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At least 271 records · Page 15

Error coding simulations in C

When data is transmitted through a noisy channel, errors are produced within the data rendering it indecipherable. Through the use of error control coding techniques, the bit error rate can be reduced to any desired level without sacrificing the transmission data rate. The Astrionics Laboratory at Marshall Space Flight Center has decided to use a modular, end-to-end telemetry data simulator to simulate the transmission of data from flight to ground and various methods of error control. The simulator includes modules for random data generation, data compression, Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) transfer frame formation, error correction/detection, error generation and error statistics. The simulator utilizes a concatenated coding scheme which includes CCSDS standard (255,223) Reed-Solomon (RS) code over GF(2(exp 8)) with interleave depth of 5 as the outermost code, (7, 1/2) convolutional code as an inner code and CCSDS recommended (n, n-16) cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code as the innermost code, where n is the number of information bits plus 16 parity bits. The received signal-to-noise for a desired bit error rate is greatly reduced through the use of forward error correction techniques. Even greater coding gain is provided through the use of a concatenated coding scheme. Interleaving/deinterleaving is necessary to randomize burst errors which may appear at the input of the RS decoder. The burst correction capability length is increased in proportion to the interleave depth. The modular nature of the simulator allows for inclusion or exclusion of modules as needed. This paper describes the development and operation of the simulator, the verification of a C-language Reed-Solomon code, and the possibility of using Comdisco SPW(tm) as a tool for determining optimal error control schemes.

Noble, Viveca K.↗

Spacecraft command and control using expert systems

This paper describes a product called the Intelligent Mission Toolkit (IMT), which was created to meet the changing demands of the spacecraft command and control market. IMT is a command and control system built upon an expert system. Its primary functions are to send commands to the spacecraft and process telemetry data received from the spacecraft. It also controls the ground equipment used to support the system, such as encryption gear, and telemetry front-end equipment. Add-on modules allow IMT to control antennas and antenna interface equipment. The design philosophy for IMT is to utilize available commercial products wherever possible. IMT utilizes Gensym's G2 Real-time Expert System as the core of the system. G2 is responsible for overall system control, spacecraft commanding control, and spacecraft telemetry analysis and display. Other commercial products incorporated into IMT include the SYBASE relational database management system and Loral Test and Integration Systems' System 500 for telemetry front-end processing.

Norcross, Scott↗

Space Acceleration Measurement System-II: Microgravity Instrumentation for the International Space Station Research Community

The International Space Station opens for business in the year 2000, and with the opening, science investigations will take advantage of the unique conditions it provides as an on-orbit laboratory for research. With initiation of scientific studies comes a need to understand the environment present during research. The Space Acceleration Measurement System-II provides researchers a consistent means to understand the vibratory conditions present during experimentation on the International Space Station. The Space Acceleration Measurement System-II, or SAMS-II, detects vibrations present while the space station is operating. SAMS-II on-orbit hardware is comprised of two basic building block elements: a centralized control unit and multiple Remote Triaxial Sensors deployed to measure the acceleration environment at the point of scientific research, generally within a research rack. Ground Operations Equipment is deployed to complete the command, control and data telemetry elements of the SAMS-II implementation. Initially, operations consist of user requirements development, measurement sensor deployment and use, and data recovery on the ground. Future system enhancements will provide additional user functionality and support more simultaneous users.

Sutliff, Thomas J.↗

A Flight/Ground/Test Event Logging Facility

The onboard control software for spacecraft such as Mars Pathfinder and Cassini is composed of many subsystems including executive control, navigation, attitude control, imaging, data management, and telecommunications. The software in all of these subsystems needs to be instrumented for several purposes: to report required telemetry data, to report warning and error events, to verify internal behavior during system testing, and to provide ground operators with detailed data when investigating in-flight anomalies. Events can range in importance from purely informational events to major errors. It is desirable to provide a uniform mechanism for reporting such events and controlling their subsequent processing. Since radiation-hardened flight processors are several years behind the speed and memory of their commercial cousins, and since most subsystems require real-time control, and since downlink rates to earth can be very low from deep space, there are limits to how much of the data can be saved and transmitted. Some kinds of events are more important than others and should therefore be preferentially retained when memory is low. Some faults can cause an event to recur at a high rate, but this must not be allowed to consume the memory pool. Some event occurrences may be of low importance when reported but suddenly become more important when a subsequent error event gets reported. Some events may be so low-level that they need not be saved and reported unless specifically requested by ground operators.

