SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Operator inference”

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.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

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

At least 91 records · Page 5

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS2000

Interactive Classification Technology

The investigators upgraded a knowledge representation language called SL (Symbolic Language) and an automated reasoning system called SMS (Symbolic Manipulation System) to enable the more effective use of the technologies in automated reasoning and interactive classification systems. The overall goals of the project were: 1) the enhancement of the representation language SL to accommodate a wider range of meaning; 2) the development of a default inference scheme to operate over SL notation as it is encoded; and 3) the development of an interpreter for SL that would handle representations of some basic cognitive acts and perspectives.

deBessonet, Cary↗

NASA NTRS2014

Terrain Physical Properties Derived from Orbital Data and the First 360 Sols of Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover Observations in Gale Crater

Physical properties of terrains encountered by the Curiosity rover during the rst 360 sols of operations have been inferred from analysis of the scour zones produced by Sky Crane Landing System engine plumes, wheel touch down dynamics, pits produced by Chemical Camera (ChemCam) laser shots, rover wheel traverses over rocks, the extent of sinkage into soils, and the magnitude and sign of rover-based slippage during drives. Results have been integrated with morphologic, mineralogic, and thermophysical properties derived from orbital data, and Curiosity-based measurements, to understand the nature and origin of physical properties of traversed terrains. The hummocky plains (HP) landing site and traverse locations consist ofmoderately to well-consolidated bedrock of alluvial origin variably covered by slightly cohesive, hard-packedbasaltic sand and dust, with both embedded and surface-strewn rock clasts. Rock clasts have been addedthrough local bedrock weathering and impact ejecta emplacement and form a pavement-like surface in whichonly small clasts (5 to 10 cm wide) have been pressed into the soil during wheel passages. The beddedfractured (BF) unit, site of Curiositys rst drilling activity, exposes several alluvial-lacustrine bedrock unitswith little to no soil cover and varying degrees of lithication. Small wheel sinkage values (1 cm) for both HPand BF surfaces demonstrate that compaction resistance countering driven-wheel thrust has been minimaland that rover slippage while traversing across horizontal surfaces or going uphill, and skid going downhill,have been dominated by terrain tilts and wheel-surface material shear modulus values.

Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Gale Crater↗

NASA NTRS1990

Operator function modeling: Cognitive task analysis, modeling and intelligent aiding in supervisory control systems

The design, implementation, and empirical evaluation of task-analytic models and intelligent aids for operators in the control of complex dynamic systems, specifically aerospace systems, are studied. Three related activities are included: (1) the models of operator decision making in complex and predominantly automated space systems were used and developed; (2) the Operator Function Model (OFM) was used to represent operator activities; and (3) Operator Function Model Expert System (OFMspert), a stand-alone knowledge-based system was developed, that interacts with a human operator in a manner similar to a human assistant in the control of aerospace systems. OFMspert is an architecture for an operator's assistant that uses the OFM as its system and operator knowledge base and a blackboard paradigm of problem solving to dynamically generate expectations about upcoming operator activities and interpreting actual operator actions. An experiment validated the OFMspert's intent inferencing capability and showed that it inferred the intentions of operators in ways comparable to both a human expert and operators themselves. OFMspert was also augmented with control capabilities. An interface allowed the operator to interact with OFMspert, delegating as much or as little control responsibility as the operator chose. With its design based on the OFM, OFMspert's control capabilities were available at multiple levels of abstraction and allowed the operator a great deal of discretion over the amount and level of delegated control. An experiment showed that overall system performance was comparable for teams consisting of two human operators versus a human operator and OFMspert team.

Mitchell, Christine M.↗

DOE OSTI2024

An Insight-Centric Paradigm for Data Reduction and Inference Speed Improvement at the Scurry Area Canyon Reef Operator’s Committee (SACROC) Unit

The poster presents the work conducted under SMART focusing on using insight-centric approach to design a meaningful proxy for machine learning. Domain insights are critical not just in understanding the prediction results but also in designing the model. This study demonstrated that a single meaningful scaler (as an extreme case) can effectively replace full-size 3D geologic properties. The model's accuracies are on par with other models, and it is the fastest model to predict all test cases, 5,000 times faster than traditional simulations.

