Results for “Customer load” — Page 9

DOE OSTI2024

Assessing Customer Experience and Business Models around Price-to-Device Communication and Smart Control Pathways in CalFlexHub

California is facing three major challenges in electrical grid operation: renewable overgeneration, steep evening ramping, and growing peak demand. The state has identified dynamic retail price response as a key strategy evidenced by CPUC’s Dynamic Rates proceeding and CEC’s Load Management Standards. Furthermore, the CEC launched a $16M “California Load Flexibility Research and Deployment Hub (CalFlexHub)” administered by Berkeley Lab to accelerate price-response flexible load technologies in buildings and EV charging. There are more than 16 laboratory and field demonstration projects in CalFlexHub, each demonstrating innovative automated price-response technologies. CalFlexHub tests various pathways through which hourly price signals and triggered control commands are communicated to load-flexible devices such as smart thermostats, heat pumps, water heaters, and EVs. We identified seven unique communication and control pathways, which involve combinations of third-party cloud, device OEM’s cloud, building central gateway, and local controller in between the price server and the load-flexible devices. It is important for utilities and policy makers to understand the long-term implications of each pathway in designing future programs and creating related policies and mandates for market transformation. We propose an evaluation framework including the following aspects: ● Functionality: connectivity and uptime, resilience, and optimization; ● Customer experience: simplicity in setup, troubleshooting support, continuity, customer choice, first cost, and ongoing cost; ● Business model and scalability: advance interoperability, holistic solution, bridge unique gap, customer base, and value streams and pricing structures. In this paper, we identify emerging business models associated with each communication pathway and discuss their positive features and challenges from the above aspects.

Liu, Jingjing↗

NASA NTRS2014

ISS Squat and Deadlift Kinematics on the Advanced Resistive Exercise Device

Visual assessment of exercise form on the Advanced Resistive Exercise Device (ARED) on orbit is difficult due to the motion of the entire device on its Vibration Isolation System (VIS). The VIS allows for two degrees of device translational motion, and one degree of rotational motion. In order to minimize the forces that the VIS must damp in these planes of motion, the floor of the ARED moves as well during exercise to reduce changes in the center of mass of the system. To help trainers and other exercise personnel better assess squat and deadlift form a tool was developed that removes the VIS motion and creates a stick figure video of the exerciser. Another goal of the study was to determine whether any useful kinematic information could be obtained from just a single camera. Finally, the use of these data may aid in the interpretation of QCT hip structure data in response to ARED exercises performed in-flight. After obtaining informed consent, four International Space Station (ISS) crewmembers participated in this investigation. Exercise was videotaped using a single camera positioned to view the side of the crewmember during exercise on the ARED. One crewmember wore reflective tape on the toe, heel, ankle, knee, hip, and shoulder joints. This technique was not available for the other three crewmembers, so joint locations were assessed and digitized frame-by-frame by lab personnel. A custom Matlab program was used to assign two-dimensional coordinates to the joint locations throughout exercise. A second custom Matlab program was used to scale the data, calculate joint angles, estimate the foot center of pressure (COP), approximate normal and shear loads, and to create the VIS motion-corrected stick figure videos. Kinematics for the squat and deadlift vary considerably for the four crewmembers in this investigation. Some have very shallow knee and hip angles, and others have quite large ranges of motion at these joints. Joint angle analysis showed that crewmembers do not return to a normal upright stance during squat, but remain somewhat bent at the hips. COP excursions were quite large during these exercises covering the entire length of the base of support in most cases. Anterior-posterior shear was very pronounced at the bottom of the squat and deadlift correlating with a COP shift to the toes at this part of the exercise. The stick figure videos showing a feet fixed reference frame have made it visually much easier for exercise personnel and trainers to assess exercise kinematics. Not returning to fully upright, hips extended position during squat exercises could have implications for the amount of load that is transmitted axially along the skeleton. The estimated shear loads observed in these crewmembers, along with a concomitant reduction in normal force, may also affect bone loading. The increased shear is likely due to the surprisingly large deviations in COP. Since the footplate on ARED moves along an arced path, much of the squat and deadlift movement is occurring on a tilted foot surface. This leads to COP movements away from the heel. The combination of observed kinematics and estimated kinetics make squat and deadlift exercises on the ARED distinctly different from their ground-based counterparts. CONCLUSION This investigation showed that some useful exercise information can be obtained at low cost, using a single video camera that is readily available on ISS. Squat and deadlift kinematics on the ISS ARED differ from ground-based ARED exercise. The amount of COP shift during these exercises sometimes approaches the limit of stability leading to modifications in the kinematics. The COP movement and altered kinematics likely reduce the bone loading experienced during these exercises. Further, the stick figure videos may prove to be a useful tool in assisting trainers to identify exercise form and make suggestions for improvements

