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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 1,621 records · Page 90

MEXEC: An Onboard Integrated Planning and Execution Approach for Spacecraft Commanding

The traditional form of spacecraft commanding is with sequences that specify when commands should execute based on a schedule generated on the ground. Some sequences have control logic and event driven responses to increase flexibility, but it is limited. An approach to increase autonomy is to use goal-based planning and commanding. Using this paradigm, intention and behavior is modeled on board the spacecraft. In this paper we describe MEXEC (Multi-mission EXECutive), a multi-mission, task-based, onboard planning and execution software designed specifically to be used as flight software. As a path to infusion for future flight projects, we describe two experiments performed on the ASTERIA CubeSat and testbed that demonstrate that MEXEC can be integrated and used for spacecraft operations and increase robustness and science return compared to the standard sequences that were being used.

Campuzano, Brian↗

Trust in Collaborative Automation in High Stakes Software Engineering Work

The amount of autonomy in software engineering tools is increasing as developers build increasingly complex systems. Research in other domains shows that too much or too little trust in autonomous tools can have negative consequences, but we are not aware of any study that has investigated trust in autonomous tools in the highly interactive context of a software engineering workplace. We present the results of a ten week ethnographic case study of engineers collaborating with autonomous tools to write flight software at a large national space exploration organization to support high stakes missions. We find that trust in an autonomous software engineering tool in this setting was influenced by four main factors: the tool’s transparency, social context, an organization’s associated processes, and its usability. We outline theoretical implications for future research into trust in autonomous software engineering tools, and practical implications for tool designers and organizations conducting high stakes work with autonomous tools.

Davidoff, Scott↗

Event-Driven Modeling and Execution of Robotic Activities and Contingencies in the Europa Lander Mission Concept Using BPMN

TRACE (Traceable Robotic Activity Composer and Executive) is a tool designed to address the model-ing, verification, and execution of planned and con-tingent activities during robotic space missions. These activities can be modeled (i.e., planned) graph-ically in TRACE using the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) language. This standardized language is used to model a sequence of robotic ac-tivities tied together by logical constructs, events, and time. TRACE includes verification tools to en-sure feasibility before mission models are executed by TRACE’s executive, which is integrated into the autonomy subsystem via a connector. In this paper, we describe TRACE in detail as it would apply to a conceptual Europa Lander surface mission with planned excavation and sample collection activities, as well as, contingency activities when execution is off-nominal—all highlighting our novel use of BPMN as a lingua franca for the pipeline from mis-sion planning to autonomous execution.

Lim, Grace↗

Guidance Enhancements and Performance Assessments for the Mars Ascent Vehicle Spin-Stabilized Upper Stage Configuration

he objective of the Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign is to return samples from the surface of Mars to Earth for research. As one element of the MSR campaign, the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) is responsible for transporting the samples from the surface of Mars to a Low-Martian Orbit (LMO) for retrieval. Complete autonomy is required throughout ascent, and orbital insertion is constrained by tight dispersion boundaries. An unguided, spin-stabilized second stage for MAV has been selected over a guided upper-stage to drive mass savings and reduce overall MSR campaign mass risk, at the cost of reduced GNC capability. To address this design change, the MAV GNC team has derived a robust prediction algorithm, building on previous energy management schemes, that solves for a single inertial pointing direction solution for the spin-stabilized 2nd stage burn. Algorithm stability is explored that compared to previous versions of the algorithm. Also, a set of analytical partials was developed to study MAV’s dispersed orbital insertion performance with respect to MAV system uncertainties. These partials were verified through simulation analysis and prove useful for analytical insight into the dynamics of MAV during the 2nd stage maneuver.

Jason M Everett↗

Guidance Enhancements and Performance Assessments for the Mars Ascent Vehicle Spin-Stabilized Upper Stage Configuration

The objective of the Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign is to return samples from the surface of Mars to Earth for research. As one element of the MSR campaign, the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) is responsible for transporting the samples from the surface of Mars to a Low-Martian Orbit (LMO) for retrieval. Complete autonomy is required throughout ascent, and orbital insertion is constrained by tight dispersion boundaries. An unguided, spin-stabilized second stage for MAV has been selected over a guided upper-stage to drive mass savings and reduce overall MSR campaign mass risk, at the cost of reduced GNC capability. To address this design change, the MAV GNC team has derived a robust prediction algorithm, building on previous energy management schemes, that solves for a single inertial pointing direction solution for the spin-stabilized 2nd stage burn. Algorithm stability is explored that compared to previous versions of the algorithm. Also, a set of analytical partials was developed to study MAV’s dispersed orbital insertion performance with respect to MAV system uncertainties. These partials were verified through simulation analysis and prove useful for analytical insight into the dynamics of MAV during the 2nd stage maneuver.