Shih, Chung Yan↗

NASA NTRS1989

Adjustable impedance, force feedback and command language aids for telerobotics (parts 1-4 of an 8-part MIT progress report)

Projects recently completed or in progress at MIT Man-Machine Systems Laboratory are summarized. (1) A 2-part impedance network model of a single degree of freedom remote manipulation system is presented in which a human operator at the master port interacts with a task object at the slave port in a remote location is presented. (2) The extension of the predictor concept to include force feedback and dynamic modeling of the manipulator and the environment is addressed. (3) A system was constructed to infer intent from the operator's commands and the teleoperation context, and generalize this information to interpret future commands. (4) A command language system is being designed that is robust, easy to learn, and has more natural man-machine communication. A general telerobot problem selected as an important command language context is finding a collision-free path for a robot.

Sheridan, Thomas B.↗

DOE OSTI2026

Bayesian Exploration and Surrogate Emulation of Nonlinear Beam-Response Geometry in the LBNF Beamline

Next-generation long-baseline neutrino experiments aim to achieve multi-MW proton beam power while reducing accelerator-induced systematic uncertainties. At Fermilab, the LBNF beamline is designed for 1.2 MW operation with PIP-II and is upgradeable to 2.4 MW. DUNE will probe the three-flavor neutrino paradigm and search for CP violation, requiring precise neutrino-flux normalization and improved control of accelerator-related uncertainties. Within the LBNF beamline, the System for On-Axis Neutrino Detection (SAND) will constrain flux uncertainties using precision near-detector measurements, while the Muon Monitor System (MuMS) will provide beamline diagnostics sensitive to the proton beam, target, and horn configuration. However, the pion phase space relevant for DUNE depends simultaneously on many correlated parameters, including beam centroid, beam width, horn current and alignment, target position, optics shifts, and radiation-induced changes. Consequently, MuMS observables exhibit nonlinear and coupled responses that are difficult to characterize using traditional one-parameter scans. To address this challenge, we are developing a Bayesian Exploration framework coupled to physics-informed surrogate emulators trained on Geant4 beamline simulations. Gaussian-process emulators provide both fast predictions and uncertainty estimates, enabling adaptive selection of new simulation points in beam-parameter space. As an initial demonstration, we construct surrogate emulators for MuMS response observables using a verified simulation campaign spanning proton-beam steering conditions. The emulators reproduce the simulated dependence of MuMS centroid and gradient observables while providing predictive uncertainties, and serve as the foundation for future multidimensional exploration including beam width, horn current, and additional beamline parameters. This work establishes a framework for uncertainty-aware beam monitoring, adaptive simulation campaigns, and rapid beam-response inference for future DUNE operations.

Ganguly, Sudeshna [Fermilab] (ORCID:00000003163482↗

DOE OSTI2022

PyAlbany: A Python interface to the C++ multiphysics solver Albany

Albany is a parallel C++ finite element library for solving forward and inverse problems involving partial differential equations (PDEs). In this paper we introduce PyAlbany, a newly developed Python interface to the Albany library. PyAlbany can be used to effectively drive Albany enabling fast and easy analysis and post-processing of applications based on PDEs that are pre-implemented in Albany. PyAlbany relies on the library PyBind11 to bind Python with C++ Albany code. Here we detail the implementation of PyAlbany and showcase its capabilities through a number of examples targeting a heat-diffusion problem. In particular we consider the following: (1) the generation of samples for a Monte Carlo application, (2) a scalability study, (3) a study of parameters on the performance of a linear solver, and finally (4) a tool for performing eigenvalue decompositions of matrix-free operators for a Bayesian inference application.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2022

The field of human building interaction for convergent research and innovation for intelligent built environments

Human-Building Interaction (HBI) is a convergent field that represents the growing complexities of the dynamic interplay between human experience and intelligence within built environments. This paper provides core definitions, research dimensions, and an overall vision for the future of HBI as developed through consensus among 25 interdisciplinary experts in a series of facilitated workshops. Three primary areas contribute to and require attention in HBI research: humans (human experiences, performance, and well-being), buildings (building design and operations), and technologies (sensing, inference, and awareness). Three critical interdisciplinary research domains intersect these areas: control systems and decision making, trust and collaboration, and modeling and simulation. Finally, at the core, it is vital for HBI research to center on and support equity, privacy, and sustainability. Compelling research questions are posed for each primary area, research domain, and core principle. State-of-the-art methods used in HBI studies are discussed, and examples of original research are offered to illustrate opportunities for the advancement of HBI research.

