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Analysis and design of capsule landing system and surface vehicle control system for Mars exploration
NASA invention disclosure, NASA Case No. MFS-31413, entitled "System for Controlling the Stirring Pin of a Friction Stir Welding Apparatus", (Patent Pending) authored by Jeff Ding, Dr Peter Romine and Pete Oelgoetz, addresses the precision control of the friction stir welding process. The closed-loop control system automatically adjusts the spinning welding pin, real-time, to maintain a precise penetration ligament (i.e., distance between pin-tip and weld panel backside surface). A specific pin length can be maintained while welding constant thickness or tapered material thickness weld panels. The closed-loop control system provides operator data and information relative to the exact position of the welding pin inside the weld joint. This paper presents the closed-loop RPT control system that operates using the auto-feedback of force signals sensed by the tip and shoulder of the welding pin. Significance: The FSW process can be successfully used in a production environment only if there is a method or technique that informs the FSW operator the precise location of the welding pin inside the weld joint. This is essential for applications in aerospace, automotive, pressure vessel, commercial aircraft and other industries.
Research aircraft have become increasingly dependent on advanced electronic control systems to accomplish program goals. These aircraft are integrating multiple disciplines to improve performance and satisfy research objective. This integration is being accomplished through electronic control systems. Systems design methods and information management have become essential to program success. The primary objective of the system design/information tool for aircraft flight control is to help transfer flight control system design knowledge to the flight test community. By providing all of the design information and covering multiple disciplines in a structured, graphical manner, flight control systems can more easily be understood by the test engineers. This will provide the engineers with the information needed to thoroughly ground test the system and thereby reduce the likelihood of serious design errors surfacing in flight. The secondary object is to apply structured design techniques to all of the design domains. By using the techniques in the top level system design down through the detailed hardware and software designs, it is hoped that fewer design anomalies will result. The flight test experiences are reviewed of three highly complex, integrated aircraft programs: the X-29 forward swept wing; the advanced fighter technology integration (AFTI) F-16; and the highly maneuverable aircraft technology (HiMAT) program. Significant operating technologies, and the design errors which cause them, is examined to help identify what functions a system design/informatin tool should provide to assist designers in avoiding errors.
New control concepts for the next generation of advanced air-breathing and rocket engines and hypersonic combined-cycle propulsion systems are analyzed. The analysis provides a database on the instrumentation technologies for advanced control systems and cross matches the available technologies for each type of engine to the control needs and applications of the other two types of engines. Measurement technologies that are considered to be ready for implementation include optical surface temperature sensors, an isotope wear detector, a brushless torquemeter, a fiberoptic deflectometer, an optical absorption leak detector, the nonintrusive speed sensor, and an ultrasonic triducer. It is concluded that all 30 advanced instrumentation technologies considered can be recommended for further development to meet need of the next generation of jet-, rocket-, and hypersonic-engine control systems.
The control automation and interaction paradigm (e.g., manual, autopilot, flight management system) used on virtually all large highly automated aircraft has long been an exemplar of breakdowns in human factors and human-centered design. An alternative paradigm is the Haptic Flight Control System (HFCS) that is part of NASA Langley Research Center s Naturalistic Flight Deck Concept. The HFCS uses only stick and throttle for easily and intuitively controlling the actual flight of the aircraft without losing any of the efficiency and operational benefits of the current paradigm. Initial prototypes of the HFCS are being evaluated and this paper describes one such evaluation. In this evaluation we examined claims regarding improved situation awareness, appropriate workload, graceful degradation, and improved pilot acceptance. Twenty-four instrument-rated pilots were instructed to plan and fly four different flights in a fictitious airspace using a moderate fidelity desktop simulation. Three different flight control paradigms were tested: Manual control, Full Automation control, and a simplified version of the HFCS. Dependent variables included both subjective (questionnaire) and objective (SAGAT) measures of situation awareness, workload (NASA-TLX), secondary task performance, time to recognize automation failures, and pilot preference (questionnaire). The results showed a statistically significant advantage for the HFCS in a number of measures. Results that were not statistically significant still favored the HFCS. The results suggest that the HFCS does offer an attractive and viable alternative to the tactical components of today s FMS/autopilot control system. The paper describes further studies that are planned to continue to evaluate the HFCS.
HELIOS temperature control system is described. The main design features and the impact of interactions between experiment, spacecraft system, and temperature control system requirements on the design are discussed. The major limitations of the thermal design regarding a closer sun approach are given and related to test experience and performance data obtained in orbit. Finally the validity of the test results achieved with prototype and flight spacecraft is evaluated by comparison between test data, orbit temperature predictions and flight data.
