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The purpose of this conference is to provide a forum in which current research and development directed at space applications of artificial intelligence can be presented and discussed. The papers fall into the following areas: planning and scheduling, control, fault monitoring/diagnosis and recovery, information management, tools, neural networks, and miscellaneous applications.
Real-Time Innovations, Inc. (RTI) collaborated with Ames Research Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Stanford University to leverage NASA research to produce ControlShell software. RTI is the first "graduate" of Ames Research Center's Technology Commercialization Center. The ControlShell system was used extensively on a cooperative project to enhance the capabilities of a Russian-built Marsokhod rover being evaluated for eventual flight to Mars. RTI's ControlShell is complex, real-time command and control software, capable of processing information and controlling mechanical devices. One ControlShell tool is StethoScope. As a real-time data collection and display tool, StethoScope allows a user to see how a program is running without changing its execution. RTI has successfully applied its software savvy in other arenas, such as telecommunications, networking, video editing, semiconductor manufacturing, automobile systems, and medical imaging.
Research aircraft have become increasingly dependent on advanced control systems to accomplish program goals. These aircraft are integrating multiple disciplines to improve performance and satisfy research objectives. This integration is being accomplished through electronic control systems. Because of the number of systems involved and the variety of engineering disciplines, systems design methods and information management have become essential to program success. The primary objective of the system design/information tool for aircraft flight control system is to help transfer flight control system design knowledge to the flight test community. By providing all of the design information and covering multiple disciplines in a structured, graphical manner, flight control systems can more easily be understood by the test engineers. This will provide the engineers with the information needed to thoroughly ground test the system and thereby reduce the likelihood of serious design errors surfacing in flight. The secondary objective is to apply structured design techniques to all of the design domains. By using the techniques in the top level system design down through the detailed hardware and software designs, it is hoped that fewer design anomalies will result. The flight test experiences of three highly complex, integrated aircraft programs are reviewed: the X-29 forward-swept wing, the advanced fighter technology integration (AFTI) F-16, and the highly maneuverable aircraft technology (HiMAT) program. Significant operating anomalies and the design errors which cause them, are examined to help identify what functions a system design/information tool should provide to assist designers in avoiding errors.
Effective Space Asset Management is one key to addressing the ever-growing issue of space congestion. It is imperative that agencies around the world have access to data regarding the numerous active assets and pieces of space junk currently tracked in orbit around the Earth. At the center of this issues is the effective management of data of many types related to orbiting objects. As the population of tracked objects grows, so too should the data management structure used to catalog technical specifications, orbital information, and metadata related to those populations. Marshall Space Flight Center's Space Asset Management Database (SAM-D) was implemented in order to effectively catalog a broad set of data related to known objects in space by ingesting information from a variety of database and processing that data into useful technical information. Using the universal NORAD number as a unique identifier, the SAM-D processes two-line element data into orbital characteristics and cross-references this technical data with metadata related to functional status, country of ownership, and application category. The SAM-D began as an Excel spreadsheet and was later upgraded to an Access database. While SAM-D performs its task very well, it is limited by its current platform and is not available outside of the local user base. Further, while modeling and simulation can be powerful tools to exploit the information contained in SAM-D, the current system does not allow proper integration options for combining the data with both legacy and new M&S tools. This paper provides a summary of SAM-D development efforts to date and outlines a proposed data management infrastructure that extends SAM-D to support the larger data sets to be generated. A service-oriented architecture model using an information sharing platform named SIMON will allow it to easily expand to incorporate new capabilities, including advanced analytics, M&S tools, fusion techniques and user interface for visualizations. In addition, tight control of information sharing policy will increase confidence in the system, which would encourage industry partners to provide commercial data. Combined with the integration of new and legacy M&S tools, a SIMON-based architecture will provide a robust environment that can be extended and expanded indefinitely.
The Surface Management System (SMS) is a decision support tool that will help controllers, traffic managers, and NAS users manage the movements of aircraft on the surface of busy airports, improving capacity, efficiency, and flexibility. The Advanced Air Transportation Technologies (AATT) Project at NASA is developing SMS in cooperation with the FAA's Free Flight Phase 2 (FFP2) pro5ram. SMS consists of three parts: a traffic management tool, a controller tool, and a National Airspace System (NAS) information tool.
Manugistics, Inc. (formerly AVYX, Inc.) has introduced a new programming language for IBM and IBM compatible computers called TREES-pls. It is a resource management tool originating from the space shuttle, that can be used in such applications as scheduling, resource allocation project control, information management, and artificial intelligence. Manugistics, Inc. was looking for a flexible tool that can be applied to many problems with minimal adaptation. Among the non-government markets are aerospace, other manufacturing, transportation, health care, food and beverage and professional services.
