Integrated operating mode of the Apollo mission simulator.
Integrated operating mode of Apollo mission simulator with mission control center for combined training of Apollo flight and ground crews
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Integrated operating mode of Apollo mission simulator with mission control center for combined training of Apollo flight and ground crews
This slide presentation reviews the use of ARTEMIS in the development and testing of the ARES launch vehicles. Ares Real Time Environment for Modeling, Simulation and Integration (ARTEMIS) is the real time simulation supporting Ares I hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) testing. ARTEMIS accurately models all Ares/Orion/Ground subsystems which interact with Ares avionics components from pre-launch through orbit insertion The ARTEMIS System integration Lab, and the STIF architecture is reviewed. The functional components of ARTEMIS are outlined. An overview of the models and a block diagram is presented.
Accidents and incidents show that high workload-induced stress and poor teamwork skills lead to performance decrements and errors. Research on teamwork shows that effective teams are able to adapt to stressful situations, and to reduce workload by using successful strategies for communication and decision making, and through dynamic redistribution of tasks among team members. Furthermore, superior teams are able to recognize signs and symptoms of workload-induced stress early, and to adapt their coordination and communication strategies to the high workload, or stress conditions. Mission Control Center (MCC) teams often face demanding situations in which they must operate as an effective team to solve problems with crew and vehicle during onorbit operations. To be successful as a team, flight controllers (FCers) must learn effective teamwork strategies. Such strategies are the focus of Space Flight Resource Management (SFRM) training. SFRM training in MOD has been structured to include some classroom presentations of basic concepts and case studies, with the assumption that skill development happens in mission simulation. Integrated mission simulations do provide excellent opportunities for FCers to practice teamwork, but also require extensive technical knowledge of vehicle systems, mission operations, and crew actions. Such technical knowledge requires lengthy training. When SFRM training is relegated to integrated simulations, FCers can only practice SFRM after they have already mastered the technical knowledge necessary for these simulations. Given the centrality of teamwork to the success of MCC, holding SFRM training till late in the flow is inefficient. But to be able to train SFRM earlier in the flow, the training cannot rely on extensive mission-specific technical knowledge. Hence, the need for a generic SFRM training framework that would allow FCers to develop basic teamwork skills which are mission relevant, but without the required mission knowledge. Work on SFRM training has been conducted in collaboration with the Expedition Vehicle Division at the Mission Operations Directorate (MOD) and with United Space Alliance (USA) which provides training to Flight Controllers. The space flight resource management training work is part of the Human Factors in Training Directed Research Project (DRP) of the Space Human Factors Engineering (SHFE) Project under the Space Human Factors and Habitability (SHFH) Element of the Human Research Program (HRP). Human factors researchers at the Ames Research Center have been investigating team work and distributed decision making processes to develop a generic SFRM training framework for flight controllers. The work proposed for FY10 continues to build on this strong collaboration with MOD and the USA Training Group as well as previous research in relevant domains such as aviation. In FY10, the work focuses on documenting and analyzing problem solving strategies and decision making processes used in MCC by experienced FCers.
The Exploration Systems Architecture defines missions that require rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) of two spacecraft both in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and in Low Lunar Orbit (LLO). Uncrewed spacecraft must perform automated and/or autonomous rendezvous, proximity operations and docking operations (commonly known as Automated Rendezvous and Docking, AR&D). The crewed versions may also perform AR&D, possibly with a different level of automation and/or autonomy, and must also provide the crew with relative navigation information for manual piloting. The capabilities of the RPOD sensors are critical to the success of the Constellation Program; this is carried as one of the CEV Project top risks. The Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) AR&D Sensor Technology Project seeks to reduce this risk by increasing technology maturation of selected relative navigation sensor technologies through testing and simulation. One of the project activities is a series of "pathfinder" testing and simulation activities to integrate relative navigation sensors with the Johnson Space Center Six-Degree-of-Freedom Test System (SDTS). The SDTS will be the primary testing location for the Orion spacecraft s Low Impact Docking System (LIDS). Project team members have integrated the Orion simulation with the SDTS computer system so that real-time closed loop testing can be performed with relative navigation sensors and the docking system in the loop during docking and undocking scenarios. Two relative navigation sensors are being used as part of a "pathfinder" activity in order to pave the way for future testing with the actual Orion sensors. This paper describes the test configuration and test results.
The training performed for flights of the Space Shuttle is intensive and extremely complicated. The training is totally dependent on computer generated training situations in both cockpit simulations and in integrated simulations between the simulators and the Mission Control Center (MCC). These simulations form a complex set of dress rehearsals of the actual spaceflight allowing the participants to address problems in a real world situation and utilize problem solving rationale just as they will be called upon to do during the real flight. The benefits of this type of training have been demonstrated during the flights of the Shuttle as individual flight controllers and whole teams have been tested by various untoward situations. This system of integrated simulation and training, more complex than ever, will be continued in use in the future using even more intricate man-machine interactions required to initialize, control, and operate it.
