Instrumentation
Since its incorporation, Aliteco has been active in non-commercial electronic instrumentation by inheriting relevant expertise from its founding partners. The multidisciplinary competences of Aliteco are fully exploited when ideating, designing, engineering and manufacturing instrumentation for specific and non-standard tasks.
Aliteco is nowadays focused in electro-optics instrumentation. With the constant improvement of sensors, many physics effects are now detectable with higher accuracy (i.e. quenching, intrinsic emission signature, etc.) making possible the realization of sophisticated and quite advanced instruments. Improperly defined “Cameras” for high demanding applications are specifically designed on customer’s needs (i.e. monitoring of chemical and metallurgical process, mining and underground safety, electrical traction surveillance, etc.).
Distributed Fiber-optic Coherent Reflectometer
Entirely manufactured in EU, this sophisticated instrumentation allows the detection and measurement of vibrational events along an optical cable. Although reflectometry is a well-known technology, VICAS from Aliteco differs because of a coherent excitation and detection of optical signals along the fiber. Together with software algorithms and mathematical model processed on neural networks, VICAS achieves a resolution of 10 m along a stretch of 100+ km. Initially suitable for security monitoring, further developments are allowing instrumental measurement of vibration. It means that modal analyses on selected stretches of the cable is made possible for monitoring critical structures like bridges, dames, viaducts, offshore platforms, etc.. In case of newly built structures, it would also be possible to measure the fatigue cumulation.
Holographic Interferometry
This unique technology, well described in the book "Strain and Stress Analysis by Holographic and Speckle Interferometry (Wiley - ISBN-13: 978-0471960775)", is increasingly employed in the investigation of structures, material deformations and fracture processes. Key factor for the implementation of the methodology is the capability to obtain high quality and accurate fringe patterns. Replacement of conventional films with newly available high resolution CCD sensors will permit a relevant automation for the quantitative interpretation, with the required accuracy, of the various fringe patterns.
Aerodynamic Pressure Measurement
Taking advantage from the “quenching effect”, Aliteco acquired a sophisticated method and a corresponding system for the measurement of surface pressure of aerodynamic profiles (i.e. models in sub-sonic, transonic and super-sonic wind tunnels). First used by Boeing Aircraft around the B777, the availability of new CCDs characterized by high speed with high spatial resolution at near zero luminosity, are now leading to a modernized system capable to be engaged for dynamic measurements too. Successful experiments with a new laser dye family, makes Aliteco confident to shortly switch towards the infrared band for operating also in real atmosphere (i.e. in-flight tests currently prevented because of the interfering environmental lights).