SEARCH · Engineering Papers
Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Detachable caster adapter moves heavy welding tables when fork lift trucks are not practical. A support saddle on the adapter, connected to the caster platform by means of a hinge, fits the leg of the welding table, but can be modified to fit other leg configurations.
Adaptive manual control rapid variation determined by input, controlled element, task and programmed adaptation systems, discussing human strategy changes
Adaptation to Coriolis accelerations associated adaptation schedule to with 1-rpm increments developed for preventing motion sickness in slow rotating environment
Several strategies for the dynamic allocation of buffer storage are simulated and compared. The basic algorithms investigated, using actual statistics observed in the Univac 1108 EXEC 8 System, include the buddy method and the first-fit method. Modifications are made to the basic methods in an effort to improve and to measure allocation performance. A simulation model of an adaptive strategy is developed which permits interchanging the two different methods, the buddy and the first-fit methods with some modifications. Using an adaptive strategy, each method may be employed in the statistical environment in which its performance is superior to the other method.
Developed and evaluated is a simple model of the input adaptive behavior of the human operator (HO) in a pursuit tracking task in which the plant controlled consists of a pure gain. If it is assumed that the HO is approximately an optimal predictor using only position and velocity information, then there is a simple method of computing the values of the model parameters in terms of the autocorrelation function of the input signal. Experimental evidence indicates that the ability of the HO to use velocity information decreases with increasing signal velocity indicating that a biased estimator of the velocity weighting should be used. A suitable approximation is derived which has rapid convergence and low variance. The model thus derived is compared to actual subject transfer functions and is found to be in close agreement. In addition to tracking random processes the model can adapt to and track deterministic signals, such as sine waves, up to approximately the frequency at which human operators begin to track precognitively.
A survey was made of the literature devoted to the synthesis of model-tracking adaptive systems based on application of Liapunov's second method. The basic synthesis procedure is introduced and a critical review of extensions made to the theory since 1966 is made. The extensions relate to design for relative stability, reduction of order techniques, design with disturbance, design with time variable parameters, multivariable systems, identification, and an adaptive observer.
A full order adaptive observer is described for observing the states of a single-input single-output observable continuous differential system with unknown parameters. Convergence of the observer states to those of the system is accomplished by directly changing the parameters of the observer using an adaptive law based upon Liapunov stability theory. Observer eigenvalues may be freely chosen. Some restriction is placed upon the system input in that it must be sufficiently rich in frequencies in order to insure convergence.
The Avco Data Analysis and Prediction Techniques (ADAPT) were employed to determine laws capable of detecting failures in a heat plant up to three days in advance of the occurrence of the failure. The projected performance of algorithms yielded a detection probability of 90% with false alarm rates of the order of 1 per year for a sample rate of 1 per day with each detection, followed by 3 hourly samplings. This performance was verified on 173 independent test cases. The program also demonstrated diagnostic algorithms and the ability to predict the time of failure to approximately plus or minus 8 hours up to three days in advance of the failure. The ADAPT programs produce simple algorithms which have a unique possibility of a relatively low cost updating procedure. The algorithms were implemented on general purpose computers at Kennedy Space Flight Center and tested against current data.
The use of satellite systems to provide operational communications and ATC services to aircraft flying the oceanic routes has been the subject of considerable interest recently. Since most of the link factors are functions of geometry and the aircraft traffic density varies with time, the satellite power needed to meet the communication demand varies considerably in an oceanic area as a function of both location and time. An adaptive system that tailors the use of system resources to the needs of the user can result in an additional system capacity improvement by a factor of between two and three. Results of studies conducted to date indicate that simple implementation of adaptive techniques in aeronautical satellite systems is feasible. Study is continuing in this area and on the application of satellite multibeam techniques to gain even further increase in capacity.
The flying qualities of atmospheric reentry vehicles experience considerable variations due to the wide changes in flight conditions characteristic of reentry trajectories. A digital adaptive control system has been designed to modify the vehicle's dynamic characteristics and to provide desired flying qualities for all flight conditions. This adaptive control system consists of a finite-memory identifier which determines the vehicle's unknown parameters, and a gain computer which calculates feedback gains to satisfy flying quality requirements.
A direct design method is derived for several single-input single-output model reference adaptive systems (M.R.A.S.). The approach used helps to clarify the various steps involved in a design, which utilizes the hyperstability concept. An example of a multiinput, multioutput M.R.A.S. is also discussed. Attention is given to the problem of a series compensator. It is pointed out that a series compensator which contains derivative terms must generally be introduced in the adaptation mechanism in order to assure asymptotic hyperstability. Results obtained by the simulation of a M.R.A.S. on an analog computer are also presented.
The adaptive control and identification problems for single input, single output, time invariant systems with unknown parameters are considered here. A model reference is used and Liapunov's direct method provides the mechanisms for deriving the adaptive and identification algorithms. The Kalman Lemma (derived in connection with the Lure' problem) is shown to be extremely helpful in the design of these systems.
A simple adaptive algorithm is applied to the line by line encoding of images. Among its desirable properties the algorithm includes a control of encoding errors independently of the image statistics. This block transform encoder, because of its adaptive nature gives rise to nonstationary errors and end of block effects. Two methods are proposed to reduce these effects and thus improve the subjective quality of reconstructed images. The performance of the algorithm is image dependent and several illustrative examples are given.
A new approach to providing motion drive signals to a flight simulator utilizing coordinated adaptive filters is presented. Some motivation for the use of coordinated washout is discussed, along with conditions that determine the burden of coordination. The coordinated adaptive filters are derived, based on continuous steepest descent, and the application of the filters to simulated flight data is demonstrated.
This paper introduces a new method of providing motion cues to a moving base six-degree-of-freedom flight simulator utilizing nonlinear filters. Coordinated adaptive filters, used to coordinate translational and rotational motion, are derived based on the method of continuous steepest descent, and the basic concept of the digital controllers used for the uncoordinated heave and yaw cues is also presented. The coordinated adaptive washout method is illustrated by an application in a six-degree-of-freedom fixed-base environment.
A full order adaptive observer is described for observing the state of a single-input single-output observable continuous differential system with unknown parameters. Convergence of the observer states to those of the system is accomplished by directly changing the parameters of the observer using an adaptive law based upon Lyapunov stability theory. Observer eigenvalues may be freely chosen. Some restriction is placed upon the system input in that it must be sufficiently rich in frequencies in order to insure convergence.
New results are presented that pertain to the design of model-reference adaptive control systems with the aid of the Kalman-Yacubovich lemma derived in connection with the problem of Lure. It is shown that the Kalman-Yacubovich lemma is a much more powerful tool for designing model-reference adaptive control systems than was previously thought.
Tests were conducted to determine the feasibility of using an adaptive ground implemented phased array (AGIPA) to overcome the limitations of the radio frequency interference limited low data Tracking and Data Relay Satellite VHF return link. A feasibility demonstration model of a single user channel AFIPA system was designed, developed, fabricated, and evaluated. By scaling the frequency and aperture geometry from VHF to S-band, the system performance was more easily demonstrated in the controlled environment of an anechoic chamber. The testing procedure employs an AGIPA in which received signals from each element of the array are processed on the ground to form an adaptive, independent, computer controlled beam for each user.