Measurement technology of operation region of EVA spacesuit
Operation ability of astronaut in spacesuit is a key parameter in Extra-vehicular activities. The operation region of people in the spacesuit was tested by 3-jointed mechanical measuring arm, which combined force-torque sensors in the handle, and magnetic brakes installed in every joint. Mathematical model of the measuring arm was established to transform the signals of sensors to the data required. The errors were analyzed and the system was calibrated and compensated. All tests were aided by computer, and data obtained were processed by software developed based on VC++, OpenGL and Matlab. An exact 3- D operation region of left hand, right hand and both hands was obtained by a method of reverse engineering. The measurement supplied solid support in space engineering design.
The extravehicular mobility unit: A review of environment, requirements, and design changes in the US spacesuit
Abstract Requirements are rarely static, and are ever more likely to evolve as the development time of a system stretches out and its service life increases. In this paper, we discuss the evolution of requirements for the US spacesuit, the extravehicular mobility unit (EMU), as a case study to highlight the need for flexibility in system design. We explore one fundamental environmental change, using the Space Shuttle EMU aboard the International Space Station, and the resulting EMU requirement and design changes. The EMU, like other complex systems, faces considerable uncertainty during its service life. Changes in the technical, political, or economic environment cause changes in requirements, which in turn necessitate design modifications or upgrades. We make the case that flexibility is a key attribute that needs to be embedded in the design of long-lived, complex systems to enable them to efficiently meet the inevitability of changing requirements after they have been fielded.
Ignition and burning rates of segregated waste combustion in packed beds.
Recent developments in national recycling and re-use programmes for municipal waste have led to segregation of an increasing proportion of waste to enhance material recovery. Several of the segregated streams contain materials that can not viably be re-used or recycled but can be used for energy recovery. In this study, the combustion of cardboard and waste wood was investigated in a small-scale packed bed reactor in order to provide fundamental data for the design/operation of moving bed furnaces. Key parameters of combustion including the ignition and burning rates were evaluated for various air flowrates and compared to the modelling results. Two successive stages of combustion were identified for both samples: the propagation of ignition front into the bed and combustion of the fuel above the ignition front. The burning rate of cardboard reached a peak of about 300 kg/m(2)h at the air flowrate of 936 kg/m(2)h and decreased at higher air flowrates. For waste wood, both the ignition and burning rates increased in the tested range of the air flowrate up to 702 kg/m(2)h, of which the values were very close to those for the cardboard. The model prediction was in good agreement with the test results for waste wood. However, the burning rate for cardboard was under-predicted due to strongly irregular shapes of the fuel.