42 ENGINEERING↗

NASA NTRS1983

Endurance test of a 30-CM-diameter engineering model ion thruster. Task 12: Investigation of thin-film erosion monitors for ion thrusters

An investigation of short term measurement techniques for predicting the wearout of ion thrusters resulting from sputter erosion damage is described. The previously established laminar thin film techniques to provide high precision erosion rate data. However, the erosion rates obtained using this technique are generally substantially higher than those obtained during long term endurance tests (by virtue of the as deposited nature of the thin films), so that the results must be interpreted in a relative sense. Absolute measurements can be performed using a new masked substrate arrangement which was developed during this study. This new technique provides a means for estimating the lifetimes of critical discharge chamber components based on direct measurements of sputter erosion depths obtained during short duration (10 hour) tests. The method enables the effects on lifetime of thruster design and operating parameters to be inferred without the investment of the time and capital required to conduct long term (1000 hour) endurance tests. Results obtained using the direct measurement technique are shown to agree with sputter erosion depths calculated for the plasma conditions of the test and also with lifetest results. The direct measurement approach is shown to be applicable to both mercury and argon discharge plasma environments and should be useful in estimating the lifetimes of inert gas and extended performance mercury ion thrusters presently under development.

Beattie, J. R.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Development of the Spacecraft Materials Selector Expert System

A specific knowledge base to evaluate the on-orbit performance of selected materials on spacecraft is being developed under contract to the NASA SEE program. An artificial intelligence software package, the Boeing Expert System Tool (BEST), contains an inference engine used to operate knowledge bases constructed to selectively recall and distribute information about materials performance in space applications. This same system is used to make estimates of the environmental exposures expected for a given space flight. The performance capabilities of the Spacecraft Materials Selector (SMS) knowledge base are described in this paper. A case history for a planned flight experiment on ISS is shown as an example of the use of the SMS, and capabilities and limitations of the knowledge base are discussed.

Pippin, H. G.↗

NASA NTRS1988

User's guide to the Fault Inferring Nonlinear Detection System (FINDS) computer program

Described are the operation and internal structure of the computer program FINDS (Fault Inferring Nonlinear Detection System). The FINDS algorithm is designed to provide reliable estimates for aircraft position, velocity, attitude, and horizontal winds to be used for guidance and control laws in the presence of possible failures in the avionics sensors. The FINDS algorithm was developed with the use of a digital simulation of a commercial transport aircraft and tested with flight recorded data. The algorithm was then modified to meet the size constraints and real-time execution requirements on a flight computer. For the real-time operation, a multi-rate implementation of the FINDS algorithm has been partitioned to execute on a dual parallel processor configuration: one based on the translational dynamics and the other on the rotational kinematics. The report presents an overview of the FINDS algorithm, the implemented equations, the flow charts for the key subprograms, the input and output files, program variable indexing convention, subprogram descriptions, and the common block descriptions used in the program.

Caglayan, A. K.↗

DOE OSTI2026

Data Center High-Temperature Liquid Cooling and Heat Reuse Techno-Economic Study: Preprint

Data centers are energy-intensive facilities with growing demands for efficiency and cost-effective operations. Smaller, more distributed edge inference data centers are expected to proliferate as AI applications require low latency closer to the user of AI tools, which presents a growing opportunity to explore the systems implications of liquid cooling on water and energy use. This study analyzes the implementation of high-temperature liquid cooling systems in a prototypical inference 1-MW data center and explores the potential for heat reuse across varying climates with a goal to optimize energy efficiency, reduce capital and operational costs, and identify opportunities for high-performance cooling and water use reduction infrastructure. This analysis evaluated configurations utilizing a peak day hourly sizing and systems performance spreadsheet to evaluate design and operational conditions from which component sizes, installed cost, operational cost, and performance metrics were determined for the Base case and the Elevated case. The techno-economic analysis included heat reuse applications across a range of heat recovery temperatures and heat rejection options. The analysis shows that high-temperature liquid cooling allows for improved energy efficiency, lower water consumption, and lower capital costs compared to traditional cooling approaches. Transitioning to elevated water inlet/outlet temperatures (50 degrees C/60 degrees C) eliminates the need for chillers, cooling towers, and heat recovery equipment in many scenarios across three distinct climate zones. This results in up to 75% capital cost savings for the cooling and heat recovery equipment, and with significantly reduced water consumption, especially in non-heat reuse applications. Heat generated from data centers can also be repurposed for space heating, domestic hot water, and other applications, and is most cost-effective when data center outlet temperatures exceed 55-60 degrees C.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2026

