{snip}The challenge will be to balance what is needed with what you could have, swamping the system with data which is not strictly necessary to carrying out the core tasks. The classic mistake in this area was during Shuttle testing where there were issues around the tail flap. Unfortunately the instrumentation engineers had only budgeted about 1 sample per second for this to measure angle ( I think this was it could only be commanded to change angle quite slowly). However aerodynamic forces were large and the actual movement (as forced by the airflow) could be much faster. In principal modern bus speeds should mean there will always be spare capacity to increase data rates if something needs faster sampling below the hardware design limit of the ADC. More precision will likely need a new converter board.But at the back of my mind I'm thinking "640KB, more than enough for any computer program home users will ever need" .
Packet networks run best when keep below 1/3 full. The other 2/3 can then be used to automatically sort out any congestion and empty the buffers after a data burst.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-tail_traffic#cite_note-r16-18A satellite may operate with a constant data input but launch vehicles do not. LV do things like sitting on the launch pads for hours and then starting all their engines at the same time.
BAE buys 20% stake in Reaction EnginesFinancial Times story here http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a25d2798-7f1b-11e5-98fb-5a6d4728f74e.htmlI appreciate most people won't have an FT account, so the main points of the article:- BAE Systems agree to buy a 20% stake in Reaction Engines Ltd worth £20.6m, which entitles them to a seat on the board and a position as "preferred supplier".- The investment in REL will unlock a further £60m grant package from the UK government.- However, the group has had to scale back its ambitions for a test engine in order to clinch the funding deal.- The group now has "no immediate funding needs".
Quote from: topsphere on 11/01/2015 09:42 pm- BAE Systems agree to buy a 20% stake in Reaction Engines Ltd worth £20.6m, which entitles them to a seat on the board and a position as "preferred supplier".Well that must be the bargain of the century. Given REL's potential to own a multi billion dollar industry plus it's significantly valuable IP which has wide commercial applications a valuation of 100 million pounds seems a little low.
- BAE Systems agree to buy a 20% stake in Reaction Engines Ltd worth £20.6m, which entitles them to a seat on the board and a position as "preferred supplier".
How far back are they scaling the test engine work though? That might hurt more than the funding help...
The refrigeration technology may permit spinoffs. I wonder if there are any none aerospace applications that need rapid cooling to cryogenic temperatures?
I agree that the valuation seems a little low, maybe there is something behind the scenes we are not being told about? I find the section saying this deal has secured BAE as "preferred supplier" for REL very interesting, they must be favourites to build the airframe now??Also agreed that this is potentially very big news, as an aside it might be time soon to move these threads out of "Advanced Concepts", it seems a bit harsh on REL that they are in the same bracket as EM Drive and rotating space stations, despite developing into a very respectable company. Oh, and the BBC's decision to call them just "Reaction" annoyed me a little, but that's just me being cranky
Quote from: topsphere on 11/02/2015 12:01 amI agree that the valuation seems a little low, maybe there is something behind the scenes we are not being told about? I find the section saying this deal has secured BAE as "preferred supplier" for REL very interesting, they must be favourites to build the airframe now??Also agreed that this is potentially very big news, as an aside it might be time soon to move these threads out of "Advanced Concepts", it seems a bit harsh on REL that they are in the same bracket as EM Drive and rotating space stations, despite developing into a very respectable company. Oh, and the BBC's decision to call them just "Reaction" annoyed me a little, but that's just me being cranky :)Please don't throw around my concept is more respectable than your concept, as it ill becomes this part of the forum.
I agree that the valuation seems a little low, maybe there is something behind the scenes we are not being told about? I find the section saying this deal has secured BAE as "preferred supplier" for REL very interesting, they must be favourites to build the airframe now??Also agreed that this is potentially very big news, as an aside it might be time soon to move these threads out of "Advanced Concepts", it seems a bit harsh on REL that they are in the same bracket as EM Drive and rotating space stations, despite developing into a very respectable company. Oh, and the BBC's decision to call them just "Reaction" annoyed me a little, but that's just me being cranky :)
Quote from: A_M_Swallow on 11/02/2015 04:01 amThe refrigeration technology may permit spinoffs. I wonder if there are any none aerospace applications that need rapid cooling to cryogenic temperatures?The heat exchanger work miiiiight be applicable to recuperated jet engines, as some of the more advanced ultrahigh bypass ratio turbofan deigns are considering recuperation. Notably MTU, which had a ducted geared counterrotating propfan engine with recuperation (CLAIRE, CRISP, and NEWAC programs). Though that's dealing with turbine exhaust and compressor heat with an all air medium.
Quote from: Asteroza on 11/02/2015 04:30 amQuote from: A_M_Swallow on 11/02/2015 04:01 amThe refrigeration technology may permit spinoffs. I wonder if there are any none aerospace applications that need rapid cooling to cryogenic temperatures?The heat exchanger work miiiiight be applicable to recuperated jet engines, as some of the more advanced ultrahigh bypass ratio turbofan deigns are considering recuperation. Notably MTU, which had a ducted geared counterrotating propfan engine with recuperation (CLAIRE, CRISP, and NEWAC programs). Though that's dealing with turbine exhaust and compressor heat with an all air medium.I wonder how well it might work in suppressing IR signatures - if that's even not a ridiculous suggestion. Perhaps even being able to do so for a short time might be helpful.
The working partnership will draw on BAE Systems’ extensive aerospace technology development and project management expertise and will provide Reaction Engines with access to critical industrial, technical and capital resources to progress towards the demonstration of a ground based engine – a key milestone in the development of the technology.
Quote from: lkm on 11/01/2015 11:03 pmQuote from: topsphere on 11/01/2015 09:42 pm- BAE Systems agree to buy a 20% stake in Reaction Engines Ltd worth £20.6m, which entitles them to a seat on the board and a position as "preferred supplier".Well that must be the bargain of the century. Given REL's potential to own a multi billion dollar industry plus it's significantly valuable IP which has wide commercial applications a valuation of 100 million pounds seems a little low.The obvious conclusion is that no big industry partner believed the odds of REL owning a multi-billion dollar industry were high. Value equals size of payoff times probability of achieving the payoff.
Quote from: Asteroza on 11/02/2015 12:05 amHow far back are they scaling the test engine work though? That might hurt more than the funding help...Obviously REL doesn't believe it hurts more than it helps or they wouldn't have taken the deal.This is undoubtedly good for REL. It gives them far more funding than they've ever had before, and a big partner to give them respectability. It's not the dream scenario REL fans would like, but it's something that lets them move forward and have a shot, even if it's a long shot.