The design and simulator evaluation of an automation tool for assisting terminal radar approach controllers in sequencing and spacing traffic onto the final approach course is described. The automation tool, referred to as the Final Approach Spacing Tool (FAST), displays speed and heading advisories for arrivals and sequencing information on the controller's radar display. The main functional elements of FAST are a scheduler that schedules and sequences the traffic, a four-dimensional trajectory synthesizer that generates the advisories, and a graphical interface that displays the information to the controller. FAST has been implemented on a high-performance workstation. It can be operated stand-alone in the terminal radar approach control (TRACON) facility or as an element of a system integrated with automation tools in the Air Route Traffic Control Center). Simulation results show that FAST significantly reduced controller workload and demonstrated a potential for an increase in landing rate.
Technical Requirements Analysis and Control Systems/Initial Operating Capability (TRACS/IOC) computer program provides supplemental software tools for analysis, control, and interchange of project requirements so qualified project members have access to pertinent project information, even if in different locations. Enables users to analyze and control requirements, serves as focal point for project requirements, and integrates system supporting efficient and consistent operations. TRACS/IOC is HyperCard stack for use on Macintosh computers running HyperCard 1.2 or later and Oracle 1.2 or later.
This paper introduces a modeling and simulation tool for aeroservoelastic analysis of rectangular wings with trailing edge control surfaces. The inputs to the code are planform design parameters such as wing span, aspect ratio and number of control surfaces. A doublet lattice approach is taken to compute generalized forces. A rational function approximation is computed. The output, computed in a few seconds, is a state space aeroservoelastic model which can be used for analysis and control design. The tool is fully parameterized with default information so there is little required interaction with the model developer. Although, all parameters can be easily modified if desired.The focus of this paper is on tool presentation, verification and validation. This process is carried out in stages throughout the paper. The rational function approximation is verified against computed generalized forces for a plate model. A model composed of finite element plates is compared to a modal analysis from commercial software and an independently conducted experimental ground vibration test analysis. Aeroservoelastic analysis is the ultimate goal of this tool. Therefore the flutter speed and frequency for a clamped plate are computed using V-g and V-f analysis. The computational results are compared to a previously published computational analysis and wind tunnel results for the same structure. Finally a case study of a generic wing model with a single control surface is presented. Verification of the state space model is presented in comparison to V-g and V-f analysis. This also includes the analysis of the model in response to a 1-cos gust.
NASA's Air Traffic Management Technology Demonstration-1 (ATD-1) will operationally demonstrate the feasibility of efficient arrival operations combining ground-based and airborne NASA technologies. The ATD-1 integrated system consists of the Traffic Management Advisor with Terminal Metering which generates precise time-based schedules to the runway and merge points; Controller Managed Spacing decision support tools which provide controllers with speed advisories and other information needed to meet the schedule; and Flight deck-based Interval Management avionics and procedures which allow flight crews to adjust their speed to achieve precise relative spacing. Initial studies identified air-ground challenges related to the integration of these three scheduling and spacing technologies, and NASA's airborne spacing algorithm was modified to address some of these challenges. The Research and Procedural Testing of Routes human-in-the-loop experiment was then conducted to assess the performance of the new spacing algorithm. The results of this experiment indicate that the algorithm performed as designed, and the pilot participants found the airborne spacing concept, air-ground procedures, and crew interface to be acceptable. However, the researchers concluded that the data revealed issues with the frequency of speed changes and speed reversals.
The design and simulator evaluation of an automation tool for assisting terminal radar approach controllers in sequencing and spacing traffic onto the final approach course is described. The automation tool, referred to as the Final Approach Spacing Tool (FAST), displays speed and heading advisories for arrivals as well as sequencing information on the controller's radar display. The main functional elements of FAST are a scheduler that schedules and sequences the traffic, a 4-D trajectory synthesizer that generates the advisories, and a graphical interface that displays the information to the controller. FAST was implemented on a high performance workstation. It can be operated as a stand-alone in the Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) Facility or as an element of a system integrated with automation tools in the Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC). FAST was evaluated by experienced TRACON controllers in a real-time air traffic control simulation. Simulation results show that FAST significantly reduced controller workload and demonstrated a potential for an increase in landing rate.
This paper describes the design and simulator evaluation of an automation tool for assisting terminal radar approach controllers in sequencing and spacing traffic onto the final approach course. The automation tool, referred to as the Final Approach Spacing Tool (FAST), displays speed and heading advisories for arriving aircraft as well as sequencing information on the controller's radar display. The main functional elements of FAST are a scheduler that schedules and sequences the traffic, a four-dimensional trajectory synthesizer that generates the advisories, and a graphical interface that displays the information to the controller. FAST has been implemented on a high-performance workstation. It can be operated as a stand-alone in the terminal radar approach control facility or as an element of a system integrated with automation tools in the air route traffic control center. FAST was evaluated by experienced air traffic controllers in a real-time air traffic control simulation. simulation results summarized in the paper show that the automation tools significantly reduced controller work load and demonstrated a potential for an increase in landing rate.
