International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 23-26, 2000 / Town & Country Hotel and Conference Center, San Diego, California / Telemetry receiving sites at missile test ranges almost always use polarization diversity to maximize the quality of the telemetry signals collected from missiles during developmental tests. If the sites are operating optimally, their sensitivity should be independent of received polarization. In this paper a technique to test the sensitivity of each receiving site is presented that involves radiating from a central location with selectable polarization and precise power level. Results of testing five telemetry sites are presented and compared with performance predicted through link analysis using site G/T and location information.

ITC/USA 2010 Conference Proceedings / The Forty-Sixth Annual International Telemetering Conference and Technical Exhibition / October 25-28, 2010 / Town and Country Resort & Convention Center, San Diego, California / Flight and weapons test ranges typically include multiple Telemetry Sites (TM Sites) that receive telemetry from platforms being flown on the range. Received telemetry is processed and forwarded by them to a Range Control Center (RCC) which is responsible for flight safety, and for delivering captured best source telemetry to those responsible for the platform being flown. When range equipment or operations are impaired in their ability to receive telemetry or process it correctly, expensive and/or one-of-a-kind platforms may have to be destroyed in flight to maintain safety margins, resulting in substantial monetary loss, valuable data loss, schedule disruption and potential safety concerns. Less severe telemetry disruptions can also result in missing or garbled telemetry data, negatively impacting platform test, analysis and design modification cycles. This paper provides a high level overview of a physics-compliant Range Test System (RTS) built upon Radio Frequency (RF) Channel Simulator technology. The system is useful in verifying range operation with most range equipment configured to function as in an actual mission. The system generates RF signals with appropriate RF link effects associated with range and range rate between the flight platform and multiple telemetry tracking stations. It also emulates flight and RF characteristics of the platform, to include signal parameters, antenna modeling, body shielding and accurate flight parameters. The system is useful for hardware, software, firmware and process testing, regression testing, and fault detection test, as well as range customer assurance, and range personnel training against nominal and worst-case conditions.

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the general design and analysis principles of sabots and to develop a sabot design tool. Structures which support and align the models in gun bore, and separate without disturbing the flight path of models are called sabots. In the scope of this study, structurally critical regions and loads acting on sabots due to acceleration in the gun are determined. To calculate the loads acting and to size the sabots, approximate relations are derived by the help of strength of materials approach and finite element solutions. Conventional sabots are investigated and new sabot geometries are designed to resist high accelerations. To achieve the desired test velocity without affecting the stability of the model is the main objective. Sabots should be as light as possible, to reach the desired velocity with minimum inertial load, in other words minimum gun chamber pressure. To obtain the less weight sabot geometry with enough strength to resist the loads acting, a computer tool is developed. Structural analyses are automatically performed by the help of the sabot design tool. The advantage of the design tool is to reduce the design engineer&amp / #8217 / s work time spent for routine analyses processes. The output of the tool, which is sabot geometry, should be evaluated as a result of preliminary design process, and can be used as an input for detailed design process. Detailed geometric modifications required for production can be applied on the tool output, and final product can be manufactured reliably and in the shortest possible time.

The aim of this thesis is to develop a methodology for obtaining an optimum configuration for the aeroballistic range models. In the design of aeroballistic range models, there are mainly three similarity requirements to be matched between the model and the actual munition: external geometry, location of the centre of gravity and the ratio of axial mass moment of inertia to the transverse mass moment of inertia. Furthermore, it is required to have a model with least possible weight, so that the required test velocities can be obtained with minimum chamber pressure and by use of minimum propellant while withstanding the enormous launch accelerations. This defines an optimization problem: to find the optimum model internal configuration and select materials to be used in the model such that the centre of gravity location and the inertia ratio are matched as closely as possible while the model withstands the launch forces and has minimum mass. To solve this problem a design methodology is devised and an optimization code is developed based on this methodology. Length, radius and end location of an optimum cylinder which has to be drilled out from the model are selected as the design variables for the optimization problem. Built&ndash / in functions from the Optimization Toolbox of Matlab&reg / are used in the optimization routine, and also a graphical user interface is designed for easy access to the design variables. The developed code is a very useful tool for the designer, although the results are not meant to be directly applied to the final product, they form the starting points for the detailed design.

Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle is a tree native to Asia that was intentionally introduced into the United States in the late eighteenth century. Ailanthus altissima has become an invasive species that has spread throughout most of North America. Lack of effective management tactics for suppression of A. altissima has lead to alternate control methods. Investigations into using biological control with the weevil Eucryptorrhynchus brandti were initiated in 2004. Studies were conducted to understand the general biology of E. brandti, rearing efficacy, and host specificity. Eucryptorrhynchus brandti is univoltine, has a life cycle similar to the closely related species Cryptorhynchus lapathi (L.), with 6 instars, and completes development in 126 ± 6.5 d at 25°C. Efficient egg to adult rearing was accomplished by caging 12 m and 12 f for 7 days on 23 – 92 cm long billets. Males and females can be differentiated by the structure of the metathoracic sternite and 1st abdominal segment. Host specificity experiments show that E. brandti preferentially feeds on North American A. altissima when tested against 29 species from 14 families. Larval development in the rare species Leitneria floridana Chapm. was apparent. Additional studies show that A. altissima does not occur across L. floridana distribution but may have the potential to invade L. floridana sites. / Ph. D.