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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2013

Ubiquitous Wireless Smart Sensing and Control. Pumps and Pipes JSC: Uniquely Houston

Need new technologies to reliably and safely have humans interact within sensored environments (integrated user interfaces, physical and cognitive augmentation, training, and human-systems integration tools).Areas of focus include: radio frequency identification (RFID), motion tracking, wireless communication, wearable computing, adaptive training and decision support systems, and tele-operations. The challenge is developing effective, low cost/mass/volume/power integrated monitoring systems to assess and control system, environmental, and operator health; and accurately determining and controlling the physical, chemical, and biological environments of the areas and associated environmental control systems.

Wagner, Raymond↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Immersive Technologies for Human-in-the-Loop Lunar Surface Simulations

NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, continually seeks innovative solutions to enhance its operations, particularly in the realms of testing, evaluation, and training for future missions. Immersive technologies, such as virtual, augmented, and mixed reality have proven to be powerful tools for realistic, interactive, and engaging environments. This paper explores how the Simulation and Graphics Branch at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC) leverages immersive technology, modern commercial rendering engines, and physics-based systems simulations to develop human-in-the-loop systems for humanity’s return to the Moon through the Artemis program. When NASA returns to the Moon, astronauts will travel to the Moon’s South Pole where lighting conditions will cause a more complex operational environment. Human-in-the-loop testing plays a crucial role in NASA's mission planning, spacecraft and space systems development, and evaluation of operational scenarios. The development of immersive environments such as a lunar rover mockup at a video wall enables engineers and astronauts to simulate and experience mission scenarios, integrated spacecraft systems, and operational procedures in a relevant environment before deployment. By integrating realistic virtual environments, immersive technology allows for the visualization and interaction with virtual spacecraft models, mission landscapes, and complex operational tasks. This approach helps identify potential design flaws, operational challenges, and safety considerations. It also provides valuable insights for risk reduction and helps improve mission efficiency and effectiveness. With advanced motion tracking systems and custom virtual environments data can be gathered and evaluated to help NASA refine training protocols, develop specialized training procedures and optimize human-robotic interactions for future space missions. Furthermore, immersive technology offers opportunities for future training initiatives at NASA. The Virtual Reality Laboratory at JSC has pioneered training with Virtual Reality (VR) since the Hubble Space Telescope repair missions in the early 1990’s. Extended Reality (XR) simulations enable astronauts to rehearse complex spacewalks, spacecraft maneuvers, and extravehicular activities in a safe and controlled environment. By replicating the physical and cognitive challenges of space missions, immersive training experiences enhance astronauts' situational awareness, decision-making abilities, and adaptability to unexpected scenarios. Additionally, immersive technology facilitates collaborative training, allowing geographically dispersed crew and mission control personnel to engage in synchronized simulations, fostering teamwork and effective communication. The adoption of immersive technology in NASA's testing, evaluation, and future training programs has yielded significant benefits. By incorporating human-in-the-loop testing for studies involving Extra Vehicular Activities (EVA), surface mobility and landing systems, NASA can identify and mitigate risks, optimize operational procedures, and enhance mission success. Ultimately, immersive training experiences can empower astronauts to better navigate the complexities of space missions, ensuring their safety, productivity, and success in the dynamic and challenging environments they will experience at the Lunar South Pole.

Simulation Modeling Virtual Reality Immersive Tech↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Immersive Technologies for Human-in-the-Loop Lunar Surface Simulations

NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, continually seeks innovative solutions to enhance its operations, particularly in the realms of testing, evaluation, and training for future missions. Immersive technologies, such as virtual, augmented, and mixed reality have proven to be powerful tools for immersing users in realistic, interactive, and engaging environments. This paper explores how the Simulation and Graphics Branch at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC) leverages immersive technology, modern commercial rendering engines, and physics-based systems simulations to develop human-in-the-loop systems for humanity’s return to the Moon through the Artemis program. When NASA returns to the Moon, astronauts will travel to the Moon’s South Pole where lighting conditions will cause a more complex operational environment. Human-in-the-loop simulations play a crucial role in NASA’s mission planning, spacecraft and space systems development, and evaluation of operational scenarios. The development of immersive environments such as a lunar rover mockup at a video wall enables engineers and astronauts to simulate and experience mission scenarios, integrated spacecraft systems, and operational procedures in a relevant environment before deployment. By integrating realistic virtual environments, immersive technology allows for the visualization and interaction with virtual spacecraft models, mission landscapes, and complex operational tasks. This approach helps identify potential design flaws, operational challenges, and safety considerations. It also provides valuable insights for risk reduction and helps improve mission efficiency and effectiveness. With advanced motion tracking systems and custom virtual environments, data can be gathered and evaluated to help NASA refine training protocols, develop specialized training procedures, and optimize human-robotic interactions for future space missions. Furthermore, immersive technology offers opportunities for future training initiatives at NASA. The Virtual Reality Laboratory at JSC has pioneered training with Virtual Reality (VR) since the Hubble Space Telescope repair missions in the early 1990’s. Extended Reality (XR) simulations enable astronauts to rehearse complex spacewalks, spacecraft maneuvers, and extravehicular activities in a safe and controlled environment. By replicating the physical and cognitive challenges of space missions, immersive training experiences enhance astronauts’ situational awareness, decision-making abilities, and adaptability to unexpected scenarios. Additionally, immersive technology facilitates collaborative training, allowing geographically dispersed crew and mission control personnel to engage in synchronized simulations, fostering teamwork and effective communication. The adoption of immersive technology in NASA’s testing, evaluation, and future training programs has yielded significant benefits. By incorporating human-in-the-loop simulations for studies involving Extra Vehicular Activities (EVA), surface mobility and landing systems, NASA can identify and mitigate risks, optimize operational procedures, and enhance mission success. Ultimately, immersive simulation experiences can empower astronauts to better navigate the complexities of space missions, ensuring their safety, productivity, and success in the dynamic and challenging environments they will experience at the Lunar South Pole.

HITL↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of Data Reduction Methods for Dynamic Stability Tests in a Magnetic Suspension and Balance System

The NASA/ODU 6-inch Magnetic Suspension and Balance System (MSBS) is operational in a “free-to-yaw” configuration in a subsonic wind tunnel. The MSBS hardware has been heavily modified over recent years to utilize a transverse magnetization scheme, with mixed electromagnetic and motion tracking camera position sensors and a relatively sophisticated control system. The project aims to provide a unique test capability for dynamic stability testing of planetary entry capsules, free from support interference. Aerodynamic tests are being conducted, with a focus of validation of the data reduction methods used to extract dynamic stability parameters. The unique complication is the existence of magnetic, aerodynamic, and mass centers, where magnetic, aerodynamic, and inertia forces respectively are resolved. The paper will report on tests of a family of EEV-like geometries, where the conical half-angle varied between 45 and 60 degrees in steps of 3.75 degrees. The paper will present experimental results from the parametric family of EEV-like geometries. Simulation results will also be presented, based on a two or three degree-of-freedom Simulink model. The model allows the exploration of the effects of non-coincident centers and the sensitivity of results arising from uncertainties in location.

Entry Systems Modeling↗
NASA NTRS2020

Image Moment-Based Extended Object Tracking for Complex Motions

A novel image moment-based model for shape estimation and tracking of an extended target moving with a complex trajectory is presented. The proposed extended object tracking algorithm is based on multiple noisy measurement points sampled from the target at each time step. The shape of the object, approximated by an ellipse, is estimated using a combination of image moments. Dynamic models of image moments for constant velocity and coordinated turn motions are mathematically derived. An unscented Kalman filter - interacting multiple model (UKF-IMM) method is used to track the object and estimate its shape. A likelihood function based on average log-likelihood is derived for the IMM filter. Simulation results of the proposed UKF-IMM algorithm with the image momentbased models are presented that show the estimation of the shape of the object moving in a complex trajectory. The intersection over union (IoU), and the root mean square errors (RMSEs) of the position and velocity of the centroid of the ellipse are used as metrics. The comparison results of the proposed algorithm with a benchmark algorithm from literature based on the IoU and RMSE metrics are presented.

Extended object tracking↗
NASA NTRS1972

Polar motion from laser tracking of artificial satellites

Laser ranges to the Beacon Explorer C spacecraft from a single Goddard Space Flight Center tracking system were used to determine the change in latitude of the station arising from polar motion. A precision of 0.03 arcsecs rms was obtained for the latitude during a five-month period in 1970.

