{"id":212691,"date":"2016-02-24T19:01:30","date_gmt":"2016-02-24T22:01:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/?p=212691"},"modified":"2016-02-24T19:01:30","modified_gmt":"2016-02-24T22:01:30","slug":"advanced-testing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/advanced-testing\/","title":{"rendered":"Advanced Testing"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Affonso

l\u00e9o ramos<\/span><\/a> Affonso Ferro, Guilherme Gibertoni, Jonas Dourado, Jo\u00e3o Boaventura, Aurelio Da Dalt and Amanda Shiokawal\u00e9o ramos<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Anyone passing in front of the Spectra Tecnologia building, located on a street in Belenzinho, the old industrial district of S\u00e3o Paulo\u2019s east side, would never imagine the wealth of technology housed inside.\u00a0 One of the company\u2019s warehouses that sits on a site measuring 5,200 meters square has been adapted to accommodate military helicopter flight simulators, built in a partnership with the Army Technology Center (CTEX). The Spectra-designed pilot training equipment faithfully reproduces the cockpits found on the Eurocopter AS250 (Squirrel) and Fennec AS550, and runs in a 3D virtual environment.\u00a0 All the instruments, commands, levers, displays and even seats are exact replicas of what is found in the cockpit of these Brazilian Army aircraft.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re the only company in Latin America that owns all the technological know-how needed to design and build this type of simulator,\u201d says naval engineer Aur\u00e9lio Da Dalt, 61, a partner and director at Spectra. \u201cIt will give the Army\u2019s pilot training a 100% Brazilian-made product equal to what until now was only available in other countries, like France and the United States.\u201d\u00a0 The project to build the simulator began in 2007 under a CTEX contract and was completed in December 2011.\u00a0 One year later, the equipment, called Shefe (the Portuguese acronym for Squirrel and Fennec helicopter simulator) was approved by the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) and granted FTD4 certification for initial pilot training.\u00a0 The model is currently in the process of being certified for Full Flight Simulator Level B.\u00a0 This qualification \u2013 that ranges in ascending order from A to D \u2013 ensures that simulated flights give pilots the same sensation as actual flight, including the helicopter\u2019s motion and its responses to pilot commands.\u00a0 In 2016, the equipment will be transferred to the Army Aviation Training Center (CIAvEX) in Taubat\u00e9 (SP), which is currently undergoing renovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Company<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Spectra<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
R&D Center<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
S\u00e3o Paulo, SP<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
N\u00ba of employees<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
19<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Key products<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Equipment for durability testing of automotive parts and systems, and helicopter and shooting simulators<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Obstacles to creating this virtual environment were many.\u00a0 \u201cThe company that develops simulators is usually backed by the manufacturer of the aircraft or helicopter to be simulated, which provides the mathematical flight model as well as aircraft parts and components,\u201d explains mechanical engineer, Jo\u00e3o Carlos Boaventura, 51. The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer, a company owned by the French group Airbus Helicopters, did not want to provide any information because its parent company has close ties with European simulator manufacturers.\u00a0 \u201cWe did not have the benefit of this support and had to design everything from scratch. The mathematical model was created by working with ITA\u00a0 [Technological Institute of Aeronautics],\u201d says Boaventura, Spectra partner and director in charge of defense innovations.\u00a0 The project also received support from the Army Aviation Command (CAvEx) and the Air Force\u2019s Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA).<\/p>\n

Another aspect regarding the simulator involved the Army\u2019s original construction estimate, which proved to be inadequate.\u00a0 Since it was in Spectra\u2019s best interest to consolidate the project \u2013 which would give it the qualifications to compete with the world\u2019s largest simulator manufacturers \u2013, the company used its own funds to finalize the Shefe. \u201cThe project cost R$16.8 million but the Army contract covered only 44%.\u00a0 We invested nearly R$9.5 million of our own funds, but we now have a product that is 92% Brazilian-made,\u201d says engineer Da Dalt, who is also a professor at the Mau\u00e1 Institute of Technology.\u00a0 Completed four years ago, the Shefe is currently undergoing modernization and implementation of new software. \u00a0One of the employees who is involved in that effort is 27-year-old electrical engineer Amanda Shiokawa Freitas. \u201cThis is work that involves a lot of research so that the mathematical models are able to simulate the aircraft systems and operate the equipment smoothly, in a synchronized manner, with no delays,\u201d says Freitas who began her career at Spectra as an intern in 2011.<\/p>\n

