Railplug Ignition System for Enhanced Engine Performance and Reduced Maintenance

During the first 18 months of this project, four experimental subtasks were to have begun but only one of these was to have been completed. Additionally, five modeling subtasks were scheduled to begin, four of which were to have been completed. We are on schedule for all but one of these subtasks. All four experimental tasks are progressing on schedule. Initial durability tests were completed. The conclusions drawn from this first round of durability tests are being used to design the next set of tests. Initial baseline engine data were acquired and showed that the engine selected for this task behaves as hoped. However, the dyno controller is inadequate. The engine will be moved to another dyno during the near future. The modeling tasks are also progressing well. A model for the dynamic response of the ignition circuit was developed and validated. Two technical papers resulting from this model were submitted for publication. Development of a model for the railplug ignition process was begun but was not scheduled for completion. Progress on this task consisted of two subtasks. First, a railplug circuit model was also developed and validated. Second, a model was developed for the physics that govern railplug performance. This initial model incorporated only the effects of the Lorentz force on arc movement. From this model, it is concluded that thermal expansion is important to the performance of railplugs. Thermal expansion, and other physical effects, will be added to the model in the near future. We delayed the development of a 3D model for the ignition process, until near the end of the project because of the computational time requirements. We can learn most of the important lessons from the 2D model. Delay of this subtask will not affect the timely completion of the project

Offset in a post-Brexit world

Prior to the launch of the European Procurement Directive, the UK’s erstwhile offset model was hailed a success. However, the directive compelled the UK to abandon its approach as the intention of the European Commission was to suppress and eventually remove offset from Europe’s defence-industrial landscape. Ron Matthews and Jonata Anicetti explain that Brexit has uncoupled UK defence procurement from the directive, creating the opportunity to reintroduce an industrial participation (IP) policy. Indeed, the Ministry of Defence has already taken the first tentative steps, as revealed in its March 2021 Defence and Security Industrial Strategy. This raises the question as to whether a ‘version 2.0’ IP policy will build on the original model’s success, and similarly reflect cooperation rather than coercion

Made in China: an emerging brand in the global arms market

Possession of a brand is a sine qua non for economic success, not least because it connotes trust in delivering the value promised. Although Western arms exporters offer branded systems whose sales are influenced by price, there is a plethora of other economic variables, such as offset requirements and life-cycle support. Entrants to the international arms market will struggle without such arms “packages.” China’s entry, however, goes beyond the traditional economic paradigm. A four-stage historical model offers the backdrop for identifying the drivers that have forged its market entry into 55 countries worldwide. The strategy initially focused on sales of rudimentary military equipment for political purposes, but recently it has begun to commercialize exports, repositioning them from a low- to a high-tech sales trajectory. A Sino “brand” is thus emerging, reflecting both competitiveness and diplomatic considerations, especially non-interference in client state domestic affairs

The role of offset in the enduring gestation of Indonesia’s strategic industries

The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of Indonesia’s informal offset policy over the period 1976-2014. The paper offers four original academic perspectives: firstly, it is framed by reference to what Indonesia’s former Minister of Technology, Dr Habibie, described as the Progressive Manufacturing Plan, a novel approach in which offset was intended to play a critical supportive role in the systematic development of strategic civil-military industries; secondly, the analysis is structured into three distinctive ‘development-survival-revival’ industrialisation stages that impacted on the performance of both offset and the broader defence economy; thirdly, the study is uniquely different in the sense that the offset case studies all occurred in an era absent of a formal offset policy regime; and lastly, the study provides a wealth of rich data in a subject field well-known for its sensitivity, if not secrecy, and thus is characterised by a paucity of empirical evaluation

A CT Database for Research, Development and Education: Concept and Potential

Both in radiology and in surgery, numerous applications are emerging that enable 3D visualization of data from various imaging modalities. In clinical practice, the patient's images are analyzed on work stations in the Radiology Department. For specific preclinical and educational applications, however, data from single patients are insufficient. Instead, similar scans from a number of individuals within a collective must be compiled. The definition of standardized acquisition procedures and archiving formats are prerequisite for subsequent analysis of multiple data sets. Focusing on bone morphology, we describe our concept of a computer database of 3D human bone models obtained from computed tomography (CT) scans. We further discuss and illustrate deployment areas ranging from prosthesis design, over virtual operation simulation up to 3D anatomy atlases. The database of 3D bone models described in this work, created and maintained by the AO Development Institute, may be accessible to research institutes on reques

