Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “notification”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 91 records · Page 5

Case Study: Test Results of a Tool and Method for In-Flight, Adaptive Control System Verification on a NASA F-15 Flight Research Aircraft

Adaptive control technologies that incorporate learning algorithms have been proposed to enable autonomous flight control and to maintain vehicle performance in the face of unknown, changing, or poorly defined operating environments [1-2]. At the present time, however, it is unknown how adaptive algorithms can be routinely verified, validated, and certified for use in safety-critical applications. Rigorous methods for adaptive software verification end validation must be developed to ensure that. the control software functions as required and is highly safe and reliable. A large gap appears to exist between the point at which control system designers feel the verification process is complete, and when FAA certification officials agree it is complete. Certification of adaptive flight control software verification is complicated by the use of learning algorithms (e.g., neural networks) and degrees of system non-determinism. Of course, analytical efforts must be made in the verification process to place guarantees on learning algorithm stability, rate of convergence, and convergence accuracy. However, to satisfy FAA certification requirements, it must be demonstrated that the adaptive flight control system is also able to fail and still allow the aircraft to be flown safely or to land, while at the same time providing a means of crew notification of the (impending) failure. It was for this purpose that the NASA Ames Confidence Tool was developed [3]. This paper presents the Confidence Tool as a means of providing in-flight software assurance monitoring of an adaptive flight control system. The paper will present the data obtained from flight testing the tool on a specially modified F-15 aircraft designed to simulate loss of flight control faces.

Jacklin, Stephen A.↗

Collaborative Scheduling Using JMS in a Mixed Java and .NET Environment

A collaborative framework/environment was proto-typed to prove the feasibility of scheduling space flight missions on NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) in a distributed fashion. In this environment, effective collaboration relies on efficient communications among all flight mission and DSN scheduling users. There-fore, messaging becomes critical to timely event notification and data synchronization. In the prototype, a rapid messaging system using Java Message Service (JMS) in a mixed Java and .NET environment is established. This scheme allows both Java and .NET applications to communicate with each other for data synchronization and schedule negotiation. The JMS approach we used is based on a centralized messaging scheme. With proper use of a high speed messaging system, all users in this collaborative framework can communicate with each other to generate a schedule collaboratively to meet DSN and projects tracking needs.

scheduling↗

Rapid, Repeat-sample Monitoring of Crustal Deformations and Environmental Phenomena with the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar

The Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) is a precision repeat-pass Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) mission being developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Dryden Flight Research Center in support of NASA s Science Mission Directorate. UAVSAR's unique ability to fly a repeatable flight path, along with an electronically steerable array, allows interferometric data to be obtained with accuracies measured in millimeters. Deploying the radar on an airborne platform will also allow for radar images to be collected and compared with images from the same area taken hours or even years later - providing for long-term trending and near real-time notification of changes and deformations. UAVSAR s data processing algorithms will provide for near-real time data reduction providing disaster planning and response teams with highly accurate data to aid in the prediction of, and response to, natural phenomena. UAVSAR data can be applied to increasing our understanding of the processes behind solid earth, cryosphere, carbon cycle and other areas of interest in earth science. Technologies developed for UAVSAR may also be applicable to a future earth-orbiting InSAR mission and possibly for missions to the Moon or Mars. The UAVSAR is expected to fly on a Gulfstream III aircraft this winter, followed by a flight test program lasting until the second half of 2007. Following radar calibration and data reduction activities, the platform will be ready for science users in the summer of 2008.

Smith, Robert C.↗

Situation Awareness of Onboard System Autonomy

We have developed intelligent agent software for onboard system autonomy. Our approach is to provide control agents that automate crew and vehicle systems, and operations assistants that aid humans in working with these autonomous systems. We use the 3 Tier control architecture to develop the control agent software that automates system reconfiguration and routine fault management. We use the Distributed Collaboration and Interaction (DCI) System to develop the operations assistants that provide human services, including situation summarization, event notification, activity management, and support for manual commanding of autonomous system. In this paper we describe how the operations assistants aid situation awareness of the autonomous control agents. We also describe our evaluation of the DCI System to support control engineers during a ground test at Johnson Space Center (JSC) of the Post Processing System (PPS) for regenerative water recovery.

