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At least 127 records · Page 7

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NASA NTRS1994

From Antarctica to space: Use of telepresence and virtual reality in control of remote vehicles

In the Fall of 1993, NASA Ames deployed a modified Phantom S2 Remotely-Operated underwater Vehicle (ROV) into an ice-covered sea environment near McMurdo Science Station, Antarctica. This deployment was part of the antarctic Space Analog Program, a joint program between NASA and the National Science Foundation to demonstrate technologies relevant for space exploration in realistic field setting in the Antarctic. The goal of the mission was to operationally test the use of telepresence and virtual reality technology in the operator interface to a remote vehicle, while performing a benthic ecology study. The vehicle was operated both locally, from above a dive hole in the ice through which it was launched, and remotely over a satellite communications link from a control room at NASA's Ames Research Center. Local control of the vehicle was accomplished using the standard Phantom control box containing joysticks and switches, with the operator viewing stereo video camera images on a stereo display monitor. Remote control of the vehicle over the satellite link was accomplished using the Virtual Environment Vehicle Interface (VEVI) control software developed at NASA Ames. The remote operator interface included either a stereo display monitor similar to that used locally or a stereo head-mounted head-tracked display. The compressed video signal from the vehicle was transmitted to NASA Ames over a 768 Kbps satellite channel. Another channel was used to provide a bi-directional Internet link to the vehicle control computer through which the command and telemetry signals traveled, along with a bi-directional telephone service. In addition to the live stereo video from the satellite link, the operator could view a computer-generated graphic representation of the underwater terrain, modeled from the vehicle's sensors. The virtual environment contained an animate graphic model of the vehicle which reflected the state of the actual vehicle, along with ancillary information such as the vehicle track, science markers, and locations of video snapshots. The actual vehicle was driven either from within the virtual environment or through a telepresence interface. All vehicle functions could be controlled remotely over the satellite link.

Stoker, Carol↗

NASA NTRS1994

Virtual reality and telerobotics applications of an Address Recalculation Pipeline

The technology described in this paper was designed to reduce latency to user interactions in immersive virtual reality environments. It is also ideally suited to telerobotic applications such as interaction with remote robotic manipulators in space or in deep sea operations. in such circumstances the significant latency is observed response to user stimulus which is due to communications delays, and the disturbing jerkiness due to low and unpredictable frame rates on compressed video user feedback or computationally limited virtual worlds, can be masked by our techniques. The user is provided with highly responsive visual feedback independent of communication or computational delays in providing physical video feedback or in rendering virtual world images. Virtual and physical environments can be combined seamlessly using these techniques.

Regan, Matthew↗

NASA NTRS1994

Using virtual reality for science mission planning: A Mars Pathfinder case

NASA's Mars Pathfinder Project requires a Ground Data System (GDS) that supports both engineering and scientific payloads with reduced mission operations staffing, and short planning schedules. Also, successful surface operation of the lander camera requires efficient mission planning and accurate pointing of the camera. To meet these challenges, a new software strategy that integrates virtual reality technology with existing navigational ancillary information and image processing capabilities. The result is an interactive workstation based applications software that provides a high resolution, 3-dimensial, stereo display of Mars as if it were viewed through the lander camera. The design, implementation strategy and parametric specification phases for the development of this software were completed, and the prototype tested. When completed, the software will allow scientists and mission planners to access simulated and actual scenes of Mars' surface. The perspective from the lander camera will enable scientists to plan activities more accurately and completely. The application will also support the sequence and command generation process and will allow testing and verification of camera pointing commands via simulation.

Kim, Jacqueline H.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Development of microgravity, full body functional reach envelope using 3-D computer graphic models and virtual reality technology

In microgravity conditions mobility is greatly enhanced and body stability is difficult to achieve. Because of these difficulties, optimum placement and accessibility of objects and controls can be critical to required tasks on board shuttle flights or on the proposed space station. Anthropometric measurement of the maximum reach of occupants of a microgravity environment provide knowledge about maximum functional placement for tasking situations. Calculations for a full body, functional reach envelope for microgravity environments are imperative. To this end, three dimensional computer modeled human figures, providing a method of anthropometric measurement, were used to locate the data points that define the full body, functional reach envelope. Virtual reality technology was utilized to enable an occupant of the microgravity environment to experience movement within the reach envelope while immersed in a simulated microgravity environment.

