Preliminary Measurements of the Motion of Arcjet Current Channel Using Inductive Magnetic Probes

This paper covers the design and first measurements of non-perturbative, external inductive magnetic diagnostics for arcjet constrictors which can measure the motion of the arc current channel. These measurements of arc motion are motivated by previous simulations using the ARC Heater Simulator (ARCHeS), which predicted unsteady arc motion due to the magnetic kink instability. Measurements of the kink instability are relevant to characterizing motion of the enthalpy profile of the arcjet, the arcjet operational stability, and electrode damage due to associated arc detachment events. These first measurements indicate 4 mm oscillations at 0.5-2 kHz of the current profile

Investigating the consistency of woodwind instrument manufacturing by comparing five nominally identical oboes

For large-scale woodwind instrument makers, producing instruments with exactly the same playing characteristics is a constant aim. This paper explores manufacturing consistency by comparing five Howarth S10 student model oboes. Psychophysical testing involving nine musicians is carried out to investigate perceived differences in the playing properties of the two Howarth oboes believed to be most dissimilar. Further testing, involving one musician and combinations of the five oboes, provides information regarding the relative playabilities of the instruments at specific pitches. Meanwhile, input impedance measurements are made on the five oboes for fingerings throughout the playing range and their bore profiles are measured. The main findings are (i) the two instruments used in the preliminary psychophysical testing are perceived as identical by most of the musicians, although differences are identified by two players when playing the note F6 and by one player when playing in the lowest register, (ii) a variation in the playability of F6 across the five oboes is due to differences in the elevation of the C key, and (iii) variations in the playing properties in the lowest register are related to input impedance differences which, in turn, appear to be at least partly due to bore profile differences

Active control applied to wind instruments

Musicians have always been interested in the evolution of their instruments. This evolution might be done either to adapt an instrument’s quality to musicians’ and composers’ needs, or to enable it to produce new sounds. In this study, we want to control the sound quality and playability of wind instruments, using modal active control. The modal active control makes it possible to modify the input impedance (frequency, gain and damping) of these instruments and to modify the instrument’s quality. The simulations for a first experiment are presented here. We simulate a control of the modes (frequency, damping) of a cylinder, which is considered as a simple ”wind instrument”. We consider the use of a microphone, a speaker, an observer and a controller to modify theses modes, then we look at the modifications on the sound and playability using Modalys. Our next goal will be to apply the control to a real cylinder, and to evaluate it in a musical context with a musician

Simulations of modal active control applied to the self-sustained oscillations of the clarinet

Modal active control enables modifications of the damping and the frequencies of the different resonances of a system. A self-sustained oscillating wind instrument is modelled as a disturbance coupled to a resonator through a non-linear coupling. The aim of this study is to present simulations of modal active control applied to a modeled simplified self-sustained oscillating wind instrument (e.g. a cylindrical tube coupled to a reed, which is considered to approximate a simplified clarinet), incorporating collocated speaker, microphone and a reed. The next goal will be to apply this control experimentally and to test it with musicians

An active mute for the trombone

A mute is a device that is placed in the bell of a brass instrument to alter its sound. However, when a straight mute is used with a brass instrument, the frequencies of its first impedance peaks are slightly modified, and a mistuned, extra impedance peak appears. This peak affects the instrument’s playability, making some lower notes difficult or impossible to produce when playing at low dynamic levels. To understand and suppress this effect, an active mute with embedded microphone and speaker has been developed. A control loop with gain and phase shifting is used to control the damping and frequency of the extra impedance peak. The stability of the controlled system is studied and then the effect of the control on the input impedance and radiated sound of the trombone is investigated. It is shown that the playability problem results from a decrease in the input impedance magnitude at the playing frequency, caused by a trough located on the low frequency side of the extra impedance peak. When the extra impedance peak is suppressed, the playability of the note is restored. Meanwhile, when the extra impedance peak is moved in frequency, the playability problem position is shifted as well

Simulations of modal active control applied to the self-sustained oscillations of the clarinet.

This paper reports a new approach to modifying the sound produced by a wind instrument. The approach is based on modal active control, which enables adjustment of the damping and the frequencies of the different resonances of a system. A self-sustained oscillating wind instrument can be modeled as an excitation source coupled to a resonator via a non-linear coupling. The aim of this study is to present simulations of modal active control applied to a modeled self-sustained oscillating wind instrument in order to modify its playing properties. The modeled instrument comprises a cylindrical tube coupled to a reed and incorporates a collocated loudspeaker and microphone; it can thus be considered to approximate a simplified clarinet. Modifications of the pitch, the strength of the harmonics of the sound produced by the instrument, and of the oscillation threshold are obtained while controlling the first two resonances of the modeled instrument

Significance of DSMC Computed Aerothermal Environments in the Rarefied Regime for Atmospheric Entry Material Response

During Mars atmospheric entry, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) was protected by a 4.5 meters diameter ablative heatshield assembled in 113 tiles. The heatshield was made of NASA's flagship ablative material, the Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA). Prior work compared the traditional one-dimensional and three-dimensional material response models at different locations in the heatshield. It was observed that the flow was basically one-dimensional in the nose and flank regions, but three-dimensional flow effects were observed in the outer flank. The objective of this work is to study the effects of the aerothermal environment on the material response. We extend prior work by computing aerothermal environments using the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) code SPARTA and the CFD code Data Parallel Line Relaxation (DPLR). SPARTA is used to compute environment in the rarefied regime prior to 48.4s of entry where the Knudsen number is such that the Navier-Stokes equations can be inaccurate. Similarly to previous work, the DPLR software is used to compute the hypersonic environment for laminar then turbulent boundary layer assumptions from 48.4 s up to 100 s after Entry Interface (EI) along the MSL 08-TPS-02/01a trajectory. We observe that extending the aerothermal environments to times prior to 48.4 s modifies the thermal response of the heat shield at the surface and in-depth; however the effects on the recession are minimal. Additionally, using the assumption of a turbulent boundary layer versus a laminar one leads to higher surface and in-depth temperatures, larger recession, and a displacement of the peak heating and peak recession location