Schreckenghost, Debra↗

Recent Results from the Swift Burst Alert Telescope

The Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) on the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst MIDEX mission has detected more than 125 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), nearly all of which have been followed up by the narrow-field instruments on Swift through automatic repointing, and by ground and other satellite telescopes after rapid notification. Within seconds of a trigger the BAT produces and relays to the ground a position good to three arc minutes and a four channel light curve. An overview of the properties of BAT bursts and BAT'S performance as a burst monitor will be presented in this talk. BAT is a coded aperture imaging system with a wide (approx.2 sr) field of view consisting of a large coded mask located 1 m above a 5200 sq cm array of 32.768 CdZnTe detectors. All electronics and other hardware systems on the BAT have been operating well since commissioning and there is no sign of any degradation on orbit. The flight and ground software have proven similarly robust and allow the real time localization of all bursts and the rapid derivation of burst light curves, spectra and spectral fits on the ground.

Krimm, Hans↗

Contingency Support Simulation for the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS)

In March 2006, the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS)-3 experienced an unexpected thrusting event, which caused significant changes to its orbit. Recovery from this anomaly was protracted, raising concerns during the Independent Review Team (IRT) investigation of the anomaly regarding the contingency response readiness. The simulations and readiness exercises discussed in this paper were part of the response to the IRT concerns. This paper explains the various levels of simulation needed to enhance the proficiency of the Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF) and supporting elements in recovery from a TDRS contingency situation. The main emergency to address is when a TDRS has experienced uncommanded, unreported, or misreported thrusting, causing a ground station to lose the ability to acquire the spacecraft, as happened in 2006. The following levels of simulation are proposed: 1) Tests that would be performed by the individual support sites to verify that internal procedures and tools are in place and up to date; 2) Tabletop simulations that would involve all of the key support sites talking through their respective operating procedures to ensure that proper notifications are made and communications links are established; and 3) Comprehensive simulations that would be infrequent, but realistic, involving data exchanges between ground sites and voice and electronic communications among the supporting elements.

Dykes, Andy↗

The New NASA Orbital Debris Mitigation Procedural Requirements and Standards

NASA has issued major updates to its principal orbital debris mitigation policy directive and standards. The new NASA Procedural Requirements for Limiting Orbital Debris (NPR 8715.6), with its supporting NASA Standard 8719.14, both refine earlier orbital debris mitigation documents and in some areas expand their applicability. Organizational and individual responsibilities along with general directives are set forth in NPR 8715.6. New requirements include routine conjunction assessments for all maneuverable NASA spacecraft in LEO and GEO, prompt notifications of intended or unintended debris generation, preparation and maintenance of formal end-of-mission plans, and disposal of vehicles in operation around the Moon and Mars and at the Earth-Sun Lagrangian points. NASA Standard 8719.14 replaces the 1995 NASA Safety Standard 1740.14 with no major new requirements but with several refinements and additions, some of which had already been adopted. Compliance with human casualty risk limitations from reentering debris will be calculated explicitly and not be expressed in terms of average debris casualty area. Moreover, the minimum kinetic energy threshold for potentially injurious reentering debris is set at 15 Joules. The overarching requirement for the disposal of GEO spacecraft and launch vehicle orbital stages is to ensure that the vehicles do not come within GEO + 200 km for at least 100 km after end of mission, rather than setting specific requirements for the disposal orbit. Spacecraft operating in or routinely transiting LEO must remain in the region for no more than 25 years after end of mission or 30 years after launch, whichever occurs sooner. A comprehensive new NASA handbook on orbital debris has also been prepared to provide background on the orbital debris environment and the related NASA mitigation requirements and standards.

Johnson, Nicholas L.↗

Cooperative Collision Avoidance Step 1 - Technology Demonstration Flight Test Report. Revision 1

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Access 5 Project Office sponsored a cooperative collision avoidance flight demonstration program for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). This flight test was accomplished between September 21st and September 27th 2005 from the Mojave Airport, Mojave, California. The objective of these flights was to collect data for the Access 5 Cooperative Collision Avoidance (CCA) Work Package simulation effort, i.e., to gather data under select conditions to allow validation of the CCA simulation. Subsequent simulation to be verified were: Demonstrate the ability to detect cooperative traffic and provide situational awareness to the ROA pilot; Demonstrate the ability to track the detected cooperative traffic and provide position information to the ROA pilot; Demonstrate the ability to determine collision potential with detected cooperative traffic and provide notification to the ROA pilot; Demonstrate that the CCA subsystem provides information in sufficient time for the ROA pilot to initiate an evasive maneuver to avoid collision; Demonstrate an evasive maneuver that avoids collision with the threat aircraft; and lastly, Demonstrate the ability to assess the adequacy of the maneuver and determine that the collision potential has been avoided. The Scaled Composites, LLC Proteus Optionally Piloted Vehicle (OPV) was chosen as the test platform. Proteus was manned by two on-board pilots but was also capable of being controlled from an Air Vehicle Control Station (AVCS) located on the ground. For this demonstration, Proteus was equipped with cooperative collision sensors and the required hardware and software to place the data on the downlink. Prior to the flight phase, a detailed set of flight test scenarios were developed to address the flight test objectives. Two cooperative collision avoidance sensors were utilized for detecting aircraft in the evaluation: Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System-II (TCAS-II) and Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B). A single intruder aircraft was used during all the flight testing, a NASA Gulfstream III (G-III). During the course of the testing, six geometrically different near-collision scenarios were evaluated. These six scenarios were each tested using various combinations of sensors and collision avoidance software. Of the 54 planned test points 49 were accomplished successfully. Proteus flew a total of 21.5 hours during the testing and the G-III flew 19.8 hours. The testing fully achieved all flight test objectives. The Flight IPT performed an analysis to determine the accuracy of the simulation model used to predict the location of the host aircraft downstream during an avoidance maneuver. The data collected by this flight program was delivered to the Access 5 Cooperative Collision Avoidance (CCA) Work Package Team who was responsible for reporting on their analysis of this flight data.

