured new relative and absolute timing goals. Absolute timing error indicated that all groups initially acquired the absolute timing, maintained their performance at 24h retention, and exhibited performance deterioration in both transfer tests. Relative timing error revealed that the observation of no variability and relative timing variability produced greater performance at the post-test, 24h retention and relative timing transfer tests, but for the no variability group, deteriorated at absolute timing transfer test. The results suggest that the learning of absolute timing following observation unfolds irrespective of model variability. However, the learning of relative timing benefits from holding the absolute features constant, while the observation of no variability partially fails in transfer. We suggest learning by observing no variability and variable/erred models unfolds via similar neural mechanisms, although the latter benefits from the additional coding of information pertaining to movements that require a correction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Characterization of Vertical Impact Device Acceleration Pulses Using Parametric Assessment: Phase IV Dual Impact Pulses

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-01-04

response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining...configurations with a restrained manikin, was evaluated in four different test series . Test Series 1 was conducted to determine the materials and...5 ms TTP. Test Series 2 was conducted to determine the materials and drop heights required for energy attenuation of the seat pan to generate a 4 m

Field-evaluation of a new lateral flow assay for detection of cellular and humoral immunity against Mycobacterium leprae.

PubMed

Bobosha, Kidist; Tjon Kon Fat, Elisa M; van den Eeden, Susan J F; Bekele, Yonas; van der Ploeg-van Schip, Jolien J; de Dood, Claudia J; Dijkman, Karin; Franken, Kees L M C; Wilson, Louis; Aseffa, Abraham; Spencer, John S; Ottenhoff, Tom H M; Corstjens, Paul L A M; Geluk, Annemieke

2014-05-01

Field-applicable tests detecting asymptomatic Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) infection or predicting progression to leprosy, are urgently required. Since the outcome of M. leprae infection is determined by cellular- and humoral immunity, we aim to develop diagnostic tests detecting pro-/anti-inflammatory and regulatory cytokines as well as antibodies against M. leprae. Previously, we developed lateral flow assays (LFA) for detection of cytokines and anti-PGL-I antibodies. Here we evaluate progress of newly developed LFAs for applications in resource-poor settings. The combined diagnostic value of IP-10, IL-10 and anti-PGL-I antibodies was tested using M. leprae-stimulated blood of leprosy patients and endemic controls (EC). For reduction of the overall test-to-result time the minimal whole blood assay time required to detect distinctive responses was investigated. To accommodate LFAs for field settings, dry-format LFAs for IP-10 and anti-PGL-I antibodies were developed allowing storage and shipment at ambient temperatures. Additionally, a multiplex LFA-format was applied for simultaneous detection of anti-PGL-I antibodies and IP-10. For improved sensitivity and quantitation upconverting phosphor (UCP) reporter technology was applied in all LFAs. Single and multiplex UCP-LFAs correlated well with ELISAs. The performance of dry reagent assays and portable, lightweight UCP-LF strip readers indicated excellent field-robustness. Notably, detection of IP-10 levels in stimulated samples allowed a reduction of the whole blood assay time from 24 h to 6 h. Moreover, IP-10/IL-10 ratios in unstimulated plasma differed significantly between patients and EC, indicating the feasibility to identify M. leprae infection in endemic areas. Dry-format UCP-LFAs are low-tech, robust assays allowing detection of relevant cytokines and antibodies in response to M. leprae in the field. The high levels of IP-10 and the required shorter whole blood assay time, render this cytokine useful to discriminate between leprosy patients and EC.

Field-Evaluation of a New Lateral Flow Assay for Detection of Cellular and Humoral Immunity against Mycobacterium leprae

PubMed Central

Bobosha, Kidist; Tjon Kon Fat, Elisa M.; van den Eeden, Susan J. F.; Bekele, Yonas; van der Ploeg-van Schip, Jolien J.; de Dood, Claudia J.; Dijkman, Karin; Franken, Kees L. M. C.; Wilson, Louis; Aseffa, Abraham; Spencer, John S.; Ottenhoff, Tom H. M.; Corstjens, Paul L. A. M.; Geluk, Annemieke

2014-01-01

Background Field-applicable tests detecting asymptomatic Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) infection or predicting progression to leprosy, are urgently required. Since the outcome of M. leprae infection is determined by cellular- and humoral immunity, we aim to develop diagnostic tests detecting pro-/anti-inflammatory and regulatory cytokines as well as antibodies against M. leprae. Previously, we developed lateral flow assays (LFA) for detection of cytokines and anti-PGL-I antibodies. Here we evaluate progress of newly developed LFAs for applications in resource-poor settings. Methods The combined diagnostic value of IP-10, IL-10 and anti-PGL-I antibodies was tested using M. leprae-stimulated blood of leprosy patients and endemic controls (EC). For reduction of the overall test-to-result time the minimal whole blood assay time required to detect distinctive responses was investigated. To accommodate LFAs for field settings, dry-format LFAs for IP-10 and anti-PGL-I antibodies were developed allowing storage and shipment at ambient temperatures. Additionally, a multiplex LFA-format was applied for simultaneous detection of anti-PGL-I antibodies and IP-10. For improved sensitivity and quantitation upconverting phosphor (UCP) reporter technology was applied in all LFAs. Results Single and multiplex UCP-LFAs correlated well with ELISAs. The performance of dry reagent assays and portable, lightweight UCP-LF strip readers indicated excellent field-robustness. Notably, detection of IP-10 levels in stimulated samples allowed a reduction of the whole blood assay time from 24 h to 6 h. Moreover, IP-10/IL-10 ratios in unstimulated plasma differed significantly between patients and EC, indicating the feasibility to identify M. leprae infection in endemic areas. Conclusions Dry-format UCP-LFAs are low-tech, robust assays allowing detection of relevant cytokines and antibodies in response to M. leprae in the field. The high levels of IP-10 and the required shorter whole blood assay time, render this cytokine useful to discriminate between leprosy patients and EC. PMID:24810599