GNC↗

Mars Ascent Vehicle GNC Targeting Routines with Considerations for Flight Software Development

The Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) will be the first vehicle to perform an ascent from the surface of another atmospheric planetary body outside of the Earth-Moon system. Significant light-time delay requires complete autonomy of flight throughout ascent, and naturally a high level of reliability is desired in both MAV’s hardware and software subsystems. The MAV Guidance, Navigation and Controls (GNC) team and the MAV Flight Software (FSW) team have partnered together to improve the efficiency of algorithm integration onto the MAV flight processor, and to increase confidence that said integration is successful and without human error. An interface architecture is proposed for the GNC suite that allows both the guidance and navigation subsystems to provide code algorithms directly in C++, and the controls subsystem to provide MATLAB Simulink auto-coded algorithms. Several continuous integration/deployment (CI/CD) methodologies have been considered for ease of transition of algorithm code from the GNC team to the FSW team. The GNC/FSW teams also worked together to develop a cFS-friendly wrapper which abstracts the integration of the GNC algorithm code into an interface-level API that is compatible with cFS. Several iterations of vehicle GNC code have been produced between the GNC/FSW team’s partnership, and this strong interface between these two teams have allowed the GNC/FSW teams to greatly increase confidence of efficient and error-free implementation of the GNC code onto MAV for a successful flight.

Jason Everett↗

On-Board Model Based Fault Diagnosis for CubeSat Attitude Control Subsystem: Flight Data Results

Self-sufficient, robotic spacecraft require estimates of their hardware health state in order to project future system state and plan actions toward achieving mission goals. In this paper, we report on integration of a Model-Based Fault Diagnosis (MBFD) model and reasoning engine into flight software leveraging the Arcsecond Space Telescope Enabling Research in Astrophysics (ASTERIA) mission, including test results against captured flight data using the ASTERIA system testbed. Our effort integrated the Model-based Off-Nominal State Identification and Detection (MONSID) model-based reasoning system, developed by Okean Solutions, into ASTERIA flight software using the F Prime software framework. The MONSID engine was supplied with a model of the Blue Canyon Technologies XACT attitude control system (ACS) and tested against flight data and seeded fault tests. While we were unable to conduct an on-board experiment due to the premature loss of ASTERIA, our effort proved the feasibility of on-board model-based fault management, demonstrating reliable and accurate diagnosis using captured data, and further supporting a closed-loop spacecraft autonomy demonstration including autonomous navigation in off-nominal conditions.

Prather, Maurice↗

Autonomous Safe Landing Site Detection for a FutureMars Science Helicopter

Future Mars Rotorcrafts require advanced navigation capabilities to enable all terrain access for science investigations with long distance flights that are executed fully autonomously. A critical component is the ability to safely land in hazardous terrain as part of a mission, or triggered by an emergency situation. In this paper, we present an advanced navigation system for continuous on-board terrain reconstruction for the purpose of hazard-free landing site detection for the autonomous navigation of a Mars Science Helicopter - a JPL research concept that investigates the feasibility of flying a multi-kilogram science payload at various Mars science locations, with flight ranges of multiple kilometers per flight. Our approach builds on a visionbased perception system that incorporates an on-board visualinertial state estimator augmented by a laser altimeter (range- VIO), and a structure-from-motion 3D reconstruction approach that uses a single, downward-looking camera to provide dense depth measurements while the vehicle is in motion. Depth measurements are accumulated in a local, robot-centric, multiresolution elevation map that is analyzed by a landing site detector to extract safe landing areas below the rotorcraft, based on a heuristic that includes slope, roughness and the presence of landing hazards. Detected landing sites are prioritized by an on-board autonomy engine that either selects suitable landing sites for immediate landing maneuvers, or can explore a terrain location as part of a mission in order to find a best landing site in a pre-planned area. We demonstrate and evaluate our approach on simulated data and data acquired with a surrogate unmanned aerial system (UAS) executing flights over relevant terrain.