Trongale, Nicholas A.↗

Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Mishap Response Plan

KSC Medical Operations, in exercising the KSC Psychological Triage Plan, provided crewmember family support following notification of the Columbia accident. KSC Medical Operations also provided field support in working with FEMA and EPA to assure adequate occupational medicine and environmental health care of KSC workers. In addition, the development of policy and procedures for handling and clearing biohazardous debris material in the KSC reconstruction hangar was prepared and implemented.

Scarpa, Philip↗

Observing Gamma-ray Bursts with GLAST

The Gamma-ray Large Area Telescope (GLAST) is a satellite-based observatory to study the high-energy gamma-ray sky. The Large Area Telescope, the main instrument, is a pair-conversion telescope which will survey the sky in the energy range 20 MeV to greater than 300 GeV. The LAT's wide field of view (greater than 2 sr), large effective area and low deadtime combine to provide excellent high-energy gamma-ray observations of GRB. To tie these frontier high-energy observations to the better-known properties at lower energies, a second instrument, the GLAST Burst Monitor (GBM) will provide important spectra and timing in the 8 keV to 30 MeV range. Upon detection of a GRB by the LAT or the GBM, the spacecraft can autonomously repoint to keep the GRB location within the LAT field of view, allowing high-energy afterglow observations. We describe how the instruments, spacecraft, and ground system work together to provide observations of gamma-ray bursts from 8 keV to over 300 GeV and provide rapid notification of these observations to the wider gamma-ray burst community. Analysis and simulation tools dedicated to the GRB science have been developed. In this contribution we show the expected LAT sensitivity obtained with such simulations, and illustrate the results we expect from GLAST observations with spectral and temporal analysis of simulated GRB.

McEnery, Julie↗

Emergency Response Virtual Environment for Safe Schools

An intelligent emergency response virtual environment (ERVE) that provides emergency first responders, response planners, and managers with situational awareness as well as training and support for safe schools is presented. ERVE incorporates an intelligent agent facility for guiding and assisting the user in the context of the emergency response operations. Response information folders capture key information about the school. The system enables interactive 3D visualization of schools and academic campuses, including the terrain and the buildings' exteriors and interiors in an easy to use Web..based interface. ERVE incorporates live camera and sensors feeds and can be integrated with other simulations such as chemical plume simulation. The system is integrated with a Geographical Information System (GIS) to enable situational awareness of emergency events and assessment of their effect on schools in a geographic area. ERVE can also be integrated with emergency text messaging notification systems. Using ERVE, it is now possible to address safe schools' emergency management needs with a scaleable, seamlessly integrated and fully interactive intelligent and visually compelling solution.

