in brief

International Rectifier power semiconductors receive government JAN certificationExperts at the U.S. Defense Supply Center Columbus (DSCC) are certifying the International Rectifier hexagonal field effect transistor (HEXFET) America — better known as HEXAM — wafer fab to Joint Army-Navy S-level (JANS). The DSCC JANS certification applies to the International Rectifier HEXAM wafer fabrication facility in Temecula, Calif., company officials announced Nov. 2. In addition, other quality levels such as JANTXV and JANTX may also be supplied by the HEXFET America fabrication facility, company officials say. "JANS is the highest quality level assigned by MIL-PRF-19500, and MIL-PRF-19500 is the performance specification currently used by nearly every space-level customer," says Richard Southwell, International Rectifier Hi-Rel Components Group marketing manager in El Segundo, Calif. The wafer facility is certified for compliance with MIL-PRF-19500. Compliance means that HEXFET America is certified to produce JANS N- and P-channel power MOSFET wafers for use in high-reliability applications, company officials say. HEXFET America is International Rectifier's high-volume wafer fabrication supplier of power Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET), Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT), and other semiconductor switch technologies. For more information contact International Rectifier by phone at 310-322-3331, by post at 233 Kansas St., El Segundo, Calif. 90245, or on the World Wide Web at http://hirel.irf.com/.Bradley Fighting Vehicle subcontractor chooses lighted panels from Luminescent SystemsEngineers from Luminescent Systems Inc. (LSI) of Lebanon, N.H., a unit of Astronics Corp., will provide lighted control panels for the U.S. Army M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, manufactured by United Defense LP of San Jose, Calif. Luminescent Systems won a contract worth more than $500,000 from an undisclosed customer that supplies electrical systems for the Bradley. This is LSI's first contract to supply lighting components for military land vehicles, company officials say. LSI makes lighted instruments and control panels for use in aircraft, and has recently pursued military land vehicle applications, which have technical requirements similar to aircraft. Like aircraft, operators of ground vehicles are concerned with night vision, lighting uniformity, brightness, reliability, and power consumption, company officials say. For more information contact Luminescent Systems Inc. by phone at 603-643.7766, by fax at 603-643-5947, by e-mail at [email protected], by post at 4 Lucent Drive, Lebanon, N.H. 03766, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.lumsys.com.Honeywell to provide flight-deck avionics for Dassault Falcon 7X business jetAvionics designers at Honeywell Aerospace in Phoenix will supply the company's EASy Flight Deck avionics, auxiliary power unit (APU), Air Management System (AMS) and, with Parker Aerospace, the Hydraulic Power Generation system for the new Dassault Falcon 7X business jet. Initially introduced as the Falcon FNX, the newly named Falcon 7X is a long-range business jet that can fly 5,700 nautical miles nonstop, at speeds as fast as .90 Mach at altitudes as high as 51,000 feet. Honeywell's integrated 7X flight deck builds on the company's Enhanced Avionics System (EASy) currently in development for the Falcon 900EX and Falcon 2000EX, Honeywell officials say. This system, based on Primus Epic architecture, has fly-by-wire and new aircraft systems interfaces. Honeywell will also design the Falcon 7X air management system (AMS), which comprises the bleed air system, cabin pressure control system, and environmental control systems. The 36-150(FN) APU that Honeywell will provide for the new plane will provide bleed air for pneumatic main engine starting and electrical power for cockpit and cabin galley systems, independent of main engine or ground power operation, company officials say. For more information contact Honeywell Aerospace by phone at 602-231-1000, by post at P.O. Box 52181, Phoenix, Ariz. 85072, or on the World Wide Web at http://www. honeywell.com/.Vertel offers real-time version of e*ORB software for military applicationsSoftware engineers from Vertel Corp. in Woodland Hills, Calif., released a real-time edition of their e*ORB software for time-critical embedded military and telecommunications applications. The software complies with the Object Management Group (OMG) Real-time CORBA 1.0 standards and is also 2.0 ready, Vertel officials say. Based on architectural breakthroughs from Vertel's engineering team, this off-the-shelf product is for avionics, robotics, or weapon systems. The software helps users integrate scheduling tools and manage the core ORB while using the functions of e*ORB. Based on the established Object Management Architecture (OMA) and emerging Model Driven Architecture (MDA), OMG's standards cover application design and implementation. OMG's Modeling standards include the UML (Unified Modeling Language) and CWM (Common Warehouse Metamodel). CORBA, the Common Object Request Broker Architecture, is OMG's standard open platform. For more information on Vertel, contact the company by phone at 818-227-1400, by fax at 818-598-0047, by post at 21300 Victory Blvd., Suite 700, Woodland Hills, Calif. 91367, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.vertel.com/.Dolch Computer Systems acquires Touch ControlsDolch Computer Systems, a designer of ruggedized portable computers earlier this month expanded its capabilities in harsh-environment technology by acquiring Touch Controls, a manufacturer of ruggedized touch solutions for computing applications in Fallbrook, Calif. "Touch Controls represents a natural evolution for the Dolch brand," says Jim Ciardella, president of Dolch. "There is a strong market demand for rugged display products that can survive in extremely harsh and hazardous environments. "Touch Controls' technological prowess and market leadership" makes them the ideal partner to meet that demand, he says. Touch Controls designs and manufactures custom industrial enclosures for harsh environments including Class I, Divisions 1 and 2, and NEMA 4/4X applications. Touch Controls also offers four industrial computer models, ranging from the ATX PowerBox to the PC-104 MicroBox, which can be hardened against shock and vibration as well as being unaffected by dirt, dust, oil, and hose-down cleaning. All products are available with the company's Enhanced Infrared touch technology, Dolch officials say. For more information on Dolch Computers contact the company on the World Wide Web at http:// www.dolch.com/.Air Force chooses Teledyne optical recorder for C-17 cargo jetThe Teledyne Controls Optical Quick Access Recorder (OQAR) will be installed in the U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III cargo jet, leaders of Teledyne Technologies Inc. in Los Angeles announced. "Teledyne's Optical Quick Access Recorder was the only unit available that complied with the Air Force's latest specifications," says Robert Mehrabian, Teledyne's chairman, president, and chief executive officer. "The C-17 will be the first military aircraft transport jet with a commercial, off-the-shelf data acquisition and recording system capable of meeting the flight data acquisition requirements of the Air Force's Aircraft Information Program Directive of December 2000," Mehrabian says. Deliveries of the OQAR will be made to meet the C-17 production schedule, based on various options. These options, if exercised, would support the entire fleet, with a total contract value of approximately $3.5 million. For more information contact Teledyne Controls by phone at 310-820-4616, by fax at 310-442-4324/4325, by post at 12333 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, Calif. 90064, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.teledyne.com/.