Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “user support”

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.

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

At least 1,279 records · Page 71

Aerosol Inlets for a Mid-Sized Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS)

The purpose of this technical report is to document the efforts to design and test two inlet systems for aerosol sampling suitable for deployment on a medium-sized fixed-wing Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS). This work, which was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility, was conducted at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for the ARM Aircraft Facility (AAF) starting in November 2017. The current work is a part of AAF efforts to instrument the ArcticShark (a mid-sized UAS owned and operated by the AAF) for atmospheric research and develop a scientific payload for deployment on a similar-sized UAS with minimal adaptation and integration. An aerosol inlet system is necessary to sample and transport ambient air sample to the scientific instrumentation with minimal distortions to the aerosols. Two isokinetic aerosol inlets were designed: the first is a simple passive system for a single instrument suitable to be installed in a wing pylon; the second is a system with active control designed to sample and distribute air among several heterogeneous instruments and to provide basic humidity control of the air sample so that the measured aerosol parameters should correspond to “dry” conditions (a common requirement). Both systems could be easily adapted for deployment on another platform and/or with a different set of instrumentation. Several conducted flight tests showed that the inlets’ performance met our design goals.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Inverse Methods - Users Manual 5.6

The inverse methods team provides a set of tools for solving inverse problems in structural dynamics and thermal physics, and also sensor placement optimization via Optimal Experimental Design (OED). These methods are used for designing experiments, model calibration, and verfication/validation analysis of weapons systems. This document provides a user's guide to the input for the three apps that are supported for these methods. Details of input specifications, output options, and optimization parameters are included.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Inverse Methods - Users Manual 5.8

The inverse methods team provides a set of tools for solving inverse problems in structural dynamics and thermal physics, and also sensor placement optimization via Optimal Experimental Design (OED). These methods are used for designing experiments, model calibration, and verification/validation analysis of weapons systems. This document provides a user’s guide to the input for the three apps that are supported for these methods. Details of input specifications, output options, and optimization parameters are included.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Carbon Storage Site Mapping Inquiry Tool (MapIT)

The Carbon Storage Site Mapping Inquiry Tool (MapIT) is an online web mapping tool designed to help users discover available public-sourced data to facilitate data exploration in support of Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program Class VI Well Site permitting for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide.

Pantaleone, Scott↗

The Model Assessment Wizard (MAW): A Visualization System for Ontology Constraint Violations

Validation and verification of engineering models is important to understand potential weaknesses and issues in the model. This is accomplished through the application of constraint logic to the model. These models and the constraints put upon them can be represented through a graph structure. Here we give a visualization system to aid users understanding, locating, and fixing constraint violations in their systems. We give users several ways to narrow down on the specific errors and parts of the graph they’re interested in. Users have the opportunity to choose the types of errors that will be shown in the graph. Clustering is applied to the graph to help users narrow down their searches. Several other graph interactions are given to support discovery of constraint violations.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

FuSED Users Manual, 5.24

The Fusion of Simulation, Experiment, and Data (FuSED) team provides a set of tools for solving inverse problems in structural dynamics and thermal physics, and also sensor placement optimization via Optimal Experimental Design (OED). These methods are used for designing experiments, model calibration, and verification/validation analysis of systems. This document provides a user’s guide to the input for the three apps that are supported for these methods. Details of input specifications, output options, and optimization parameters are included.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Aerosol Inlets for a Mid-Sized Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS)

The purpose of this technical report is to document the efforts to design and test two inlet systems for aerosol sampling suitable for deployment on a medium-sized fixed-wing Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS). This work, which was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility, was conducted at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for the ARM Aircraft Facility (AAF) starting in November 2017. The current work is a part of AAF efforts to instrument the ArcticShark (a mid-sized UAS owned and operated by the AAF) for atmospheric research and develop a scientific payload for deployment on a similar-sized UAS with minimal adaptation and integration. An aerosol inlet system is necessary to sample and transport ambient air sample to the scientific instrumentation with minimal distortions to the aerosols. Two isokinetic aerosol inlets were designed: the first is a simple passive system for a single instrument suitable to be installed in a wing pylon; the second is a system with active control designed to sample and distribute air among several heterogeneous instruments and to provide basic humidity control of the air sample so that the measured aerosol parameters should correspond to “dry” conditions (a common requirement). Both systems could be easily adapted for deployment on another platform and/or with a different set of instrumentation. Several conducted flight tests showed that the inlets’ performance met our design goals.

