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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.

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At least 163 records · Page 9
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1994

Application of an Integrated Methodology for Propulsion and Airframe Control Design to a STOVL Aircraft

An advanced methodology for integrated flight propulsion control (IFPC) design for future aircraft, which will use propulsion system generated forces and moments for enhanced maneuver capabilities, is briefly described. This methodology has the potential to address in a systematic manner the coupling between the airframe and the propulsion subsystems typical of such enhanced maneuverability aircraft. Application of the methodology to a short take-off vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft in the landing approach to hover transition flight phase is presented with brief description of the various steps in the IFPC design methodology. The details of the individual steps have been described in previous publications and the objective of this paper is to focus on how the components of the control system designed at each step integrate into the overall IFPC system. The full nonlinear IFPC system was evaluated extensively in nonreal-time simulations as well as piloted simulations. Results from the nonreal-time evaluations are presented in this paper. Lessons learned from this application study are summarized in terms of areas of potential improvements in the STOVL IFPC design as well as identification of technology development areas to enhance the applicability of the proposed design methodology.

Garg, Sanjay↗
NASA NTRS2008

Instrument Display Visual Angles for Conventional Aircraft and the MQ-9 Ground Control Station

Aircraft instrument panels should be designed such that primary displays are in optimal viewing location to minimize pilot perception and response time. Human Factors engineers define three zones (i.e. cones ) of visual location: 1) "Easy Eye Movement" (foveal vision); 2) "Maximum Eye Movement" (peripheral vision with saccades), and 3) "Head Movement (head movement required). Instrument display visual angles were measured to determine how well conventional aircraft (T-34, T-38, F- 15B, F-16XL, F/A-18A, U-2D, ER-2, King Air, G-III, B-52H, DC-10, B747-SCA) and the MQ-9 ground control station (GCS) complied with these standards, and how they compared with each other. Selected instrument parameters included: attitude, pitch, bank, power, airspeed, altitude, vertical speed, heading, turn rate, slip/skid, AOA, flight path, latitude, longitude, course, bearing, range and time. Vertical and horizontal visual angles for each component were measured from the pilot s eye position in each system. The vertical visual angles of displays in conventional aircraft lay within the cone of "Easy Eye Movement" for all but three of the parameters measured, and almost all of the horizontal visual angles fell within this range. All conventional vertical and horizontal visual angles lay within the cone of Maximum Eye Movement. However, most instrument vertical visual angles of the MQ-9 GCS lay outside the cone of Easy Eye Movement, though all were within the cone of Maximum Eye Movement. All the horizontal visual angles for the MQ-9 GCS were within the cone of "Easy Eye Movement". Most instrument displays in conventional aircraft lay within the cone of Easy Eye Movement, though mission-critical instruments sometimes displaced less important instruments outside this area. Many of the MQ-9 GCS systems lay outside this area. Specific training for MQ-9 pilots may be needed to avoid increased response time and potential error during flight. The learning objectives include: 1) Know three physiologic cones of eye/head movement; 2) Understand how instrument displays comply with these design principles in conventional aircraft and an uninhabited aerial vehicle system. Which of the following is NOT a recognized physiologic principle of instrument display design? Cone of Easy Eye Movement 2) Cone of Binocular Eye Movement 3) Cone of Maximum Eye Movement 4) Cone of Head Movement 5) None of the above. Answer: # 2) Cone of Binocular Eye Movement

Kamine, Tovy Haber↗
NASA NTRS2018

Aeronautics Autonomy Testbed Capability (AATC) Team Developed Concepts

In 2015, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) formed a multi-center, interdisciplinary team of engineers from three different aeronautics research centers who were tasked with improving NASA autonomy research capabilities. This group was subsequently named the Aeronautics Autonomy Testbed Capability (AATC) team. To aid in confronting the autonomy research directive, NASA contracted IDEO, a design firm, to provide consultants and guides to educate NASA engineers through the practice of design thinking, which is an unconventional method for aerospace design processes. The team then began learning about autonomy research challenges by conducting interviews with a diverse group of researchers and pilots, military personnel and civilians, experts and amateurs. Part of this design thinking process involved developing ideas for products or programs known as concepts that could enable real world fulfillment of the most important latent needs identified through analysis of the interviews. The concepts are intended to be sacrificial, intermediate steps in the design thinking process and are presented in this report to record the efforts of the AATC group. Descriptions are provided in present tense to allow for further ideation and imagining the concept as reality as was attempted during the teams discussions and interviews. This does not indicate that the concepts are actually in practice within NASA though there may be similar existing programs independent of AATC. These concepts were primarily created at two distinct stages during the design thinking process. After the initial interviews, there was a workshop for concept development and the resulting ideas are shown in this work as from the First Round. As part of succeeding interviews, the team members presented the First Round concepts to refine the understanding of existing research needs. This knowledge was then used to generate an additional set of concepts denoted as the Second Round. Some concepts were created by a single person in a few minutes while others were refined by the entire team over several weeks. Thus, certain ideas are more detailed than others but those from the second round are not necessarily more comprehensive than the first round concepts. Primarily, as reported here in the Second Round section, the designs serve to encompass more of the high level end user research needs which were not necessarily known to the team during the prior workshop. In the figures provided throughout this report, illustrations are often provided to represent a concept. Nearly all of the images are informal sketches or renderings and this casualness should, hopefully, not be held to negate the potential insights available within the concepts.

