STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS TESTING

 

Introduction:  The Vibration Laboratory provides all necessary services and equipment to perform shock and vibration testing of spacecraft and subsystems. Digital control systems provide sinusoidal, random, and transient waveform control to four separate electro-dynamic exciters. All exciters are rigidly mounted to very large reaction masses that are isolated from the building. Digital data acquisition systems condition and record accelerometer, force, and strain gage signals. A small machine shop with drill press, milling machine, and band saw is available for simple fixture fabrication.

 

Control System:  Two control rooms equipped with a state-of-the-art m+p Vibration Controllers provide excitation signals to the exciters. The controllers are capable of putting out sine, random, and various transient waveforms (sine burst, classical shock, and SRS shock). The controllers have VXI front ends that are configured with 32-channels each. The control rooms are also equipped with digital data recorders (to record time history data), vibration limiters (to provide secondary vibration limiting protection) and response intrumentation conditioning equipment.

 

Highlights include:

• Acoustic test facility is comprosed of a 39' x 27' x 42' reverberation chamber, acoustic horns, 8 microphones, noise generators, control console, and data handling system that adjusts the sound pressure level to the required spectrum

• Mass properties measurement facility measures hardware weight, center of gravity (CG), moment of inertia (MOI), and product of inertia (POI)

• Modal survey test facility measures dynamic response characteristics of aerospace structures

• Static load testing for strength qualification

• Vibration test equipment utilizes electro-dynamic exciters to apply the force and ampliciation required for shock and vibration testing

• High capacity centrifuge used for strength testing has a nominal test radius of 60; and maxium acceleration forces of 30g

 

Click on any facility photo below for more detailed information/specifications

Facility 402:  Universal Static Test Facility

 

Description:  The Universal Static Test Facility is a structural steel framework designed for the application of multiple, individual static loads to large spacecraft-sized test items and payload handling assemblies.

 

Infinite mounting arrangements of hydraulic actuators allow simultaneous manually-controlled loading at over 20 locations.

 

Instrumentation including load cells, strain gages, and displacement transducers can be installed, connected to, and monitored by a 600-channel Vishay System 5000 Data Acquisition System.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 402 specifications)

Facility 403:  Modal Test Facility

 

Description:  The Modal Test Facility at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is used to measure dynamic response characteristics of aerospace structures. Test Items are mounted to the facility seismic block via a T-Slot table to simulate a fixed boundary condition. The facility is serviced by three bridge cranes that provide a convenient method of supporting up to four electro-dynamic shakers. The facility is supported by a digital data acquisition system that has the capability to simultaneously record raw data time signals while processing the data into spectrums, FRF's, and coherence functions in real time. Post-test curve fitting algorithms within the modal software extract the estimated modal parameters from the test data.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 403 specifications)

Facility 406:  High Capacity Centrifuge (HCC)

 

Description:  The High Capacity Centrifuge (HCC) at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is used to simulate launch and landing loads on spacecraft hardware. Test items are installed on a test platform at the end of the arm. The platform utilizes a tilt fixture that will position the payload into the desired test orientation (clocking and tilt). The device is capable of tilting a payload up to 12,000 lbs. The facility is serviced by a 7.5 ton crane. The HCC is capable of being driven by either one or two 1250 hp (0.93 Mw) DC motors operated in conjunction with a motor generator set.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 406 specifications)

Facility 409:  Unholtz-Dickie T4000-2 Shaker

 

Description:  The Vibration Laboratory provides all necessary services and equipment to perform shock and vibration testing of spacecraft and subsystems. Digital control systems provide sinusoidial, random, and transient waveform control to four seperate electro-dynamic exciters. All exciters are rigidly mounted to very large reaction masses that are isolated from the building. Digital data acquisition systems condition and record accelerometer, force, and strain gage signals. A small machine shop with drill press, milling machine, and band saw is available for simple fixture fabrication.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 409 specifications)

Facility 410:  Unholtz-Dickie T4000-3 Shaker

 

Description:  The Vibration Laboratory provides all necessary services and equipment to perform shock and vibration testing of spacecraft and subsystems. Digital control systems provide sinusoidial, random, and transient waveform control to four seperate electro-dynamic exciters. All exciters are rigidly mounted to very large reaction masses that are isolated from the building. Digital data acquisition systems condition and record accelerometer, force, and strain gage signals. A small machine shop with drill press, milling machine, and band saw is available for simple fixture fabrication.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 410 specifications)

 

Facility 411:  Unholtz-Dickie T2000-3 Shaker

 

Description:  The Vibration Laboratory provides all necessary services and equipment to perform shock and vibration testing of spacecraft and subsystems. Digital control systems provide sinusoidial, random, and transient waveform control to four seperate electro-dynamic exciters. All exciters are rigidly mounted to very large reaction masses that are isolated from the building. Digital data acquisition systems condition and record accelerometer, force, and strain gage signals. A small machine shop with drill press, milling machine, and band saw is available for simple fixture fabrication.

 

Rental Rate:  Inquire

(Facility 411 specifications)