42 ENGINEERING↗

The fortedata R package: open-science datasets from a manipulative experiment testing forest resilience

The fortedata R package is an open data notebook from the Forest Resilience Threshold Experiment (FoRTE) – a modeling and manipulative field experiment that tests the effects of disturbance severity and disturbance type on carbon cycling dynamics in a temperate forest. Package data consist of measurements of carbon pools and fluxes and ancillary measurements to help analyze and interpret carbon cycling over time. Currently the package includes data and metadata from the first three FoRTE field seasons, serves as a central, updatable resource for the FoRTE project team, and is intended as a resource for external users over the course of the experiment and in perpetuity. Further, it supports all associated FoRTE publications, analyses, and modeling efforts. This increases efficiency, consistency, compatibility, and productivity while minimizing duplicated effort and error propagation that can arise as a function of a large, distributed and collaborative effort. More broadly, fortedata represents an innovative, collaborative way of approaching science that unites and expedites the delivery of complementary datasets to the broader scientific community, increasing transparency and reproducibility of taxpayer-funded science. The fortedata package is available via GitHub: https://github.com/FoRTExperiment/fortedata (last access: 19 February 2021), and detailed documentation on the access, used, and applications of fortedata are available at https://fortexperiment.github.io/fortedata/ (last access: 19 February 2021). The first public release, version 1.0.1 is also archived at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4399601 (Atkins et al., 2020b). All data products are also available outside of the package as .csv files: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13499148.v1 (Atkins et al., 2020c).

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

JHTDB-wind: a web-accessible large-eddy simulation database of a wind farm with virtual sensor querying

This paper introduces JHTDB-wind (https://turbulence.idies.jhu.edu/datasets/windfarms, last access: 11 November 2025), a publicly accessible database containing large-eddy simulation (LES) data from wind farms. Building on the framework of the Johns Hopkins Turbulence Database (JHTDB), which hosts direct numerical simulation (DNS) and some LES datasets of canonical turbulent flows, JHTDB-wind stores the 4D space–time history of the flow and provides users the ability to access and query the data via a web-based virtual sensor interface. The initial dataset comprises LES results from a large wind farm with 10×6 turbines, modeled using a filtered actuator line method, under conventionally neutral atmospheric conditions. These data comprise 1 h (hour) of flow field data (velocity, pressure, potential temperature deviation, subgrid-scale (SGS) eddy viscosity, and turbine forces, approximately 15 TB (terabytes) and wind turbine data – including both turbine-level operational quantities and blade-level aerodynamic quantities (approximately 1.3 TB) – stored in Zarr and Parquet formats, respectively. Data retrieval is facilitated by the giverny Python package, allowing remote users to query the database in Python or MATLAB (C and Fortran support are available for flow field data). This paper details the simulation setup and demonstrates data access through examples that analyze wind farm flow structures and turbine performance. The framework is extensible to future datasets, including the JHTDB-wind diurnal cycle simulation analyzed in Xiao et al. (2025).

17 WIND ENERGY↗

GSE, data management system programmers/User' manual

The GSE data management system is a computerized program which provides for a central storage source for key data associated with the mechanical ground support equipment (MGSE). Eight major sort modes can be requested by the user. Attributes that are printed automatically with each sort include the GSE end item number, description, class code, functional code, fluid media, use location, design responsibility, weight, cost, quantity, dimensions, and applicable documents. Multiple subsorts are available for the class code, functional code, fluid media, use location, design responsibility, and applicable document categories. These sorts and how to use them are described. The program and GSE data bank may be easily updated and expanded.

Schlagheck, R. A.↗

User guide to a command and control system; a part of a prelaunch wind monitoring program

A set of programs called Command and Control System (CCS), intended as a user manual, is described for the operation of CCS by the personnel supporting the wind monitoring portion of the launch mission. Wind data obtained by tracking balloons is sent by electronic means using telephone lines to other locations. Steering commands are computed from a system called ADDJUST for the on-board computer and relays this data. Data are received and automatically stored in a microprocessor, then via a real time program transferred to the UNIVAC 1100/40 computer. At this point the data is available to be used by the Command and Control system.

Cowgill, G. R.↗

Technical assessment of PSSC-supported experiments and demonstrations

A description of CTS and ATS short-term and long-term satellite demonstration supported through usage of a satellite communication ground station complex is presented. User assessments about the programmatic impact of their demonstrations and experiments were summarized. The technical planning and coordination process involved in satellite utilization is also presented.