Newby, N.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Watershed-Scale Modeling of Land-Use and Altered Environment Impacts on Aquatic Weed Growth in the Delta

The California Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is the hub for California's water supply, conveying water from Northern to Southern California agriculture and communities while supporting important ecosystem services, agriculture, and communities in the Delta. Changes in climate, long-term drought, and water quality have all been suspected as playing role in the dramatic expansion of invasive aquatic plants and their impact on ecosystems of the San Francisco Bay / California Delta complex. NASA Ames Research Center, USDA-Agricultural Research Service, the State of California, UC Davis, and local governments have partnered under a USDA sponsored project (DRAAWP) to develop science-based, adaptive-management strategies for invasive aquatic plants in Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Critical to developing management strategies is to understand how the Delta is affected by both the magnitude of fluctuations in land-use and climate / drought induced altered environments and how the plants respond to these altered environments. We utilize the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), a watershed-scale model developed to quantify the impact of land management practices in large and complex watersheds on water quality, as the backbone for a customized Delta model - Delta-SWAT. The model uses land-use, soils, elevation, and hydrologic routing to characterize pesticide and nutrient transport from the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers watersheds and loading into the Delta. Land-use within the Delta, as well as water extraction to supply those functions, and the resulting return of water to Delta waterways are included in Delta-SWAT. Hydrologic transport within the Delta has required significant attention to address the lack of elevation driven transport processes. Delta-SWAT water quality trend estimates are compared with water quality monitoring conducted throughout the Delta. Aquatic plant response to water quality and other environmental factors is carried out using a customized model component. Plant response to the range of water quality factors, response times, and altered temperature and light regimes of the Delta have required gap-filling studies to provide model parameters. Delta-SWAT provides a tool for evaluating temporal and spatial effects of land-use and altered environments in the Delta and contributing watersheds on aquatic weed growth. Using Delta-SWAT for simulation modeling allows evaluation of historic and current conditions as well as consideration potential climate change and management practice outcomes. Delta-SWAT adds to the scientific understanding of dynamics in the Delta and enhances development of science-informed, management strategies and practices.

Ecosystem↗

NASA NTRS2014

Aeroservoelastic Testing of Free Flying Wind Tunnel Models Part 2: A Centerline Supported Fullspan Model Tested for Gust Load Alleviation

This is part 2 of a two part document. Part 1 is titled: "Aeroservoelastic Testing of Free Flying Wind Tunnel Models Part 1: A Sidewall Supported Semispan Model Tested for Gust Load Alleviation and Flutter Suppression." A team comprised of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Boeing, and the NASA Langley Research Center conducted three aeroservoelastic wind tunnel tests in the Transonic Dynamics Tunnel to demonstrate active control technologies relevant to large, flexible vehicles. In the first of these three tests, a full-span, aeroelastically scaled, wind tunnel model of a joined wing SensorCraft vehicle was mounted to a force balance to acquire a basic aerodynamic data set. In the second and third tests, the same wind tunnel model was mated to a new, two degree of freedom, beam mount. This mount allowed the full-span model to translate vertically and pitch. Trimmed flight at10 percent static margin and gust load alleviation were successfully demonstrated. The rigid body degrees of freedom required that the model be flown in the wind tunnel using an active control system. This risky mode of testing necessitated that a model arrestment system be integrated into the new mount. The safe and successful completion of these free-flying tests required the development and integration of custom hardware and software. This paper describes the many systems, software, and procedures that were developed as part of this effort. The balance and free flying wind tunnel tests will be summarized. The design of the trim and gust load alleviation control laws along with the associated results will also be discussed.