The EVA (Extravehicular Activity) Wiki was recently implemented as the primary knowledge database to retain critical knowledge and skills in the EVA Operations group at NASA's Johnson Space Center by ensuring that information is recorded in a common, searchable repository. Prior to the EVA Wiki, information required for EVA flight controllers and instructors was scattered across different sources, including multiple file share directories, SharePoint, individual computers, and paper archives. Many documents were outdated, and data was often difficult to find and distribute. In 2011, a team recognized that these knowledge management problems could be solved by creating an EVA Wiki using MediaWiki, a free and open-source software developed by the Wikimedia Foundation. The EVA Wiki developed into an EVA-specific Wikipedia on an internal NASA server. While the technical implementation of the wiki had many challenges, the one of the biggest hurdles came from a cultural shift. Like many enterprise organizations, the EVA Operations group was accustomed to hierarchical data structures and individually-owned documents. Instead of sorting files into various folders, the wiki searches content. Rather than having a single document owner, the wiki harmonized the efforts of many contributors and established an automated revision control system. As the group adapted to the wiki, the usefulness of this single portal for information became apparent. It transformed into a useful data mining tool for EVA flight controllers and instructors, and also for hundreds of other NASA and contract employees. Program managers, engineers, astronauts, flight directors, and flight controllers in differing disciplines now have an easier-to-use, searchable system to find EVA data. This paper presents the benefits the EVA Wiki has brought to NASA's EVA community, as well as the cultural challenges it had to overcome.
The EVA Wiki was recently implemented as the primary knowledge database to retain critical knowledge and skills in the EVA Operations group at NASA's Johnson Space Center by ensuring that information is recorded in a common, easy to search repository. Prior to the EVA Wiki, information required for EVA flight controllers and instructors was scattered across different sources, including multiple file share directories, SharePoint, individual computers, and paper archives. Many documents were outdated, and data was often difficult to find and distribute. In 2011, a team recognized that these knowledge management problems could be solved by creating an EVA Wiki using MediaWiki, a free and open-source software developed by the Wikimedia Foundation. The EVA Wiki developed into an EVA-specific Wikipedia on an internal NASA server. While the technical implementation of the wiki had many challenges, one of the biggest hurdles came from a cultural shift. Like many enterprise organizations, the EVA Operations group was accustomed to hierarchical data structures and individually-owned documents. Instead of sorting files into various folders, the wiki searches content. Rather than having a single document owner, the wiki harmonized the efforts of many contributors and established an automated revision controlled system. As the group adapted to the wiki, the usefulness of this single portal for information became apparent. It transformed into a useful data mining tool for EVA flight controllers and instructors, as well as hundreds of others that support the EVA. Program managers, engineers, astronauts, flight directors, and flight controllers in differing disciplines now have an easier-to-use, searchable system to find EVA data. This paper presents the benefits the EVA Wiki has brought to NASA's EVA community, as well as the cultural challenges it had to overcome.
The EVA Wiki was recently implemented as the primary knowledge database to retain critical knowledge and skills in the EVA Operations group at NASA's Johnson Space Center by ensuring that information is recorded in a common, easy to search repository. Prior to the EVA Wiki, information required for EVA flight controllers and instructors was scattered across different sources, including multiple file share directories, SharePoint, individual computers, and paper archives. Many documents were outdated, and data was often difficult to find and distribute. In 2011, a team recognized that these knowledge management problems could be solved by creating an EVA Wiki using MediaWiki, a free and open-source software developed by the Wikimedia Foundation. The EVA Wiki developed into an EVA-specific Wikipedia on an internal NASA server. While the technical implementation of the wiki had many challenges, one of the biggest hurdles came from a cultural shift. Like many enterprise organizations, the EVA Operations group was accustomed to hierarchical data structures and individually-owned documents. Instead of sorting files into various folders, the wiki searches content. Rather than having a single document owner, the wiki harmonized the efforts of many contributors and established an automated revision controlled system. As the group adapted to the wiki, the usefulness of this single portal for information became apparent. It transformed into a useful data mining tool for EVA flight controllers and instructors, as well as hundreds of others that support EVA. Program managers, engineers, astronauts, flight directors, and flight controllers in differing disciplines now have an easier-to-use, searchable system to find EVA data. This paper presents the benefits the EVA Wiki has brought to NASA's EVA community, as well as the cultural challenges it had to overcome.
This paper presents a performance analysis of the instrument pointing control system for NASA's Space Interferometer Mission (SIM). SIM has a complex pointing system that uses a fast steering mirror in combination with a multirate control architecture to blend feed forward information with feedback information. A pointing covariance analysis tool (PCAT) is developed specifically to analyze systems with such complexity. The development of PCAT as a mathematical tool for covariance analysis is outlined in the paper. PCAT is then applied to studying performance of SIM's science pointing system. The analysis reveals and clearly delineates a fundamental limit that exists for SIM pointing performance. The limit is especially stringent for dim star targets. Discussion of the nature of the performance limit is provided, and methods are suggested to potentially improve pointing performance.
With NERAC assistance, Raymond Engineering has developed a line of sophisticated tools for producing and controlling high torques that affect bolted joints in various applications. Information from NERAC was also useful in designing and presenting a series of Raymond Bolting Seminars. The new tools have increased sales and created jobs.
Numerical Control Machine Data Manual provides programmers with specific information for various types and sizes of numerical control machine tools and auxiliary equipment.