Evaluation of inertial devices for the control of large, flexible, space-based telerobotic arms

Inertial devices, including sensors and actuators, offer the potential of improving the tracking of telerobotic commands for space-based robots by smoothing payload motions and suppressing vibrations. In this paper, inertial actuators (specifically, torque-wheels and reaction-masses) are studied for that potential application. Batch simulation studies are presented which show that torque-wheels can reduce the overshoot in abrupt stop commands by 82 percent for a two-link arm. For man-in-the-loop evaluation, a real-time simulator has been developed which samples a hand-controller, solves the nonlinear equations of motion, and graphically displays the resulting motion on a computer workstation. Currently, two manipulator models, a two-link, rigid arm and a single-link, flexible arm, have been studied. Results are presented which show that, for a single-link arm, a reaction-mass/torque-wheel combination at the payload end can yield a settling time of 3 s for disturbances in the first flexible mode as opposed to 10 s using only a hub motor. A hardware apparatus, which consists of a single-link, highly flexible arm with a hub motor and a torque-wheel, has been assembled to evaluate the concept and is described herein

Control of flexible structures with distributed sensing and processing

Technology is being developed to process signals from distributed sensors using distributed computations. These distributed sensors provide a new feedback capability for vibration control that has not been exploited. Additionally, the sensors proposed are of an optical and distributed nature and could be employed with known techniques of distributed optical computation (Fourier optics, etc.) to accomplish the control system functions of filtering and regulation in a distributed computer. This paper extends the traditional digital, optimal estimation and control theory to include distributed sensing and processing for this application. The design model assumes a finite number of modes which make it amenable to empirical determination of the design model via familiar modal-test techniques. The sensors are assumed to be distributed, but a finite number of point actuators are used. The design process is illustrated by application to a Euler beam. A simulation of the beam is used to design an optimal vibration control system that uses a distributed deflection sensor and nine linear force actuators. Simulations are also used to study the influence of design and processing errors on the performance

Simulation of the coupled multi-spacecraft control testbed at the Marshall Space Flight Center

The capture and berthing of a controlled spacecraft using a robotic manipulator is an important technology for future space missions and is presently being considered as a backup option for direct docking of the Space Shuttle to the Space Station during assembly missions. The dynamics and control of spacecraft configurations that are manipulator-coupled with each spacecraft having independent attitude control systems is not well understood and NASA is actively involved in both analytic research on this three dimensional control problem for manipulator coupled active spacecraft and experimental research using a two dimensional ground based facility at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). This paper first describes the MSFC testbed and then describes a two link arm simulator that has been developed to facilitate control theory development and test planning. The motion of the arms and the payload is controlled by motors located at the shoulder, elbow, and wrist

Quantisation of Hopping Magnetoresistance Prefactor in Strongly Correlated Two-Dimensional Electron Systems

We report an universal behaviour of hopping transport in strongly interacting mesoscopic two-dimensional electron systems (2DES). In a certain window of background disorder, the resistivity at low perpendicular magnetic fields follows the expected relation $\rho(B_\perp) = \rho_{\rm{B}}\exp(\alpha B_\perp^2)$. The prefactor $\rho_{\rm{B}}$ decreases exponentially with increasing electron density but saturates to a finite value at higher densities. Strikingly, this value is found to be universal when expressed in terms of absolute resistance and and shows quantisation at $R_{\rm{B}}\approx h/e^2$ and $R_{\rm{B}}\approx 1/2$ $h/e^2$. We suggest a strongly correlated electronic phase as a possible explanation.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, Proceedings of EP2DS 17, Reference adde

Unconventional Metallicity and Giant Thermopower in a Strongly Interacting Two Dimensional Electron System

We present thermal and electrical transport measurements of low-density (10$^{14}$ m$^{-2}$), mesoscopic two-dimensional electron systems (2DESs) in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures at sub-Kelvin temperatures. We find that even in the supposedly strongly localised regime, where the electrical resistivity of the system is two orders of magnitude greater than the quantum of resistance $h/e^2$, the thermopower decreases linearly with temperature indicating metallicity. Remarkably, the magnitude of the thermopower exceeds the predicted value in non-interacting metallic 2DESs at similar carrier densities by over two orders of magnitude. Our results indicate a new quantum state and possibly a novel class of itinerant quasiparticles in dilute 2DESs at low temperatures where the Coulomb interaction plays a pivotal role.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures (version to appear in Phys. Rev. B

Simulator evaluation of system identification with on-line control law update for the controls and astrophysics experiment in space

