Considerations for a design and operations knowledge support system for Space Station Freedom

Engineering and operations of modern engineered systems depend critically upon detailed design and operations knowledge that is accurate and authoritative. A design and operations knowledge support system (DOKSS) is a modern computer-based information system providing knowledge about the creation, evolution, and growth of an engineered system. The purpose of a DOKSS is to provide convenient and effective access to this multifaceted information. The complexity of Space Station Freedom's (SSF's) systems, elements, interfaces, and organizations makes convenient access to design knowledge especially important, when compared to simpler systems. The life cycle length, being 30 or more years, adds a new dimension to space operations, maintenance, and evolution. Provided here is a review and discussion of design knowledge support systems to be delivered and operated as a critical part of the engineered system. A concept of a DOKSS for Space Station Freedom (SSF) is presented. This is followed by a detailed discussion of a DOKSS for the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center and Work Package-2 portions of SSF

Development of life prediction capabilities for liquid propellant rocket engines. Post-fire diagnostic system for the SSME system architecture study

This system architecture task (1) analyzed the current process used to make an assessment of engine and component health after each test or flight firing of an SSME, (2) developed an approach and a specific set of objectives and requirements for automated diagnostics during post fire health assessment, and (3) listed and described the software applications required to implement this system. The diagnostic system described is a distributed system with a database management system to store diagnostic information and test data, a CAE package for visual data analysis and preparation of plots of hot-fire data, a set of procedural applications for routine anomaly detection, and an expert system for the advanced anomaly detection and evaluation

NetIQ Evaluation Project

The motivation behind the NetIQ Evaluation Project stems from the fact that Regis University does not currently utilize network management software across the various campus networks. Although this “state of the network” in and of itself is reason alone for such a project, other factors such as an overall increase in the student populous, an increase in the demand for on-line education, and a general need for a secure, reliable and efficient network that spans multiple Regis University campuses has helped fuel project initiative. The NetIQ Evaluation Project’s overall goal is to evaluate the network management software suite known as NetIQ AppManager. This evaluation will provide Regis University policy makers with unbiased information in terms of selecting a network management software suite

Distributed computing methodology for training neural networks in an image-guided diagnostic application

Distributed computing is a process through which a set of computers connected by a network is used collectively to solve a single problem. In this paper, we propose a distributed computing methodology for training neural networks for the detection of lesions in colonoscopy. Our approach is based on partitioning the training set across multiple processors using a parallel virtual machine. In this way, interconnected computers of varied architectures can be used for the distributed evaluation of the error function and gradient values, and, thus, training neural networks utilizing various learning methods. The proposed methodology has large granularity and low synchronization, and has been implemented and tested. Our results indicate that the parallel virtual machine implementation of the training algorithms developed leads to considerable speedup, especially when large network architectures and training sets are used

Transportable, university-level educational programs in interactive information storage and retrieval systems

Pursuant to the specifications of a research contract entered into in December, 1983 with NASA, the Computer Science Departments of the University of Southwestern Louisiana and Southern University will be working jointly to address a variety of research and educational issues relating to the use, by non-computer professionals, of some of the largest and most sophiticated interactive information storage and retrieval systems available. Over the projected 6 to 8 year life of the project, in addition to NASA/RECON, the following systems will be examined: Lockheed DIALOG, DOE/RECON, DOD/DTIC, EPA/CSIN, and LLNL/TIS

Evaluation of radiological workstations and web-browser-based image distribution clients for a PACS project in hands-on workshops

The methodology and outcome of a hands-on workshop for the evaluation of PACS (picture archiving and communication system) software for a multihospital PACS project are described. The following radiological workstations and web-browser-based image distribution software clients were evaluated as part of a multistep evaluation of PACS vendors in March 2001: Impax DS 3000 V 4.1/Impax Web1000 (Agfa-Gevaert, Mortsel, Belgium); PathSpeed V 8.0/PathSpeed Web (GE Medical Systems, Milwaukee, Wis., USA); ID Report/ID Web (Image Devices, Idstein, Germany); EasyVision DX/EasyWeb (Philips Medical Systems, Eindhoven, Netherlands); and MagicView 1000 VB33a/MagicWeb (Siemens Medical Systems, Erlangen, Germany). A set of anonymized DICOM test data was provided to enable direct image comparison. Radiologists (n=44) evaluated the radiological workstations and nonradiologists (n=53) evaluated the image distribution software clients using different questionnaires. One vendor was not able to import the provided DICOM data set. Another vendor had problems in displaying imported cross-sectional studies in the correct stack order. Three vendors (Agfa-Gevaert, GE, Philips) presented server-client solutions with web access. Two (Siemens, Image Devices) presented stand-alone solutions. The highest scores in the class of radiological workstations were achieved by ID Report from Image Devices (p<0.005). In the class of image distribution clients, the differences were statistically not significant. Questionnaire-based evaluation was shown to be useful for guaranteeing systematic assessment. The workshop was a great success in raising interest in the PACS project in a large group of future clinical users. The methodology used in the present study may be useful for other hospitals evaluating PAC

