Methodology for indexing NASA tech briefs Development and implementation Final report

Methodology for indexing NASA Tech Brief

Indexing NASA programs for technology transfer methods development and feasibility

This project was undertaken to evaluate the application of a previously developed indexing methodology to ongoing NASA programs. These programs are comprehended by the NASA Program Approval Documents (PADS). Each PAD contains a technical plan for the area it covers. It was proposed that these could be used to generate an index to the complete NASA program. To test this hypothesis two PADS were selected by the NASA Technology Utilization Office for trial indexing. Twenty-five individuals indexed the two PADS using NASA Thesaurus terms. The results demonstrated the feasibility of indexing ongoing NASA programs using PADS as the source of information. The same indexing methodology could be applied to other documents containing a brief description of the technical plan. Results of this project showed that over 85% of the concepts in the technology should be covered by the indexing. Also over 85% of the descriptors chosen would be accurate. This completeness and accuracy for the indexing is considered satisfactory for application in technology transfer

Applications of aerospace technology in biology and medicine

Utilization of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) technology in medicine is discussed. The objective is best obtained by stimulation of the introduction of new or improved commercially available medical products incorporating aerospace technology. A bipolar donor/recipient model of medical technology transfer is presented to provide a basis for the team's methodology. That methodology is designed to: (1) identify medical problems and NASA technology that, in combination, constitute opportunities for successful medical products; (2) obtain the early participation of industry in the transfer process; and (3) obtain acceptance by the medical community of new medical products based on NASA technology. Two commercial transfers were completed: the Stowaway, a lightweight wheelchair that provides mobility for the disabled and elderly in the cabin of commercial aircraft, and Micromed, a portable medication infusion pump for the reliable, continuous infusion of medications such as heparin or insulin. The marketing and manufacturing factors critical to the commercialization of the lightweight walker incorporating composite materials were studied. Progress was made in the development and commercialization of each of the 18 currently active projects

Applications of aerospace technology in biology and medicine

Medical products utilizing and incorporating aerospace technology were studied. A bipolar donor-recipient model for medical transfer is presented. The model is designed to: (1) identify medical problems and aerospace technology which constitute opportunities for successful medical products; (2) obtain early participation of industry in the transfer process; and (3) obtain acceptance by medical community of new medical products based on aerospace technology

NASA biomedical applications team. Applications of aerospace technology in biology and medicine

The use of a bipolar donor-recipient model of medical technology transfer is presented. That methodology is designed to: (1) identify medical problems and aerospace technology that in combination constitute opportunities for successful medical products; (2) obtain the early participation of industry in the transfer process; and (3) obtain acceptance by the medical community of new medical products based on aerospace technology. Problem descriptions and activity reports and the results of a market study on the tissue freezing device are presented

Energy Flowmeter Development Phases I and II

An energy flowmeter has been developed and a first prototype successfully tested at a natural gas desulfurization plant. This prototype directly measures the rate of energy delivered to a gas fired furnace without having to separately determine the volumetric flow rate and heating value of the gas. By replacing two measurements with one it is expected to lower the cost of the equipment required, increase reliability, and more accurately measure energy delivered.

Energy Flowmeter Development: Phase I - Gas Sampling Method: Phase II - Prototype Energy Flowmeter

An energy flowmeter has been developed and a first prototype successfully tested at a natural gas desulfurization plant. This prototype directly measures the rate of energy delivered to a gas fired furnace without having to separately determine the volumetric flow rate and heating value of the gas. By replacing two measurements with one it is expected to lower the cost of the equipment required, increase reliability, and more accurately measure energy delivered. The energy flowmeter has two main components. The first component is a flow splitting device which splits the flow into a main stream and a sample stream. The unique requirement of the flow splitter is that the ratio of the two flows must be independent of the Reynolds number in the main stream. This has been achieved for a particular design. The second component burns the sample flow with a stoichiometric quantity of air. This stoichiometric flow is in direct proportion to the energy flow of gas in the main line. The report describes the design and laboratory testing of both of the components as well as their combined operation at a field test site.