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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 217 records · Page 12

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS2007

Observing Mode Attitude Controller for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission is the first of a series of lunar robotic spacecraft scheduled for launch in Fall 2008. LRO will spend at least one year in a low altitude polar orbit around the Moon, collecting lunar environment science and mapping data to enable future human exploration. The LRO employs a 3-axis stabilized attitude control system (ACS) whose primary control mode, the "Observing mode", provides Lunar Nadir, off-Nadir, and Inertial fine pointing for the science data collection and instrument calibration. The controller combines the capability of fine pointing with that of on-demand large angle full-sky attitude reorientation into a single ACS mode, providing simplicity of spacecraft operation as well as maximum flexibility for science data collection. A conventional suite of ACS components is employed in this mode to meet the pointing and control objectives. This paper describes the design and analysis of the primary LRO fine pointing and attitude re-orientation controller function, known as the "Observing mode" of the ACS subsystem. The control design utilizes quaternion feedback, augmented with a unique algorithm that ensures accurate Nadir tracking during large angle yaw maneuvers in the presence of high system momentum and/or maneuver rates. Results of system stability analysis and Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the observing mode controller can meet fine pointing and maneuver performance requirements.

Calhoun, Philip C.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Robotic Finger Assembly

A robotic hand includes a finger with first, second, and third phalanges. A first joint rotatably connects the first phalange to a base structure. A second joint rotatably connects the first phalange to the second phalange. A third joint rotatably connects the third phalange to the second phalange. The second joint and the third joint are kinematically linked such that the position of the third phalange with respect to the second phalange is determined by the position of the second phalange with respect to the first phalange.

Ihrke, Chris A.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Robotic Finger Assembly

Ihrke, Chris A.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) for a Robust Commercial Lunar Ecosystem

Modular Open Systems Approaches (MOSAs) have been adopted worldwide to solve a myriad of challenges. Open systems by their nature maximize accessibility, reduce barriers to entry, and prevent vendor lock. Similarly, modularity speeds innovation, fosters design re-use, and enables incremental development & growth. Architectures developed using a MOSA synergize the benefits of modularity and open systems to produce better products at lower developmental cost and risk, saving the consumer money while allowing greater developer profit margins. Specific to the challenge of lunar exploration, a MOSA will ensure interoperability among diverse commercial, government, and international partners. Complex spaceflight systems can be assembled, upgraded, and serviced far more easily and with greater commercial involvement with the use of a MOSA. By allowing partners to self-limit their scope to key strengths, they can focus on producing premier components without carrying the high risk and associated cost of auxiliary tasks they don’t specialize in. We survey commercial and Department of Defense (DoD) lessons learned in past decades, discuss DoD robotics’ experience in Iraq and Afghanistan (first without then with MOSAs), and analyze the flourishing commercial ecosystem that has resulted from DoD MOSA adoption. We explore the future of lunar operations to demonstrate the criticality of MOSA adoption in key areas at the right time. Two specific lunar technical fields are studied as examples: Power and In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). Finally, recognizing that the lunar ISRU campaign will be an eminently collaborative operation requiring seamless partnering among diverse commercial, government, and international partners, a comprehensive technology development ecosystem is explored aimed at enabling ISRU in a way that systems and components are affordable for commercial partners to design, build, and sustain.

Mathew DeMinico↗

DOE OSTI2013

3D World Building System

This video provides an overview of the Sandia National Laboratories developed 3-D World Model Building capability that provides users with an immersive, texture rich 3-D model of their environment in minutes using a laptop and color and depth camera.

3D↗

DOE OSTI2018

Results of Robotic Evaluation of Uranium-235 in Gaseous Diffusion Piping Holdup Deposits - 18303

Measurement of U-235 in pipes within old uranium enrichment facilities is time-consuming and very costly. Radiometric assay from outside the pipes suffers from manual deployment challenges, attenuation of detection through pipe walls, long counting times, approximate modeling, and shortfalls associated with transcription and human interpretation. The D and D process of cutting into these pipes creates a unique possibility of robotic in-pipe assay to address these problems. This paper presents the results of testing a first-of-kind radiometric non-destructive assay (NDA) robot for high-cadence, accurate, certain, paperless assay of U-235 in holdup deposits within process piping. The robot's enabling capability is an innovative radiometric collimation method that views only a one-foot moving annulus of pipe wall. This exploits the internal axisymmetry of pipes to provide a direct measurement of industry-standard grams per foot U-235. The initial proof-of-application robot was successfully hot tested by operators at the Gaseous Diffusion Enrichment Facility in Piketon, Ohio, in late 2017. This testing achieved all goals of traversing pipe, measuring U-235, deployment by facility personnel, and displaying analyzed radiation, visual, and geometric information. The success was a Kitty Hawk moment. The system demonstrated robotic in-pipe measurement of holdup deposit to a resolution, accuracy, and speed unachievable by alternate methods. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