Scott, Robert C.↗

NASA NTRS2018

Implementation of Fiber Optic Sensing System on Sandwich Composite Cylinder Buckling Test

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Engineering and Safety Center Shell Buckling Knockdown Factor Project is a multicenter project tasked with developing new analysis-based shell buckling design guidelines and design factors (i.e., knockdown factors) through high-fidelity buckling simulations and advanced test technologies. To validate these new buckling knockdown factors for future launch vehicles, the Shell Buckling Knockdown Factor Project is carrying out structural testing on a series of large-scale metallic and composite cylindrical shells at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama). A fiber optic sensor system was used to measure strain on a large-scale sandwich composite cylinder that was tested under multiple axial compressive loads up to more than 850,000 lb, and equivalent bending loads over 22 million in-lb. During the structural testing of the composite cylinder, strain data were collected from optical cables containing distributed fiber Bragg gratings using a custom fiber optic sensor system interrogator developed at the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center. A total of 16 fiber-optic strands, each containing nearly 1,000 fiber Bragg gratings, measuring strain, were installed on the inner and outer cylinder surfaces to monitor the test article global structural response through high-density real-time and post test strain measurements. The distributed sensing system provided evidence of local epoxy failure at the attachment-ring-to-barrel interface that would not have been detected with conventional instrumentation. Results from the fiber optic sensor system were used to further refine and validate structural models for buckling of the large-scale composite structures. This paper discusses the techniques employed for real-time structural monitoring of the composite cylinder for structural load introduction and distributed bending-strain measurements over a large section of the cylinder by utilizing unique sensing capabilities of fiber optic sensors.

FOS↗

DOE OSTI2024

UMap: An application-oriented user level memory mapping library

Exploiting the prominent role of complex memories in exascale node architecture, the UMap page fault handler offers new capabilities to access large memory-mapped data sets directly. UMap provides flexible configuration options to customize page handling to each application, including analysis of massive observational and simulation data sets. The high-performance design features I/O decoupling, dynamic load balancing, and application-level controls. Page faults triggered by application threads and processes accessing data mapped to a UMapp’ed region are handled via the Linux userfaultfd protocol, an asynchronous message-oriented kernel-user communication mechanism that avoids the context switch penalty of traditional signal fault handlers. UMap is fully open source. In this paper, we give an overview of the UMap library architecture, its extensible plugin architecture, and the use/performance of UMap in emerging heterogeneous memory hierarchies such as near-node Non-volatile Memory (NVM) and network attached memories. We highlight new capabilities in two pagefault management plugins, the NetworkStore and SparseStore. We demonstrate the integration between UMap and multiple ECP products including Caliper, Metall, ZFP, Mochi, and Ripples.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

NASA NTRS2011

Aeroservoelastic Wind-Tunnel Tests of a Free-Flying, Joined-Wing SensorCraft Model for Gust Load Alleviation

A team comprised of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Boeing, and the NASA Langley Research Center conducted three aeroservoelastic wind-tunnel tests in the Transonic Dynamics Tunnel to demonstrate active control technologies relevant to large, exible vehicles. In the first of these three tests, a full-span, aeroelastically scaled, wind-tunnel model of a joined-wing SensorCraft vehicle was mounted to a force balance to acquire a basic aerodynamic data set. In the second and third tests, the same wind-tunnel model was mated to a new, two-degree-of-freedom, beam mount. This mount allowed the full-span model to translate vertically and pitch. Trimmed flight at -10% static margin and gust load alleviation were successfully demonstrated. The rigid body degrees of freedom required that the model be own in the wind tunnel using an active control system. This risky mode of testing necessitated that a model arrestment system be integrated into the new mount. The safe and successful completion of these free-flying tests required the development and integration of custom hardware and software. This paper describes the many systems, software, and procedures that were developed as part of this effort. The balance and free ying wind-tunnel tests will be summarized. The design of the trim and gust load alleviation control laws along with the associated results will also be discussed.

Scott, Robert C.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Grid-Tied Photovoltaic Power System

A grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) power system is connected directly to the utility distribution grid. Facility power can be obtained from the utility system as normal. The PV system is synchronized with the utility system to provide power for the facility, and excess power is provided to the utility. Operating costs of a PV power system are low compared to conventional power technologies. This method can displace the highest-cost electricity during times of peak demand in most climatic regions, and thus reduce grid loading. Net metering is often used, in which independent power producers such as PV power systems are connected to the utility grid via the customers main service panels and meters. When the PV power system is generating more power than required at that location, the excess power is provided to the utility grid. The customer pays the net of the power purchased when the on-site power demand is greater than the onsite power production, and the excess power is returned to the utility grid. Power generated by the PV system reduces utility demand, and the surplus power aids the community. Modern PV panels are readily available, reliable, efficient, and economical, with a life expectancy of at least 25 years. Modern electronics have been the enabling technology behind grid-tied power systems, making them safe, reliable, efficient, and economical with a life expectancy equal to the modern PV panels. The grid-tied PV power system was successfully designed and developed, and this served to validate the basic principles developed, and the theoretical work that was performed. Grid-tied PV power systems are reliable, maintenance- free, long-life power systems, and are of significant value to NASA and the community. Of particular value are the analytical tools and capabilities that have been successfully developed. Performance predictions can be made confidently for grid-tied PV systems of various scales. The work was done under the NASA Hybrid Power Management (HPM) Program, which is the integration of diverse power devices in an optimal configuration for space and terrestrial applications.