Source record↗

NASA's Eastern Regional Remote Sensing Applications Program

The goals of the Eastern Regional Remote Sensing Applications Program are to establish capability for using LANDSAT technology in state institutions and organizations in an operational mode, and to assist in handling new data, introducing new techniques as they become available, and in building and nurturing the technology within the states. Techniques for application development are supported and workshops and demonstrations are provided to pass information on to users. Major areas of project interest are forest inventory, water inventory, and water clarity, and land cover change detection. Another activity is in adopting software, modifying it to work on users' computers, and in identifying hardware that can be used and tied to user computer systems. Involvement of universities as resources for state and local governments is another element of the program.

Cressy, P. J., Jr.↗

Data management support for selected climate data sets using the climate data access system

The functional capabilities of the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Climate Data Access System (CDAS), an interactive data storage and retrieval system, and the archival data sets which this system manages are discussed. The CDAS manages several climate-related data sets, such as the First Global Atmospheric Research Program (GARP) Global Experiment (FGGE) Level 2-b and Level 3-a data tapes. CDAS data management support consists of three basic functions: (1) an inventory capability which allows users to search or update a disk-resident inventory describing the contents of each tape in a data set, (2) a capability to depict graphically the spatial coverage of a tape in a data set, and (3) a data set selection capability which allows users to extract portions of a data set using criteria such as time, location, and data source/parameter and output the data to tape, user terminal, or system printer. This report includes figures that illustrate menu displays and output listings for each CDAS function.

Reph, M. G.↗

The computation of mesh configurations for three-dimensional flow analysis

A geometry modeling method was developed to define three-dimensional mesh configurations, which were expressed by the set of surface intersections with a coordinate mesh. These configurations define bodies for transonic potential-flow computation in simple physical coordinates. Various configurations were prepared for 3-D potential flow analysis, including many bare inlet models in cylindrical coordinates. Trimmed surface models were used to prepare nacelle installation configurations. A variety of ducts and mixers were represented. Analytically defined mesh/surface intersections were compared with similar data obtained from the corresponding surface model. Parameters for an analytic surface definition from mesh-surface intersections obtained from a model of the surface were produced. In both studies the modeling accuracy was shown to be compatible with the flow analysis requirements. This technique fulfills the requirements of the associated three-dimensional potential-flow analysis. It preserves the flow analysis method's superior flexibility for adapting to unusual geometries. The geometry modeling technique is supported by a sufficient set of tools for effective use by general users, and sufficient accuracy was demonstrated.

Gibson, S. G.↗

Concept for a commercial space station laboratory

The concept of a privately owned and operated fee-for-service laboratory as an element of a civil manned space station, envisioned as the venture of a group of private investors and an experienced laboratory operator to be undertaken with the cooperation of NASA is discussed. This group would acquire, outfit, activate, and operate the labortory on a fee-for-service basis, providing laboratory services to commercial firms, universities, and government agencies, including NASA. This concept was developed to identify, stimulate, and assist potential commercial users of a manned space station. A number of the issues which would be related to the concept, including the terms under which NASA might consider permitting private ownership and operation of a major space station component, the policies with respect to international participation in the construction and use of the space station, the basis for charging users for services received from the space station, and the types of support that NASA might be willing to provide to assist private industry in carrying out such a venture are discussed.

Wood, P. W.↗

A generic interface between COSMIC/NASTRAN and PATRAN (R)

Despite its powerful analytical capabilities, COSMIC/NASTRAN lacks adequate post-processing adroitness. PATRAN, on the other hand is widely accepted for its graphical capabilities. A nonproprietary, public domain code mnemonically titled CPI (for COSMIC/NASTRAN-PATRAN Interface) is designed to manipulate a large number of files rapidly and efficiently between the two parent codes. In addition to PATRAN's results file preparation, CPI also prepares PATRAN's P/PLOT data files for xy plotting. The user is prompted for necessary information during an interactive session. Current implementation supports NASTRAN's displacement approach including the following rigid formats: (1) static analysis, (2) normal modal analysis, (3) direct transient response, and (4) modal transient response. A wide variety of data blocks are also supported. Error trapping is given special consideration. A sample session with CPI illustrates its simplicity and ease of use.

Roschke, Paul N.↗

Mars mission effects on Space Station evolution

The permanently manned Space Station scheduled to be operational in low earth by the mid 1990's, will provide accommodations for science, applications, technology, and commercial users, and will develop enabling capabilities for future missions. A major aspect of the baseline Space Station design is that provisions for evolution to greater capabilities are included in the systems and subsystems designs. User requirements are the basis for conceptual evolution modes or infrastructure to support the paths. Four such modes are discussed in support of a Human to Mars mission, along with some of the near term actions protecting the future of supporting Mars missions on the Space Station. The evolution modes include crew and payload transfer, storage, checkout, assembly, maintenance, repair, and fueling.

Askins, Barbara S.↗