Smith, Phillip J.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Keystone Solar Future Project (KSFP)

The Keystone Solar Future Project (KSFP, also referred to as “Keystone Project” in the report) implements a cost-effective, secure, reliable, and safe technology platform that paves the way for future interconnected distributed energy resources (DER), creates a framework that enables high penetration of DER, and transforms the DER interconnection process. The project is important and necessary in a few aspects. First, the industry definition of Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS) is not yet validated against field deployments and mostly implemented in small pilots relying on third party integration. Keystone project implements a direct plug and play communication to inverter based DER systems. Secondly, most interconnection application portal is not yet fully integrated with back-end system, thus lacks the capability to drive a complete and accurate modeling of DER assets into the planning and operational systems. Keystone project rolled out a fully integrated modeling process of DERs from interconnection to operational management. Lastly, customers were given an opportunity to learn about the advanced functions of the inverters and take full advantages of their benefits through participation in the pilot program. During the project, the technical effectiveness and economic feasibility of DER management were investigated and demonstrated in real life events and simulation studies. The project highlighted the importance of coordinated DER interconnection, installation and management with the rest of the distribution system.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS1982

Lessons learned - Americans in space

Milestones in the learning process during development of spaceflight capability for different NASA missions are traced from the initial launch of the Mercury escape rocket to the advent of the Shuttle. A detached heat shield on the first manned Mercury orbital flight led to a decision for reentry with retrorockets attached, a situation which demonstrated a need for on-line communications with the spacecraft construction engineers. The Gemini program served to develop EVA techniques and docking procedures essential for the Apollo missions. Apollo 8 circled the moon after only one manned test flight of the equipment due to the success of the first flight. Lunar landing simulation training exposed the astronauts to situations beyond the human ability to respond. The training was justified when computer overload required the pilot to retake manual control of some spacecraft functions during the successful first lunar landing. All lessons previously learned were used to safely return the damaged Apollo 13 to earth. The Skylab missions provided an opportunity to maintain rotating teams of flight controllers on a 24-hr/day basis for periods of months. Finally, the six-year hiatus of U.S. manned space activities between the end of the Skylab missions and the first Shuttle flight provided time for incorporating previous lessons into new procedures, training strategies, and data resources.

Kranz, E.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Spacecraft Design Considerations for Piloted Reentry and Landing

With the end of the Space Shuttle era anticipated in this decade and the requirements for the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) now being defined, an opportune window exists for incorporating 'lessons learned' from relevant aircraft and space flight experience into the early stages of designing the next generation of human spacecraft. This includes addressing not only the technological and overall mission challenges, but also taking into account the comprehensive effects that space flight has on the pilot, all of which must be balanced to ensure the safety of the crew. This manuscript presents a unique and timely overview of a multitude of competing, often unrelated, requirements and constraints governing spacecraft design that must be collectively considered in order to ensure the success of future space exploration missions.

Stroud, Kenneth J.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Framework for Optimization, Quantification of Uncertainty, and Surrogates, and CCSI2 Toolset Capabilities

This poster will present key features and capabilities of the CCSI2 software platform to relevant technical and research audience members at the 2024 FECM / NETL Carbon Management Research Project Review Meeting. Attendees will learn about available process models in the CCSI2 Toolset, as well as design of experiments and machine learning features in the Framework for Optimization, Quantification of Uncertainty, and Surrogates (FOQUS) software to support pilot plant work.

Paul, Brandon↗
NASA NTRS1982

Helicopter simulation technology: An Ames Research Center perspective

The total experience for evidence regarding the levels of motion and visual cueing fidelity required for handling-qualities research in ground-based simulators is reviewed. Positive contributions of cockpit motion were identified, but much remains to be learned regarding the sensitivities of individual control modes to cueing attenuation. A firmer understanding of the pilot's utilization of visual and motion cues is the key to more efficient use of simulation in helicopter control-systems research.