Smith, D. E.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Detection of obstacles on runway using Ego-Motion compensation and tracking of significant features

This report describes a method for obstacle detection on a runway for autonomous navigation and landing of an aircraft. Detection is done in the presence of extraneous features such as tiremarks. Suitable features are extracted from the image and warping using approximately known camera and plane parameters is performed in order to compensate ego-motion as far as possible. Residual disparity after warping is estimated using an optical flow algorithm. Features are tracked from frame to frame so as to obtain more reliable estimates of their motion. Corrections are made to motion parameters with the residual disparities using a robust method, and features having large residual disparities are signaled as obstacles. Sensitivity analysis of the procedure is also studied. Nelson's optical flow constraint is proposed to separate moving obstacles from stationary ones. A Bayesian framework is used at every stage so that the confidence in the estimates can be determined.

Kasturi, Rangachar↗
NASA NTRS1987

Tracking 3-D body motion for docking and robot control

An advanced method of tracking three-dimensional motion of bodies has been developed. This system has the potential to dynamically characterize machine and other structural motion, even in the presence of structural flexibility, thus facilitating closed loop structural motion control. The system's operation is based on the concept that the intersection of three planes defines a point. Three rotating planes of laser light, fixed and moving photovoltaic diode targets, and a pipe-lined architecture of analog and digital electronics are used to locate multiple targets whose number is only limited by available computer memory. Data collection rates are a function of the laser scan rotation speed and are currently selectable up to 480 Hz. The tested performance on a preliminary prototype designed for 0.1 in accuracy (for tracking human motion) at a 480 Hz data rate includes a worst case resolution of 0.8 mm (0.03 inches), a repeatability of plus or minus 0.635 mm (plus or minus 0.025 inches), and an absolute accuracy of plus or minus 2.0 mm (plus or minus 0.08 inches) within an eight cubic meter volume with all results applicable at the 95 percent level of confidence along each coordinate region. The full six degrees of freedom of a body can be computed by attaching three or more target detectors to the body of interest.

Donath, M.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Polar motion from laser tracking of artificial satellites.

Measurements of the range to the Beacon Explorer C spacecraft from a single laser tracking system at Goddard Space Flight Center have been used to determine the change in latitude of the station arising from polar motion. A precision of 0.03 arc second was obtained for the latitude during a 5-month period in 1970.

Smith, D. E.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Tracking magnetogram proper motions by multiscale regularization

Long uninterrupted sequences of solar magnetograms from the global oscillations network group (GONG) network and from the solar and heliospheric observatory (SOHO) satellite will provide the opportunity to study the proper motions of magnetic features. The possible use of multiscale regularization, a scale-recursive estimation technique which begins with a prior model of how state variables and their statistical properties propagate over scale. Short magnetogram sequences are analyzed with the multiscale regularization algorithm as applied to optical flow. This algorithm is found to be efficient, provides results for all the spatial scales spanned by the data and provides error estimates for the solutions. It is found that the algorithm is less sensitive to evolutionary changes than correlation tracking.

Jones, Harrison P.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Tracking the Relative Motion of Four Space Payloads Launched from a Sub-Orbital NASA Rocket

One problem, which is comparatively new in the field of GPS (Global Positioning System) applications, is the determination of the relative trajectories of space vehicles. Applications include the docking of spacecraft, collision avoidance in the area of space stations, and trajectory reconstruction of multiple payloads. The required precision in any of these applications will vary, according to the requirements of the task and abilities of GPS to cope with the environment and the dynamics. This paper describes the post-mission reconstruction of the relative trajectories of four GPS receivers attached to four payloads jettisoned from a Black Brant XII rocket. This vehicle was launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in January 1999 from the Poker Flats Research Range near Fairbanks, Alaska. The Black Brant XII is a sub-orbital rocket designed to carry payloads of 100 to 500 kg into the upper atmosphere. Flight time is generally in the order of 10 - 20 minutes.

