Volume 10, Number 2 • March/April 2002 • Cover Story

Software Winners Selected for NASA Award

Distributed Direct Object Visualization Environment (DOVE) received an honorable mention in the 2001 Software of the Year competition. The software is a freely available interactive science data visualization system written in Java and available for all major computer platforms.

Since 1994, NASA has conducted an annual, agency-wide competition to recognize and reward excellence in software technology developed for NASA mission activities. Software development teams across the NASA programs and centers compete vigorously for the NASA Software of the Year Award, which is jointly sponsored by the NASA chief engineer and the NASA chief information officer in cooperation with NASA’s Inventions and Contributions Board. The prestigious award, which includes a monetary Space Act Award as well as peer recognition and “bragging rights,” is based on criteria that emphasize the importance of quality software engineering, innovation, the extent of current and potential use, and significance to NASA mission programs, as well as to science, technology and industry. Qualified contenders for the award are nominated by the NASA centers and must demonstrate that the software is technologically mature or rated as “commercial grade,” that it is approved for external release or dedicated to use in a NASA mission activity, and that NASA holds intellectual property in or has access to the software technology. Also, as noted by Dr. Paul Curto, the senior technologist for the Inventions and Contributions Boards, “user testimonials are a vital part of the evaluation process.”

The 2001 Software of the Year Award winners are the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS), which reduces aircraft engine analysis time, and the Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP), which improves the study of fluid dynamics in rocket engines and other systems.

The NPSS software allows multifidelity analysis in designing aircraft engines, offering key technological advantages that can improve the US aerospace industry’s global competitiveness. The General Electric Aircraft Engines Co. estimates a 55-percent reduction in engine analysis time using this new software.

The development of NPSS was led by Cynthia Gutierrez Naiman of NASA’s Glenn Research Center (GRC) of Cleveland, Ohio and included a team of 39 other engineers from Glenn; Arnold Engineering Development, Arnold Air Force Base, Tennessee; Dynacs, Cleveland, Ohio; General Electric Aircraft Engines Co., Cincinnati, Ohio; GESS, Cleveland, Ohio; Honeywell, Tucson, Arizona; Pratt & Whitney, East Hartford, Connecticut; Modern Technologies Corp., Middleburg Heights, Ohio; Rolls Royce Corp., Indianapolis, Indiana; RS Information Systems, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio; and The Boeing Company, Seattle, Washington.

The purpose of NPSS is to dramatically reduce the time, effort and expense necessary to design and test jet engines. It accomplishes this by generating sophisticated computer simulations of an aerospace object or system, thus permitting an engineer to “test” various design options without having to conduct costly and time-consuming real-life tests. The ultimate goal of NPSS is to create a “numerical test cell” that enables engineers to create complete engine simulations overnight on cost-effective computing platforms. Using NPSS, engine designers will be able to analyze different parts of the engine simultaneously, perform different types of analysis simultaneously (such as aerodynamic and structural analysis) and perform analyses faster, better and cheaper.

The GFSSP is a general purpose computer program for analyzing fluid-flow rate, pressure and t

emperature in rocket engines, turbo pumps, fuel tanks and various kinds of fluid-distribution systems. The software is capable of modeling liquid fuel phase changes including compressibility, mixture thermodynamics and the effects of external influences, such as gravity and centrifugal force. GFSSP version 3 introduced a subroutine module that makes it possible to develop specific applications and customize those applications as needed. As a result, GFSSP can be applied across a wide variety of industries and applications where flow predictions in complex flow circuits are necessary. The program includes subroutines for computing “real fluid” thermodynamic and thermophysical properties for 33 fluids, including hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, helium, water and kerosene. Nineteen different resistance/source options are provided for modeling momentum sources or sinks in the branches. These options include pipe flow, flow through a restriction, noncircular duct, pipe flow with entrance and/or exit losses, thin sharp orifice, thick orifice, square edge reduction, square edge expansion, rotating annular duct, rotating radial duct, labyrinth seal, parallel plates, common fittings and valves, pump characteristics, pump power, valve with a given loss coefficient, Joule-Thompson device, control valve and a user-specified option.

The flexibility of the GFSSP code and the ability to customize specific applications eliminate the need to develop or employ multiple software tools that often are not fully interoperable. In addition, GFSSP is designed for ease of use, with a point-and-click graphical user interface and the ability to run on a desktop workstation with a PC, Macintosh or Silicon Graphics platform. GFSSP’s features combine to yield substantial cost savings through reduced hardware testing and continuous improvement. Used on seven NASA/industry projects, GFSSP has demonstrated its value; one organization’s use of GFSSP is estimated to save between $825,000 and $1.5 million.