Bray, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS2007

X-31 Mishap: Lessons Learned

The experimental X-31 High Angle of Attack Research Aircraft crashed during a 1995 test mission flight conducted by NASA at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The pilot lost control of the airplane and was forced to eject, sustaining a permanent back injury that ended his flying career. Prior to this incident the airplane had a perfect record of several hundred non-eventful flights supported by an experienced team. During the subsequent investigation by a mishap committee it was discovered that a series of cascading events contributed to this accident. Some of the identified contributing factors that resulted in this mishap are common to aircraft design and to flight-test in general. The mistakes and the solutions are presented here so that the flight-test community may consider and learn from them. The primary cause of the crash was icing and, ultimately, a complete blockage of the pitot-static nose probe. The icing was caused by a freak weather phenomenon that was neither expected nor known to exist on the day of the mishap. The normal probe had been replaced with a special Kiel probe to allow total pressure measurements of up to 70 degrees angle of attack for flight-test purposes. The Kiel probe did not include a heater, because it was assumed that the airplane would not be flown in the clouds or in conditions conducive to icing. This assumption was later proven to be incorrect. The iced Kiel probe caused incorrect gain scheduling in the flight control system, resulting in an unstable aircraft. This failure was essentially undetected because of a faulty design in the flight control system architecture. There were, however, also a number of other issues that lead up to this situation that never should have happened. This presentation discusses what the issues were that contributed to the incident. After the incident was investigated, some of these issues were addressed and some changes were made. The second X-31 aircraft flew the remainder of the flight tests, and the program was successfully completed without incident. This presentation also shows a video of the mishap including lessons learned, and the changes that were made to resume the flight-test program are presented.

Larson, Richard R.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Piloted Evaluation of the H-Mode, a Variable Autonomy Control System, in Motion-Based Simulation

As aircraft become able to autonomously respond to a range of situations with performance surpassing human operators, we are compelled to look for new methods that help understand their use and guide the design of new, more effective forms of automation and interaction. The "H-mode" is one such method and is based on the metaphor of a well-trained horse. The concept allows the pilot to manage a broad range of control automation functionality, from augmented manual control to FMS-like coupling and automation initiated actions, using a common interface system and easily learned set of interaction skills. The interface leverages familiar manual control interfaces (e.g., the control stick) and flight displays through the addition of contextually dependent haptic-multimodal elements. The concept is relevant to manned and remotely piloted vehicles. This paper provides an overview of the H-mode concept followed by a presentation of the results from a recent evaluation conducted in a motion-based simulator. The evaluation focused on assessing the overall usability and flying qualities of the concept with an emphasis on the effects of turbulence and cockpit motion. Because the H-mode results in interactions between traditional flying qualities and management of higher-level flight path automation, these effects are of particular interest. The results indicate that the concept may provide a useful complement or replacement to conventional interfaces, and retains the usefulness in the presence of turbulence and motion.

Goodrich, Kenneth H.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Load Control for Frequency Response - A Literature Review

As electricity grids employ greater fractions of renewable energy, which introduce additional variability and uncertainty in the net load, balancing electrical load and generation becomes more challenging. This paper reviews the literature documenting physical simulations and real systems that employ load control (LC) for frequency response and other grid services, which balance net load on the grid and prevent unwanted frequency excursions. Apart from academic and simulation studies, few sources exist on large-scale laboratory hardware testing or actual real-world systems that employ LC for frequency response, and we review them here. Four types of systems that we consider are: 1) Laboratory-based LC experiments, 2) Isolated microgrids that employ LC, 3) Larger grids that employ LC and 4) vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, using electric vehicles (EVs). In general, these systems have successfully used LC to meet their objectives, which are often keeping grid frequency within a required band. However, LC struggled to balance grid frequency in an isolated system powered by a single wind turbine, and V2G technology requires refinement in communication and control to provide optimal regulation that adheres to industry standards. As LC grows in the energy industry, we have three main recommendations: 1) encouraging system operators who use LC to publish system characteristics and lessons learned; 2) transitioning more LC theoretical/simulated systems to physical experiments, and physical experiments to real-world pilot systems; 3) demonstrating load control to support isolated, high-wind-contribution systems.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
NASA NTRS1995

The lift-fan aircraft: Lessons learned

This report summarizes the highlights and results of a workshop held at NASA Ames Research Center in October 1992. The objective of the workshop was a thorough review of the lessons learned from past research on lift fans, and lift-fan aircraft, models, designs, and components. The scope included conceptual design studies, wind tunnel investigations, propulsion systems components, piloted simulation, flight of aircraft such as the SV-5A and SV-5B and a recent lift-fan aircraft development project. The report includes a brief summary of five technical presentations that addressed the subject The Lift-Fan Aircraft: Lessons Learned.

