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At least 379 records · Page 21
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1995

NASA wide electronic publishing system: Electronic printing and duplicating. Stage 3 evaluation report

The report is presented in four sections: The Introduction describes the duplicating configuration under evaluation and the Background contains a chronological description of the evaluation segmented by phases 1 and 2. This section includes the evaluation schedule, printing and duplicating requirements, storage and communication requirements, electronic publishing system configuration, existing processes and proposed processes, billing rates, costs and productivity analysis, and the return on investment based upon the data gathered to date. The third section contains the phase 1 comparative cost and productivity analysis. This analysis demonstrated that LaRC should proceed with a 90-day evaluation of the DocuTech and follow with a phase 2 cycle to actually demonstrate that the proposed system would meet the needs of LaRC's printing and duplicating requirements, benchmark results, cost comparisons, benchmark observations, and recommendations. These are documented after the recommendations.

Tuey, Richard C.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Flight test evaluation of the E-systems Differential GPS category 3 automatic landing system

Test flights were conducted to evaluate the capability of Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) to provide the accuracy and integrity required for International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Category (CAT) III precision approach and landings. These test flights were part of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) program to evaluate the technical feasibility of using DGPS based technology for CAT III precision approach and landing applications. An IAI Westwind 1124 aircraft (N24RH) was equipped with DGPS receiving equipment and additional computing capability provided by E-Systems. The test flights were conducted at NASA Ames Research Center's Crows Landing Flight Facility, Crows Landing, California. The flight test evaluation was based on completing 100 approaches and landings. The navigation sensor error accuracy requirements were based on ICAO requirements for the Microwave Landing System (MLS). All of the approaches and landings were evaluated against ground truth reference data provided by a laser tracker. Analysis of these approaches and landings shows that the E-Systems DGPS system met the navigation sensor error requirements for a successful approach and landing 98 out of 100 approaches and landings, based on the requirements specified in the FAA CAT III Level 2 Flight Test Plan. In addition, the E-Systems DGPS system met the integrity requirements for a successful approach and landing or stationary trial for all 100 approaches and landings and all ten stationary trials, based on the requirements specified in the FAA CAT III Level 2 Flight Test Plan.

Kaufmann, David N.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Evaluation of the impact of noise metrics on tiltrotor aircraft design

A subjective noise evaluation was conducted in which the test participants evaluated the annoyance of simulated sounds representative of future civil tiltrotor aircraft. The subjective responses were correlated with the noise metrics of A-weighted sound pressure level, overall sound pressure level, and perceived level. The results indicated that correlation between subjective response and A-weighted sound pressure level is considerably enhanced by combining it in a multiple regression with overall sound pressure level. As a single metric, perceived level correlated better than A-weighted sound pressure level due to greater emphasis on low frequency noise components. This latter finding was especially true for indoor noise where the mid and high frequency noise components are attenuated by typical building structure. Using the results of the subjective noise evaluation, the impact on tiltrotor aircraft design was also evaluated. While A-weighted sound pressure level can be reduced by reduction in tip speed, an increase in number of rotor blades is required to achieve significant reduction of low frequency noise as measured by overall sound pressure level. Additional research, however, is required to achieve comparable reductions in impulsive noise due to blade-vortex interaction, and also to achieve reduction in broad band noise.

Sternfeld, H.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Use of Video Analysis System for Working Posture Evaluations

In a work environment, it is important to identify and quantify the relationship among work activities, working posture, and workplace design. Working posture may impact the physical comfort and well-being of individuals, as well as performance. The Posture Video Analysis Tool (PVAT) is an interactive menu and button driven software prototype written in Supercard (trademark). Human Factors analysts are provided with a predefined set of options typically associated with postural assessments and human performance issues. Once options have been selected, the program is used to evaluate working posture and dynamic tasks from video footage. PVAT has been used to evaluate postures from Orbiter missions, as well as from experimental testing of prototype glove box designs. PVAT can be used for video analysis in a number of industries, with little or no modification. It can contribute to various aspects of workplace design such as training, task allocations, procedural analyses, and hardware usability evaluations. The major advantage of the video analysis approach is the ability to gather data, non-intrusively, in restricted-access environments, such as emergency and operation rooms, contaminated areas, and control rooms. Video analysis also provides the opportunity to conduct preliminary evaluations of existing work areas.

