Lockheed-Martin, (formerly Martin-Marietta Aerospace), Orlando, Florida

Typical Responsibilities -

• Simulation of AN-FRC(170)-V military microwave QAM transmitter, receiver, and RF wireless channel anomolies.
• Design and use of a twelve-tap randomly fading Rayleigh RF propagation channel model.
• Authoring and publication of technical articles on simulation, and presenting the work behind the articles at national simulation conferences.
• Maintenance and enhancement of the Pershing II 6DOF missile simulation.

Skills Attained -

• This was Jerry's first professional position after earning his BSEE degree. Thus, he learned how to apply his new skills to the real world.
• Understanding of QAM systems - baseband filtering, frequency shifting, phase-locked loops, timing recovery, bit-slicing, baseband equalizers, voltage controlled oscillators.
• Understanding of simulation.
• Coding in assembly language.
• Technical document authoring.
• Real-world circuit design and implementation.

General Observations -

• During the years Jerry spent at Lockheed-Martin, the world was quickly moving from the analog simulation domain to the new reality of digital simulation. Many were reluctant to accept this. By the time Jerry left in 1986, the lab was seeing very few requests for analog simulation work. Electronic Associates, Inc. attempted to bridge the gap by designing and building a digitally controlled analog computer. Lockheed-Martin bought one of the only two built in the world. After getting it up and running, there still was little call for its use. The lab then converted over to totally digital simulation. This was just after Jerry left.

Notable Accomplishments -

• The design and building of a twelve-tap randomly fading Rayleigh RF propagation channel model.
• Jerry earned his MSE through the University of Central Florida while working full-time at Lockheed-Martin.
• Jerry published and presented two papers on simulation work he and his team were doing.