Deckert, Wallace H.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Multi-Source Machine Learning and Thermoplastics Enhanced Aerostructure Manufacturing (mTEAM)

RTX Technology Research Center (RTRC), together with Collins Aerospace (Collins) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) / Machine Learning (ML) guided solution to advance the manufacturing and assembly of high performance and lightweight thermoplastic composite (TPC) aerospace products. The solution aims to lower risk, cost and lead time for induction heating based welding and consolidation processes for TPC structure. The cost and lead time of part and material specific process development for induction welding (IW) and induction consolidation will be reduced by replacing traditional empirical methods with optimization methods that merge AI/ML and physics-based process simulations and process experiments with sensing and controls. TPC-IW process development is empirical in nature, and uncertainties in material & process behavior exist near & far from the induction coil. Physics-based simulations can be leveraged directly for process optimization but can be too computationally expensive to run in high fidelity and real time to do robust process optimization. The key impact of successful TPC induction consolidation and welding is cost & lead time reduction for part & material specific consolidation and welding recipes. This is an enabler for more rapid deployment of TPC structures via joining assembly, which can reduce energy & cost intensive usage of autoclaves & ovens. The solution aimed to advance the U.S. Department of Energy’s interests in using thermoplastics and automation in composite manufacturing for improvement of products for existing markets via increased production speeds, reduced costs, and lowered use of energy. Welded TPC structures can offer significant weight & energy savings for high-value commercial aerospace & industrial applications compared to metal & thermoset composite structures assembled by mechanical fastening and/or adhesive bonding. The project was organized into two Budget Periods. Budget Period 1 (BP1) was 15 months and its goal was to perform ML process optimization framework development & deployment on lab-coupon aerostructure components. A Go/No-Go Review was performed at the end of BP1 to verify fulfilment of key tasks & milestones to justify a Go Decision to move into the next Budget Period. Budget Period 2 (BP2) was 12 months and its goal was the deployment of the ML framework for ML process optimization of pilot industrial scale aerostructure components. The overall project aim was to develop & demonstrate ML-enhanced modeling framework that learns process-property mapping from multiple data sources at different fidelities. During BP1, the team accomplished key tasks & milestones to demonstrate the concept of multi-source ML for TPC aerostructure consolidation and assembly. First, the team completed documentation of induction based TPC heating requirements including baseline metrics to compare measured results against. Next the team completed demonstration of data generation from physics-based simulations for ML surrogate model generation and demonstrated the integration of physics-based simulation data into multi-source AI/ML algorithms. In parallel, the team established the lab-coupon scale induction welding system and completed a process to label and reduce generated data from physics-based simulation and experiments for ML surrogate models to enable multi-source ML model training & testing. To complete BP1, the team integrated physics-based simulation data and experimental data into multi-source ML algorithms. This was based on the team completing ML deployment of the induction welding on a lab system at RTRC and AI/ML deployment on existing induction welding line at Collins. ORNL visited both Collins and RTRC sites to witness the TPC induction welding process. Then, ORNL designed and constructed a new version of their vision-based sensing system better adapted to acquire process signals of the TPC induction welding process for process anomaly and defect detection. In BP2, the team accomplished key tasks & milestones to scale up multi-source ML for TPC aerostructure consolidation and assembly from the lab-coupon scale to the pilot-industrial scale. In BP2, the team demonstrated real time anomaly & defect detection via experiments performed by ORNL & RTRC. The team completed ML-optimization heating trials for TPC induction consolidation at Collins, and the team confirmed pilot industrial scale experimental data from Collins was compatible with the developed ML pipeline from RTRC. The team completed sub-element scale ML process optimization demonstration at RTRC, where the team leveraged RTRC’s robotic TPC welding setup to de-risk the ML process optimization by performing ML analysis of recorded temperatures to account for complex part features. Then, the team applied its ML-derived control strategies and ML process optimization framework at Collins to the pilot-industrial scale on a demo skin-stiffener part representative of a nacelle aerostructure fan cowl section. The key innovation is the AI/ML framework enabling effective process development of high performance, lightweight, energy efficient TPCs for composite aircraft structures.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS2002