Wasfy, Ayman↗

Problem Reporting System

The Problem Reporting System (PRS) is a Web application, running on two Web servers (load-balanced) and two database servers (RAID-5), which establishes a system for submission, editing, and sharing of reports to manage risk assessment of anomalies identified in NASA's flight projects. PRS consolidates diverse anomaly-reporting systems, maintains a rich database set, and incorporates a robust engine, which allows tracking of any hardware, software, or paper process by configuring an appropriate life cycle. Global and specific project administration and setup tools allow lifecycle tailoring, along with customizable controls for user, e-mail, notifications, and more. PRS is accessible via the World Wide Web for authorized user at most any location. Upon successful log-in, the user receives a customizable window, which displays time-critical 'To Do' items (anomalies requiring the user s input before the system moves the anomaly to the next phase of the lifecycle), anomalies originated by the user, anomalies the user has addressed, and custom queries that can be saved for future use. Access controls exist depending on a user's role as system administrator, project administrator, user, or developer, and then, further by association with user, project, subsystem, company, or item with provisions for business-to-business exclusions, limitations on access according to the covert or overt nature of a given project, all with multiple layers of filtration, as needed. Reporting of metrics is built in. There is a provision for proxy access (in which the user may choose to grant one or more other users to view screens and perform actions as though they were the user, during any part of a tracking life cycle - especially useful during tight build schedules and vacations to keep things moving). The system also provides users the ability to have an anomaly link to or notify other systems, including QA Inspection Reports, Safety, GIDEP (Government-Industry Data Exchange Program) Alert, Corrective Actions, and Lessons Learned. The PRS tracking engine was designed as a very extensible and scalable system, able to support additional applications, with future development possibilities already discussed, including Incident Surprise Anomalies (for anomalies occurring during Operations phases of NASA Flight projects), GIDEP and NASA Alerts, and others.

Potter, Don↗

Event Driven Messaging with Role-Based Subscriptions

Event Driven Messaging with Role-Based Subscriptions (EDM-RBS) is a framework integrated into the Service Management Database (SMDB) to allow for role-based and subscription-based delivery of synchronous and asynchronous messages over JMS (Java Messaging Service), SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol), or SMS (Short Messaging Service). This allows for 24/7 operation with users in all parts of the world. The software classifies messages by triggering data type, application source, owner of data triggering event (mission), classification, sub-classification and various other secondary classifying tags. Messages are routed to applications or users based on subscription rules using a combination of the above message attributes. This program provides a framework for identifying connected users and their applications for targeted delivery of messages over JMS to the client applications the user is logged into. EDMRBS provides the ability to send notifications over e-mail or pager rather than having to rely on a live human to do it. It is implemented as an Oracle application that uses Oracle relational database management system intrinsic functions. It is configurable to use Oracle AQ JMS API or an external JMS provider for messaging. It fully integrates into the event-logging framework of SMDB (Subnet Management Database).

Bui, Tung↗

Grid Task Execution

IPG Execution Service is a framework that reliably executes complex jobs on a computational grid, and is part of the IPG service architecture designed to support location-independent computing. The new grid service enables users to describe the platform on which they need a job to run, which allows the service to locate the desired platform, configure it for the required application, and execute the job. After a job is submitted, users can monitor it through periodic notifications, or through queries. Each job consists of a set of tasks that performs actions such as executing applications and managing data. Each task is executed based on a starting condition that is an expression of the states of other tasks. This formulation allows tasks to be executed in parallel, and also allows a user to specify tasks to execute when other tasks succeed, fail, or are canceled. The two core components of the Execution Service are the Task Database, which stores tasks that have been submitted for execution, and the Task Manager, which executes tasks in the proper order, based on the user-specified starting conditions, and avoids overloading local and remote resources while executing tasks.

Hu, Chaumin↗

Collaborative Resource Allocation

Collaborative Resource Allocation Networking Environment (CRANE) Version 0.5 is a prototype created to prove the newest concept of using a distributed environment to schedule Deep Space Network (DSN) antenna times in a collaborative fashion. This program is for all space-flight and terrestrial science project users and DSN schedulers to perform scheduling activities and conflict resolution, both synchronously and asynchronously. Project schedulers can, for the first time, participate directly in scheduling their tracking times into the official DSN schedule, and negotiate directly with other projects in an integrated scheduling system. A master schedule covers long-range, mid-range, near-real-time, and real-time scheduling time frames all in one, rather than the current method of separate functions that are supported by different processes and tools. CRANE also provides private workspaces (both dynamic and static), data sharing, scenario management, user control, rapid messaging (based on Java Message Service), data/time synchronization, workflow management, notification (including emails), conflict checking, and a linkage to a schedule generation engine. The data structure with corresponding database design combines object trees with multiple associated mortal instances and relational database to provide unprecedented traceability and simplify the existing DSN XML schedule representation. These technologies are used to provide traceability, schedule negotiation, conflict resolution, and load forecasting from real-time operations to long-range loading analysis up to 20 years in the future. CRANE includes a database, a stored procedure layer, an agent-based middle tier, a Web service wrapper, a Windows Integrated Analysis Environment (IAE), a Java application, and a Web page interface.

