Mentor Blogs

Marking the end of an era, Space Shuttle Endeavor—the fifth and final NASA space shuttle constructed—arrived at Los Angeles Airport (LAX) on September 21, 2012 to begin its journey on the streets of LA to its final resting place at the California Science Center. NASA offered up three of its four decommissioned space shuttles as donations to museums; many museums competed for the honor of displaying … Read More

Geek, Engineer, Hardware, Warfighters, Toyota, Milaero, CrewMax, Military, nasa, Aerospace, Software, Mentor, Embedded Systems, Mentor Graphics, Endeavour, Mentor.com, electrical, Mil-Aero, Electronic

If you watched the live broadcast of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover landing on the surface of Mars, you know it was a nail-biter. People all over the world—especially engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and technology firms the world over that had contributed systems and components to the mission—waited with baited breath for the successful completion of a number … Read More

Milaero, Mil-Aero, Mars, Atlas V, Mentor, Mentor Graphics, Mentor.com, Aerospace, Geek, Hardware, JPL, Cape Canaveral, Kennedy Space Center, Computer, Embedded Systems, Electronic, Engineer, Military, Software, Technology, MSL, nasa

NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft, housing the unmanned Curiosity rover, set upon a monumental, 9-month, 352-million-mile journey to its final destination–Gale Crater near the base of Mount Sharp on Mars–with help from a powerful Atlas V 541 launch vehicle. In fact, this November 2011 mission marked the first launch of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V 541 configuration. Roughly … Read More

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Forty-three years ago, on 20 July 1969, the United States Apollo 11 became the first manned mission to the moon. Were you aware, however, that it the first space vehicle to reach the vicinity of the moon was not manned at all? Intrigued? This geek hopes so. Fun fact: Unmanned spacecraft reached the vicinity of the moon a decade before the first manned mission landed on the lunar surface. The Soviet … Read More

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Forty-three years ago this month, astronauts made history. The Apollo 11 mission, a milestone in human history, continues to be celebrated worldwide decades later. The first words spoken on the moon by Neil Armstrong, the first to step onto the lunar surface, remain among the most famous and inspirational in the world: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Nearly 500 million … Read More

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A popular children’s toy has been named the first domestic robot, the first robotic toy, and a threat to national security in the U.S. Can you guess which toy? It was the cute, lovable, and interactive Furby! The Furby was produced by Tiger Electronics from 1998 to 2001, and again by Hasbro between 2005 and 2007. In fact, it has just been announced that the Furby will again line store shelves; it will … Read More

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Unmanned vehicles, especially the aerial variety, as the subject of much attention in the military & aerospace industry; public opinion of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) appears to be split, as concerns over safety, security, and privacy grow. The UAV’s history is nonetheless intriguing. In 1915, famous scientist and visionary Nikola Tesla first described a fleet of unmanned aerial combat vehicles. … Read More

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Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) continue to grow in use and popularity; yet, little attention is paid to UAV history, which contains some valuable, if not shocking (pun intended), insights. On November 8, 1898, Nikola Tesla was granted U.S. Patent Number 613809 for what was likely the first remote control and unmanned vehicle ever envisioned. The patent, entitled “Method of and Apparatus for Controlling … Read More

teleautomaton, remote-controlled robot, Milaero, Military, mind control, Nikola Tesla, Aerospace, electrical, Mentor, Mentor Graphics, Electronic, Mentor.com, Design Automation, Mil-Aero, Electric, Geek, Embedded Systems, Hardware, UAV, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

The military and aerospace (mil/aero) market is currently a hotbed of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) activity. UAV platforms, technologies, challenges, and even mishaps are making news headlines and drawing a great deal of attention of late. Whereas the UAV is likely the hottest topic in mil/aero today, a much smaller industry segment know well the UAV’s rich and interesting history. The geek wants … Read More

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It has become more and more challenging to deliver products–especially complex and intricate components, systems, and platforms–on time in this day and age. For many, the global economic recession brought with it reductions in personnel; and yet, military and aerospace (mil/aero) were still expected to (and needed to) deliver novel, high-tech products on time and on budget without the advent … Read More

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The military and aerospace (mil/aero) market relies on efficiency. This is true of myriad industries during a down economy, which requires organizations—including the U.S. Department of Defense and other military organizations, as well as prime contractors and subcontractors—to do more with less. Not only do engineering and manufacturing personnel need to be efficient, but also the tools they employ … Read More

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Engineers from Bell Helicopter, a Textron Company, and The Boeing Company have unleashed a unique aircraft that has been turning heads at recent air shows, and for good reason. The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey was designed from the ground up (a rarity in a downturned economy, it seems) to meet the needs of multiple armed services. In doing so, it combines the capabilities of a helicopter with those of fixed-wing … Read More

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System interoperability is a major issue and continual challenge in military and aerospace (mil/aero) applications. Electronic components and solutions from various vendors must all work together. The same is true of legacy versus modern systems. Many industry pundits in the mil/aero community have long compared the challenge to trying to have a 50-year-old communicate effectively with a newborn—they … Read More

electrical, Electric, Electronic, Software, Mentor Graphics, Computer, Mentor.com, Mil-Aero, Aerospace, Milaero, Engineer, Design Automation, Geek, Hardware, COTS, Mentor

Systems integration is no small feat. Ensuring disparate parts and systems—standalone solutions from multiple vendors—talk and work together seamlessly and reliably is a challenge. In fact, the systems integrator, not to mention the MRO (maintenance, repair, and overhaul) specialist charged with keeping systems in good working order over decades of deployment, has been given many nicknames reflective … Read More

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Gone, in large part, are the days of military and aerospace (mil/aero) organizations buying a complete, comprehensive, end-to-end turnkey system from a single, solitary vendor. Rather, a vast majority of today’s mil/aero systems combine the technologies, components, and capabilities of myriad technology vendors. Integrating parts from various vendors in a single system, like most things, has its pros … Read More

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