Here we report that for renewable fuels to displace petroleum, they must be compatible with emissions control devices. Pure biodiesel contains up to 5 ppm Na + K and 5 ppm Ca + Mg metals, which have the potential to degrade diesel emissions control systems. This study aims to address these concerns, identify deactivation mechanisms, and determine if a lower limit is needed. Accelerated aging of a production exhaust system was conducted on an engine test stand over 1001 h using 20% biodiesel blended into ultra-low sulfur diesel (B20) doped with 14 ppm Na. This Na level is equivalent to exposure to Na at the uppermost expected B100 value in a B20 blend for the system full-useful life. During the study, NOx emissions exceeded the engine certification limit of 0.33 g/bhp-hr before the 435,000-mile requirement. Replacing aged diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC), diesel particulate filter (DPF), and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) devices with new degreened parts showed that each device contributed equally to the NOx increase. Following this systems-based evaluation, a detailed investigation of the individual components was completed. Na was determined to have minimal impact on DOC activity. For this system, it is estimated that B20-Na resulted in 50% more ash into the DPF. However, the Na did not diffuse into the cordierite DPF nor degrade its mechanical properties. The SCR degradation was found to be caused by a small amount of precious group metals (PGM) contamination that increased NH3 oxidation, and lowered NOx reduction. Therefore, we determined that the primary effect of Na in this study is through increased ash in the DPF rather than deactivation of the catalytic activity.
Plasma control design increasingly depends on fast simulations able to connect to operational plasma control system (PCS) software for iterative development. GSevolve is a nonlinear free-boundary simulation that evolves the Grad-Shafranov equilibrium including current and pressure profiles, and can connect to all versions of the DIII-D PCS operational on devices around the world. Its ability to simulate the evolution of current continuously from open to closed field lines enables GSevolve to simulate full-discharge control from breakdown through plasma termination. GSevolve is compliant with the Plasma Control System Simulation Platform (PCSSP), a Matlab/Simulink®-based environment that serves as the primary framework for development of the ITER Plasma Control System (PCS). The code employs a novel response function-updating scheme to achieve fast simulations. The plasma evolves linearly until a significant shape change triggers a nonlinear update of the response while enforcing a prescribed accuracy. Old responses are recalled if the plasma changes back to an old shape. The equilibrium is a function of a state vector containing axisymmetric conductor currents and parameters related to parallel and perpendicular currents, which evolves according to an efficient state space circuit formulation. Control design and validation results are presented for simulations of DIII-D and EAST, connected to their corresponding versions of the DIII-D PCS.
Control of the X33 reusable launch vehicle is considered. The launch control problem consists of automatic tracking of the launch trajectory which is assumed to be optimally precalculated. It requires development of a reliable, robust control algorithm that can automatically adjust to some changes in mission specifications (mass of payload, target orbit) and the operating environment (atmospheric perturbations, interconnection perturbations from the other subsystems of the vehicle, thrust deficiencies, failure scenarios). One of the effective control strategies successfully applied in nonlinear systems is the Sliding Mode Control. The main advantage of the Sliding Mode Control is that the system's state response in the sliding surface remains insensitive to certain parameter variations, nonlinearities and disturbances. Employing the time scaling concept, a new two (three)-loop structure of the control system for the X33 launch vehicle was developed. Smoothed sliding mode controllers were designed to robustly enforce the given closed-loop dynamics. Simulations of the 3-DOF model of the X33 launch vehicle with the table-look-up models for Euler angle reference profiles and disturbance torque profiles showed a very accurate, robust tracking performance.
This report describes the design, development, and testing of passive fiber optic sensors and a multiplexing electro-optic architecture (EOA) for installation and flight test on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. This hardware was developed under the Fiber Optic Control Systems for Advanced Aircraft program, part of a multiyear NASA initiative to design, develop, and demonstrate through flight test 'fly-by-light' systems for application to advanced aircraft flight and propulsion control. This development included the design and production of 10 passive optical sensors and associated multiplexed EOA hardware based on wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) technology. A variety of sensor types (rotary position, linear position, temperature, and pressure) incorporating a broad range of sensor technologies (WDM analog, WDM digital, analog microbend, and fluorescent time rate of decay) were obtained from different manufacturers and functionally integrated with an independently designed EOA. The sensors were built for installation in a variety of aircraft locations, placing the sensors in a variety of harsh environments. The sensors and EOA were designed and built to have the resulting devices be as close as practical to a production system. The integrated system was delivered to NASA for flight testing on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. Development and integration testing of the system provided valuable information as to which sensor types were simplest to design and build for a military aircraft environment and which types were simplest to operate with a multiplexed EOA. Not all sensor types met the full range of performance and environmental requirements. EOA development problems provided information on directions to pursue in future fly-by-light flight control development programs. Lessons learned in the development of the EOA and sensor hardware are summarized.