McKay, Timothy D.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Evaluation of the Emergency Response Dose Assessment System(ERDAS)

The emergency response dose assessment system (ERDAS) is a protype software and hardware system configured to produce routine mesoscale meteorological forecasts and enhanced dispersion estimates on an operational basis for the Kennedy Space Center (KSC)/Cape Canaveral Air Station (CCAS) region. ERDAS provides emergency response guidance to operations at KSC/CCAS in the case of an accidental hazardous material release or an aborted vehicle launch. This report describes the evaluation of ERDAS including: evaluation of sea breeze predictions, comparison of launch plume location and concentration predictions, case study of a toxic release, evaluation of model sensitivity to varying input parameters, evaluation of the user interface, assessment of ERDA's operational capabilities, and a comparison of ERDAS models to the ocean breeze dry gultch diffusion model.

Evans, Randolph J.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Evaluation of High-Speed Civil Transport Handling Qualities Criteria with Supersonic Flight Data

Most flying qualities criteria have been developed from data in the subsonic flight regime. Unique characteristics of supersonic flight raise questions about whether these criteria successfully extend into the supersonic flight regime. Approximately 25 years ago NASA Dryden Flight Research Center addressed this issue with handling qualities evaluations of the XB-70 and YF-12. Good correlations between some of the classical handling qualities parameters, such as the control anticipation parameter as a function of damping, were discovered. More criteria have been developed since these studies. Some of these more recent criteria are being used in designing the High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT). A second research study recently addressed this issue through flying qualities evaluations of the SR-71 at Mach 3. The research goal was to extend the high-speed flying qualities experience of large airplanes and to evaluate more recent MIL-STD-1797 criteria against pilot comments and ratings. Emphasis was placed on evaluating the criteria used for designing the HSCT. XB-70 and YF-12 data from the previous research supplemented the SR-71 data. The results indicate that the criteria used in the HSCT design are conservative and should provide good flying qualities for typical high-speed maneuvering. Additional results show correlation between the ratings and comments and criteria for gradual maneuvering with precision control. Correlation is shown between ratings and comments and an extension of the Neal/Smith criterion using normal acceleration instead of pitch rate.

Cox, Timothy H.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Test Procedures for Characterizing, Evaluating, and Managing Separator Materials used in Secondary Alkaline Batteries

Secondary alkaline batteries, such as nickel-cadmium and silver-zinc, are commonly used for aerospace applications. The uniform evaluation and comparison of separator properties for these systems is dependent upon the measurement techniques. This manual presents a series of standard test procedures that can be used to evaluate, compare, and select separator materials for use in alkaline batteries. Detailed test procedures evaluating the following characteristics are included in this manual: physical measurements of thickness and area weight, dimensional stability measurements, electrolyte retention, resistivity, permeability as measured via bubble pressure, surface evaluation via SEM, chemical stability, and tensile strength.

Guasp, Edwin↗
NASA NTRS1998

Evaluation and optimization of lidar temperature analysis algorithms using simulated data

The middle atmosphere (20 to 90 km altitude) ha received increasing interest from the scientific community during the last decades, especially since such problems as polar ozone depletion and climatic change have become so important. Temperature profiles have been obtained in this region using a variety of satellite-, rocket-, and balloon-borne instruments as well as some ground-based systems. One of the more promising of these instruments, especially for long-term high resolution measurements, is the lidar. Measurements of laser radiation Rayleigh backscattered, or Raman scattered, by atmospheric air molecules can be used to determine the relative air density profile and subsequently the temperature profile if it is assumed that the atmosphere is in hydrostatic equilibrium and follows the ideal gas law. The high vertical and spatial resolution make the lidar a well adapted instrument for the study of many middle atmospheric processes and phenomena as well as for the evaluation and validation of temperature measurements from satellites, such as the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). In the Network for Detection of Stratospheric Change (NDSC) lidar is the core instrument for measuring middle atmosphere temperature profiles. Using the best lidar analysis algorithm possible is therefore of crucial importance. In this work, the JPL and CNRS/SA lidar analysis software were evaluated. The results of this evaluation allowed the programs to be corrected and optimized and new production software versions were produced. First, a brief description of the lidar technique and the method used to simulate lidar raw-data profiles from a given temperature profile is presented. Evaluation and optimization of the JPL and CNRS/SA algorithms are then discussed.