NASA NTRS2011

2011 NASA Lunabotics Mining Competition for Universities: Results and Lessons Learned

Overview: Design, build & compete remote controlled robot (Lunabot). Excavate Black Point 1 (BP-1) Lunar Simulant. Deposit minimum of 10 kg of BP-1 within 15 minutes $5000, $2500, $1000 Scholarships for most BP-1 excavated. May 23-28, 2011. Kennedy Space Center, FL. International Teams Allowed for the First Time. What is a Lunabot? a) Robot Controlled Remotely or Autonomously. b) Visual and Auditory Isolation from Operator. c) Excavates Black Point 1 (BP-l) Simulant. d) Weight Limit - 80 kg. e)Dimension Limits -1.5m width x .75m length x 2m height. f) Designed, Built and Tested by University Student Teams.

Mueller, Robert P.↗

DOE OSTI2014

Energy Efficient Legged Robotics at Sandia Labs

Sandia is developing energy efficient actuation and drive train technologies to dramatically improve the charge life of legged robots. The work is supported by DARPA, and Sandia will demonstrate an energy efficient bipedal robot at the technology exposition section of the DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals in June, 2015. This video, the first in a series, describes early development and initial integration of the Sandia Transmission Efficient Prototype Promoting Research (STEPPR) robot.

42 ENGINEERING↗

NASA NTRS1989

Dynamics and control of multibody/robotic systems with space applications; Proceedings of the ASME Winter Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, Dec. 10-15, 1989

The present conference on the dynamics and control methods of multibody robotic systems applicable to outer space applications first gives attention to such topics in multibody dynamics and control as the substructure synthesis approach to flexible multibody system control, an elastic finite-element kinematic analysis of a multirigid body, computational methods for high speed vehicles on flexible guideways, and multiarm coordination and control. Attention is then given to such issues in space manipulator dynamics and control methods as the global navigation of a free-flying space robot, dynamic singularities in the control of free-floating space manipulators, experimental results for compact space robot actuator control, and a 17-degree-of-freedom dexterous manipulator.

Joshi, Suresh M.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Distance estimation and collision prediction for on-line robotic motion planning

An efficient method for computing the minimum distance and predicting collisions between moving objects is presented. This problem is incorporated into the framework of an in-line motion-planning algorithm to satisfy collision avoidance between a robot and moving objects modeled as convex polyhedra. In the beginning, the deterministic problem where the information about the objects is assumed to be certain is examined. L(1) or L(infinity) norms are used to represent distance and the problem becomes a linear programming problem. The stochastic problem is formulated where the uncertainty is induced by sensing and the unknown dynamics of the moving obstacles. Two problems are considered: First, filtering of the distance between the robot and the moving object at the present time. Second, prediction of the minimum distance in the future in order to predict the collision time.

Kyriakopoulos, K. J.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Small Business Innovations (Robotic Wrist)

Under a Langley Research Center Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract, Ross-Hime Designs, Inc. Minneapolis, MN, developed the Omni-Wrist actuator, which has a 25-pound capacity, 180 degrees of pitch/yaw, and 360 degrees of roll. Company literature calls it "the first successful singularity-free high-precision (robotic) wrist." Applications include spray painting, sealing, ultrasonic testing, welding and a variety of nuclear industry, aerospace and military uses.