Bull, Barton↗
NASA NTRS1999

Tracking the Relative Motion of Four Space Payloads Launched from a Sub-Orbital NASA Rocket

One problem, which is comparatively new in the field of GPS applications, is the determination of the relative trajectories of space vehicles. Applications include the docking of spacecraft, collision avoidance in the area of space stations, and trajectory reconstruction of multiple payloads. The required precision in any of these applications will vary, according to the requirements of the task and abilities of GPS to cope with the environment and the dynamics. This paper describes the post-mission reconstruction of the relative trajectories of four GPS receivers attached to four payloads jettisoned from a Black Brant XII rocket. This vehicle was launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in January 1999 from the Poker Flats Research Range near Fairbanks, Alaska. The Black Brant XII is a sub-orbital rocket designed to carry payloads of 100 to 500 kg into the upper atmosphere. Flight time is generally in the order of 10-20 minutes. In this experiment, a GPS receiver and antenna was attached to each of the four payloads. One of the GPS receivers was assigned as the "base station", while the other 3 receivers were designated as remotes. GPS time, code and phase measurements were telemetered to a ground station for real-time processing and storage. The object of the mission was to re-compute the position and velocity of the remote units with respect to the base station during the launch phase and after the payloads separated. During the launch segment the 3 baseling distances between the 4 antennas are known from plans and are constant values until each payload is released. On the fly ambiguity determination was used to establish local coordinates from the base antenna to each of the other 3 GPS units during flight. Distance computations were made from the GPS-derived coordinates and compared to plan distances. Using this methodology an error analysis of the relative GPS accuracies has been presented and in addition a description given of the respective payload behaviour following separation from the vehicle.

Martell, Hugh↗
NASA NTRS1999

Tracking the Relative Motion of Four Space Payloads Launched From a Sub-Orbital NASA Rocket

One problem, which is comparatively new in the field of GPS applications, is the determination of the relative trajectories of space vehicles. Applications include the docking of spacecraft, collision avoidance in the area of space stations, and trajectory reconstruction of multiple payloads. The required precision in any of these applications will vary, according to the requirements of the task and abilities of GPS to cope with the environment and the dynamics. This paper describes the post-mission reconstruction of the relative trajectories of four GPS receivers attached to four payloads jettisoned from a rocket in a sub-orbital NASA science mission. It is shown that the sub-decimetre level were achieved with single frequency GPS receivers.

Martel, Hugh↗
NASA NTRS2004

Ambient-Light-Canceling Camera Using Subtraction of Frames

The ambient-light-canceling camera (ALCC) is a proposed near-infrared electronic camera that would utilize a combination of (1) synchronized illumination during alternate frame periods and (2) subtraction of readouts from consecutive frames to obtain images without a background component of ambient light. The ALCC is intended especially for use in tracking the motion of an eye by the pupil center corneal reflection (PCCR) method. Eye tracking by the PCCR method has shown potential for application in human-computer interaction for people with and without disabilities, and for noninvasive monitoring, detection, and even diagnosis of physiological and neurological deficiencies. In the PCCR method, an eye is illuminated by near-infrared light from a lightemitting diode (LED). Some of the infrared light is reflected from the surface of the cornea. Some of the infrared light enters the eye through the pupil and is reflected from back of the eye out through the pupil a phenomenon commonly observed as the red-eye effect in flash photography. An electronic camera is oriented to image the user's eye. The output of the camera is digitized and processed by algorithms that locate the two reflections. Then from the locations of the centers of the two reflections, the direction of gaze is computed. As described thus far, the PCCR method is susceptible to errors caused by reflections of ambient light. Although a near-infrared band-pass optical filter can be used to discriminate against ambient light, some sources of ambient light have enough in-band power to compete with the LED signal. The mode of operation of the ALCC would complement or supplant spectral filtering by providing more nearly complete cancellation of the effect of ambient light. In the operation of the ALCC, a near-infrared LED would be pulsed on during one camera frame period and off during the next frame period. Thus, the scene would be illuminated by both the LED (signal) light and the ambient (background) light during one frame period, and would be illuminated with only ambient (background) light during the next frame period. The camera output would be digitized and sent to a computer, wherein the pixel values of the background-only frame would be subtracted from the pixel values of the signal-plus-background frame to obtain signal-only pixel values (see figure). To prevent artifacts of motion from entering the images, it would be necessary to acquire image data at a rate greater than the standard video rate of 30 frames per second. For this purpose, the ALCC would exploit a novel control technique developed at NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for advanced charge-coupled-device (CCD) cameras. This technique provides for readout from a subwindow [region of interest (ROI)] within the image frame. Because the desired reflections from the eye would typically occupy a small fraction of the area within the image frame, the ROI capability would make it possible to acquire and subtract pixel values at rates of several hundred frames per second considerably greater than the standard video rate and sufficient to both (1) suppress motion artifacts and (2) track the motion of the eye between consecutive subtractive frame pairs.

Morookian, John Michael↗