Leblanc, Thierry↗
NASA NTRS1997

Nondestructive Evaluation of Adhesively Bonded Joints

The final report consists of 5 published papers in referred journals and a technical letter to the technical monitor. These papers include the following: (1) Comparison of the effects of debonds and voids in adhesive; (2) On the peak shear stresses in adhesive joints with voids; (3) Nondestructive evaluation of adhesively bonded joints by acousto-ultrasonic technique and acoustic emission; (4) Multiaxial fatigue life evaluation of tubular adhesively bonded joints; (5) Theoretical and experimental evaluation of the bond strength under peeling loads. The letter outlines the progress of the research. Also included is preliminary information on the study of nondestructive evaluation of composite materials subjected to localized heat damage. The investigators studied the effects of localized heat on unidirectional fiber glass epoxy composite panels. Specimens of the fiber glass epoxy composites were subjected to 400 C heat for varying lengths of time. The specimens were subjected to nondestructive tests. The specimens were then pulled to their failure and acoustic emission of these specimens were measured. The analysis of the data was continuing as of the writing of the letter, and includes a finite element stress analysis of the problem.

Nayeb-Hashemi, Hamid↗
NASA NTRS1999

Evaluation of Space Power Materials Flown on the Passive Optical Sample Assembly

Evaluating the performance of materials on the exterior of spacecraft is of continuing interest, particularly in anticipation of those applications that will require a long duration in low Earth orbit. The Passive Optical Sample Assembly (POSA) experiment flown on the exterior of Mir as a risk mitigation experiment for the International Space Station was designed to better understand the interaction of materials with the low Earth orbit environment and to better understand the potential contamination threats that may be present in the vicinity of spacecraft. Deterioration in the optical performance of candidate space power materials due to the low Earth orbit environment, the contamination environment, or both, must be evaluated in order to propose measures to mitigate such deterioration. The thirty two samples of space power materials studied here include solar array blanket materials such as polyimide Kapton H and SiO(x) coated polyimide Kapton H, front surface aluminized sapphire, solar dynamic concentrator materials such as silver on spin coated polyimide and aluminum on spin coated polyimide, CV 1144 silicone, and the thermal control paint Z-93-P. The physical and optical properties that were evaluated prior to and after the POSA flight include mass, total, diffuse, and specular reflectance, solar absorptance, and infrared emittance. Additional post flight evaluation included scanning electron microscopy to observe surface features caused by the low Earth orbit environment and the contamination environment, and variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry to identify contaminant type and thickness. This paper summarizes the results of pre- and post-flight measurements, identifies the mechanisms responsible for optical properties deterioration, and suggests improvements for the durability of materials in future missions.

Jaworske, Donald A.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Evaluation of the Self-Nulling Rotating Eddy Current Probe System

In order to detect multi-site fatigue cracks located under flush-head rivets, automated eddy current equipment is required. To assure a reliable system, the eddy current probe must be centered easily over the installed rivets. To meet these requirements, the NDE Group at NASA LaRC developed the Self-Nulling Rotating Eddy Current Probe System (SNRECPS) which will be referred to as RPS in this document. The system was evaluated at the FAA, NDI Validation Center, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The system was capable of detecting a 0.032 inch long crack with a 90/95% PoD. Further evaluations were conducted at Boeing in Long Beach, California. These evaluations included fatigue cracks and notches in a range from 0.025 to 0.100 inch long under flush-head aluminum rivets, and titanium or steel flush-head fasteners. The results of these tests are reported herein. Subsequently, the system was loaned to the USAF Structures Laboratory for the purpose of detecting and measuring short cracks under flush-head rivets in a variety of fatigue test specimens. The inspection task was to detect and plot crack growth from numbered fasteners in lettered rows. In January, 1998, the system was taken to Northwest Airlines Maintenance Base, in Atlanta, to inspect a DC-9, for multi-site cracks in three circumferential splices. The aircraft had 83,000 cycles. The inspection was conducted at 30 kHz from longeron 5 left to longeron 5 right. The system was calibrated using a 0,030 EDM first layer notch. The instrument gain was set to 19 mV from the notch. The reject level was set at 10 mV and the unflawed fasteners yielded a signal amplitude of 2 to 3 mV. Only one fastener location, out of about 2,500 tested, yielded a signal of 58 mV. The rivet was removed and visually evaluated. It appeared to be a slight gouge in the counter-sink zone. No fatigue cracks were detected. The same fastener locations were also inspected using the Boeing MAUS system at 60 kHz. No cracks were detected. Thus far, the rotating probe eddy current system has been found to be very user friendly and capable of detecting first layer cracks on the order of 0.030 inch long or longer.