Tzanetos, Teddy↗

Lunar Base Construction Planning

Previous lunar missions and campaigns have been restricted to using robotic landers and lunar orbiting satellites as well as sortie type of operations using astronaut crews(NASA Apollo program).Now, the next phase of lunar exploration has begun under NASA’s Artemis program and there has been an international response where other nations such as China, Russia, India, Canada, Japan and theEuropean Union of nations, have all expressed interest in either collaborating or competing with NASA on theMoon. This next phase has an overarching goal of achieving a permanent human presence on theMoon via sustainable methods. A lunar base with human occupancy will require infrastructure to provide shelter, utilities, landing/launch pads, roads, communications, power and all the other necessities to sustain human life and protect equipment.Since human biology is not well suited for surviving in the lunar environment, there will be many forms of automated equipment, autonomy and robotic helpers that will minimize the amount of Extra-Vehicular Activity(EVA) required by the crew. This will mean that the radiation dosage received by the crew will stay within acceptable and safe career doses. Radiation shielding via the use of regolith can also mitigate radiation dangers.The required infrastructure must be constructed, but the mass and logistics of bringing all the construction materials from Earth are prohibitive, which makes the necessary construction difficult to achieve.In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) aims to solve this challenge by sourcing construction materials locally or “in-situ”. This means that their transportation can be completely eliminated, resulting in large cost savings by avoiding the launch out of Earth’s deep gravity well and subsequent trans lunar injection, lunar orbit capture and landing. This paper will give ahistorical review and current status of lunar construction planning and a high level introduction to the required infrastructure and construction equipment that will be required to robotically build a lunar base using in-situ resources.It will also organize these tasks into logical groupings so that technology development and implementation can be pursued within a framework that can be referenced by all involved.

Lunar↗

Integrating Mission Timelines and Procedures to Enhance Situational Awareness in Human Spaceflight Operations

Future human spaceflight missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond will have significant transmission delays and reduced communications bandwidth compared to operations in Low Earth Orbit, requiring increased crew autonomy due to the limited availability of real-time support from Mission Control Center (MCC). In this paper, we argue for the development of technology to enhance situational awareness (SA) for a remote MCC and astronauts onboard the vehicle, describe a usability study conducted towards this aim, and identify key usability features for the design of future integrated timeline tools. By tightly integrating timelines and procedures, future crew systems can predict future constraint violations, suggest resolutions to these violations, and ultimately support more successful missions.

User experience↗

Starfleet Medical: Knowledge Skills and Abilities of Crew Medical Officers on Exploration Missions

Anticipating the medical skills necessary for deep space exploration missions is one of the greatest space medicine challenges. Spontaneous medical events unrelated to the space environment for which resourcing is severely limited. Novel medical events in the space environment for which are unknown unknowns. Exploration missions are remote, long duration, and low resource which increases the risk and consequences of medical events and require increased crew autonomy.

Levin, DR↗

A Remote, Human-in-the-Loop Evaluation of a Multiple-Drone Delivery Operation

Over time, advances in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have enabled a shift in the operational paradigm from one operator managing one aircraft to that of multiple operators working together to manage multiple aircraft. This shift has highlighted the need for effective human-autonomy teaming methods to maintain manageable workload levels for operators as well as high standards of system performance and safety. This paper presents a study aimed at evaluating whether automation can help operators manage workload during small UAS (sUAS) package delivery scenarios featuring contingency situations. These contingency situations, resulting from unplanned UAS Volume Reservations (UVRs), required flight path reroutes for multiple aircraft simultaneously. The study manipulated the number of aircraft affected by the UVRs and the level of automation support. The presence of terrain conflicts was also controlled within each scenario. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, subjects were not able to gain direct access to the Ground Control System (GCS). Therefore, the study was conducted using a subject-surrogate paradigm that required subjects to relay commands through a verbal protocol from remote locations outside of the lab to a researcher surrogate who had direct control of the GCS interfaces at the lab location. Results show that the automated support condition was associated with faster reroute response times, more efficient reroute maneuvers, and significantly lower levels of perceived workload than the manual reroute condition. However, the automation support level did not significantly impact pilots’ ability to avoid the UVR successfully; pilots were overwhelmingly capable of avoiding the UVR in all conditions. The presence of terrain conflicts primarily impacted pilot performance by leading to multiple uploads per vehicle, which was not typically required when pilots only needed to maneuver laterally. Although subjects did not have direct control over the GCS, subjective ratings indicate that the displays under test provided them with sufficient information to manage their aircraft and promptly respond to the unplanned UVRs. Overall, the objective and subjective data strongly suggest that the verbal protocol and subject-surrogate paradigm were effective methods for collecting data remotely amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

multi-UAS↗

Starling Animation

NASA’s Starling mission is advancing the readiness of various technologies for cooperative groups of spacecraft – also known as distributed missions, clusters, or swarms. Starling will demonstrate technologies to enable multipoint science data collection by several small spacecraft flying in swarms. The six-month mission will use four CubeSats in low-Earth orbit to test four technologies that let spacecraft operate in a synchronized manner without resources from the ground. The technologies will advance the following capabilities. • Network Communication • Cluster Flight Control • Relative navigation • Distributed Spacecraft Autonomy The Starling mission will test whether the technologies work as expected, what their limitations are, and what developments are still needed for CubeSat swarms to be successful. This animation illustrates Starling mission operations, offering an overview of each technology being demonstrated.