CLEAR: Communications Link Expert Assistance Resource

Communications Link Expert Assistance Resource (CLEAR) is a real time, fault diagnosis expert system for the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) Mission Operations Room (MOR). The CLEAR expert system is an operational prototype which assists the MOR operator/analyst by isolating and diagnosing faults in the spacecraft communication link with the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) during periods of realtime data acquisition. The mission domain, user requirements, hardware configuration, expert system concept, tool selection, development approach, and system design were discussed. Development approach and system implementation are emphasized. Also discussed are system architecture, tool selection, operation, and future plans

Evaluation of a new imaging software for aortic endograft planning

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate a new 3D Workstation workflow (EVAR Assist, Advantage Windows, GE Healthcare, Chalfont, UK) (EA-AW) designed to simplify complex EVAR planning. Patients and methods: All pre-operative computed tomography (CT) scans of patients who underwent repair at our institution of a complex aortic aneurysm using fenestrated endovascular repair (f-EVAR) between January and September 2014, were reviewed. For each patient, imaging analysis (12 measures: aortic diameters and length and "clock position" of visceral artery) was performed on two different workstations: Aquarius (TeraRecon, San Mateo, CA, USA) and EA-AW. According to a standardized protocol, three endovascular surgeons experienced in aortic endograft planning, performed image analyses and data collection independently. We analyzed an internal assessment between observers (on the Aquarius 3DWS) and an external assessment comparing these results with the planning center (PC) data used to custom the fenestrated endografts of the patients enrolled in this study. Finally, we compared both 3DWS data to determine the accuracy and the reproducibility. A p-value &lt; .05 was considered as statistically significant. Complete agreement between operators was defined as 1.0. Results: Intra and inter observer variability (interclass correlation coefficients - ICC: 0.81- .091) was very low and confirmed the reliability of our planners. The ICC comparison between EA-AW and Aquarius was excellent (&gt; 0.8 for both), thus confirming the reproducibility and reliability of the new EA-AW application. Aortic and iliac necks diameters and lengths were similarly reported with both workstations. In our study, the mean difference in distance and orientation evaluation of target vessels evaluated by the two workstations was marginal and has no impact on clinical practice in term of device manufacturing. Conclusions: We showed that complex EVAR planning can be performed with this new dedicated 3D workstation workflow with a good reproducibility

The organizational implications of medical imaging in the context of Malaysian hospitals

This research investigated the implementation and use of medical imaging in the context of Malaysian hospitals. In this report medical imaging refers to PACS, RIS/HIS and imaging modalities which are linked through a computer network. The study examined how the internal context of a hospital and its external context together influenced the implementation of medical imaging, and how this in turn shaped organizational roles and relationships within the hospital itself. It further investigated how the implementation of the technology in one hospital affected its implementation in another hospital. The research used systems theory as the theoretical framework for the study. Methodologically, the study used a case-based approach and multiple methods to obtain data. The case studies included two hospital-based radiology departments in Malaysia. The outcomes of the research suggest that the implementation of medical imaging in community hospitals is shaped by the external context particularly the role played by the Ministry of Health. Furthermore, influences from both the internal and external contexts have a substantial impact on the process of implementing medical imaging and the extent of the benefits that the organization can gain. In the context of roles and social relationships, the findings revealed that the routine use of medical imaging has substantially affected radiographers’ roles, and the social relationships between non clinical personnel and clinicians. This study found no change in the relationship between radiographers and radiologists. Finally, the approaches to implementation taken in the hospitals studied were found to influence those taken by other hospitals. Overall, this study makes three important contributions. Firstly, it extends Barley’s (1986, 1990) research by explicitly demonstrating that the organization’s internal and external contexts together shape the implementation and use of technology, that the processes of implementing and using technology impact upon roles, relationships and networks and that a role-based approach alone is inadequate to examine the outcomes of deploying an advanced technology. Secondly, this study contends that scalability of technology in the context of developing countries is not necessarily linear. Finally, this study offers practical contributions that can benefit healthcare organizations in Malaysia