Methods for modeling high speed propulsion systems will be discussed. Included in this category are internal flow propulsion systems without rotating machinery, such as inlets, ramjets, and scramjets. Among the modeling topics discussed are modeling of linear isentropic flow, heat exchange, gasdynamics, lumped parameter systems, and infinite dimensional systems. Furthermore, a generalized overview of modeling high speed propulsion systems is presented in this collection of papers.
A supervisory control system is being developed for multiunit advanced small modular reactors to minimize human interventions during normal and abnormal operations. In the supervisory control system, control action decisions are made based on a probabilistic risk assessment that employs event trees and fault trees. Although traditional probabilistic risk assessment tools are implemented, their scope is extended to normal operations, and the application is reversed to assess the success of non-safety related systems and to enable continued operation of the plant. This extended probabilistic risk assessment approach is called operational performance risk assessment (OPRA). OPRA helps to identify available paths, combine control actions for maintaining plant conditions within operational limits, and to quantify the likelihood of success of these operational trajectories to optimize the selection of alternative actions without activating reactor protection system. In this paper, a case study of OPRA in a supervisory control system is demonstrated for the Advanced Liquid Metal Reactor (ALMR) Power Reactor Inherently Safe Module (PRISM) design, specifically the power conversion system. The scenario investigated involved a condition in which the feedwater control valve that was observed to be drifting to the closed position. Alternative plant configurations that would allow the plant to continue to operate at full or reduced power were identified using OPRA. Dynamic analyses were performed with a thermal-hydraulic model of the ALMR PRISM system using Modelica to evaluate the magnitude of safety margins. Successful recovery paths for the selected scenario were identified and quantified using the supervisory control system. (authors)
A control system design method and concomitant control system comprising representing a physical apparatus to be controlled as a Hamiltonian system, determining elements of the Hamiltonian system representation which are power generators, power dissipators, and power storage devices, analyzing stability and performance of the Hamiltonian system based on the results of the determining step and determining necessary and sufficient conditions for stability of the Hamiltonian system, creating a stable control system based on the results of the analyzing step, and employing the resulting control system to control the physical apparatus.
We introduce DropBot: an open-source instrument for digital microfluidics (http://microfluidics.utoronto.ca/dropbot). DropBot features two key functionalities for digital microfluidics: (1) real-time monitoring of instantaneous drop velocity (which we propose is a proxy for resistive forces), and (2) application of constant electrostatic driving forces through compensation for amplifier-loading and device capacitance. We anticipate that this system will enhance insight into failure modes and lead to new strategies for improved device reliability, and will be useful for the growing number of users who are adopting digital microfluidics for automated, miniaturized laboratory operation.
The coupling of expert systems and control design and analysis techniques are documented to provide a realizable self repairing flight control system. Key features of such a flight control system are identified and a limited set of rules for a simple aircraft model are presented.
Adaptive model-based control systems and methods are described so that performance and/or operability of a gas turbine in an aircraft engine, power plant, marine propulsion, or industrial application can be optimized under normal, deteriorated, faulted, failed and/or damaged operation. First, a model of each relevant system or component is created, and the model is adapted to the engine. Then, if/when deterioration, a fault, a failure or some kind of damage to an engine component or system is detected, that information is input to the model-based control as changes to the model, constraints, objective function, or other control parameters. With all the information about the engine condition, and state and directives on the control goals in terms of an objective function and constraints, the control then solves an optimization so the optimal control action can be determined and taken. This model and control may be updated in real-time to account for engine-to-engine variation, deterioration, damage, faults and/or failures using optimal corrective control action command(s).
A control system concept is presented that produces proportional control of yaw moment for the space shuttle from early entry to Mach 2 with only software modifications of the vehicle. It uses separate deflections of the inboard and outboard elevon surfaces and is evaluated, by determining the maximum static yawing moment available by considering the deflection limits of the elevon surfaces. A proportional moment slightly in excess of that produced by the most effective reaction control system (RCS) jet for yaw control can be obtained. In addition to the static moment study, a control law is designed which is intended to produce desired flying qualities.
A control system utilizing the Multi-mission Modular Spacecraft (MMS) Attitude Control System (ACS) was developed and analyzed for the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) spacecraft. Alternative torquer augmentation schemes were studied to determine viable ACS approaches. A control law was developed to use a dual set of single-axis Control Moment Gyros (CMGs) for two-axis control. Flexible structural models were developed using a high fidelity, flight tested NASTRAN model of the MMS, coupled with a NASTRAN model of the SIRTF telescope. Modal significance criteria were employed to reduce the structural model. Multivariable interactive techniques were used to synthesize the control system (including the structural filters). Control system performance for the SIRTF operational modes (quiescent inertial hold, slewing, nodding, and rastering) was then determined using both single-axis and three-axis simulations). The control system described met performance requirements for all modes but the raster with the use of CMGs. The raster performance was limited by the structural flexibility.