A NEW MULTIPLEXED FM TAPE RECORDER DATA ACQUISITION SYSTEM for ACOUSTIC NOISE AND PYROSHOCK TESTING

Abstract

Increased requirements for acquisition of acoustic noise and pyro-shock data in remote test areas at Lockheed Missles and Space Company resulted in a decision in 1983 to acquire a new, portable, multiple-channel, data acquisition system. The system is capable of continuously recording 140 channels of data over a bandwidth of 20 to 10,000 Hz for a period of 12 minutes. The system employs a portable fourteenchannel, 2 MHz bandwidth, tape recorder for data storage. A unique auto ranging input amplifier, which uses a gain-selection method based on the RMS value of random noise, is used to signal condition the data. This paper describes the data acquisition requirements, system design parameters, and final system design.