The human computer interface (HCI) prototyping environment is designed to allow developers to rapidly prototype systems so that the interface and functionality of a system can be evaluated and iteratively refined early in the development process. This keeps development costs down by modifying the interface during the requirements definition phase, thus minimizing changes that need to be made during and after flight code development. Problems occur within a system when the user interface is not adequately developed and when designers and developers have an incomplete understanding of the system requirements. A process has been developed for prototyping on-board payload displays for Space Station Freedom. This prototyping process consists of five phases: identification of known requirements, analysis of the requirements, development of a formal design representation and specification, development of the prototype, and evaluation of the prototype. The actual development of the prototype involves prototyping the displays, developing a low fidelity simulator, building of an interface (or communication) between the displays and the simulator, integration of these components, and testing to ensure that the interface does what the developer expects. This research integrates and evaluates a software tool which has been developed to serve as a simulator within the prototyping environment. The tool is being evaluated to determine whether or not it meets the basic requirements which are needed for a low fidelity simulator within this environment. In order to evaluate the architecture and its components, a human computer interface for and a simulator of an automobile have been developed as a prototype. The individual components (i.e., the interface and simulator) have been developed, and the current research was designed to integrate and test the complete working system within the prototyping environment. The following sections will describe the architecture and components of the rapid prototyping environment, the development of a system to assess the environment, and the integration and evaluation of PERCNET.
Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) will use the Skycrane architecture to execute final descent and landing maneuvers. The Skycrane phase uses closed-loop feedback control throughout the entire phase, starting with rover separation, through mobility deploy, and through touchdown, ending only when the bridles have completely slacked. The integrated ADAMS simulation described in this paper couples complex dynamical models created by the mechanical subsystem with actual GNC flight software algorithms that have been compiled and linked into ADAMS. These integrated simulations provide the project with the best means to verify key Skycrane requirements which have a tightly coupled GNC-Mechanical aspect to them. It also provides the best opportunity to validate the design of the algorithm that determines when to cut the bridles. The results of the simulations show the excellent performance of the Skycrane system.
The United States is in the initial stages of committing to a national program to develop a supersonic short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft. The goal of the propulsion community in this effort is to have the enabling propulsion technologies for this type aircraft in place to permit a low risk decision regarding the initiation of a research STOVL supersonic attack/fighter aircraft in the late mid-90's. This technology will effectively integrate, enhance, and extend the supersonic cruise, STOVL and fighter/attack programs to enable U.S. industry to develop a revolutionary supersonic short takeoff and vertical landing fighter/attack aircraft in the post-ATF period. A joint NASA Lewis and NASA Ames research program, with the objective of developing and validating technology for integrated-flight propulsion control design methodologies for short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft, was planned and is underway. This program, the NASA Supersonic STOVL Integrated Flight-Propulsion Controls Program, is a major element of the overall NASA-Lewis Supersonic STOVL Propulsion Technology Program. It uses an integrated approach to develop an integrated program to achieve integrated flight-propulsion control technology. Essential elements of the integrated controls research program are realtime simulations of the integrated aircraft and propulsion systems which will be used in integrated control concept development and evaluations. This paper describes pertinent parts of the research program leading up to the related realtime simulation development and remarks on the simulation structure to accommodate propulsion system hardware drop-in for real system evaluation.
In support of the X-33 single-stage-to-orbit program, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center was selected to provide continuous range communications of the X-33 vehicle from launch at Edwards Air Force Base, California, through landing at Malmstrom Air Force Base Montana, or at Michael Army Air Field, Utah. An extensive real-time range simulation capability is being developed to ensure successful communications with the autonomous X-33 vehicle. This paper provides an overview of various levels of simulation, integration, and test being developed to support the X-33 extended range subsystems. These subsystems include the flight termination system, L-band command uplink subsystem, and S-band telemetry downlink subsystem.
This paper details the development of a propulsion system simulation for a six-passenger parallel hybrid quadrotor and utilizes the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS) along with the NPSS Power System Library as the development environment. This simulation integrates an engine power plant with an electrical generation and distribution system and includes the required thermal management system. The thermal management system is comprised of liquid cooling loops that reject the heat load through air to coolant heat exchangers and utilizes a map-based performance estimation method. This method is developed within NPSS and detailed in this paper. The full system model is designed to predict system weight, range, and performance through a proposed mission profile. Results of the paper show an all-engine system maintains the best range, while a mostly electric system that utilizes an engine as a backup or a conditional power contributor offers range benefit.
