Contact Information

• C. Brickell
  
  

General Research Facilities

• Anechoic Chamber
• Drafting & Design
• High Pressure Testing
• Instrumentation
• Machining
• Modeling
• Navigation
• Tunnels

Program-Specific Facilities

• Acoustics Research
  • Acoustic Reverberant Tank
  • Acoustic Test Tank
• Computing Services
• Environmental
• Scanning Laser Vibrometry
• Materials Processing
• Pump Loop Facility
• Nuclear
• Vehicle Test Range
  

precision model and instrumentation shop

5 Axis Machining

The test facilities at ARL Penn State require the fabrication of precision model test hardware. In addition to the standard machine shop tools, the Laboratory operates a four-axis and two five-axis computer numerically controlled (CNC) milling machines, a CNC lathe, a coordinate measuring machine (CMM), and a large five-axis CNC machine capable of machining parts up to four feet in diameter.

These machines are capable of fabricating propulsor hardware directly from the designers computer-based CAD/CAM system and then comparing the finished surfaces with the design database. The CAD/CAM system is based on the current version of UNIGRAPHICS. In conjunction with our integrated design approach, model fabrication also takes advantage of applicable laser welding and composite material fabrication capabilities resident in other areas of the Laboratory.

Operating effective fluid dynamics facilities requires such advanced instrumentation and data acquisition techniques as the measurement of three-dimensional flow fields using both laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) and pressure probes; the measurement of steady and unsteady forces; and the visualization of the flows. Some of the precision instrumentation is manufactured and calibrated in-house, including the miniature five-hole pressure probes used to measure the total and static pressures and all three components of velocity. A menu-driven computerized system provides the capability to acquire the low-frequency output signals of transducers and strain gauge elements used for the measurement of time-mean pressures and forces. Acoustic data is acquired via multichannel dynamic signal analyzers directly and/or indirectly via tape recorders. The reduction and display of large volumes of data is facilitated through data acquisition and reduction software such as HP-VEE, MATLAB, and AXUM.