Hagemaier, Don↗
NASA NTRS1998

Experimental Evaluation of a Structure-Based Connectionist Network for Fault Diagnosis of Helicopter Gearboxes

This paper presents the experimental evaluation of the Structure-Based Connectionist Network (SBCN) fault diagnostic system introduced in the preceding article. For this vibration data from two different helicopter gearboxes: OH-58A and S-61, are used. A salient feature of SBCN is its reliance on the knowledge of the gearbox structure and the type of features obtained from processed vibration signals as a substitute to training. To formulate this knowledge, approximate vibration transfer models are developed for the two gearboxes and utilized to derive the connection weights representing the influence of component faults on vibration features. The validity of the structural influences is evaluated by comparing them with those obtained from experimental RMS values. These influences are also evaluated ba comparing them with the weights of a connectionist network trained though supervised learning. The results indicate general agreement between the modeled and experimentally obtained influences. The vibration data from the two gearboxes are also used to evaluate the performance of SBCN in fault diagnosis. The diagnostic results indicate that the SBCN is effective in directing the presence of faults and isolating them within gearbox subsystems based on structural influences, but its performance is not as good in isolating faulty components, mainly due to lack of appropriate vibration features.

Jammu, V. B.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Corrosion Evaluation of Aircraft Depainting Chemicals

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is participating in an interagency task agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Air Force to evaluate alternative technologies for aerospace depainting operations that do not adversely affect the environment. An element of this study is directed towards the evaluation of environmentally advantaged chemical paint strippers, specifically, paint strippers that do not contain methylene chloride. Eight environmentally advantaged, or alternative, chemical paint strippers and two methylene chloride, or baseline, paint strippers were obtained from various manufacturers and incorporated into the depainting study. In addition to being evaluated on their ability to remove paint, the potential of these chemicals to promote corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement was evaluated. The corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement potential of the chemical paint strippers are presented in this report.

McGill, Preston↗
NASA NTRS1998

Wide Panel Testing Technique for Evaluating Repair Weld Strengths

This paper describes a new tensile testing technique for evaluating the overall effect of a repair weld on the strength of a welded joint. Previously, repair weld strengths have been evaluated using one-inch width tensile specimens, but this technique does not capture all of the effects that result from a repair. The new technique involves testing of "wide panel" tensile specimens which contain the full length of a repair weld within a longer initial weld, allowing the specimen to capture the combined effects of residual stresses, local strength degradation, and load redistribution around a repair. The development of strains in the repair area of standard aluminum alloy specimens and new high-performance aluminum-lithium alloy specimens was observed and evaluated using photoelastic material. The results of this evaluation show an increased sensitivity to repair welding residual stresses in the aluminum-lithium alloy specimens.

Rogers, Patrick R.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Understanding Skill in EVA Mass Handling: An Integrated Methodology for Evaluating Space Suit Mobility and Stability - Volume 4

The empirical investigation of extravehicular activity (EVA) mass handling conducted on NASA's Precision Air-Bearing Floor led to a Phase I SBIR from JSC. The purpose of the SBIR was to design an innovative system for evaluating space suit mobility and stability in conditions that simulate EVA on the surface of the Moon or Mars. The approach we used to satisfy the Phase I objectives was based on a structured methodology for the development of human-systems technology. Accordingly the project was broken down into a number of tasks and subtasks. In sequence, the major tasks were: 1) Identify missions and tasks that will involve EVA and resulting mobility requirements in the near and long term; 2) Assess possible methods for evaluating mobility of space suits during field-based EVA tests; 3) Identify requirements for behavioral evaluation by interacting with NASA stakeholders;.4) Identify necessary and sufficient technology for implementation of a mobility evaluation system; and 5) Prioritize and select technology solutions. The work conducted in these tasks is described in this final volume of the series on EVA mass handling. While prior volumes in the series focus on novel data-analytic techniques, this volume addresses technology that is necessary for minimally intrusive data collection and near-real-time data analysis and display.