\"Test

L\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span>Test equipment for bus bodyworkL\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Shooting simulator<\/strong>
\nAnother Spectra development for the military is a small arms shooting simulator known as Stal. The project came about as a result of the lack of equipment that could meet the Army\u2019s requirements and be manufactured by a Brazilian company.\u00a0 \u201cThe shooting simulator will serve training centers to provide an experience that rivals field training.\u00a0 The shooter uses replicas of military guns and rifles and interacts with targets and a wall-projected 3D simulation,\u201d explains 23-year-old computer scientist Guilherme Sim\u00e3o Gibertoni.<\/p>\n

The advantage of this simulator is that it reduces the Army\u2019s costs by eliminating the need for ammunition and deploying troops to firing sites.\u00a0 At the same time, it is a safe environment where young soldiers can complete their first shooting tests. \u201cThe 3D simulation provides a dynamic environment in terms of target position and motion,\u201d says Gibertoni.<\/p>\n

\"High-powered

L\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span>High-powered LED manufactureL\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Established in 1989, Spectra is a 100% Brazilian-owned technology company.\u00a0\u00a0 It reported earnings of R$12 million in 2014 and invests 15% of this amount in research, development and innovation. It currently employs nine engineers, two technologists, six technicians and two designers associated with engineering, in addition to 25 employees in the manufacturing and management divisions.\u00a0 It boasts of a diversified product line that includes, in addition to the helicopter simulator, servo-hydraulic equipment for vehicle durability testing, on-board electronic control modules for bus bodies (the product has been supplied for nearly a decade to a Brazilian company \u2013 more than 10,000 vehicles have been equipped with it \u2013 and it is currently being exported to Peru), industrial heaters and control systems for anchor winches on boats used in high-seas oil exploration, a product sold to its client, Petrobras.<\/p>\n

\u201cDiversification is part of our business strategy.\u00a0 When one area is not doing well, another compensates for it.\u00a0 We try to maintain control over all the steps involved in our production process.\u00a0 That way, we have greater control of the technology we develop and the price of our products,\u201d says electrical engineer Affonso Ferro, 50, who makes up the trio that holds the reins at Spectra.<\/p>\n

\"Army

L\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span>Army helicopter pilot simulator: showing the inside…L\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Testing laboratory<\/strong>
\nThe servo-hydraulic test systems for fatigue and durability testing of automotive parts are Spectra\u2019s main product and accounted for 30% of earnings in 2014.\u00a0 Equipped with actuators, hydraulic pumps and a system for data control and acquisition, the testing laboratory is used to test various parts and systems for cars, buses and trucks such as suspension, brakes, mufflers,\u00a0 steering systems and seatbelts.\u00a0 \u201cIt works like a simulator, quickly and precisely reproducing actual vehicle conditions on the track,\u201d Ferro says.\u00a0 \u201cOur laboratory is used to conduct a full range of static and dynamic performance tests to analyze mechanical tensions, vibrations and fatigue in a vehicle\u2019s structure.\u201d\u00a0 One of the laboratory developers is computer engineer Jonas Dourado, 25. \u201cI\u2019m working on a software project and creating equipment to conduct durability testing on mechanical parts, especially automotive parts,\u201d Jonas says.<\/p>\n

In addition to selling a fully-assembled laboratory, Spectra also provides service to engineering and development departments at autoparts manufacturers and the automobile industry itself. Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Scania, Ford, Fiat, Magneti Marelli and Mahle are just a few of its clients. Last year a unit was exported to Argentina. \u201cThe Universidade Nacional de La Plata, second largest in the country, purchased a laboratory for US$2 million,\u201d Da Dalta reports.<\/p>\n

\"...and

L\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span>…and outside of the cockpitL\u00c9O RAMOS<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

The testing laboratory, one of the largest of its kind currently operating in Brazil, was entirely designed by Spectra. The three partners met in the 1980s, when they worked at Mafersa, a former manufacturer of railcars and railroad materials.\u00a0 They worked in a durability testing laboratory \u2013 similar to the one they later developed \u2013, whose equipment was imported from the American company Material Test Systems (MTS). At the time, the laboratory was controlled by a computer the size of a small closet.<\/p>\n

Da Dalta, Boaventura and Ferro came up with the idea of developing the hardware and software required for an IBM PC-XT to control the laboratory.\u00a0 One of the MTS directors loved the idea and decided to buy the innovation when it was ready.\u00a0 According to Ferro, Spectra was the first company in the world to use a PC to control a road simulator. \u00a0Hundreds of systems were sold to automakers \u00a0and parts manufacturers all over the world.\u00a0 \u201cFor five years, we received royalties on the sale of our system.\u00a0 That was what allowed us to financially structure Spectra in the beginning,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Spectra designs and builds flight simulators and testing laboratories","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1567,169],"tags":[219,228,243],"coauthors":[116],"class_list":["post-212691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-corporate-research-en","category-technology","tag-computation","tag-engineering","tag-innovation"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=212691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212691\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=212691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=212691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=212691"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=212691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}