On-chip probabilistic inference for charged-particle tracking at the sensor edge

Modern scientific instruments operate under increasingly extreme constraints on bandwidth, latency, and power. Inference at the sensor edge determines experimental data collection efficiency by deciding which information to save for further analysis. Particle tracking detectors at the Large Hadron Collider exemplify this challenge: pixelated silicon sensors generate rich spatiotemporal ionization patterns, yet most of this information is discarded due to data-rate limitations. Concurrently, advancements in co-design tools provide rapid turn-around for incorporating machine learning into application-specific integrated circuits, motivating designs for particle detectors with new integrated technologies. We demonstrate that neural networks embedded in the front-end electronics can infer charged-particle kinematic parameters from a single silicon layer. We regress hit positions and incident angles with calibrated uncertainties, while satisfying stringent constraints on numerical precision, latency, and silicon area. Our results establish a path toward probabilistic inference directly at the edge, opening new opportunities for intelligent sensing in high-rate scientific instruments.

Das, Arghya Ranjan [Purdue U.] (ORCID:000000018451↗

DOE OSTI2022

Electroweak constraints from the COHERENT experiment

We compute bounds on coefficients of effective operators in the Standard Model that can be inferred from observations of neutrino scattering by the COHERENT experiment. While many operators are bound extremely well by past experiments the full future data set from COHERENT will provide modest improvements for some operators.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Monitoring Operational States of a Nuclear Reactor Using Seismoacoustic Signatures and Machine Learning

Monitoring nuclear reactors is an important safety and security task with growing requirements. We explore the possibility of using seismic and acoustic data for inferring the power level of an operating reactor. Continuous data recorded at a single seismoacoustic station that is located about 50 m away from a research reactor was visualized and analyzed. The data show a clear correlation between seismoacoustic features and reactor main operational states. We designed a workflow that includes two machine learning (ML) models to classify the reactor operational states (OFF, transition, and ON) and estimate reactor power levels (10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, and 90%). We applied and compared five ML algorithms for the reactor OFF-transition-ON and four approaches for the power level classification. We also compared the performance of ML models trained with seismic-only, acoustic-only, and both types of data. Five-fold cross validations were implemented to assure a thorough evaluation of the model performances. Additionally, the results show the extreme boosting gradient algorithm worked best for the first model, whereas random forests performed best for the second model. Combining seismic and acoustic data leads to better performance than using a single type of data. Seismic data contributed more than acoustic data for both models. We reached an accuracy of 0.98 for reactor OFF and ON. The accuracies for the transition state and power levels are less optimal with a minimum accuracy of 0.66. However, our results suggest seismic and acoustic data contain useful information about the transition state as well as power levels. Seismic and acoustic data could be integrated with other observations to improve monitoring performance.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Designing the Insulation System for Motors in Electrified Aircraft: Optimization, Partial Discharge Issues and Use of Advanced Materials

Designing the insulation system for motors to be used in electrical aircraft requires efforts for maximizing specific power, but, in parallel, particular attention to achieve high reliability. As a major harm for organic insulation systems is partial discharges, design must be able to infer their likelihood during any operation stage and handle their potential inception. This paper proposes a new approach to carry out optimized or conservative insulation system designs which can provide the specified life at the chosen failure probability as well as look at the option of possibly reducing the risk of partial discharges to zero, at any altitude. Examples of designing turn, phase to ground and phase-to-phase insulation systems are reported, with cases where the design can be optimized and other cases where the optimized design does not pass IEC testing standard. Therefore, the limits for design feasibility as a function of the required level of safety and reliability are discussed, showing that the presence of partial discharges cannot be always avoided even through conservative design criteria. Therefore, the use of advanced, corona-resistant materials must be considered, in order to reach a higher, sometimes redundant, level of reliability.

Ramin, Robin (ORCID:0000000211455006)↗

NASA NTRS1975

High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) for the Nimbus F Spacecraft

Flown on Nimbus F in June 1975, the high resolution infrared radiation sounder (HIRS) scans with a geographical resolution of 23KM and samples radiance in seventeen selected spectral channels from visible (.7 micron) to far IR (15 micron). Vertical temperature profiles and atmospheric moisture content can be inferred from the output. System operation and test results are described.

Koenig, E. W.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Far-infrared embedding impedance measurements

A technique which allows the measurement of detector embedding impedance has been developed. By using a bismuth microbolometer as a variable resistance load the impedance of one element in a bow-tie antenna array operating at 94 GHz was inferred. The technique is frequency insensitive, and could be used throughout the far-infrared.

Neikirk, D. P.↗