Operational resilience in the business-battle space

The purpose of this paper is to explore the interconnectivity between defence, security, and business, particularly when viewed through the prism of operational resilience. The standard stereotype depicts the military acting as a harbinger of destruction while business represents the motive force of wealth generation. This is too simplistic, however. Militaries fight wars, but they also make an important contribution to addressing the expanding array of non-traditional threats that form part of national security, including wildfires, floods, earthquakes and, of course, pandemics, such as COVID-19. The military’s physical resources, attitudinal robustness, and rigorous planning regimes represent three of the more important dimensions of military operational resilience. Mutual commercial-military benefits can be gained via a “two-way” street in the adoption of best-practice resilience solutions. There is a recognition that just as military resource managers can learn from business, so equally can business learn from the military. The U.K. case is offered to illustrate the principles, policies, and practices of military operational resilience

Evaluation of ‘learning’ as a main thrust in transferor‐transferee relationships: small satellite technology transfer collaborative projects between developed and developing countries ‐ the case of Algeria

This article focuses on the transferor‐transferee relationship in the context of technology transfer collaborative projects between developed and developing countries. The case of the Algerian satellite industry, which utilized three small satellite collaborative projects with foreign companies over twenty years in order to acquire technology from abroad, has been used as an empirical study. The study evaluates transferor‐transferee relationships when small satellite collaborative projects are used as a technology transfer mechanism. It assesses whether technology transfer effectiveness or ‘learning’ is mutually understood by the two key transferor and transferee actors. It identifies a potential schism when transferor motives are often economic (business-oriented) whilst transferee motives are non-economic, aiming to learn and develop local capabilities for national developmental objectives. The study reveals that this initial non-alignment of objectives led to the adoption of a transfer mechanism where learning is not the main thrust. The principal finding extrapolated from this research is that this inadequacy is rooted in the fact that Algerians had not clearly dissociated the objective of ‘satellite technological learning’ from that of ‘satellite applications’. Recommendations for future research include the need to clearly prioritize the objective of ‘technological learning’ to avoid confusion as to the transfer mechanisms to adopt

Systemic experiential learning model for the evaluation of technological learning: the case of small satellite capability-building in Algeria

This article proposes a ‘systemic experiential learning model’ for the evaluation of technological learning. Technological learning is effective when combining learning by doing, by searching and by interacting. The proposed model is based on parallels drawn between the typology – learning by doing, by searching and by interacting – and Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory through its cyclical combination of action and reflection. It argues that learners, whether they be individuals, groups, organizations or inter-organizations, are more effective when completing Kolb-like cycles. The proposed model is the combination of horizontal and vertical processes. Each learning level (individual, group, organization or inter-organization) is modelled, horizontally, according to a Kolb-like learning cycle. Vertical connections are made between the horizontal levels of aggregation by borrowing March’s concepts of exploration and exploitation. The model has been used for the evaluation of learning occurring in the Algerian small satellite capability-building programme. The implementation of the model revealed that learning is not systemic and therefore ineffective. Findings are reflective of the difficulty of striking the right balance between action (learning by doing) and reflection (learning by searching) and densifying interactions (learning by interacting) within and between learning levels

Evaluation of knowledge flow from developed to developing countries in small satellite collaborative projects: the case of Algeria

Technology transfer involves the flow of knowledge from technology developers or possessors to technology acquirers that benefit from the knowledge. This article proposes a model for the evaluation of knowledge flow in complex technology transfer projects from developed to developing countries. The proposed knowledge flow model is built by combining the concepts of knowledge viscosity and velocity with the concepts of architectural and component knowledge. The model rests on the idea that the transfer of knowledge to resource-limited organizations such as those in developing countries requires a balance between viscosity and velocity on one hand and between architectural and component knowledge on the other. The knowledge flow model has been tested on data sourced from three Earth-observation small satellite collaborative projects leveraged by Algeria to acquire small satellite technology from abroad and build local capability. The implementation of the model revealed that the collaborative projects enabled only the acquisition of a shallow form of architectural knowledge detached from the local environment. The findings are reflective of the limitations of the collaborative projects mechanism and the challenge faced by the technology acquirer to strike the appropriate component/architectural and viscosity/velocity balance

Thermal Testing of a Stacked Core Mirror for UV Applications

The ASTRO2010 Decadal Survey stated that an advanced large-aperture ultraviolet, optical, near-infrared (UVOIR) telescope is required to enable the next generation of compelling astrophysics and exoplanet science; and, that present technology is not mature enough to affordably build and launch any potential UVOIR mission concept. Under Science and Technology funding, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and ITT Exelis have developed a more cost effective process to make 4m monolithic spaceflight UV quality, low areal density, thermally and dynamically stable primary mirrors. A proof of concept mirror was built and tested down to 250K which would allow imaging out to 2.5 microns. This mirror was thermally tested at the Marshall Spaceflight Center to understand the thermal changes between the processing temperature of 293K and the potential low end of the operational temperature of 250K. Isothermal testing results and front plate gradient results have been evaluated and compared to analysis predictions. Measurement of gravity effects on surface figure will be compared to analytical predictions. Future testing of a larger Pathfinder mirror will also be discussed