A procedure for optimizing the performance of large flexible spacecraft that require active vibration suppression to achieve required performance is presented. The procedure is to conduct on-orbit testing and system identification followed by a control system design. It is applied via simulation to a spacecraft configuration currently being considered for flight test by NASA - the Controls, Astrophysics, and Structures Experiment in Space (CASES). The system simulator is based on a NASTRAN finite element structural model. A finite number of modes is used to represent the structural dynamics. The system simulator also includes models of the electronics, actuators, sensors, the digital controller, and the internal and external disturbances. Nonlinearities caused by quantization are included in the study to examine tolerance of the procedure to modelling errors. Disturbance and sensor noise is modelled as a Gaussian process. For system identification, the system is excited using sinusoidal inputs at the resonant frequencies of the structure using each actuator. Mode shapes, frequencies, and damping ratios are identified from the unforced response sensor data after each excitation. Then, the excitation data is used to identify the actuator influence coefficients. The results of the individual parameter identification analyses are assembled into an aggregate system model. The control design is accomplished based only on the identified model using multi-input/output linear quadratic Gaussian theory. Its performance is evaluated based on time-to-damp as compared with the uncontrolled structure

Testing of an End-Point Control Unit Designed to Enable Precision Control of Manipulator-Coupled Spacecraft

This paper presents an end-point control concept designed to enable precision telerobotic control of manipulator-coupled spacecraft. The concept employs a hardware unit (end-point control unit EPCU) that is positioned between the end-effector of the Space Shuttle Remote Manipulator System and the payload. Features of the unit are active compliance (control of the displacement between the end-effector and the payload), to allow precision control of payload motions, and inertial load relief, to prevent the transmission of loads between the end-effector and the payload. This paper presents the concept and studies the active compliance feature using a simulation and hardware. Results of the simulation show the effectiveness of the EPCU in smoothing the motion of the payload. Results are presented from initial, limited tests of a laboratory hardware unit on a robotic arm testbed at the l Space Flight Center. Tracking performance of the arm in a constant speed automated retraction and extension maneuver of a heavy payload with and without the unit active is compared for the design speed and higher speeds. Simultaneous load reduction and tracking performance are demonstrated using the EPCU

The Physical Conditions of the Intrinsic N V Narrow Absorption Line Systems of Three Quasars

We employ detailed photoionization models to infer the physical conditions of intrinsic narrow absorption line systems found in high resolution spectra of three quasars at z=2.6-3.0. We focus on a family of intrinsic absorbers characterized by N V lines that are strong relative to the Ly-alpha lines. The inferred physical conditions are similar for the three intrinsic N V absorbers, with metallicities greater than 10 times the solar value (assuming a solar abundance pattern), and with high ionization parameters (log U ~ 0). Thus, we conclude that the unusual strength of the N V lines results from a combination of partial coverage, a high ionization state, and high metallicity. We consider whether dilution of the absorption lines by flux from the broad-emission line region can lead us to overestimate the metallicities and we find that this is an unlikely possibility. The high abundances that we infer are not surprising in the context of scenarios in which metal enrichment takes place very early on in massive galaxies. We estimate that the mass outflow rate in the absorbing gas (which is likely to have a filamentary structure) is less than a few solar masses per year under the most optimistic assumptions, although it may be embedded in a much hotter, more massive outflow.Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journa

Insurance as an agricultural disaster risk management tool: evidence and lessons learned from South Asia

Pilot projects in India and Bangladesh demonstrate that index-based weather insurance products, developed using satellite technology, can reduce the financial risks to smallholder farmers from floods and droughts. Scaling up such schemes has the potential to meet the needs of very vulnerable groups, especially women and assist governments in meeting global development goals

Fine-tuning supramolecular assemblies by controlling micellar aggregates

Supramolecular assembly can be used to fabricate complex functional materials by organizing simple building blocks. However, it is difficult to control the hierarchical assembly across multiple length scales. The correlation of a supramolecular gel network and a pre-gelling aggregate will help to understand how a molecular-level assembly is translated into a higher order. Here, a functional dipeptide 2NapFF is used that can assemble in different micellar structures at high pH by varying the counterion. Replacing the counterions with a divalent calcium salt results in a cross-linked gel network, or an interesting analog “gel noodles.” The physical properties of the gel noodles can be varied by choosing specific micellar assemblies as the pre-gel. The mechanical rigidity of the gel networks is compared by nanoindentation and tensile testing, and the pattern to the structures of the micelles observed by small-angle X-ray scattering is correlated. The supramolecular assembly can be fine-tuned by using different micelles as the pre-gel without affecting the inherent gel-state properties