May  2002 
Volume 1 Issue 1
 

Jordan, Apostal Ritter Associates, Inc. 

Engineering the Future
 

Newsletter Contents

INTRODUCING THE JAR EMAIL NEWSLETTER
 

COMPANY BACKGROUND
 
HISTORY

BUSINESS FOCUS

CAE CONSULTING

ELECTRONIC PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT  SERVICES

JAR PRESENTED A PAPER, ENDOSTAPLE^TM EXPLICIT DYNAMIC ANALYSIS AT THE ANSYS CONFERENCE

JAR FORMED A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH SOLIDWORKS RESELLER, R & D TECHNOLOGIES, INC.  

To Discuss Your CAE ANALYSIS NEEDS Please Contact: Chuck Ritter,  President, 

(401) 884-3014 x234

 or email ritter@jar.com

To Discuss Your ELECTRONIC PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT REQUIREMENTS  Please Contact: Chuck Anastasia, General Manager,

(401) 884-3014 x 225 or 

email anastasi@jar.com

JAR Associates, Inc.
35 Belver Avenue
North Kingstown, RI  02852

tel  (401)884-3014
fax (401)294-3826

www.jar.com

To Discuss SolidWorks Software, Training or Support, Please Contact Andy Coutu at 401-885-6400 or email
acoutu@rnd-tech.com

 
JAR Associates, Inc. is pleased to introduce our email newsletter.  The goal of this newsletter is to keep in touch with our past, current and prospective clients by providing information that is interesting and useful to engineers, managers and other professionals.

NASA Photo

COMPANY BACKGROUND
HISTORY
Jordan, Apostal, Ritter Associates, Inc. founded in 1977, is a world class provider of engineering consulting and product development services.  Over the years, JAR has evolved and adapted to provide our clients with a competitive advantage.  Steve Jordan, Mike Apostal, and Chuck Ritter founded the company with a vision to provide engineering mechanics consulting services from the original headquarters in North Kingstown, RI.   In the 80s and 90s, JAR grew into a software development company, and reseller of computer aided engineering software such as ANSYS, ADAMS, FIDAP and Pro\Engineer with sales offices in Marlborough, MA, and affiliated companies, CEC in Minneapolis, MN, and DRD in Tulsa, OK.  Steve Jordan retired from JAR in 1995, after the sale of WELLPLAN, a directional drilling and oil well management software package developed by JAR and DRD.  Mike Apostal, and Chuck Ritter actively manage JARs current operations, which focus on Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) Consulting Services and Electronic Product Development (EPD).

BUSINESS FOCUS
Over the past few years, JAR returned to its engineering consulting roots as changes in the software reseller business led to the acquisition by ANSYS, Inc. of  JARs CAE software business.  JAR continues to thrive by keeping abreast of the latest technology, and by retaining a staff of technical professionals with an unmatched commitment to our clients success.  JAR continues to provide CAE consulting services to clients in diverse industries such as biomedical, electronics, aerospace and consumer products. Since 1999, JAR has been growing a new business in the electronic product development field.  JAR has grown to include an experienced electronics team, dedicated to high performance microprocessor design and development.  JAR has established  relationships with strategic partners to provide complete electronic product development solutions from conceptual design to prototype and production volume manufacturing.

CAE CONSULTING
JAR is a recognized leader in finite element technology and has participated in a number of high profile engineering projects, such as re-design of the O-ring seals for the space shuttle solid rocket booster after the Challenger accident, and structural analysis of the primary mirror for the Hubbell Space Telescope.

JAR's CAE Services include:

PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS
FAILURE PREDICTION
PROCESS SIMULATION
DESIGN OPTIMIZATION

In recent years, we have applied CAE technology to all types of analysis and design problems for clients in industry, government and the legal communities.  Our clients range from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies and the US Navy.   No matter what the subject or the scope of a project -- from aerospace to semiconductors, from aluminum cans to children's toys -- no one has more experience, better technology, or a stronger allegiance to a job well done.   For more information on CAE services, please contact Chuck Ritter at (401) 884-3014 ext. 234.

We would like to hear from you.

Please email any feedback and comments on this newsletter or suggestions for future newsletters to newsletter@jar.com

 
JOHN HIGGINS OF JAR PRESENTED A PAPER ON EXPLICIT DYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF AN ENDOSTAPLE^TM INSERTION INTO A VASCULAR STENT AND ARTERY 

The paper, presented April 20 at the 2002 ANSYS Users' Conference, was co-authored by Mike Apostal, and Chuck Ritter of JAR and Frank Patterson of MedSource Technologies Inc.

 In order to obtain FDA approval for the Endostaple^TM, a non-linear explicit dynamic analysis was performed.  The analysis simulates insertion of the Endostaple^TM, a patented double helix wire device, which holds a vascular stent to the blood vessel wall.  The explicit dynamic approach was chosen for computational efficiency due to extremely large deflections involved, and a significant number of complex interacting contact surfaces.  

The results showed that the Endostaple^TM experienced its most extreme strains when it is straightened onto the optical cable. They also showed that the strain ranges were not excessively large for the superelastic nitinol. Additional animations of the analysis are available on the JAR website. Please contact Chuck Ritter at JAR to obtain a copy of the paper in .pdf format.

Since 1997, JAR has been expanding our services to include electronic product development and test systems.  JAR's team of electrical and software engineers are developing embedded controllers with integrated remote sensing capability using real time digital signal processing techniques. JARs expertise includes conventional signal processing techniques as well as image processing.  JAR employs custom digital signal processor hardware, DSPs, Power PC and 68000 based systems.  The JAR electronics team expertise includes ultrasonic acoustics and optical image processing.  

 JAR can provide needs analysis, operating environment assessment, preliminary design, costing, bill of materials and physical prototypes.  We can work with the customer as supplemental design staff and also with contract manufacturers. Specific services include embedded system design, testing, bread boarding, and software development.

For more information on how JAR's electronics team can help you, please contact Chuck Anastasia (401) 884-3014 ext. 225.

JAR FORMED A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH R&D TECHNOLOGIES TO PROVIDE COMPLETE DESIGN SOFTWARE, TRAINING AND SERVICE SOLUTIONS

R&D Technologies is a licensed SolidWorks Value Added Reseller providing both support and training in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and
Connecticut.  R&D has located their offices and RI training facility at JAR's headquarters in North Kingstown, RI.   R&D Technologies and Jordan, Apostal, Ritter Associates formed a strategic partnership for the purpose of providing complete CAD Software, Training, and Engineering Services.  Our combined staff is ready to help you with all your design and analysis needs.

View R&D Technologies

SolidWorks training Schedule.