This paper details the development of a propulsion system simulation for a six-passenger parallel hybrid quadrotor and utilizes the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS) along with the NPSS Power System Library as the development environment. This simulation integrates an engine power plant with an electrical generation and distribution system and includes the required thermal management system. The thermal management system is comprised of liquid cooling loops that reject the heat load through air to coolant heat exchangers and utilizes a map-based performance estimation method. This method is developed within NPSS and detailed in this paper. The full system model is designed to predict system weight, range, and performance through a proposed mission profile. Results of the paper show an all-engine system maintains the best range, while a mostly electric system that utilizes an engine as a backup or a conditional power contributor offers range benefit.
The Mine Emergency Response Interactive Training Simulation (MERITS) is intended to prepare personnel to manage an emergency in an underground coal mine. The creation of an effective training environment required realistic emergent behavior in response to simulation events and trainee interventions, exploratory modification of miner behavior rules, realistic physics, and incorporation of legacy code. It also required the ability to add rich media to the simulation without conflicting with normal desktop security settings. Our Umbra Simulation and Integration Framework facilitated agent-based modeling of miners and rescuers and made it possible to work with subject matter experts to quickly adjust behavior through script editing, rather than through lengthy programming and recompilation. Integration of Umbra code with the WebKit browser engine allowed the use of JavaScript-enabled local web pages for media support. This project greatly extended the capabilities of Umbra in support of training simulations and has implications for simulations that combine human behavior, physics, and rich media.
This slide presentation reviews the ARTEMIS (Ares Real Time Environment for Modeling, Integration, and Simulation) for Ares hardware testing. It includes information on the ARTEMIS organization, SIL architecture, and I/O layer.
This document describes the design of the Integrated Mission Simulation (IMSim) federate multiphase initialization process. The main goal of multiphase initialization is to allow for data interdependencies during the federate initialization process. IMSim uses the High Level Architecture (HLA) IEEE 1516 [1] to provide the communication and coordination between the distributed parts of the simulation. They are implemented using the Runtime Infrastructure (RTI) from Pitch Technologies AB. This document assumes a basic understanding of IEEE 1516 HLA, and C++ programming. In addition, there are several subtle points in working with IEEE 1516 and the Pitch RTI that need to be understood, which are covered in Appendix A. Please note the C++ code samples shown in this document are for the IEEE 1516-2000 standard.
An iterative finite element integral technique is used to predict the sound field radiated from the JT15D turbofan inlet. The sound field is divided into two regions: the sound field within and near the inlet which is computed using the finite element method and the radiation field beyond the inlet which is calculated using an integral solution technique. The velocity potential formulation of the acoustic wave equation was employed in the program. For some single mode JT15D data, the theory and experiment are in good agreement for the far field radiation pattern as well as suppressor attenuation. Also, the computer program is used to simulate flight effects that cannot be performed on a ground static test stand.
Upper extremity offload is a new capability to be developed for the Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) at the Johnson Space Center. To address the need, the Actuated Real-time Control for ARGOS Negation of Gravitational Effects on the Limbs (ARC-ANGEL) system is being designed and developed by the HumanWorks team in the Flight Systems Branch (ER3). The Plugin for Integrated Exoskeleton Simulations (PIES) is a multibody modeling and analysis capability developed by the Digital Astronaut Simulation (DAS) team in the Simulation and Graphics Branch (ER7). The C++ plugin is used in the open source biomechanics software, OpenSim (Stanford University), and integrates human multibody modeling with system dynamic modeling. The latest ‘flavor’ is the ANGEL with Passive and Powered Line of force Evaluation (APPLE) PIES.
The implementation of available wind shear data into general aviation flight training simulators is discussed. Currently, there are 11 simulators with wind shear models installed involving some 9 different aircraft models. Retrofits to other systems that were put out earlier are currently underway, and all the new simulators will have wind shear available for the instructors to use for demonstrations and training. There are three types of computer systems involved, and two different types of instructor stations. Most of the systems with wind shear are the CRT-type displays. The integration of wind shear models in flight simulators is discussed in detail.
The paper describes the Distributed Space Exploration Simulation (DSES) Project, a research and development collaboration between NASA centers which focuses on the investigation and development of technologies, processes and integrated simulations related to the collaborative distributed simulation of complex space systems in support of NASA's Exploration Initiative. This paper describes the three major components of DSES: network infrastructure, software infrastructure and simulation development. In the network work area, DSES is developing a Distributed Simulation Network that will provide agency wide support for distributed simulation between all NASA centers. In the software work area, DSES is developing a collection of software models, tool and procedures that ease the burden of developing distributed simulations and provides a consistent interoperability infrastructure for agency wide participation in integrated simulation. Finally, for simulation development, DSES is developing an integrated end-to-end simulation capability to support NASA development of new exploration spacecraft and missions. This paper will present current status and plans for each of these work areas with specific examples of simulations that support NASA's exploration initiatives.