Dvorak, Daniel↗

ISPATOM: A Generic Real-Time Data Processing Tool Without Programming

Information Sharing Protocol Advanced Tool of Math (ISPATOM) is an application program allowing for the streamlined generation of comps, which subscribe to streams of incoming telemetry data, perform any necessary computations on the data, then send the data to other programs for display and/or further processing in NASA mission control centers. Heretofore, the development of comps was difficult, expensive, and time-consuming: Each comp was custom written manually, in a low-level computing language, by a programmer attempting to follow requirements of flight controllers. ISPATOM enables a flight controller who is not a programmer to write a comp by simply typing in one or more equation( s) at a command line or retrieving the equation(s) from a text file. ISPATOM then subscribes to the necessary input data, performs all of necessary computations, and sends out the results. It sends out new results whenever the input data change. The use of equations in ISPATOM is no more difficult than is entering equations in a spreadsheet. The time involved in developing a comp is thus limited to the time taken to decide on the necessary equations. Thus, ISPATOM is a real-time dynamic calculator.

Dershowitz, Adam↗

Europa Clipper Payload Verification and Validation: Avionics-Instrument Interface Test Campaign

NASA's Europa Clipper mission will investigate Jupiter's icy moon Europa using a payload suite consisting of nine instruments to address a range of scientific objectives concerning Europa's habitability. As the project proceeds past its Critical Design Review, confidence is being built in the system's ability to achieve mission objectives through the implementation of a rigorous payload verification and validation (V&V) program. As part of this payload V&V program, instrument box-level testing was performed by the payload team to verify select instrument-avionics interface requirements. This testing was performed at JPL using the avionics testbed's Bulk Data Storage Emulator (BDSEM) with visiting instrument Test Models. This paper summarizes the Data Link test campaign involving roughly four days of functional testing per instrument, including planning, testing methods, types of issues found, and the requirement closure process. Detail is also provided on the development, deployment, and validation of a standardized analysis tool used in data reviews. This testing verified requirements related to commanding rates, loss of link, packet format, clock counters, loopback test capability, and SpaceWire jitter and skew margins. Additional risk reduction testing of basic commanding, counter behavior, science data collection and transfer, and interface swapping was also performed. Because the BDSEM venue was not originally designed to be a run for record venue, the process of characterizing venue fidelity and establishing suitability for requirement closure using data collected in this venue will also be addressed.In order to close requirements, an extensible tool was developed to post-process instrument command and telemetry data from their original binary to a human-readable format and give visibility to errors detected within the data, such as packets with Cyclic Redundancy Check errors. This tool, called payload-packet-parser, is a Python 3.9 command line tool built using a variety of open-source Python libraries. Payload-packet-parser was designed to support parsing command and telemetry packets for all Europa Clipper instruments and additional analysis tools were developed for verification of specific information interface requirements. This test campaign, including post-processing using a single parsing and verification toolset, allowed for early interface testing, alleviating testing burdens on instrument teams and buying down risk on the instrument-avionics interface by finding hardware and software issues and idiosyncrasies prior to integration with system test venues. Over twenty issues were discovered across the payload, resulting in software updates and instrument rework well in advance of any system impacts. This paper concludes with an assessment of benefits and costs of this type of testing and lessons learned.

Montanez, Leticia↗

Optical-communication systems for deep-space applications

The feasibility of using optical communication systems for data telemetry from deep space vehicles to Earth based receivers is evaluated. Performance analysis shows that practical, photon counting optical systems can transmit data reliably at 30 to 40 dB high rates than existing RF systems, or can be used to extend the communication range by 15 to 20 dB. The advantages of pulse-position modulation (PPM) formats are discussed, and photon counting receiver structures designed for PPM decoding are described. The effects of background interference and weather on receiver performance are evaluated. Some consideration is given to tracking and beam pointing operations, since system performance ultimately depends on the accuracy to which these operations can be carried out. An example of a tracking and pointing system utilizing an optical uplink beacon is presented, and it is shown that microradian beam pointing is within the capabilities of state-of-the-art technology. Recommendations for future theoretical studies and component development programs are presented.