Lindsey, Patricia F.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Virtual reality flight control display with six-degree-of-freedom controller and spherical orientation overlay

A virtual reality flight control system displays to the pilot the image of a scene surrounding a vehicle or pod having six degrees of freedom of acceleration or velocity control by the pilot and traveling through inertial space, the image itself including a superimposed figure providing the pilot an instant reference of orientation consisting of superimposed sets of geometric figures whose relative orientations provide the pilot an instantaneous feel or sense of orientation changes with respect to some fixed coordinate system. They include a first set of geometric figures whose orientations are fixed to the pilot's vehicle and a second set of geometric figures whose orientations are fixed with respect to a fixed or interstellar coordinate system. The first set of figures is a first set of orthogonal great circles about the three orthogonal axes of the flight vehicle or pod and centered at and surrounding the pilot's head, while the second set of figures is a second set of orthogonal great circles about the three orthogonal axes of a fixed or interstellar coordinate system, also centered at and surrounding the pilot's head.

Beckman, Brian C.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Commercialization of JPL Virtual Reality calibration and redundant manipulator control technologies

Within NASA's recent thrust for industrial collaboration, JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) has recently established two technology cooperation agreements in the robotics area: one on virtual reality (VR) calibration with Deneb Robotics, Inc., and the other on redundant manipulator control with Robotics Research Corporation (RRC). These technology transfer cooperation tasks will enable both Deneb and RRC to commercialize enhanced versions of their products that will greatly benefit both space and terrestrial telerobotic applications.

Kim, Won S.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Applied virtual reality in aerospace design

A virtual reality (VR) applications program has been under development at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) since 1989. The objectives of the MSFC VR Applications Program are to develop, assess, validate, and utilize VR in hardware development, operations development and support, mission operations training and science training. Before VR can be used with confidence in a particular application, VR must be validated for that class of applications. For that reason, specific validation studies for selected classes of applications have been proposed and are currently underway. These include macro-ergonomic 'control room class' design analysis, Spacelab stowage reconfiguration training, a full-body microgravity functional reach simulator, a gross anatomy teaching simulator, and micro-ergonomic design analysis. This paper describes the MSFC VR Applications Program and the validation studies.

Hale, Joseph P.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Marshall Space Flight Center's Virtual Reality Applications Program 1993

A Virtual Reality (VR) applications program has been under development at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) since 1989. Other NASA Centers, most notably Ames Research Center (ARC), have contributed to the development of the VR enabling technologies and VR systems. This VR technology development has now reached a level of maturity where specific applications of VR as a tool can be considered. The objectives of the MSFC VR Applications Program are to develop, validate, and utilize VR as a Human Factors design and operations analysis tool and to assess and evaluate VR as a tool in other applications (e.g., training, operations development, mission support, teleoperations planning, etc.). The long-term goals of this technology program is to enable specialized Human Factors analyses earlier in the hardware and operations development process and develop more effective training and mission support systems. The capability to perform specialized Human Factors analyses earlier in the hardware and operations development process is required to better refine and validate requirements during the requirements definition phase. This leads to a more efficient design process where perturbations caused by late-occurring requirements changes are minimized. A validated set of VR analytical tools must be developed to enable a more efficient process for the design and development of space systems and operations. Similarly, training and mission support systems must exploit state-of-the-art computer-based technologies to maximize training effectiveness and enhance mission support. The approach of the VR Applications Program is to develop and validate appropriate virtual environments and associated object kinematic and behavior attributes for specific classes of applications. These application-specific environments and associated simulations will be validated, where possible, through empirical comparisons with existing, accepted tools and methodologies. These validated VR analytical tools will then be available for use in the design and development of space systems and operations and in training and mission support systems.

