Instrument deployment device

Physically, the MIMOS II Mossbauer spectrometer has two components that are joined by an interconnect cable the sensor head (SH) and electronics printed-circuit board (PCB). On MER, the SH is located at the end of the Instrument Deployment Device (IDD) and the electronics board is located in an electronics box inside the rover body. On Mars-Express Beagle-2, a European Space Agency (ESA) mission in 2003, the SH was mounted also on a robotic arm integrated to the Position... 

Fig. 8.30 The Instrument Deployment Device (IDD) above the surface of Mars, showing all the four in situ instruments left) the MIMOS II with its contact ring can be seen in the front picture taken at Meridiani Planum, Mars right) MIMOS II is located on the left side picture taken at Gusev Crater, Mars...

Altitude Response. Pressure response is an issue that needs to be addressed for every instrument deployed on an aircraft. First, it must be decided how chemical abundances are to be reported. If standard practice is followed and they are reported as mixing ratios, then it must be determined whether the instrument is fundamentally a mass- or a concentration-depen-dent sensor, because this definition determines the first-order means by which instrument response is converted to mixing ratios as a function of pressure. In this context, a mass-sensitive detector is a device with an output signal that is a function of the mass flow of analyte molecules a concentration-sensitive detector is one in which the response is proportional to the absolute concentration, that is, molecules per cubic centimeter. 

The Mission Module is mission specific and includes all science instruments and supporting equipment necessary to meet science requirements. The supporting equipment may have included the following scan platform, turntable, associated electronics, booms, deployment devices, radiation shields, cabling, muiti-layer Insulation and thermal control devices, and flight software. 

However, current forms of LOAC devices have many components external to the microfluidic chip such as valves, pumps, power supplies, electronic circuitry, and reagent/waste storage units. While these devices are a major advance on pre-existing autonomous instruments and could be deployed on a reasonable scale, they are typically too large, consume too much power and are too expensive for high-density deployment. 

We have seen that one of the key aspects of Fourier transform NIR analyzers is their control of frequency accuracy and long-term reproducibility of instrument line shape through the use of an internal optical reference, normally provided as a HeNe gas laser. Such lasers are reasonably compact, and have acceptable lifetimes of around 3 to 4 years before requiring replacement. However, we also saw how the reduction in overall interferometer dimensions can be one of the main drivers towards achieving the improved mechanical and thermal stability which allows FT-NIR devices to be deployed routinely and reliably in process applications. 

Nevertheless, it was only starting from the seventies and the eighties that the technology began to deploy highly sophisticated devices, which are continuously evolving toward an increasing miniaturization and the development of portable instrumentation. 

In order to realize field deployable handheld instrumentation, the miniaturization of highly sensitive optical the detection strategies is required. Miniaturized avalanche photodiodes or photomultiplier tubes are required to integrate with microfluidic devices. This configuration will allow not only parallel detection but also a portable system which can be used in the field. 

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