Eichenberg, Dennis J.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Evaluating The Relationships Between Supine Propriorception Assessments with Upright Functional Mobility and Balance Tests

INTRODUCTION Upon return to Earth, spaceflight sensorimotor adaptations can result in impaired posture and locomotion [1], [2], and current exercise countermeasures in the International Space Station are not sufficient to maintain sensorimotor function. In-flight countermeasures and assessment tools for sensorimotor function are needed to mitigate risks associated with mission-critical task performance upon return to Earth or arrival to 0.38 G on Mars. One proposed countermeasure for proprioceptive deconditioning includes training on a tilt board device [3], which will be tested in an upcoming bed rest study. In preparation for the said study, the objective of this pilot study is to compare performance in supine proprioceptive assessments to performance in functional upright activities. The results are intended to guide the selection of supine assessment tools for the upcoming bedrest study and the development of future inflight proprioceptive training and assessment tools for exploration missions. METHODS Seventeen healthy participants (8 males and 9 females, 27.9 ± 8.5 years) provided informed consent as approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at NASA. A horizontal air-bearing sled was used to provide a proprioceptive challenge in a supine body orientation, allowing for mediolateral motion with minimal friction during supine stance [4]. Participants were loaded axially (30 to 60% body weight) with their feet on a vertically oriented tilt board and instructed to perform supine assessment activities using custom software that displays a cursor controlled by tilting the tilt board. In a single-leg static activity on the tilt board (TB-St), performance was measured as the percent time spent on a center target during a 30-second trial. During a two-feet dynamic activity on the tilt board (TB-Dy), performance was measured as the number of targets captured in 30 seconds. These supine tasks were compared to performance during two upright activities used to represent upright performance: completion time for a functional mobility task (FMT) [2],[5] and a performance score from force plate sway data during 30-second single-leg upright standing (USL). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION A Spearman's rank-order correlation was run to assess the relationship between upright and supine assessments. There were statistically significant, strong correlations between scores for the FMT and each TB activity, including TB-St, rs(17) = 0.50, p<0.05, TB-Dy3, rs(17) = 0.73, p<0.001, and TB-Dy9, rs(15) = 0.53, p<0.05. There were no statistically significant correlations between USL and each TB activity. Despite a lack of correlation with upright single-leg balance, the ability of the TB to indicate upright performance in the FMT is promising, as this task is a standard post-flight measure designed to characterize locomotor dysfunction [2], [5]. CONCLUSION These efforts will inform the selection of an appropriate sensorimotor assessment method for the upcoming bed rest study and similar future studies. While current work uses a bed rest analog to develop these technologies, future work aims to prepare capabilities for future in-flight sensorimotor training and assessment to mitigate the risks of proprioception impairment after spaceflight. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This work was supported by the University Space Research Association Internship Program. REFERENCES [1] Mulavara A.P. et al (2018) Med Sci Sports Exerc, 50(9), 1961-1980. [2] Mulavara A.P. et al (2010) Exp Brain Res, 202(3), 649-659. [3] Macaulay T.R. et al (2021) Front. Syst. Neurosci., 15, 658-985. [4] Goel R. et al (2017) Front. Syst. Neurosci, 11. [5] Koppelmans V. et al (2013) BMC Neurology, 12.

R Bellisle↗

DOE OSTI2024

Technical note: Optimizing the in situ cosmogenic 36 Cl extraction and measurement workflow for geologic applications