Source record↗

DOE OSTI2019

The DESI Fiber View Camera System

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is a 5000 fiber multi-object spectrometer now being installed at the prime focus of the 4 m Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak. Using DESI to measure ~35 million galaxy redshifts and using the Baryon Acoustic Oscillation (BAO) technique to measure distances, the results will probe the nature of the recently discovered mysterious component of our universe called dark energy. Computer controlled robotic positioners move the 120 μm diameter fibers to positions of galaxies whose location on the sky have been obtained in a previous target selection imaging survey. To achieve good throughput the fibers should be centered on the target position to within 3 μm. The robotic positioners however are only capable of a 50 μm precision on their first move. To achieve the desired precision, the Fiber View Camera (FVC) system has been implemented. The FVC, located near the hole in the primary mirror of the Mayall telescope, has been designed to take an exposure of the focal plane, located at the prime focus some 12 m above the FVC, after the robotic positioners have completed their first move. The FVC is intended to measure the fiber locations with a precision of 3 μm and issue a set of fiber coordinate corrections for the second move correcting the fiber positions by the robotic positioners. Tests show that after two iterations better than 99% of the fibers will be in their intended location to within the desired precision. This paper describes the design of the FVC system, the R&D program preceding the final design, and the tests that have been carried out to demonstrate that the FVC can achieve the required precision.

(cosmology:) dark energy↗

NASA NTRS2008

The Telesupervised Adaptive Ocean Sensor Fleet (TAOSF) Architecture: Coordination of Multiple Oceanic Robot Boats

Earth science research must bridge the gap between the atmosphere and the ocean to foster understanding of Earth s climate and ecology. Ocean sensing is typically done with satellites, buoys, and crewed research ships. The limitations of these systems include the fact that satellites are often blocked by cloud cover, and buoys and ships have spatial coverage limitations. This paper describes a multi-robot science exploration software architecture and system called the Telesupervised Adaptive Ocean Sensor Fleet (TAOSF). TAOSF supervises and coordinates a group of robotic boats, the OASIS platforms, to enable in-situ study of phenomena in the ocean/atmosphere interface, as well as on the ocean surface and sub-surface. The OASIS platforms are extended deployment autonomous ocean surface vehicles, whose development is funded separately by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). TAOSF allows a human operator to effectively supervise and coordinate multiple robotic assets using a sliding autonomy control architecture, where the operating mode of the vessels ranges from autonomous control to teleoperated human control. TAOSF increases data-gathering effectiveness and science return while reducing demands on scientists for robotic asset tasking, control, and monitoring. The first field application chosen for TAOSF is the characterization of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). We discuss the overall TAOSF architecture, describe field tests conducted under controlled conditions using rhodamine dye as a HAB simulant, present initial results from these tests, and outline the next steps in the development of TAOSF.

sensor web↗

DOE OSTI2025

Teleoperation of Construction Robots Using Human Interaction: Case Study Examples: Preprint

The integration of advanced teleoperation methods in construction robotics has the potential to enhance productivity and safety in demanding environments. Among different methods, hand gestures have emerged as an intuitive approach, enabling seamless communication between human operators and robotic systems. This study demonstrates the use of hand gestures for controlling a model robotic excavator and a virtual robotic arm in construction applications. Two case study examples are presented. In the first case study, a series of hand gestures are performed to control a model robotic excavator's bucket and arm movements. The second case study focuses on using hand gestures to control a virtual robotic arm to perform a material handling task in a simulated environment. In both cases, the performed hand gestures are all successfully captured and interpreted by the gesture-based teleoperation method to conduct the corresponding tasks, which demonstrates the application of the gesture-based control method for various types of construction robots. Also, the limitations of the gesture-based teleoperation method (e.g., recognition delay, sensitivity to motion outliers) are discussed. Future work will focus on developing a digital twin system to support gesture-based teleoperation for a wider range of construction robots.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

NASA NTRS2015

Fast Grasp Contact Computation for a Serial Robot

A system includes a controller and a serial robot having links that are interconnected by a joint, wherein the robot can grasp a three-dimensional (3D) object in response to a commanded grasp pose. The controller receives input information, including the commanded grasp pose, a first set of information describing the kinematics of the robot, and a second set of information describing the position of the object to be grasped. The controller also calculates, in a two-dimensional (2D) plane, a set of contact points between the serial robot and a surface of the 3D object needed for the serial robot to achieve the commanded grasp pose. A required joint angle is then calculated in the 2D plane between the pair of links using the set of contact points. A control action is then executed with respect to the motion of the serial robot using the required joint angle.

Shi, Jianying↗

NASA NTRS2020

Kibo Robot Programming Challenge Final Activity Report

On October 8th, 2020 the Kibo Robot Programming Challenge (RPC) Finals Event took place. Student teams from Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and UAE were the finalists of the competition and became the first students to ever upload APKs to an Astrobee robot (Bumble) on the ISS. This was the culmination of a joint effort between JAXA’s Int-Ball developing team in Tsukuba, Japan and NASA’s Astrobee Facility team at NASA Ames Research Center\ in California, USA. The collaboration between JAXA and NASA started in late 2017. Throughout this time mutual visits by the engineering and management teams were organized. In July 2019 the Kibo RPC concept was formally defined and the competition started. Hundreds of students across the Asia Pacific region participated and during the final event they did so in real time with the participation of NASA’s astronaut, Chris Cassidy. Chris interacted with the students, JAXA personnel and with the robot during the activity. This report aims to summarize the lessons learned from the several crew and non-crew tended activities, the evaluations performed on ground, the coordination of resources both in the ground and at the International Space Station (ISS) as well as operations. It identifies the issues the teams faced and the solutions put in place to mitigate them.

Astrobee↗

NASA NTRS2015

Developing a Fault Management Guidebook for Nasa's Deep Space Robotic Missions

NASA designs and builds systems that achieve incredibly ambitious goals, as evidenced by the Curiosity rover traversing on Mars, the highly complex International Space Station orbiting our Earth, and the compelling plans for capturing, retrieving and redirecting an asteroid into a lunar orbit to create a nearby a target to be investigated by astronauts. In order to accomplish these feats, the missions must be imbued with sufficient knowledge and capability not only to realize the goals, but also to identify and respond to off-nominal conditions. Fault Management (FM) is the discipline of establishing how a system will respond to preserve its ability to function even in the presence of faults. In 2012, NASA released a draft FM Handbook in an attempt to coalesce the field by establishing a unified terminology and a common process for designing FM mechanisms. However, FM approaches are very diverse across NASA, especially between the different mission types such as Earth orbiters, launch vehicles, deep space robotic vehicles and human spaceflight missions, and the authors were challenged to capture and represent all of these views. The authors recognized that a necessary precursor step is for each sub-community to codify its FM policies, practices and approaches in individual, focused guidebooks. Then, the sub-communities can look across NASA to better understand the different ways off-nominal conditions are addressed, and to seek commonality or at least an understanding of the multitude of FM approaches. This paper describes the development of the "Deep Space Robotic Fault Management Guidebook," which is intended to be the first of NASA's FM guidebooks. Its purpose is to be a field-guide for FM practitioners working on deep space robotic missions, as well as a planning tool for project managers. Publication of this Deep Space Robotic FM Guidebook is expected in early 2015. The guidebook will be posted on NASA's Engineering Network on the FM Community of Practice website so that it will be available to all NASA projects. Future plans for subsequent guidebooks for the other NASA sub-communities are proposed.

Fesq, Lorraine M.↗

NASA NTRS2004

To Boldly Go: America's Next Era in Space. Machine Consciousness and the Exploration of Space

Dr. France Cordova, NASA's Chief Scientist, chaired this meeting, another part of the NASA Administrator's Seminar Series. She introduced Administrator Daniel S. Goldin, who welcomed the attendees, and noted that the two speakers have a running feud regarding the possibility of creating robots that can 'think'. Dr. Cordova then introduced the first speaker, Dr. Roger Penrose of the Mathematical Institute at Oxford in the U.K. His primary interests are in mathematics, physics, information systems technology, and artificial intelligence. He thinks that robots cannot be made to 'think' and that consciousness is not computable. Dr. Hans Moravec, who spoke next, has opinions and activities that are related to, but substantially different from those of Dr. Penrose. Dr. Moravec believes that he can build a robot that can act based on the deductions that it will make. To mimic human thinking capabilities, he figures that a robot ultimately will need to be able to handle ten trillion computations per second. He predicts that his goal of building a 'thinking' robot will be met in the 2030-2040 time period. He pointed out that he already has built a car that successfully drove itself from Washington, DC to San Diego, CA. He commented that a human being, was ready to take over driving the car, if necessary, but there was no need. The robots envisioned by Dr. Moravec would not only be able to 'think', but also would have human-like emotions, and ultimately would be able to reproduce. The discussion that followed raised questions about the morality of sending human-like robots into outer space. Also a concern was expressed that human-like robots might perceive humans as a threat and become dangerous to people.

Source record↗