Vilnrotter, V. A.↗

Ascent air data system results from the space shuttle flight test program

The ascent air data system of the Space Shuttle consists of a simple biconic spike probe on the nose of the external tank. Pressure measurements were calibrated in a wind tunnel to obtain vehicle attitude and speed (relative to the air) and dynamic pressure. The wind tunnel test data analysis and the calibration are discussed in terms of test problems and calibration parameter formulation. The flight pressures are traced from telemetry data to final air data products. Analysis of the flight results showed that static pressure could not be accurately determined at the higher Mach numbers (above approx. 2.0). By replacing static pressure with data from a postflight estimated trajectory the ascent air data system performance met the user requirements. Lessons learned are enumerated, the most important being the need for a thorough systems integration effort.

Hillje, E. R.↗

Data Accountability and Uncertainty Analysis for the Mars Science Laboratory

This paper presents machine learning-based approaches to automate and optimize the detection of volume loss for the downlink process of telemetry data from the Mars Curiosity Rover. The Curiosity observes volume loss and data corruption, requiring re-transmits from the rover and Ground Data System Analysts (GDSA) to monitor the data flow. To resolve this issue, we created a data pipeline to accumulate data from various data sources in the downlink process and detect where the data is missed. In this paper, we benchmarked different methodologies based on the accuracy and excitability of them to identify whether a downlink data that is received to the ground system is complete or incomplete. Our results show that machine learning methods can improve the performance of the GDSA by 55% while the user can diagnose why data is missed and provide an explanation for the data accountability problem.

Chowdhury, Ameera↗

Spacelab Data Processing Facility (SLDPF) quality assurance expert systems development

Spacelab Data Processing Facility (SLDPF) expert system prototypes were developed to assist in the quality assurance of Spacelab and/or Attached Shuttle Payload (ASP) processed telemetry data. The SLDPF functions include the capturing, quality monitoring, processing, accounting, and forwarding of mission data to various user facilities. Prototypes for the two SLDPF functional elements, the Spacelab Output Processing System and the Spacelab Input Processing Element, are described. The prototypes have produced beneficial results including an increase in analyst productivity, a decrease in the burden of tedious analyses, the consistent evaluation of data, and the providing of concise historical records.

Kelly, Angelita C.↗

Spacelab Data Processing Facility (SLDPF) quality assurance expert systems development

Spacelab Data Processing Facility (SLDPF) expert system prototypes have been developed to assist in the quality assurance of Spacelab and/or Attached Shuttle Payload (ASP) processed telemetry data. SLDPF functions include the capturing, quality monitoring, processing, accounting, and forwarding of mission data to various user facilities. Prototypes for the two SLDPF functional elements, the Spacelab Output Processing System and the Spacelab Input Processing Element, are described. The prototypes have produced beneficial results including an increase in analyst productivity, a decrease in the burden of tedious analyses, the consistent evaluation of data, and the providing of concise historical records.

Kelly, Angelita C.↗

Experience gained from computer processing of physical experimental data during the restoration of measured values

The processing stage in which the restored values of the physical parameters are received is described. The following main steps are discussed: estimation of the state of the telemetry data, processing of the calibration data, and determination of the errors in the data; data decommutation and analysis of the structure of measurement cycles for each instrument; decoding, estimates of the reliability of the restored data, and their agreement with the models adopted for the measurement process; and analysis of errors due to deterministic and random factors. A block diagram of the method is presented.

Mamotko, Z. N.↗

The 136 MHZ/400 MHz earth station antenna-noise temperature prediction program for RAE-B

A simulation study was undertaken to determine the 136 MHz and 400 MHz noise temperature of the ground network antennas which will track the RAE-B satellite during data transmission periods. Since the noise temperature of the antenna effectively sets the signal-to-noise ratio of the received signal, a knowledge of SNR will be helpful in locating the optimum time windows for data transmission during low noise periods. Antenna noise temperatures will be predicted for selected earth-based ground stations which will support RAE-B. Telemetry data acquisition will be at 400 MHz; tracking support at 136 MHz will be provided by the Goddard Range and Range Rate (RARR) stations. The antenna-noise temperature predictions will include the effects of galactic-brightness temperature, the sun, and the brightest radio stars. Predictions will cover the ten-month period from March 1, 1973 to December 31, 1973.