Abstract. In situ cosmogenic 36Cl analysis by accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) is routinely employed to date Quaternary surfaces and assess rates of landscape evolution. However, standard laboratory preparation procedures for 36Cl dating require the addition of large amounts of isotopically enriched chlorine spike solution; these solutions are expensive and increasingly difficult to acquire from commercial sources. In addition, the typical workflow for 36Cl dating involves measuring both 35Cl/37Cl and 36Cl/Cl concurrently on the high-energy (post-accelerator) end of the AMS system, but 35Cl/37Cl determinations using this technique can be complicated by isotope fractionation and system memory during measurement. The traditional workflow also does not provide 36Cl extraction laboratories with the data needed to calculate native Cl concentrations in advance of 36Cl/Cl measurements. In light of these concerns, we present an improved workflow for extracting and measuring chlorine in geologic materials. Our initial step is to characterize 35Cl/37Cl on sample aliquots of up to ∼1 g prepared in Ag(Cl, Br) matrices, which greatly reduces the amount of isotopically enriched spike solution required to measure native Cl content in each sample. To avoid potential issues with isotope fractionation through the accelerator, 35Cl/37Cl is measured on the low-energy, pre-accelerator end of the AMS line. Then, for 36Cl/Cl measurements, we extract Cl as AgCl or Ag(Cl, Br) in analytical batches with a consistent total Cl load across all samples; this step is intended to minimize source memory effects during 36Cl/Cl measurements and allows the preparation of AMS standards that are customized to match known Cl contents in the samples. To assess the efficacy of this extraction and measurement workflow, we compare chlorine isotope ratio measurements on seven geologic samples prepared using standard procedures and the updated workflow. Measurements of 35Cl/37Cl and 36Cl/Cl are consistent between the two workflows, and 35Cl/37Cl values measured using our methods have considerably higher precision than those measured following standard protocols. The chemical preparation and measurement workflow presented here (1) reduces the amount of isotopically enriched chlorine spike used per rock sample by up to 95 %; (2) identifies rocks with high native Cl concentrations, which may be lower priority for 36Cl surface exposure dating, at an early stage of analysis; and (3) allows laboratory users to maintain control over the total chlorine content within and across analytical batches. These methods can be incorporated into existing laboratory and AMS protocols for 36Cl analyses and will increase the accessibility of 36Cl dating for geologic applications.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2026

Storing Affordability: Battery Storage as an Asset to Reduce Data Center Cost Shifts

This report examines how battery energy storage systems (BESS) can help utilities accommodate large load growth while protecting affordability for existing ratepayers. Rapid growth in electricity demand from artificial intelligence (AI) data centers is straining the U.S. grid. Furthermore, many new data centers are entering rural markets, which could offer economic benefits but may also pose implementation challenges for smaller utilities. At the same time, retail electricity prices are increasing faster than inflation, elevating customer affordability as a key challenge. While data centers have not been the primary driver of increases in residential prices to date, they have pushed wholesale energy and capacity prices higher in several markets. Fundamental utility cost-allocation principles show that data center growth can be rate-positive for existing customers only if new peak demand grows faster than the costs a utility must incur to serve it. Several factors, including a utility’s degree of wholesale market exposure, forecast uncertainty and stranded-asset risk, and tariff design can determine the outcome of load growth on retail rates. Energy storage can make several affordability contributions in the face of this landscape of uncertainty and market volatility, including deferral of higher-cost grid investments through improved utilization of existing assets and flexibility of new large loads, insulation from volatile wholesale prices through peak shaving, and reliability support to address grid risks stemming from the behavior of AI data center loads. Different potential BESS deployment pathways—utility-scale front-of-the-meter systems, aggregated small-scale storage installations, and data center-sited behind-the-meter storage—are compared against each other and against conventional capacity alternatives. This framework is intended as a conceptual resource to utilities, particularly smaller public utilities with rural service territories, who may be considering the role that energy storage can play in insulating existing ratepayers from data center cost shifts.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

NASA NTRS2013

NASA Advanced Concepts Office, Earth-To-Orbit Team Design Process and Tools

The Earth to Orbit (ETO) Team of the Advanced Concepts Office (ACO) at NASA Marshal Space Flight Center (MSFC) is considered the preeminent group to go to for prephase A and phase A concept definition. The ACO team has been at the forefront of a multitude of launch vehicle studies determining the future direction of the Agency as a whole due, in part, to their rapid turnaround time in analyzing concepts and their ability to cover broad trade spaces of vehicles in that limited timeframe. Each completed vehicle concept includes a full mass breakdown of each vehicle to tertiary subsystem components, along with a vehicle trajectory analysis to determine optimized payload delivery to specified orbital parameters, flight environments, and delta v capability. Additionally, a structural analysis of the vehicle based on material properties and geometries is performed as well as an analysis to determine the flight loads based on the trajectory outputs. As mentioned, the ACO Earth to Orbit Team prides themselves on their rapid turnaround time and often need to fulfill customer requests within limited schedule or little advanced notice. Due to working in this fast paced environment, the ETO team has developed some finely honed skills and methods to maximize the delivery capability to meet their customer needs. This paper will describe the interfaces between the 3 primary disciplines used in the design process; weights and sizing, trajectory, and structural analysis, as well as the approach each discipline employs to streamline their particular piece of the design process.