McDonald, P. Vernon↗
NASA NTRS2000

NASA's New Approach for Evaluating Risk Reduction Due to Space Shuttle Upgrades

As part of NASA's intensive effort to incorporate quantitative risk assessment (QRA) tools in the Agency's decision-making process concerning Space Shuttle risk, NASA has developed a powerful risk assessment tool called the Quantitative Risk Assessment System (QRAS). The QRAS is a tool designed to estimate Space Shuttle risk and evaluate Space Shuttle upgrades. This paper presents an overview of the QRAS with focus on its application for evaluating the risk reduction due to proposed Space Shuttle upgrades. The application includes a case study from the Space Shuttle main engine (SSME). The QRAS overview section of the paper includes the QRAS development process, the technical approach to model development, the QRA quantification methods and techniques, and observations concerning the complex modeling involved in QRAS. The application section of the paper describes a practical case study using QRAS models for evaluating critical Space Shuttle Program upgrades, specifically a proposed SSME nozzle upgrade. This paper presents the method for evaluating the proposed upgrade by comparing the current nozzle (old design with well-established probabilistic models) to the channel wall nozzle (new design at the preliminary design level).

Safie, Fayssal M.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Evaluation of Wind Profiler Data

This report presents the Applied Meteorology Unit's evaluation of a "Hypersodar" wind profiler located on KSC adjacent to tower 412. The sodar data used for this evaluation were collected during two different periods in March 1999 and November 1998. The evaluation is performed by calculating sodar data availability as a function of height, and bias and Root Mean Square (RMS) differences of wind speed and direction between sodar and tower 313 observations at comparable heights. The RMS differences in wind speed and wind direction from sodar wind solution B at KSC range from 0.65 m s (exp. -1) - 2.04 m s (exp. -1) and 4.5 - 32.3 deg., respectively. Note that these RMS differences are not bias-corrected. The vendor claims that the accuracy of the wind measurements from the sodar is better than 0.5 m s (exp -1) in speed and 10 deg. in direction. The results of the evaluation described here suggest that such accuracy may be attainable though the data available for this comparison made it impossible to confirm the vendor's claims. The sodar was not aligned with true north and was separated by a distance of 3.5 km from tower 313 used for comparisons in this study.

Manobianco, John↗
NASA NTRS1999

Initial Piloted Simulation Evaluation of the Reference-H High-Speed Civil Transport Design During Takeoff and Recovery From Limit Flight Conditions

An initial assessment of a proposed High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) was conducted in the fall of 1995 at the NASA Langley Research Center. This configuration, known as the Industry Reference-H (Ref.-H), was designed by the Boeing Aircraft Company as part of their work in the High Speed Research program. It included a conventional tail, a cranked-arrow wing, four mixed-flow turbofan engines, and capacity for transporting approximately 300 passengers. The purpose of this assessment was to evaluate and quantify operational aspects of the Reference-H configuration from a pilot's perspective with the additional goal of identifying design strengths as well as any potential configuration deficiencies. This study was aimed at evaluating the Ref.-H configuration at many points of the aircraft's envelope to determine the suitability of the vehicle to accomplish typical mission profiles as well as emergency or envelope-limit conditions. Pilot-provided Cooper-Harper ratings and comments constituted the primary vehicle evaluation metric. The analysis included simulated real-time piloted evaluations, performed in a 6 degree of freedom motion base NASA Langley Visual-Motion Simulator, combined with extensive bath analysis. The assessment was performed using the third major release of the simulation data base (known as Ref.-H cycle 2B).

Glaab, Louis J.↗