Howard N Cannon↗

NASA Science Technology Development Programs for Ocean Worlds Exploration

The exploration of icy satellites such as Europa and Enceladus supports NASA’s goal to search for life and potentially habitable regions elsewhere in the universe, and further promises to help us understand the origins, evolution, and limits of life on Earth. Over the past several years, NASA’s Planetary Science Division has funded several technology development programs to enable future surface and subsurface missions to ocean worlds. These programs include Instrument Concepts for Europa Exploration (ICEE), Concepts for Ocean Worlds Life Detection Technology (COLDTech), Scientific Exploration Subsurface Access Mechanism for Europa (SESAME), Applied Information Systems Research: Autonomous Robotics Research for Ocean Worlds (AISR:ARROW), and Astrodynamics in Support of Icy Worlds Missions. Tasks selected under these programs include the development of scientific instruments including seismometers, imagers, spectrometers, and organic analyzers, and also platform technologies including drills, melt probes, through-ice communications, radiation-hard electronics, and autonomy for surface operations. This paper describes the objectives of each of these programs and provides a summary of the work that has been completed or is underway in each.

science instruments↗

Preliminary Characterization of Unmanned Air Cargo Routes Using Current Cargo Operations Survey

The introduction of regional cargo unmanned aircraft systems into the National Airspace System is anticipated within the coming years. Because they are remotely piloted, these aircraft are expected to utilize increasing aircraft automation and autonomy, require special infrastructure accommodations for navigation, communication, command and control and potentially need special treatment from air traffic control. In order to assess the accessibility and impacts of these operations across the national airspace, this preliminary study investigates current and estimated future demand for air cargo operations in the continental United States. Air cargo demand is broken down by aircraft type and airport categories to produce a rough nation-wide classification of cargo operations. Then, the state of Texas is investigated as a focus region, where the impacts of regional cargo unmanned aircraft systems on the airspace are investigated in further detail. The potential technologies that can assist in regional cargo unmanned aircraft system accessibility are defined at airports across the focus region. A single airport, Fort Worth Alliance, is highlighted to discuss airport-level statistics. Finally, a qualitative classification of airports by the type of cargo operations is suggested.

Unmanned Aircraft↗

Preliminary Characterization of Unmanned Air Cargo Routes Using Current Cargo Operations Survey

The introduction of regional cargo unmanned aircraft systems into the National Airspace System is anticipated within the coming years. Because they are remotely piloted, these aircraft are expected to utilize increasing aircraft automation and autonomy, require special infrastructure accommodations for navigation, communication, command and control and potentially need special treatment from air traffic control. In order to assess the accessibility and impacts of these operations across the national airspace, this preliminary study investigates current and estimated future demand for air cargo operations in the continental United States. Air cargo demand is broken down by aircraft type and airport categories to produce a rough nation-wide classification of cargo operations. Then, the state of Texas is investigated as a focus region, where the impacts of regional cargo unmanned aircraft systems on the airspace are investigated in further detail. The potential technologies that can assist in regional cargo unmanned aircraft system accessibility are defined at airports across the focus region. A single airport, Fort Worth Alliance, is highlighted to discuss airport-level statistics. Finally, a qualitative classification of airports by the type of cargo operations is suggested.

Unmanned Aircraft, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, UAS,↗

Integrating Mission Timelines and Procedures to Enhance Situational Awareness in Human Spaceflight Operations

Future human spaceflight missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond will have significant transmission delays and reduced communications bandwidth compared to operations in Low Earth Orbit, requiring increased crew autonomy due to the limited availability of real-time support from Mission Control Center (MCC). In this paper, we argue for the development of technology to enhance situational awareness (SA) for a remote MCC and astronauts onboard the vehicle, describe a usability study conducted towards this aim, and identify key usability features for the design of future integrated timeline tools. By tightly integrating timelines and procedures, future crew systems can predict future constraint violations, suggest resolutions to these violations, and ultimately support more successful missions.

user experience↗