[Waiting time for the first colposcopic examination in women with abnormal Papanicolaou test].

PubMed

Nascimento, Maria Isabel do; Rabelo, Irene Machado Moraes Alvarenga; Cardoso, Fabrício Seabra Polidoro; Musse, Ricardo Neif Vieira

2015-08-01

To evaluate the waiting times before obtaining the first colposcopic examination for women with abnormal Papanicolaou smears. Retrospective cohort study conducted on patients who required a colposcopic examination to clarify an abnormal pap test, between 2002 January and 2008 August, in a metropolitan region of Brazil. The waiting times were defined as: Total Waiting Time (interval between the date of the pap test result and the date of the first colposcopic examination); Partial A Waiting Time (interval between the date of the pap test result and the date of referral); Partial B Waiting Time (interval between the date of referral and the date of the first colposcopic examination). Means, medians, relative and absolute frequencies were calculated. The Kruskal-Wallis test and Pearson's chi-square test were used to determine statistical significance. A total of 1,544 women with mean of age of 34 years (SD=12.6 years) were analyzed. Most of them had access to colposcopic examination within 30 days (65.8%) or 60 days (92.8%) from referral. Mean Total Waiting Time, Partial A Waiting Time, and Partial B Waiting Time were 94.5 days (SD=96.8 days), 67.8 days (SD=95.3 days) and 29.2 days (SD=35.1 days), respectively. A large part of the women studied had access to colposcopic examination within 60 days after referral, but Total waiting time was long. Measures to reduce the waiting time for obtaining the first colposcopic examination can help to improve the quality of care in the context of cervical cancer control in the region, and ought to be addressed at the phase between the date of the pap test results and the date of referral to the teaching hospital.

Design and preliminary assessment of Vanderbilt hand exoskeleton.

PubMed

Gasser, Benjamin W; Bennett, Daniel A; Durrough, Christina M; Goldfarb, Michael

2017-07-01

This paper presents the design of a hand exoskeleton intended to enable or facilitate bimanual activities of daily living (ADLs) for individuals with chronic upper extremity hemiparesis resulting from stroke. The paper describes design of the battery-powered, self-contained exoskeleton and presents the results of initial testing with a single subject with hemiparesis from stroke. Specifically, an experiment was conducted requiring the subject to repeatedly remove the lid from a water bottle both with and without the hand exoskeleton. The relative times required to remove the lid from the bottles was considerably lower when using the exoskeleton. Specifically, the average amount of time required to grasp the bottle with the paretic hand without the exoskeleton was 25.9 s, with a standard deviation of 33.5 s, while the corresponding average amount of time required to grasp the bottle with the exoskeleton was 5.1 s, with a standard deviation of 1.9 s. Thus, the task time involving the paretic hand was reduced by a factor of five, while the standard deviation was reduced by a factor of 16.

SU-E-T-785: Using Systems Engineering to Design HDR Skin Treatment Operation for Small Lesions to Enhance Patient Safety

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Saw, C; Baikadi, M; Peters, C

2015-06-15

Purpose: Using systems engineering to design HDR skin treatment operation for small lesions using shielded applicators to enhance patient safety. Methods: Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field that offers formal methodologies to study, design, implement, and manage complex engineering systems as a whole over their life-cycles. The methodologies deal with human work-processes, coordination of different team, optimization, and risk management. The V-model of systems engineering emphasize two streams, the specification and the testing streams. The specification stream consists of user requirements, functional requirements, and design specifications while the testing on installation, operational, and performance specifications. In implementing system engineering tomore » this project, the user and functional requirements are (a) HDR unit parameters be downloaded from the treatment planning system, (b) dwell times and positions be generated by treatment planning system, (c) source decay be computer calculated, (d) a double-check system of treatment parameters to comply with the NRC regulation. These requirements are intended to reduce human intervention to improve patient safety. Results: A formal investigation indicated that the user requirements can be satisfied. The treatment operation consists of using the treatment planning system to generate a pseudo plan that is adjusted for different shielded applicators to compute the dwell times. The dwell positions, channel numbers, and the dwell times are verified by the medical physicist and downloaded into the HDR unit. The decayed source strength is transferred to a spreadsheet that computes the dwell times based on the type of applicators and prescribed dose used. Prior to treatment, the source strength, dwell times, dwell positions, and channel numbers are double-checked by the radiation oncologist. No dosimetric parameters are manually calculated. Conclusion: Systems engineering provides methodologies to effectively design the HDR treatment operation that minimize human intervention and improve patient safety.« less