Waters, Eric D.↗

NASA NTRS2020

Cross-Cutting Computational Modeling Project: Exploration Medical Station Analysis

Astronauts will be away from Earth-based medical care for long periods during future exploration missions. Thus, it will be necessary for the astronauts to perform various medical tasks to monitor and maintain their health in the microgravity environment of space. Performance of these tasks will be constrained due to the limited volume available to perform the task, the absence of gravity and the limited resources and capabilities available in the medical work area. It is therefore necessary to evaluate exploration medical workstation designs for how well the designs will support crew performance of medical tasks. This evaluation featured two trained medical caregivers (99th percentile male, 26th percentile female) performing emergent care procedures (alone and in tandem) on a medical manikin. The procedures came from the The procedures came from the International Space Station Medical Checklist, and they are designed for spaceflight. The objectives of the evaluation included determining the operational volume required to perform the tasks, examining the effect of constraining the operational volume with partitions, determining candidate locations for foot restraints and equipment placements and determining the effect of single vs. dual caregiver on the operational volume.A marker-based motion capture system collected the motion data, which enabled computation of operational volumes and foot placement maps using custom Python code. Additional data collected included heart rate, time to perform the procedures, and feedback from the caregivers in the form of the NASA Task Load Index (TLX), the US Government System Usability Survey, and an open-ended questionnaire.

Christopher A Gallo↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Single-Cell mRNA Sequencing of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cell Lineages Shows that Gravity Mechanical Loading Regulates Regenerative Osteogenesis in a CDKN1A-Dependent Manner

Weight-bearing at 1g is increasingly recognized as an important stimulus driving stem cell-based tissue regenerative homeostasis and health. In the bone marrow compartment, mechanical stimuli from gravity can drive osteogenesis from mesenchymal progenitors and hematopoiesis from hematopoietic progenitors. Conversely, hematopoietic monocyte/macrophage progenitors can also be driven into osteoclastogenesis by mechanical unloading in microgravity. Although the cell cycle inhibitor gene Cdkn1a is known to be upregulated in microgravity, the great diversity of stem cell lineages and stages of differentiation in bone marrow, make it difficult to attribute gene expression changes to specific cell types. To overcome this limitation, we used single-cell mRNAseq analyses with both in-vitro and in-vivo strategies, including in-vitro stretch of marrow osteogenic cultures, and in-vivo hindlimb unloading, running wheels, treadmills, and exposure to real microgravity. For in-vitro studies marrow osteoprogenitors from WT and Cdkn1a-null mice were subjected to substrate stretch during osteogenesis, with static cultures simulating unloading. From those experiments we determined Cdkn1a-null cells transition more readily from progenitors to early osteoblasts and further to mineralizing osteoblasts. Additionally, single-cell mRNAseq resolution identified Cdkn1a suppression in response to mechanical loading predominantly in early proliferative osteoblasts rather than progenitor or mineralizing osteoblasts. These findings support the hypothesis that CDKN1A plays a mechano-reversible, anti-proliferative role during bone regenerative osteogenesis. To investigate in-vivo mechanoregulation of osteogenesis, mice were flown in microgravity during the Rodent Research-10 experiment comparing wildtype and Cdkn1a-null mice kept on ISS for 30 days. The mice were euthanized and dissected on-orbit in microgravity and femur bone marrow was collected using a custom sample isolation and live-cell cryo-preservation technique allowing for single cell transcriptomics post-flight processing. Ground control experiments with hindlimb-unloading, running wheels, and treadmills, were also conducted for a comprehensive analysis of mechanical loading effects on the regenerative health of bone tissue and its marrow stem cell progenitor lineages.

single cell sequencing↗

NASA NTRS2019

CPAS Airdrop Test Joint Recertification by Analysis

Airdrop testing of parachutes is a complicated endeavor that requires the custom design and certification of many critical components. The most direct path to certifying a component is to perform full scale testing with margin over the maximum loads expected to be seen in operation. However, other constraints often preclude the opportunity to perform full scale testing. In this paper, we present a case study where a problem arises in a joint that had been certified with a full scale test. There was no time or budget available to repeat the full scale testing after a redesign of the joint. Instead, we present a method of testing each failure mode at the component level to support a certification by analysis approach. The analysis itself was not complicated, but tradeoffs had to be made between different failure modes to arrive at the optimal design. The same approach was also applied back to the original joint to confirm that the failure mode that was not seen in full scale testing would have been caught by the proposed analysis. In the end, the new design was certified by analysis and worked without issue for the final six airdrop tests that used this joint.

