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Clinton L. Rappole, Ph.D., Professor, UH; Charles Bourland, Ph.D., JSC; and Yael Vodovitz, Ph.D., Post-Doctoral Fellow, UH
Astronauts may like to eat bread and butter for breakfast like their families on earth, but a bread machine in an enclosed environment issues volatiles. Volatiles from bread baked in space are normally non-toxic, but they may create problems in a confined environment where ventilation may be a problem. UH researchers led by Dr. Clinton L. Rappole (UH), Dr. Yael Vodovotz, post-doctoral fellow, and Dr. Charles Bourland of the Johnson Space Center are studying the problem, which is of interest to industry. Bio-Plex is interested in food safety and feels it can use NASA-UH studies to learn more about Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points for themselves and other food manufacturers. Additional studies will focus on the role of food in the psychological well-being of the crew. In conjunction with human factors experts, studies will be conducted to determine how food can help an individual overcome some of the negative environmental conditions of long-duration space flight. Findings may have an impact on diets in prison, in submarine environments, and in installations in remote locations.
Karolos M. Grigoriadis, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, UH
The results of the ISSO sponsored project have been extended to the development of control-oriented model reduction methods for interconnected structural systems. Large-scale structural systems, such as space structures, usually are composed of several interconnected dynamic components. A finite element discretization procedure provides a large set of differential equations that describe the overall system response. Reduced-order structural models that approximate the response of the overall system are often needed for analysis, simulation, and purpose of control design. Model reduction of each component is desirable to preserve the interconnections and the non-working constraint forces. This project is focusing on the development of computationally efficient methodologies and algorithms for the efficient component model reduction of such large scale multibody systems. The project is conducted in collaboration with the Dynacs Engineering Company, Houston, TX, to examine space robotics modeling and control applications related to the Space Station assembly and maintenance. Dynacs will partially support this project, and matching funds will be provided by NSF based on the PI's NSF CAREER Award "Control and Integrated Design of Mechanical Systems via Linear Matrix Inequalities."
David C. Zimmerman, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, UH
A collaborative grant with ACTA Inc. and Universal Analytics Incorporated (UAI) addressing the NASA STTR PHASE 11 project will produce a fully integrated, commercial quality, vibration test/analysis tool within the NASTRAN environment. General Motors has already committed to purchasing this upgraded software. Intellectual property rights agreements have been completed between ACTA and UH. This commercial software product provides the perfect mechanism for transferring to the industrial community the knowledge gained in performing this research.
In addition to numerous space structure applications, global structural health monitoring of physically large structures is quickly becoming an issue of importance for our state and nation from both an economic and safety viewpoint. The investment in the civil infrastructure made decades ago has not been maintained adequately during the past two decades, and the "bill" for this neglect is just around the corner. Overall, more than 100,000 of the nation's bridges are in need of major repair or replacement, with a projected cost of $90 billion (1993 estimate). Given the magnitude of the funds that could be spent on repairing bridges, state and federal planners need access to the best possible information about the performance of various bridge types and the condition of bridges that must be strengthened or replaced.
A high percentage of the nation's military and commercial aircraft fleet is quickly approaching or passing their design life. The worldwide aircraft services (meaning engineering, maintenance and repair) cost is reaching about U. S. $20 billion each year, which amounts to ten percent of the total aerospace industry. In response to this anticipated expense (and the Hawaiian Airline structure disaster), the FAA has established an Ageing Aircraft NDI Validation Center whose charter is to promote and validate nondestructive evaluation technology and processes for transfer to the maintenance hangar floor. Our proposed approach is a strong candidate for global screening of aircraft.
The offshore oil industry is facing a critical juncture in validating the structural integrity of oil platforms that have passed their design life time. In addition to natural ageing, the impact of tropical storms on the structural safety of offshore platforms is currently being investigated. These measurement techniques may make it possible to assess the damage from storms such as Hurricane Andrew which affected 676 offshore platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
Although characterizing different structures, the three areas listed above have many attributes in common: (1) the current common method of inspection is visual, (2) several parts of the structure are inaccessible for viewing and/ or measurement, and most important, (3) each represents a high-dollar, high-cost-of-failure structure and a separate industry. Thus, the commercial importance of developing effective, highly autonomous, global health monitoring techniques for large structures will be met with keen interest in other industries.
Harold E. Bedell, Ph.D., Professor, UH; Deborah L. Harm, Ph.D., JSC; Millard F. Reschke, Ph.D., JSC; Saumil S. Patel, Ph.D., Post-Doctoral Fellow, UH
This research may provide a methodology for diagnosing patients with abnormalities of the vestibular system. A consequence of vestibular dysfunction is that reflexive eye movements during head or body motion are inaccurate, resulting in destabilization of images on the retina. A proposal will be submitted to the Baylor College of Medicine to conduct feasibility experiments on patients recruited from the Oto-laryngology Department. Studies could lead to the development of an easily administered and sensitive medical test for vestibular dysfunction.
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