Taylor, R. E.↗

Navigational Use of Cassini Delta V Telemetry

Telemetry data are used to improve navigation of the Saturn orbiting Cassini spacecraft. Thrust induced delta V's are computed on-board the spacecraft, recorded in telemetry, and downlinked to Earth. This paper discusses how and why the Cassini Navigation team utilizes spacecraft delta V telemetry. Operational changes making this information attractive to the Navigation Team will be briefly discussed, as will spacecraft hardware and software algorithms responsible for the on-board computation. An analysis of past delta V telemetry, providing calibrations and accuracies that can be applied to the estimation of future delta V activity, is described.

Roth, Duane C.↗

Spacelab data processing facility (SLDPF) Quality Assurance (QA)/Data Accounting (DA) expert systems: Transition from prototypes to operational systems

The SLDPF is responsible for the capture, quality monitoring processing, accounting, and shipment of Spacelab and/or Attached Shuttle Payloads (ASP) telemetry data to various user facilities. Expert systems will aid in the performance of the quality assurance and data accounting functions of the two SLDPF functional elements: the Spacelab Input Processing System (SIPS) and the Spacelab Output Processing System (SOPS). Prototypes were developed for each as independent efforts. The SIPS Knowledge System Prototype (KSP) used the commercial shell OPS5+ on an IBM PC/AT; the SOPS Expert System Prototype used the expert system shell CLIPS implemented on a Macintosh personal computer. Both prototypes emulate the duties of the respective QA/DA analysts based upon analyst input and predetermined mission criteria parameters, and recommended instructions and decisions governing the reprocessing, release, or holding for further analysis of data. These prototypes demonstrated feasibility and high potential for operational systems. Increase in productivity, decrease of tedium, consistency, concise historial records, and a training tool for new analyses were the principal advantages. An operational configuration, taking advantage of the SLDPF network capabilities, is under development with the expert systems being installed on SUN workstations. This new configuration in conjunction with the potential of the expert systems will enhance the efficiency, in both time and quality, of the SLDPF's release of Spacelab/AST data products.

Basile, Lisa↗

Spacelab data processing facility (SLDPF) quality assurance (QA)/data accounting (DA) expert systems - Transition from prototypes to operational systems

The SLDPF is responsible for the capture, quality monitoring processing, accounting, and shipment of Spacelab and/or Attached Shuttle Payloads (ASP) telemetry data to various user facilities. Expert systems will aid in the performance of the quality assurance and data accounting functions of the two SLDPF functional elements: the Spacelab Input Processing System (SIPS) and the Spacelab Output Processing System (SOPS). Prototypes were developed for each as independent efforts. The SIPS Knowledge System Prototype (KSP) used the commercial shell OPS5+ on an IBM PC/AT; the SOPS Expert System Prototype used the expert system shell CLIPS implemented on a Macintosh personal computer. Both prototypes emulate the duties of the respective QA/DA analysts based upon analyst input and predetermined mission criteria parameters, and recommended instructions and decisions governing the reprocessing, release, or holding for further analysis of data. These prototypes demonstrated feasibility and high potential for operational systems. Increase in productivity, decrease of tedium, consistency, concise historical records, and a training tool for new analyses were the principal advantages. An operational configuration, taking advantage of the SLDPF network capabilities, is under development with the expert systems being installed on SUN workstations. This new configuration in conjunction with the potential of the expert systems will enhance the efficiency, in both time and quality, of the SLDPF's release of Spacelab/AST data products.

Basile, Lisa↗

Experiment M412: Landmark contrast measurements

The objective was to measure the visual contrast of landmarks with the surroundings to determine the relative visibility of terrestrial landmarks from positions outside the atmosphere. Because of a malfunction of the photometer, no photometric data were obtained. A trial sighting run was performed in which a landmark on the western African coast was sighted, tracked through the nadir, and photographed. The telemetry record of the photograph was examined. Telemetry data were inconsistent with the known conditions of the landmark.

Manry, C. E.↗