Human Factors Directions for Civil Aviation

Despite considerable progress in understanding human capabilities and limitations, incorporating human factors into aircraft design, operation, and certification, and the emergence of new technologies designed to reduce workload and enhance human performance in the system, most aviation accidents still involve human errors. Such errors occur as a direct or indirect result of untimely, inappropriate, or erroneous actions (or inactions) by apparently well-trained and experienced pilots, controllers, and maintainers. The field of human factors has solved many of the more tractable problems related to simple ergonomics, cockpit layout, symbology, and so on. We have learned much about the relationships between people and machines, but know less about how to form successful partnerships between humans and the information technologies that are beginning to play a central role in aviation. Significant changes envisioned in the structure of the airspace, pilots and controllers' roles and responsibilities, and air/ground technologies will require a similarly significant investment in human factors during the next few decades to ensure the effective integration of pilots, controllers, dispatchers, and maintainers into the new system. Many of the topics that will be addressed are not new because progress in crucial areas, such as eliminating human error, has been slow. A multidisciplinary approach that capitalizes upon human studies and new classes of information, computational models, intelligent analytical tools, and close collaborations with organizations that build, operate, and regulate aviation technology will ensure that the field of human factors meets the challenge.

Hart, Sandra G.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Pointing stabilization of a 1 Hz high-power laser via machine learning

Abstract High-power lasers are vital for particle acceleration, imaging, fusion and materials processing, requiring precise control and high-energy delivery. Laser plasma accelerators (LPAs) demand laser positional stability at focus to ensure consistent electron beams in applications such as X-ray free-electron lasers and high-energy colliders. Achieving this stability is especially challenging for the low-repetition-rate lasers in current LPAs. We present a machine learning method that predicts and corrects laser pointing instabilities in real-time using a high-frequency pilot beam. By preemptively adjusting a correction mirror, this approach overcomes traditional feedback limits. Demonstrated on the BELLA petawatt laser operating at the terawatt level (30 mJ amplification), our method achieved root mean square pointing stabilization of 0.34 and 0.59 $\unicode{x3bc} \mathrm{rad}$ in the x and y directions, reducing jitter by 65% and 47%, respectively. This is the first successful application of predictive control for shot-to-shot stabilization in low-repetition-rate laser systems, paving the way for full-energy petawatt lasers and transformative advances across science, industry and security.

Amodio, Alessio↗
DOE OSTI2020

2020 State of the Science Report, Chapter 14: Summary and Path Forward

The 2020 State of the Science report collates and presents the current understanding of interactions between marine renewable energy (MRE) systems and the marine environment, with an emphasis on their effects on marine animals, habitats, and oceanographic systems, using publicly available information. The report places this information in context through lessons learned from research studies in the laboratory and in the field, modeling simulations, and deployments; monitoring around demonstration, pilot, and small commercial MRE projects; and identifies gaps in knowledge and makes recommendations for filling those gaps. In addition, strategies for moving toward a consistent and effective consenting or permitting (hereafter consenting) process and management of the potential effects of MRE development are highlighted. The status and recommendations from each of the priority interactions between MRE devices and the environment are summarized here, and the management strategies for facilitating development are discussed. Finally, a path forward toward commercial MRE development is explored. https://tethys.pnnl.gov/publications/state-of-the-science-2020-chapter-14-summary-path-forward

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗
NASA NTRS1987

Cockpit resource management at USAir

The current USAir CRM program is presented. The lessons learned and the program issues are combined. The training material was developed after an extensive literature search and pilot interview survey to determine the problem. The investigation led to the design, implementation, and evaluation of a behavioral science awareness training program. The need was found, and the target population was identified as the pilot group.

Sellards, Robert↗
NASA NTRS1998

NAESA Augmentation Pilot Project

This project was one project within the Native American Earth and Space Academy (NAESA). NAESA is a national initiative comprised of several organizations that support programs which focus on 1) enhancing the technological, scientific and pedagogical skills of K-14 teachers who instruct Native Americans, 2) enhancing the understanding and applications of science, technology, and engineering of college-bound Native Americans and teaching them general college "survival skills" (e.g., test taking, time management, study habits), 3) enhancing the scientific and pedagogical skills of the faculty of tribally-controllcd colleges and community colleges with large Native American enrollments, and 4) strengthening the critical relationships between students, their parents, tribal elders, and their communities. This Augmentation Pilot Project focused on the areas of community-school alliances and intemet technology use in teaching and learning and daily living addressing five major objectives.

Hoover, John J.↗