Hale, Joseph P., II↗

NASA NTRS1993

A virtual reality browser for Space Station models

The Graphics Analysis Facility at NASA/JSC has created a visualization and learning tool by merging its database of detailed geometric models with a virtual reality system. The system allows an interactive walk-through of models of the Space Station and other structures, providing detailed realistic stereo images. The user can activate audio messages describing the function and connectivity of selected components within his field of view. This paper presents the issues and trade-offs involved in the implementation of the VR system and discusses its suitability for its intended purposes.

Goldsby, Michael↗

NASA NTRS1993

Embedding speech into virtual realities

In this work a speaker-independent speech recognition system is presented, which is suitable for implementation in Virtual Reality applications. The use of an artificial neural network in connection with a special compression of the acoustic input leads to a system, which is robust, fast, easy to use and needs no additional hardware, beside a common VR-equipment.

Bohn, Christian-Arved↗

NASA NTRS1996

A convertor and user interface to import CAD files into worldtoolkit virtual reality systems

Virtual Reality (VR) is a rapidly developing human-to-computer interface technology. VR can be considered as a three-dimensional computer-generated Virtual World (VW) which can sense particular aspects of a user's behavior, allow the user to manipulate the objects interactively, and render the VW at real-time accordingly. The user is totally immersed in the virtual world and feel the sense of transforming into that VW. NASA/MSFC Computer Application Virtual Environments (CAVE) has been developing the space-related VR applications since 1990. The VR systems in CAVE lab are based on VPL RB2 system which consists of a VPL RB2 control tower, an LX eyephone, an Isotrak polhemus sensor, two Fastrak polhemus sensors, a folk of Bird sensor, and two VPL DG2 DataGloves. A dynamics animator called Body Electric from VPL is used as the control system to interface with all the input/output devices and to provide the network communications as well as VR programming environment. The RB2 Swivel 3D is used as the modelling program to construct the VW's. A severe limitation of the VPL VR system is the use of RB2 Swivel 3D, which restricts the files to a maximum of 1020 objects and doesn't have the advanced graphics texture mapping. The other limitation is that the VPL VR system is a turn-key system which does not provide the flexibility for user to add new sensors and C language interface. Recently, NASA/MSFC CAVE lab provides VR systems built on Sense8 WorldToolKit (WTK) which is a C library for creating VR development environments. WTK provides device drivers for most of the sensors and eyephones available on the VR market. WTK accepts several CAD file formats, such as Sense8 Neutral File Format, AutoCAD DXF and 3D Studio file format, Wave Front OBJ file format, VideoScape GEO file format, Intergraph EMS stereolithographics and CATIA Stereolithographics STL file formats. WTK functions are object-oriented in their naming convention, are grouped into classes, and provide easy C language interface. Using a CAD or modelling program to build a VW for WTK VR applications, we typically construct the stationary universe with all the geometric objects except the dynamic objects, and create each dynamic object in an individual file.

Wang, Peter Hor-Ching↗

NASA NTRS1995

Virtual reality for automotive design evaluation

A general description of Virtual Reality technology and possible applications was given from publicly available material. A video tape was shown demonstrating the use of multiple large-screen stereoscopic displays, configured in a 10' x 10' x 10' room, to allow a person to evaluate and interact with a vehicle which exists only as mathematical data, and is made only of light. The correct viewpoint of the vehicle is maintained by tracking special glasses worn by the subject. Interior illumination was changed by moving a virtual light around by hand; interior colors are changed by pointing at a color on a color palette, then pointing at the desired surface to change. We concluded by discussing research needed to move this technology forward.

Dodd, George G.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Human factors issues and approaches in the spatial layout of a space station control room, including the use of virtual reality as a design analysis tool

Human Factors Engineering support was provided for the 30% design review of the late Space Station Freedom Payload Control Area (PCA). The PCA was to be the payload operations control room, analogous to the Spacelab Payload Operations Control Center (POCC). This effort began with a systematic collection and refinement of the relevant requirements driving the spatial layout of the consoles and PCA. This information was used as input for specialized human factors analytical tools and techniques in the design and design analysis activities. Design concepts and configuration options were developed and reviewed using sketches, 2-D Computer-Aided Design (CAD) drawings, and immersive Virtual Reality (VR) mockups.