Alok Kumar Majumdar, of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, led the development team that included engineers from Marshall; ERC, Inc.; and Sverdrup Technology, also of Huntsville. A US patent has been filed, and potential licensees are in negotiation with NASA for its commercial use. For more information, go to http://techtran.msfc.nasa.gov/software/gfssp.html

Receiving honorable mention were the following:

• Scientist’s Expert Assistant, which enables scientists to develop valid observational proposals for using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Historically, the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) has provided significant staffing to help general observers develop these “observing proposals.” This is a manually intensive, time-consuming and costly effort. In order to meet the operational objectives for the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST), the time and cost in developing such proposals must be dramatically reduced. Accordingly, SEA was designed to make the user more self- sufficient and thereby minimize staff effort and cost for user support. Furthermore, the SEA was also designed as a reusable system that is easily adaptable to multiple observatories. The SEA approach has been to use a combination of artificial intelligence and user interface techniques to provide a system that minimizes redundant data entry and allows users to approach the process visually. The SEA allows users to express their proposals in terms of the science that they wish to achieve rather than the technical observatory details required to achieve that science; includes a visual tool that allows the user to retrieve an image of the target area and graphically position observations on that area; and is the first proposal preparation tool to provide an interactive visualization capability to observers. Observations obtained by spacecraft are remote and hence separate the observer from the telescope. SEA’s visualization strategy brings the “eye back to the sky.” SEA was developed at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).

NASA TechTracS is a component of the agency-wide commercial technology information management systems. It is an integral part of the Commercial Technology Office’s daily business process.

• Dynamic Response Computation Software Program (DIRECT), which allows the space shuttle and space station programs to conduct multiple quick assessments of structural integrity precipitated by late payload manifest changes without having to execute a full-up NASTRAN model. The space shuttle is used to carry a wide variety of payloads into Earth orbit. To ensure the safety of the astronauts, NASTRAN-based structural assessment is required to determine the integrity of the orbiter and its payloads during the high-dynamic liftoff and landing events. The manifest changes, weight changes, cargo modifications, math model modifications and loading changes occur often during the construction of the International Space Station. Utilizing the DIRECT software, a traditional full-up shuttle payload assessment process cycle time can be reduced from two months to one week. Use of DIRECT reduces the cost and time of system dynamic analysis without compromising accuracy. In addition, it allows the payload design organization to reduce the complexity of the analysis and significantly reduce the payload design time. DIRECT was developed at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC).

• Distributed Direct Object Visualization Environment (DOVE), which is a freely available interactive science data visualization system written in Java and available for all major computer platforms. Its use does not require any user programming experience because sessions are created by assembling components on the screen via a point-and-click process. DOVE is modular, allowing flexibility in tool construction and application. It supports scientific collaboration in many ways; however, its unique feature is that it allows Internet-based distributed processing in a manner transparent to the user. This allows the package to fulfill the needs of data providers, as well as data consumers. DOVE was developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

• NASA TechTracS is a component of NASA’s agency-wide commercial technology information management systems. The system is an integral part of the Commercial Technology Office’s daily business process and is the agency’s “mission- critical system” for the technology commercialization program and intellectual asset management. NASA TechTracS provides standardized processing of NASA’s intellectual assets and technology commercialization program across the agency. It is a key tool for identifying and realizing the vast commercial potential of NASA’s technological assets. On an annual basis, it allows NASA to perform the following:

• Assess the commercial potential of over 10,000 activities;

• Collect and process approximately 1,300 new technology reports involving more than 3,500 innovators;

• Administer approximately 1,900 active patents;

• Execute and administer 1,400 active licenses;

• Administer over 5,500 active partnerships; and

• Identify and process approximately 50 success stories.

NASA TechTracS is a distributed network of 4-D relational databases and Web servers located at each NASA center, NASA Headquarters and the National Technology Transfer Center. An integrated agency-wide server is located at NASA’s Langley Research Center, as well on as a public Web site called the NASA Tech Finder (http://technology.nasa.gov/), a test/training server and a technical support server. Q

More information about the current and past Software of the Year Award winners can be found at http://icb.nasa.gov/nasaswy.html

NASA Official: Jonathan Root • Web Design: Printing & Design Office, NASA Headquarters • Credits