Application verification research of cloud computing technology in the field of real time aerospace experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wan, Junwei; Chen, Hongyan; Zhao, Jing

2017-08-01

According to the requirements of real-time, reliability and safety for aerospace experiment, the single center cloud computing technology application verification platform is constructed. At the IAAS level, the feasibility of the cloud computing technology be applied to the field of aerospace experiment is tested and verified. Based on the analysis of the test results, a preliminary conclusion is obtained: Cloud computing platform can be applied to the aerospace experiment computing intensive business. For I/O intensive business, it is recommended to use the traditional physical machine.

Gas permeability measurements for film envelope materials

DOEpatents

Ludtka, G.M.; Kollie, T.G.; Watkin, D.C.; Walton, D.G.

1998-05-12

Method and apparatus for measuring the permeability of polymer film materials such as used in super-insulation powder-filled evacuated panels (PEPs) reduce the time required for testing from several years to weeks or months. The method involves substitution of a solid non-outgassing body having a free volume of between 0% and 25% of its total volume for the usual powder in the PEP to control the free volume of the ``body-filled panel.`` Pressure versus time data for the test piece permit extrapolation to obtain long term performance of the candidate materials. 4 figs.

Gas permeability measurements for film envelope materials

DOEpatents

Ludtka, Gerard M.; Kollie, Thomas G.; Watkin, David C.; Walton, David G.

1998-01-01

Method and apparatus for measuring the permeability of polymer film materials such as used in super-insulation powder-filled evacuated panels (PEPs) reduce the time required for testing from several years to weeks or months. The method involves substitution of a solid non-outgassing body having a free volume of between 0% and 25% of its total volume for the usual powder in the PEP to control the free volume of the "body-filled panel". Pressure versus time data for the test piece permit extrapolation to obtain long term performance of the candidate materials.

Archetype relational mapping - a practical openEHR persistence solution.

PubMed

Wang, Li; Min, Lingtong; Wang, Rui; Lu, Xudong; Duan, Huilong

2015-11-05

One of the primary obstacles to the widespread adoption of openEHR methodology is the lack of practical persistence solutions for future-proof electronic health record (EHR) systems as described by the openEHR specifications. This paper presents an archetype relational mapping (ARM) persistence solution for the archetype-based EHR systems to support healthcare delivery in the clinical environment. First, the data requirements of the EHR systems are analysed and organized into archetype-friendly concepts. The Clinical Knowledge Manager (CKM) is queried for matching archetypes; when necessary, new archetypes are developed to reflect concepts that are not encompassed by existing archetypes. Next, a template is designed for each archetype to apply constraints related to the local EHR context. Finally, a set of rules is designed to map the archetypes to data tables and provide data persistence based on the relational database. A comparison study was conducted to investigate the differences among the conventional database of an EHR system from a tertiary Class A hospital in China, the generated ARM database, and the Node + Path database. Five data-retrieving tests were designed based on clinical workflow to retrieve exams and laboratory tests. Additionally, two patient-searching tests were designed to identify patients who satisfy certain criteria. The ARM database achieved better performance than the conventional database in three of the five data-retrieving tests, but was less efficient in the remaining two tests. The time difference of query executions conducted by the ARM database and the conventional database is less than 130 %. The ARM database was approximately 6-50 times more efficient than the conventional database in the patient-searching tests, while the Node + Path database requires far more time than the other two databases to execute both the data-retrieving and the patient-searching tests. The ARM approach is capable of generating relational databases using archetypes and templates for archetype-based EHR systems, thus successfully adapting to changes in data requirements. ARM performance is similar to that of conventionally-designed EHR systems, and can be applied in a practical clinical environment. System components such as ARM can greatly facilitate the adoption of openEHR architecture within EHR systems.

Time-Motion Analysis of Four Automated Systems for the Detection of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae by Nucleic Acid Amplification Testing.

PubMed

Williams, James A; Eddleman, Laura; Pantone, Amy; Martinez, Regina; Young, Stephen; Van Der Pol, Barbara

2014-08-01

Next-generation diagnostics for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae are available on semi- or fully-automated platforms. These systems require less hands-on time than older platforms and are user friendly. Four automated systems, the ABBOTT m2000 system, Becton Dickinson Viper System with XTR Technology, Gen-Probe Tigris DTS system, and Roche cobas 4800 system, were evaluated for total run time, hands-on time, and walk-away time. All of the systems evaluated in this time-motion study were able to complete a diagnostic test run within an 8-h work shift, instrument setup and operation were straightforward and uncomplicated, and walk-away time ranged from approximately 90 to 270 min in a head-to-head comparison of each system. All of the automated systems provide technical staff with increased time to perform other tasks during the run, offer easy expansion of the diagnostic test menu, and have the ability to increase specimen throughput. © 2013 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening.