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At least 433 records · Page 24

A comparison of position and rate control for telemanipulations with consideration of manipulator system dynamics

Position and rate control are the two common manual control modes in teleoperations. Human operator performance using the two modes is evaluated and compared. Simulated three-axis pick-and-place operations are used as the primary task for evaluation. First, ideal position and rate control are compared by considering several factors, such as joystick gain, joystick type, display mode, task, and manipulator work space size. Then the effects of the manipulator system dynamics are investigated by varying the natural frequency and speed limit. Experimental results show that ideal position control is superior to ideal rate control, regardless of joystick type or display mode, when the manipulation work space is small or comparable to the human operator's control space. Results also show that when the manipulator system is slow, the superiority of position control disappears. Position control is recommended for small-work-space telemanipulation tasks, while rate control is recommended for slow wide-work-space telemanipulation tasks.

Kim, Won S.↗

An Investigation into the Effect of Liquid Accumulation on Thermo-Physiologic State using an Advanced Moisture Model Coupled with a High Resolution Human Thermal Model

A physics-based mathematical model for simulating heat and moisture transport on the skin and within clothing was developed to improve the accuracy of human thermal modeling predictions. In a previous study, a set of sweating hotplate experiments was specifically created to obtain test data for model validation. The clothing moisture model was subsequently coupled with a human thermal model and tested by simulating human experiments described in the open literature, which served to verify the model’s ability to predict whole body thermo-physiologic state in work-rest cycles during which sweating was known to occur. In this study, a human subject test was specifically designed to validate the model’s ability to predict local and whole body sweat evaporation and accumulation on the surface of the body. The human subject test incorporated twelve clothed male subjects of moderate physical fitness, ages 18-30, which were prescribed a work-rest cycle in a climate-controlled chamber (25 °C, 50% RH). Two activity levels were considered during the active stage (4 MET vs. 6.5 MET), and two sets of ending ambient conditions were considered for the final rest stage (25 °C vs. 15 °C, 50% RH). Model predictions were compared to the measured local skin temperatures, core temperatures, and whole body sweat losses. In general, the model was able to reproduce the trends observed in the human subject trial, but more importantly, provided insight into how dynamic changes in liquid content can impact the evolution of local and whole body thermo-physiologic state. This study demonstrates the ability of an advanced moisture model to capture distinct physics attributable to moisture accumulation, allowing for increased accuracy in predicting human thermal state and for interpreting the results of measurements derived from human subject tests.

human thermal model↗

NASA Aerosciences Activities to Support Human Space Flight

The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) has been a critical element of the United State's human space flight program for over 50 years. It is the home to NASA s Mission Control Center, the astronaut corps, and many major programs and projects including the Space Shuttle Program, International Space Station Program, and the Orion Project. As part of JSC's Engineering Directorate, the Applied Aeroscience and Computational Fluid Dynamics Branch is charted to provide aerosciences support to all human spacecraft designs and missions for all phases of flight, including ascent, exo-atmospheric, and entry. The presentation will review past and current aeroscience applications and how NASA works to apply a balanced philosophy that leverages ground testing, computational modeling and simulation, and flight testing, to develop and validate related products. The speaker will address associated aspects of aerodynamics, aerothermodynamics, rarefied gas dynamics, and decelerator systems, involving both spacecraft vehicle design and analysis, and operational mission support. From these examples some of NASA leading aerosciences challenges will be identified. These challenges will be used to provide foundational motivation for the development of specific advanced modeling and simulation capabilities, and will also be used to highlight how development activities are increasing becoming more aligned with flight projects. NASA s efforts to apply principles of innovation and inclusion towards improving its ability to support the myriad of vehicle design and operational challenges will also be briefly reviewed.

LeBeau, Gerald J.↗

Overview of the PLEXIL Plan Execution Technology and its Applications in Autonomous Piloting Projects at NASA

Automated planning is a key Artificial Intelligence technology enabling Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and the eminent reality of Urban Air Mobility (UAM). It produces plans, which formalize procedures often performed by humans. Plans differ from other kinds of computer programs in their ability to react and interact with a dynamically changing environment. Aviation plans must encode the procedural knowledge, reasoning capability, and capacity for multi-tasking held by competent human pilots. Correct execution of these plans (performed by software called an executive) in the dynamic airspace environment is vital to the success of each automated flight, and the safety of the vehicle and all things in its path. In the early 2000s NASA developed a plan representation language and executive called PLEXIL (Plan Execution Interchange Language) that has successfully been applied in several NASA aviation and UAS projects. Autonomy Operating System (AOS), Cockpit Hierarchical Automated Planning and Execution (CHAP-E), and ICAROUS are all projects that have used PLEXIL to help encode and automatically execute flight procedures, some normally performed by human pilots. AOS also automates a subset of pilot/Air Traffic Control communication towards enabling UAS entry into the National Airspace. PLEXIL has been open-source software since 2008 and has seen usage in a wide range of prototypical autonomy applications in academia, government, and industry. In this presentation, we describe PLEXIL and highlight its significant accomplishments in the aviation domain.

Dalal, Michael↗

Estimation of Time-Varying Pilot Model Parameters

Human control behavior is rarely completely stationary over time due to fatigue or loss of attention. In addition, there are many control tasks for which human operators need to adapt their control strategy to vehicle dynamics that vary in time. In previous studies on the identification of time-varying pilot control behavior wavelets were used to estimate the time-varying frequency response functions. However, the estimation of time-varying pilot model parameters was not considered. Estimating these parameters can be a valuable tool for the quantification of different aspects of human time-varying manual control. This paper presents two methods for the estimation of time-varying pilot model parameters, a two-step method using wavelets and a windowed maximum likelihood estimation method. The methods are evaluated using simulations of a closed-loop control task with time-varying pilot equalization and vehicle dynamics. Simulations are performed with and without remnant. Both methods give accurate results when no pilot remnant is present. The wavelet transform is very sensitive to measurement noise, resulting in inaccurate parameter estimates when considerable pilot remnant is present. Maximum likelihood estimation is less sensitive to pilot remnant, but cannot detect fast changes in pilot control behavior.

Zaal, Peter M. T.↗

Loads and Structural Dynamics Requirements for Spaceflight Hardware

The NASA Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate requires Crewed Space Systems (CSS) to meet the intent of a set of Engineering Technical Authority (TA) documents called out in HEOMD-003, Crewed Deep Space Systems Human Rating Certification Requirements and Standards for NASA Missions. For the Loads and Dynamics technical discipline, the document invoked by the HEOMD-003 is JSC 65829, Loads and Structural Dynamics Requirements for Spaceflight Hardware. JSC 65829 was originally developed for the NASA Commercial Crew Program as an implementation of NASA STD-5002, Load Analyses of Spacecraft and Payloads, for that Program. Since that time, tailored alternatives to JSC 65829 have been produced for the Gateway, Human Landing System, and Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Programs. Experience with those Programs has shown that the reduced set of less-prescriptive requirements in those tailored documents offers an advantage over the set of requirements in JSC 65829 Rev A and is a better fit for the paradigm of NASA procurement of commercially developed systems for crewed spaceflight. Revision B of JSC 65829 has been constructed to align with those tailored documents. The reduction in the number and specificity of requirements is balanced by a new requirement for hardware developers to create and provide a Loads Control Plan which describes how the approaches used to generate design-to loads and dynamic environments and substantiate dynamic model validity satisfy the requirements herein. The Plan will establish an agreement between the hardware developer and the TA for the loads and dynamics discipline and offer an opportunity for reengagement if the Plan changes during development.

Kenneth Schultz↗

Exploration Systems Exterior Lighting Design Guidance

Humans are returning to the Moon — this time, to stay. NASA has selected a location that maximizes line-of-sight communication with Earth, solar visibility, and access to water ice: the Lunar South Pole (LSP). While the Sun is more consistently in the lunar sky at the poles, it never rises more than 7° above the horizon in the target landing regions. This harsh lighting environment--never experienced during the Apollo missions or in human spaceflight--presents an engineering challenge: Support and protect functional vision. The human vision system, which despite having a high-dynamic range, cannot see well into bright light and cannot adapt quickly from bright to dark or vice versa. The design of helmets, windows, and lighting solutions must work in a complementary fashion to achieve a system of lighting and functional vision support that enables crews to see into darkness while their eyes are light-adapted and see in bright light while still dark-adapted that protects their eyes from injury. This report brings together information and identifies gaps related to LSP Natural environment (topology, regolith, temperature, lighting, and so forth), NASA historical experience exploring the Moon, human vision capabilities and needs, exploration operations, simulation capabilities and needs (for design verification, training, mission planning, and so forth) and existing engineering, safety, medical and performance requirements related to support human exploration.

Simulation↗

On-Line Analysis of Physiologic and Neurobehavioral Variables During Long-Duration Space Missions

The goal of this project is to develop reliable statistical algorithms for on-line analysis of physiologic and neurobehavioral variables monitored during long-duration space missions. Maintenance of physiologic and neurobehavioral homeostasis during long-duration space missions is crucial for ensuring optimal crew performance. If countermeasures are not applied, alterations in homeostasis will occur in nearly all-physiologic systems. During such missions data from most of these systems will be either continually and/or continuously monitored. Therefore, if these data can be analyzed as they are acquired and the status of these systems can be continually assessed, then once alterations are detected, appropriate countermeasures can be applied to correct them. One of the most important physiologic systems in which to maintain homeostasis during long-duration missions is the circadian system. To detect and treat alterations in circadian physiology during long duration space missions requires development of: 1) a ground-based protocol to assess the status of the circadian system under the light-dark environment in which crews in space will typically work; and 2) appropriate statistical methods to make this assessment. The protocol in Project 1, Circadian Entrainment, Sleep-Wake Regulation and Neurobehavioral will study human volunteers under the simulated light-dark environment of long-duration space missions. Therefore, we propose to develop statistical models to characterize in near real time circadian and neurobehavioral physiology under these conditions. The specific aims of this project are to test the hypotheses that: 1) Dynamic statistical methods based on the Kronauer model of the human circadian system can be developed to estimate circadian phase, period, amplitude from core-temperature data collected under simulated light- dark conditions of long-duration space missions. 2) Analytic formulae and numerical algorithms can be developed to compute the error in the estimates of circadian phase, period and amplitude determined from the data in Specific Aim 1. 3) Statistical models can detect reliably in near real- time (daily) significant alternations in the circadian physiology of individual subjects by analyzing the circadian and neurobehavioral data collected in Project 1. 4) Criteria can be developed using the Kronauer model and the recently developed Jewett model of cognitive -performance and subjective alertness to define altered circadian and neurobehavioral physiology and to set conditions for immediate administration of countermeasures.

Brown, Emery N.↗

Accessing the Lunar Poles for Human Exploration Missions

The National Vision for Space Exploration calls for an American return to the Moon in preparation for the human exploration of Mars and other destinations. The surface environment of the Moon is a challenge for human operations, but recent findings from robotic and Earth-based studies have indicated that the polar regions of the Moon may offer advantages in terms of thermal conditions, availability of solar energy, and access to local resources. While accessing these regions represents a challenge due to orbital dynamics and propulsive performance, methods for accessing the regions with humans are being actively pursued, and environmental data gathering is planned through future robotic missions.

Joosten, B. Kent↗

Knowledge elicitation for an operator assistant system in process control tasks

A knowledge based system (KBS) methodology designed to study human machine interactions and levels of autonomy in allocation of process control tasks is presented. Users are provided with operation manuals to assist them in normal and abnormal situations. Unfortunately, operation manuals usually represent only the functioning logic of the system to be controlled. The user logic is often totally different. A method is focused on which illicits user logic to refine a KBS shell called an Operator Assistant (OA). If the OA is to help the user, it is necessary to know what level of autonomy gives the optimal performance of the overall man-machine system. For example, for diagnoses that must be carried out carefully by both the user and the OA, interactions are frequent, and processing is mostly sequential. Other diagnoses can be automated, in which the case the OA must be able to explain its reasoning in an appropriate level of detail. OA structure was used to design a working KBS called HORSES (Human Orbital Refueling System Expert System). Protocol analysis of pilots interacting with this system reveals that the a-priori analytical knowledge becomes more structured with training and the situation patterns more complex and dynamic. This approach can improve the a-priori understanding of human and automatic reasoning.

Boy, Guy A.↗

Human Stability While Exercising on a VIS Device in Zero Gravity

BACKGROUND: A Vibration Isolation and Stabilization (VIS) system is being designed for use with the European Enhanced Exploration Exercise Device (E4D) [1]. The exercise bar is attached to cables that extend and retract through openings in the E4D platform, which the subject stands on while exercising. Since the E4D is mounted on a moving VIS device, the whole system moves under the subject’s feet. While tension in the cables does help stabilize a crew member in 0g by bracing him or her against the moving platform, flexible cables do not offer full support against falling. This raises the question of whether various exercises that are successfully performed in 1g on a stationary device can be performed without losing balance in 0g on a moving device. Quantifying stability conditions and establishing stability requirements for exercise countermeasure systems is a long-standing challenge and this work helped to inform this specific need for integrated E4D/VIS flight project development. METHODS AND RESULTS: A simplified stability analysis can be attempted based on platform accelerations generated by the VIS device simulation. In this type of analysis, the subject is conceived as standing on the platform in 0g while being held down to it by the tension in the cables. If the sideways acceleration of the platform is such that the cables cannot generate a sufficient moment relative to, e.g., the heels or the toes of the subject to overcome the tipping moment from the inertial forces on the accelerated subject’s body, the subject becomes unstable. This approach, which we refer to as the ‘static’ approximation, indicated failure of all the exercises that were considered in the comprehensive VIS analysis of the E4D. It was realized, however, that platform accelerations are not externally imposed but are themselves induced by the motion of the subject’s body during exercise, and a model calculation confirmed that this drastically altered the tipping moment on the subject, with the potential to even switch the direction in which the body would tip over. This made it imperative to consider in a coupled manner both the motion of the exercising subject’s body and the induced VIS platform motion while considering stability. The coupled dynamics requirement was met by the VIS simulation incorporating time-dependent human mass properties atop the platform and driven by the inertial forces from the prescribed subject motion relative to the platform based on motion-capture recorded human trajectories in 1g on a stationary E4D [2]. To analyze simulation results, a stability criterion was also needed. We do not know how to account for the human ‘control system’ that would take visual and vestibular cues as inputs as the platform moves in 0g. We thus chose to follow an approach we had previously used to analyze the dynamic feasibility of performing a task in lunar gravity along the human body trajectory recorded in 1g [3]. In this approach, one analyzes the center of pressure (COP) between the shoes and the ground (or platform) and checks if the COP remains within the convex hull of the footprints on the ground (or platform), commonly referred to as base of support (BOS). Since pressure is vertical and, in the absence of foot restraints, positive, the COP going outside the BOS indicates that the trajectory recorded in 1g is not dynamically feasible in microgravity and/or on the moving platform of the device. The outcome of the COP-based analysis was that some of the key exercises, especially the deadlift and the back squat exercises, were found to be dynamically feasible for at least some number of the exercise cycles, this number increasing with the cable tension. While this type of stability analysis does not account for the likely alteration of the exercise trajectory from its 1g form in space, it does show that there exist at least some realistic trajectories that pass the dynamic feasibility criterion. This adds confidence that, with further adjustment by the subject of the exercise form in 0g on a moving device, a number of exercises can be performed without losing balance.

D Frenkel↗

The effects of attention sharing in a dynamic dual task environment

There are numerous examples of cases where the human operator is confronted with several tasks occurring simultaneously and continuously in time. The current study is an investigation into the nature of attention sharing between two continuous tasks with independent input-output modes. Eleven subjects were tested using a zero order compensatory control task with three levels of difficulty (input bandwidth) for each subject. As a secondary task on half of the trials, the subjects were also required to verbally shadow a random auditory input. Results from an extensive time and frequency domain analysis of the data are presented and discussed. The evidence supports a single channel model for continuous dual-task control.

Cliff, R. C.↗

Evaluation of postural mechanisms under dynamic conditions

A stimulus delivery and data acquisition system for assessment of human posture was developed based on a digital computer and a translating platform. The movement of the platform acts to displace the subject's base of support while the computer tracks the corrections which are made by the subject to maintain balance. Various stimuli are used ranging from fast transients to sine waves.

Anderson, D. J.↗

Critical Questions for Space Human Factors

Traditional human factors contributions to NASA's crewed space programs have been rooted in the classic approaches to quantifying human physical and cognitive capabilities and limitations in the environment of interest, and producing recommendations and standards for the selection or design of mission equipment. Crews then evaluate the interfaces, displays, or equipment, and with the assistance of human factors experts, improvements are made as funds, time, control documentation, and weight allow. We have come a long way from the early spaceflight days, where men with the ' right stuff were the solution to operating whatever equipment was given to them. The large and diverse Shuttle astronaut corps has impacted mission designs to accommodate a wide range of human capabilities and preferences. Yet with existing long duration experience, we have seen the need to address a different set of dynamics when designing for optimal crew performance: critical equipment and mission situations degrade, and human function changes with mission environment, situation, and duration. Strategies for quantifying the critical nature of human factors requirements are being worked by NASA. Any exploration-class mission will place new responsibilities on mission designers to provide the crew with the information and resources to accomplish the mission. The current duties of a Mission Control Center to monitor system status, detect degradation or malfunction, and provide a proven solution, will need to be incorporated into on-board systems to allow the crew autonomous decision-making. The current option to resupply and replace mission systems and resources, including both vehicle equipment and human operators, will be removed, so considerations of maintenance, onboard training, and proficiency assessment are critical to providing a self-sufficient crew. As we 'move in' to the International Space Station, there are tremendous opportunities to investigate our ability to design for autonomous crews. Yet prioritizing the research that can and should be done by NASA will be based on the critical nature of the issues, and the impact of the individual research questions on mission design. The risks to crew health and safety associated with answering critical human factors issues must be properly included and communicated in order to support the Agency's decisions regarding future space programs.

Woolford, Barbara↗

Improving Regional Air Quality Forecasting Through Chemical Data Assimilation and Dynamic Emissions Adjustment

Poor air quality (AQ) is one of the most important human-health and environmental problems facing the United States (US). In addition to the detrimental impacts on human- and environmental-health, poor AQ has an economic cost of ~5% of the US gross domestic product (~$790 billion). AQ managers use AQ analyses and modeling to better understand, anticipate, and avoid poor AQ events. Our research focuses on improving AQ analysis/forecast skill, predictability, and emission estimates through improved and more efficient: (i) modeling and data assimilation strategies; (ii) dynamic emissions adjustment strategies; and (iii) use of satellite remote-sensing Earth observations (e.g., MOPITT, IASI, MODIS, OMI, TROPOMI, TEMPO, etc.). This seminar will review: (i) regional chemical weather forecasting/data assimilation with dynamic emissions adjustment with WRF-Chem/DART; (ii) strategies for efficiently assimilating satellite retrieval profiles with ‘compact phase space retrievals’ (CPSRs); (iii) results from joint assimilation of multiple satellite retrievals at medium (12 km × 12 km) and high (4 km × 4 km) spatial resolutions; and (iv) results from observing system simulation experiments (OSSEs) to investigate whether we can recover COVID-period anthropogenic emissions by assimilating synthetic TEMPO NO2 tropospheric column retrievals with dynamic emissions adjustment. Biographical Sketch: Dr. Mizzi is a Senior Research Fellow working and Dr. Johnson at the NASA Ames Research Center. He holds BA and MS degrees in Environmental Science from the University of Virginia, MS and PhD degrees in Applied Mathematics from the University of Colorado at Boulder (CUB), and a JD degree (with an emphasis in Environmental Law) from the University of Colorado School of Law. He worked at the National Center for Atmospheric Research for nearly 25 years on global atmospheric modeling, dynamic and physical initialization, regional hybrid data assimilation, and most recently on regional chemical data assimilation. He also worked as an environmental attorney and consultant for nearly 15 years. He is an expert in numerical modeling and is recognized internationally as a leading expert in regional, chemical data assimilation with dynamic emissions adjustment. Dr. Mizzi became affiliated with NASA Ames in March 2020 to work on improving AQ analysis/forecast skill, predictability, and ‘top-down’ emissions adjustment though the assimilation of Earth observations. An emphasis of his current work is developing methods for assimilating synthetic TEMPO retrievals to quantify the expected benefits of TEMPO relative to existing AQ observations.

Arthur P. Mizzi↗

A Study of Longitudinal Control Problems at Low and Negative Damping and Stability with Emphasis on Effects of Motion Cues

As part of a general investigation to determine the effects of simulator motions on pilot opinion and task performance over a wide range of vehicle longitudinal dynamics, a cooperative NASA-AMAL program was conducted on the centrifuge at Johnsville, Pennsylvania. The test parameters and measurements for this program duplicated those of earlier studies made at Ames Research Center with a variable-stability airplane and with a pitch-roll chair flight simulator. Particular emphasis was placed on the minimum basic damping and stability the pilots would accept and on the minimum dynamics they considered controllable in the event of stability-augmentation system failure. Results of the centrifuge-simulator program indicated that small positive damping was required by the pilots over most of the frequency range covered for configurations rated acceptable for emergency conditions only (e.g., failure of a pitch damper). It was shown that the pilot's tolerance for unstable dynamics was dependent primarily on the value of damping. For configurations rated acceptable for emergency operation only, the allowable instability and damping corresponded to a divergence time to double amplitude of about 1 second. Comparisons were made of centrifuge, pitch-chair and fixed-cockpit simulator tests with flight tests. Pilot ratings indicated that the effects of incomplete or spurious motion cues provided by these three modes of simulation were important only for high-frequency, lightly damped dynamics or unstable, moderately damped dynamics. The pitch- chair simulation, which provided accurate angular-acceleration cues to the pilot, compared most favorably with flight. For the centrifuge simulation, which furnished accurate normal accelerations but spurious pitching and longitudinal accelerations, there was a deterioration of pilots' opinion relative to flight results. Results of simulator studies with an analog pilot replacing the human pilot illustrated the adaptive capability of human pilots in coping with the wide range of vehicle dynamics and the control problems covered in this study. It was shown that pilot-response characteristics, deduced by the analog-pilot method, could be related to pilot opinion. Possible application of these results for predicting flight-control problems was illustrated by means of an example control-problem analysis. The results of a brief evaluation of a pencil-type side-arm controller in the centrifuge showed a considerable improvement in the pilots' ability to cope with high-frequency, low-damping dynamics, compared to results obtained with the center stick. This improvement with the pencil controller was attributed primarily to a marked reduction in the adverse effects of large and exaggerated pitching and longitudinal accelerations on pilot control precision.

Sadoff, Melvin↗

Detecting Faults By Use Of Hidden Markov Models

Frequency of false alarms reduced. Faults in complicated dynamic system (e.g., antenna-aiming system, telecommunication network, or human heart) detected automatically by method of automated, continuous monitoring. Obtains time-series data by sampling multiple sensor outputs at discrete intervals of t and processes data via algorithm determining whether system in normal or faulty state. Algorithm implements, among other things, hidden first-order temporal Markov model of states of system. Mathematical model of dynamics of system not needed. Present method is "prior" method mentioned in "Improved Hidden-Markov-Model Method of Detecting Faults" (NPO-18982).

Smyth, Padhraic J.↗

Framework for Analyzing the Complex Interactions Between Spacecraft Motion and Slosh Dynamics in Low-G Environments

The fuel-to-dry-mass ratio of spacecraft continues to grow as new human spaceflight missions target destinations from Earth. Large amounts of liquid propellant can lead to significant coupling between the rigid-body dynamics of the spacecraft and the motion of the fuel within its storage tank. The present work gives an overview of the dynamic features and a flowchart for a method of simulating the motion of a spacecraft with fuel slosh inside a cylindrical, domed tank in a low-g environment. The method involves modeling the liquid propellant as a particle that transfers momentum to the spacecraft through perfectly inelastic collisions with the tank wall. The foundation of the modeling methodology is the approach taken during the Apollo program used to predict the effect of fuel slosh on the complex motion exhibited by the Service Module following separation from the Crew Module. This paper discusses the motivation, methodology, and conclusions from the Apollo-era method, and subsequently builds upon it by incorporating corrections to the derivation of the dynamics and filling in the gaps due to unavailability of the detailed contractor report and simulation code. The results presented in this paper provide an example that demonstrates the effect that fuel slosh can have on the trajectory of a spacecraft in a low-g environment.

William J Elke III↗