Hale, Joseph P., II↗

NASA NTRS1996

Implementation of a Campuswide Distributed Mass Storage Service: the Dream Versus Reality

In 1990, a technical team at NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio, began defining a Mass Storage Service to pro- wide long-term archival storage, short-term storage for very large files, distributed Network File System access, and backup services for critical data dw resides on workstations and personal computers. Because of software availability and budgets, the total service was phased in over dm years. During the process of building the service from the commercial technologies available, our Mass Storage Team refined the original vision and learned from the problems and mistakes that occurred. We also enhanced some technologies to better meet the needs of users and system administrators. This report describes our team's journey from dream to reality, outlines some of the problem areas that still exist, and suggests some solutions.

Prahst, Stephen↗

NASA NTRS1995

Applied Virtual Reality Research and Applications at NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center

A Virtual Reality (VR) applications program has been under development at NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) since 1989. The objectives of the MSFC VR Applications Program are to develop, assess, validate, and utilize VR in hardware development, operations development and support, mission operations training and science training. Before this technology can be utilized with confidence in these applications, it must be validated for each particular class of application. That is, the precision and reliability with which it maps onto real settings and scenarios, representative of a class, must be calculated and assessed. The approach of the MSFC VR Applications Program is to develop and validate appropriate virtual environments and associated object kinematic and behavior attributes for specific classes of applications. These application-specific environments and associated simulations will be validated, where possible, through empirical comparisons with existing, accepted tools and methodologies. These validated VR analytical tools will then be available for use in the design and development of space systems and operations and in training and mission support systems. Specific validation studies for selected classes of applications have been completed or are currently underway. These include macro-ergonomic "control-room class" design analysis, Spacelab stowage reconfiguration training, a full-body micro-gravity functional reach simulator, and a gross anatomy teaching simulator. This paper describes the MSFC VR Applications Program and the validation studies.

Hale, Joseph P.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Three-Dimensional User Interfaces for Immersive Virtual Reality

The focus of this grant was to experiment with novel user interfaces for immersive Virtual Reality (VR) systems, and thus to advance the state of the art of user interface technology for this domain. Our primary test application was a scientific visualization application for viewing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) datasets. This technology has been transferred to NASA via periodic status reports and papers relating to this grant that have been published in conference proceedings. This final report summarizes the research completed over the past year, and extends last year's final report of the first three years of the grant.

vanDam, Andries↗

NASA NTRS1997

Virtual Presence: One Step Beyond Reality

Our primary objective was to team up a group consisting of scientists and engineers from two different NASA cultures, and simulate an interactive teleoperated robot conducting geologic field work on the Moon or Mars. The information derived from the experiment will benefit both the robotics team and the planetary exploration team in the areas of robot design and development, and mission planning and analysis. The Earth Sciences and Space and Life Sciences Division combines the past with the future contributing experience from Apollo crews exploring the lunar surface, knowledge of reduced gravity environments, the performance limits of EVA suits, and future goals for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. The Automation, Robotics. and Simulation Division brings to the table the technical expertise of robotic systems, the future goals of highly interactive robotic capabilities, treading on the edge of technology by joining for the first time a unique combination of telepresence with virtual reality.

Budden, Nancy Ann↗

NASA NTRS1998

Integrated Data Visualization and Virtual Reality Tool

The Integrated Data Visualization and Virtual Reality Tool (IDVVRT) Phase II effort was for the design and development of an innovative Data Visualization Environment Tool (DVET) for NASA engineers and scientists, enabling them to visualize complex multidimensional and multivariate data in a virtual environment. The objectives of the project were to: (1) demonstrate the transfer and manipulation of standard engineering data in a virtual world; (2) demonstrate the effects of design and changes using finite element analysis tools; and (3) determine the training and engineering design and analysis effectiveness of the visualization system.

Dryer, David A.↗