McCann, Charles J.↗

NASA NTRS2023

Development of Two High-Energy Bus ‘Cores’ for Rapid Support of Low-TRL and Educational Payloads: A Software-Configured EPS Combined with Flexible C&DH

For several years the TechEdSat flight series (TES-n), developed by the Nano Orbital Workshop (NOW) group at NASA Ames, has relied upon an in-house developed unit to serve both EPS (Electrical Power System) and C&DH (Command and Data Handling) roles along with low data-rate telemetry functions, i.e., serving as the ‘core’ of the spacecraft bus. This ‘core’ has a considerable task given the rapid cadence of the TES program and the typically low-TRL of payloads; configurability and compatibility are key to prevent mission-specific hardware. However, at only 15 watts the current core has become insufficient to support the program’s growing missions and increasingly demanding payloads. To this end, the NOW program is developing new cores to support two TES mission classes: a single-PCB ‘MiniCore’ designed to support 80-watt missions 6U or smaller in LEO, and a three-PCB, radiation-tolerant ‘StackCore’ designed to support 6U and larger missions over 500 watts in LEO and beyond. The ‘MiniCore’ design consists of three main segments: a processor-agnostic C&DH, a software-configured EPS, and a backup low data-rate radio. The design philosophy was to enable rapid-manufacture in a turbulent supply chain, hence the design consists of COTS parts with a focus on those able to be drop-in replaced with radiation-tolerant versions when demanded by the mission. As a single PC-104 sized circuit board, power density and ease of integration also dominated design, demanding the use of modern features such as single-point USB-C for easy charging and monitoring of the spacecraft on the ground. The ‘MiniCore’ can support 80 watts of load, 140 watt-hours of storage, and over 20 watts of optimized solar generation with extensive power monitoring throughout. The ‘MiniCore’ supports one battery pack, six solar-panels, six loads, five actuators, Iridium SBD, and an internal 802.15.4 network. Additionally, the processor-agnostic design can accept any PJRC Teensy 3.x or Adafruit Feather microcontroller unit to enable processor scaling with mission requirements or environment. It is expected a development unit of this design will be completed before conference. The ‘StackCore’ design consists of three stacked PC-104 sized circuit boards: one dedicated to power generation and storage, one dedicated to power distribution, and one dedicated to C&DH tasks. This delineation is necessary to support the transition from highly integrated ICs to discrete analog circuitry, enabling a primarily analog control power system able to operate without software in a radiation environment with finer monitoring compared to the ‘MiniCore’ design. The planned base architecture supports over 500 watts of load, 250 watt-hours of storage, and over 80 watts of optimized solar generation. The power distribution board allows for the use of daughter cards hosting custom converters or interfaces for payloads, in addition to the software-configured supplies used on the ‘MiniCore’. This core stack will be managed by a Vorago ARM M4 microcontroller and support the same wireless communications as the ‘MiniCore’, with optional integration of a NOW S-band radio and attitude determination sensors for ‘black box’ functionality. It is expected the prototype will still be in development during conference.

Spacecraft↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of Two High-Energy Bus ‘Cores’ for Rapid Support of Low-TRL and Educational Payloads: A Software-Configured EPS Combined with Flexible C&DH