Wang, Yeou-Fang↗

Internet Distribution of Spacecraft Telemetry Data

Remote Access Multi-mission Processing and Analysis Ground Environment (RAMPAGE) is a Java-language server computer program that enables near-real-time display of spacecraft telemetry data on any authorized client computer that has access to the Internet and is equipped with Web-browser software. In addition to providing a variety of displays of the latest available telemetry data, RAMPAGE can deliver notification of an alarm by electronic mail. Subscribers can then use RAMPAGE displays to determine the state of the spacecraft and formulate a response to the alarm, if necessary. A user can query spacecraft mission data in either binary or comma-separated-value format by use of a Web form or a Practical Extraction and Reporting Language (PERL) script to automate the query process. RAMPAGE runs on Linux and Solaris server computers in the Ground Data System (GDS) of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and includes components designed specifically to make it compatible with legacy GDS software. The client/server architecture of RAMPAGE and the use of the Java programming language make it possible to utilize a variety of competitive server and client computers, thereby also helping to minimize costs.

Specht, Ted↗

Shuttle Environmental Assurance: Brominated Flame Retardants - Concerns, Drivers, Potential Impacts and Mitigation Strategies

Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs) are widely used in the manufacture of electrical and electronic components and as additives in formulations for foams, plastics and rubbers. The United States (US) and the European Union (EU)have increased regulation and monitoring of of targeted BFRs, such as Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) due to the bioaccumulative effects in humans and animals. In response, manufacturers and vendors of BFR-containing materials are changing flame-retardant additives, sometimes without notifying BFR users. In some instances, Deca-bromodiphenylether (Deca-BDE) and other families of flame retardants are being used as replacement flame retardants for penta-BDE and octa-BDE. The reformulation of the BFR-containing material typically results in the removal of the targeted PBDE and replacement with a non-PBDE chemical or non-targeted PBDE. Many users of PBDE -based materials are concerned that vendors will perform reformulation and not inform the end user. Materials performance such as flammability, adhesion , and tensile strength may be altered due to reformulation. The requalification of newly formulated materials may be required, or replacement materials may have to be identified and qualified. The Shuttle Enviornmental Assurance (SEA) team indentified a risk to the Space Shuttle Program associated with the possibility that targeted PBDEs may be replaced without notification. Resultant decreases in flame retardancy, Liquid Oxygen (LOX) compatibility, or material performance could have serious consequences.

Clark-Ingram, Marceia↗

NASA Tech Briefs, December 2005

Topics covered include: Video Mosaicking for Inspection of Gas Pipelines; Shuttle-Data-Tape XML Translator; Highly Reliable, High-Speed, Unidirectional Serial Data Links; Data-Analysis System for Entry, Descent, and Landing; Hybrid UV Imager Containing Face-Up AlGaN/GaN Photodiodes; Multiple Embedded Processors for Fault-Tolerant Computing; Hybrid Power Management; Magnetometer Based on Optoelectronic Microwave Oscillator; Program Predicts Time Courses of Human/ Computer Interactions; Chimera Grid Tools; Astronomer's Proposal Tool; Conservative Patch Algorithm and Mesh Sequencing for PAB3D; Fitting Nonlinear Curves by Use of Optimization Techniques; Tool for Viewing Faults Under Terrain; Automated Synthesis of Long Communication Delays for Testing; Solving Nonlinear Euler Equations With Arbitrary Accuracy; Self-Organizing-Map Program for Analyzing Multivariate Data; Tool for Sizing Analysis of the Advanced Life Support System; Control Software for a High-Performance Telerobot; Java Radar Analysis Tool; Architecture for Verifiable Software; Tool for Ranking Research Options; Enhanced, Partially Redundant Emergency Notification System; Close-Call Action Log Form; Task Description Language; Improved Small-Particle Powders for Plasma Spraying; Bonding-Compatible Corrosion Inhibitor for Rinsing Metals; Wipes, Coatings, and Patches for Detecting Hydrazines; Rotating Vessels for Growing Protein Crystals; Oscillating-Linear-Drive Vacuum Compressor for CO2; Mechanically Biased, Hinged Pairs of Piezoelectric Benders; Apparatus for Precise Indium-Bump Bonding of Microchips; Radiation Dosimetry via Automated Fluorescence Microscopy; Multistage Magnetic Separator of Cells and Proteins; Elastic-Tether Suits for Artificial Gravity and Exercise; Multichannel Brain-Signal-Amplifying and Digitizing System; Ester-Based Electrolytes for Low-Temperature Li-Ion Cells; Hygrometer for Detecting Water in Partially Enclosed Volumes; Radio-Frequency Plasma Cleaning of a Penning Malmberg Trap; Reduction of Flap Side Edge Noise - the Blowing Flap; and Preventing Accidental Ignition of Upper-Stage Rocket Motors.

Source record↗