For several years the TechEdSat flight series (TES-n), developed by the Nano Orbital Workshop (NOW) group at NASA Ames, has relied upon an in-house developed unit to serve both EPS (Electrical Power System) and C&DH (Command and Data Handling) roles along with low data-rate telemetry functions, i.e., serving as the ‘core’ of the spacecraft bus. This ‘core’ has a considerable task given the rapid cadence of the TES program and the typically low-TRL of payloads; configurability and compatibility are key to prevent mission-specific hardware. However, at only 15 watts the current core has become insufficient to support the program’s growing missions and increasingly demanding payloads. To this end, the NOW program is developing new cores to support two TES mission classes: a single-PCB ‘MiniCore’ designed to support 80-watt missions 6U or smaller in LEO, and a three-PCB, radiation-tolerant ‘StackCore’ designed to support 6U and larger missions over 500 watts in LEO and beyond. The ‘MiniCore’ design consists of three main segments: a processor-agnostic C&DH, a software-configured EPS, and a backup low data-rate radio. The design philosophy was to enable rapid-manufacture in a turbulent supply chain, hence the design consists of COTS parts with a focus on those able to be drop-in replaced with radiation-tolerant versions when demanded by the mission. As a single PC-104 sized circuit board, power density and ease of integration also dominated design, demanding the use of modern features such as single-point USB-C for easy charging and monitoring of the spacecraft on the ground. The ‘MiniCore’ can support 80 watts of load, 140 watt-hours of storage, and over 20 watts of optimized solar generation with extensive power monitoring throughout. The ‘MiniCore’ supports one battery pack, six solar-panels, six loads, five actuators, Iridium SBD, and an internal 802.15.4 network. Additionally, the processor-agnostic design can accept any PJRC Teensy 3.x or Adafruit Feather microcontroller unit to enable processor scaling with mission requirements or environment. It is expected a development unit of this design will be completed before conference. The ‘StackCore’ design consists of three stacked PC-104 sized circuit boards: one dedicated to power generation and storage, one dedicated to power distribution, and one dedicated to C&DH tasks. This delineation is necessary to support the transition from highly integrated ICs to discrete analog circuitry, enabling a primarily analog control power system able to operate without software in a radiation environment with finer monitoring compared to the ‘MiniCore’ design. The planned base architecture supports over 500 watts of load, 250 watt-hours of storage, and over 80 watts of optimized solar generation. The power distribution board allows for the use of daughter cards hosting custom converters or interfaces for payloads, in addition to the software-configured supplies used on the ‘MiniCore’. This core stack will be managed by a Vorago ARM M4 microcontroller and support the same wireless communications as the ‘MiniCore’, with optional integration of a NOW S-band radio and attitude determination sensors for ‘black box’ functionality. It is expected the prototype will still be in development during conference.

Spacecraft↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of Two High-Energy Bus ‘Cores’

For several years the TechEdSat flight series (TES-n), developed by the Nano Orbital Workshop (NOW) group at NASA Ames, has relied upon an in-house developed unit to serve both EPS (Electrical Power System) and C&DH (Command and Data Handling) roles along with low data-rate telemetry functions, i.e., serving as the ‘core’ of the spacecraft bus. This ‘core’ has a considerable task given the rapid cadence of the TES program and the typically low-TRL of payloads; configurability and compatibility are key to prevent mission-specific hardware. However, at only 15 watts the current core has become insufficient to support the program’s growing missions and increasingly demanding payloads. To this end, the NOW program is developing new cores to support two TES mission classes: a single-PCB ‘MiniCore’ designed to support 80-watt missions 6U or smaller in LEO, and a three-PCB, radiation-tolerant ‘StackCore’ designed to support 6U and larger missions over 500 watts in LEO and beyond. The ‘MiniCore’ design consists of three main segments: a processor-agnostic C&DH, a software-configured EPS, and a backup low data-rate radio. The design philosophy was to enable rapid-manufacture in a turbulent supply chain, hence the design consists of COTS parts with a focus on those able to be drop-in replaced with radiation-tolerant versions when demanded by the mission. As a single PC-104 sized circuit board, power density and ease of integration also dominated design, demanding the use of modern features such as single-point USB-C for easy charging and monitoring of the spacecraft on the ground. The ‘MiniCore’ can support 80 watts of load, 140 watt-hours of storage, and over 20 watts of optimized solar generation with extensive power monitoring throughout. The ‘MiniCore’ supports one battery pack, six solar-panels, six loads, five actuators, Iridium SBD, and an internal 802.15.4 network. Additionally, the processor-agnostic design can accept any PJRC Teensy 3.x or Adafruit Feather microcontroller unit to enable processor scaling with mission requirements or environment. It is expected a development unit of this design will be completed before conference. The ‘StackCore’ design consists of three stacked PC-104 sized circuit boards: one dedicated to power generation and storage, one dedicated to power distribution, and one dedicated to C&DH tasks. This delineation is necessary to support the transition from highly integrated ICs to discrete analog circuitry, enabling a primarily analog control power system able to operate without software in a radiation environment with finer monitoring compared to the ‘MiniCore’ design. The planned base architecture supports over 500 watts of load, 250 watt-hours of storage, and over 80 watts of optimized solar generation. The power distribution board allows for the use of daughter cards hosting custom converters or interfaces for payloads, in addition to the software-configured supplies used on the ‘MiniCore’. This core stack will be managed by a Vorago ARM M4 microcontroller and support the same wireless communications as the ‘MiniCore’, with optional integration of a NOW S-band radio and attitude determination sensors for ‘black box’ functionality. It is expected the prototype will still be in development during conference.

Avery Brock↗