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NASA AI Assisted-Air Quality Monitoring Project

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NASA AI Assisted-Air Quality Monitoring Project (Expert System-Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer)

NASA Expert System-Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer (ES-ITMS)
Mission statementDemonstrate the feasibility of a mass spectrometer-based intelligent systems manager for monitoring the life support system and chemical producing experiments
Type of projectPrototype development and testing project
ProductsExpert system based diagnostic software, source code for operations of mass spectrometer
LocationUniversity of Florida
OwnerNASA Ames Research Center, Information Sciences Division
Key peopleCarla M. Wong, NASA Ames Research Center

Peter Palmer, TGS Technology Inc. Richard A. Yost, University of Florida Michael Story, Finnigan MAT, Inc.

Syed Shariq, Joint Enterprise Institute
Established1988
Closed1990

The NASA Expert-System Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer (ES-ITMS) Project was a public-private partnership to develop an artificial intelligence assisted, air quality monitoring system and was qualified for use on the Space Shuttle.[1] The partnership was also the first cost and intellectual property shared public-partnership implemented by NASA, [2] which used the commercial Research and Development Limited Partnership (RDLP) model that had been adopted by the Reagan Administration for Department of Defense semiconductor development [3][4], and recommended for use by NASA for space commercialization [5]. The project partners included NASA, the University of Florida and Finnigan MAT Corporation, was organized and administered by the NASA Joint Enterprise Institute (subsequently NASA Joint Sponsored Program) and ran from 1988 through 1990. The partnership concluded final testing in 1991, generating four patents, expert system software and application protocol reports. The system was space qualified for use on the Shuttle and elements of the ES-ITMS system were integrated into the product Improvements for Finnigan MAT Corporation.[6] The success of the partnership lead NASA to create a pilot program to develop partnership business models as an ongoing management practice.[7]

Purpose and Objectives

 The need to monitor air quality in confined spaces represented an increasing challenge for NASA's planned space missions and private sector facility managers facing the increased scrutiny of possible air contaminants. Up to the early 1980's, air quality monitors generally required large spaces and human technicians to interpret readings. This created a need for miniaturized air quality monitors that could generate reliable and accurate analytic results without on-site technician presence.

NASA initiated projects to develop..."mobile and/or portable mass spectrometers" that evaluated the "tradeoff between instrumentation capabilities and space, weight and power considerations."[8] NASA selected a "commercial ITMS instrument capable of generating electron ionization, chemical ionization and mass spectrometry data", to develop a linked expert system to accomplish analysis without human intervention.[9]

The commercial instrumentation was from Finnigan MAT corporation while the scientific expertise to support expert system development was available at the University of Florida.

The project managers at NASA Ames created a single, integrated project using the RDLP model with objectives to:

  • Develop AI/expert system software for instrument control (NASA's role)
  • Expand sensitivity, selectivity and speed of the spectrometer (Univ Florida role)
  • Expand the spectrometer analytic capability and automate the screening (Finnigan role)

Membership

[10] The partnership included seven specialists from five member organizations:

Federal Government

Commercial

Research Management

Organization, Management, and Administration

The technical project was organized into two development teams, one located in at the NASA Ames Research Center covering expert systems and analytic capabilities and one in Florida covering improved sensitivity and testing.  

The partnership management and administration was provided by a non-profit, partnership support organization: the Joint Enterprise Institute operating through San Francisco State University Foundation (SFSUF).

NASA Joint Sponsored Research Project: Public/Private Partnership

NASA project as a prototype demonstration for the Joint Sponsored Research Program (JSRP), which was known as the Joint Enterprise Institute between 1988 and 1991. The partnership included a two year technology development and testing plan that cost $610,000, of which NASA funded $310,000, Finnigan $175,000 and the University of Florida $95,000.

Results and Commercialization

The project generated patents (4), software (2) and application protocol reports (8). NASA gained use of the patents and jointly development software while Finnigan received commercial utilization rights. The results were commercialized within eighteen months of project completion.

Recognition

NASA recognized the project as a space qualified instrument.[11] Its achievements were reported to the NASA Administrator, directly leading to establishment of the agency-wide Joint Sponsored Research Program.[12]

See Also: Wikipedia Pages

References

  1. ^ Ottens, A., Griffin, T., Helms, W., Yost, R., "A Quadrupole Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer for Quantitative Analysis of Nitrogen-Purged Compartments within the Space Shuttle", NASA Technical Reports, https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20010056316
  2. ^ JSR Program Project Status Report to Aldrich, October 1991, Pgs 15-17, https://archive.org/details/nasa-jsr-program-progress-report-nasa-hq.-91.02.05
  3. ^ Merrifield, D., "R&D Limited Partnerships are Starting to Bridge the Invention-Translation Gap", Research and Technology Management, Vol. 29, No. 3 (May-June 1986), pp 12-14, https://www.jstor.org/stable/24121296 (subscription required)
  4. ^ "A New Weapon Against Japan: R&D Partnerships: Commerce Has a Venture Capital Scheme That Allows U.S. Corporations to Cooperate on High-Risk Research", Business Week, August 8, 1983
  5. ^ Paul Masson, SRI's Role in Commercial Space Transportation: Designing NASA's Business Partnership Model for Space Commercialization, SRI International Alumni Newsletter, August 2021, Page 14 https://srialumni.org/newsletters/2021/AlumNews-Aug-2021.pdf
  6. ^ JSR Program Project Status Report to Aldrich, October 1991, Page 16, https://archive.org/details/nasa-jsr-program-progress-report-nasa-hq.-91.02.05
  7. ^ NASA Joint Sponsored Research Program: Status Report, Use of Space Act Authority to Develop Joint Sponsored Research Projects and Industry-Led R&D Consortia (1988-1995), May 31, 1995, Page 5, https://archive.org/details/nasa-joint-sponsored-research-program-status-report
  8. ^ Palmer, P., Wong, C., Yost, R., Johnson, J., Yates, N., Story, M., An Expert System/Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry Approach for Life Support Monitoring, SAE Journal of Aerospace, (1992) Vol. 101, Sec 1, pp. 529-541 (need subscription), public summary, https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19930057356
  9. ^ Op, Cit., Page 529 NEED WHOLE CITATION
  10. ^ JSR Program Project Status Report to Aldrich, October 1991, Page 15, https://archive.org/details/nasa-jsr-program-progress-report-nasa-hq.-91.02.05
  11. ^ Ottens, A., Griffin, T., Helms, W., Yost, R., "A Quadrupole Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer for Quantitative Analysis of Nitrogen-Purged Compartments within the Space Shuttle", NASA Technical Reports, https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20010056316
  12. ^ NASA Joint Sponsored Research Program: Status Report, Use of Space Act Authority to Develop Joint Sponsored Research Projects and Industry-Led R&D Consortia (1988-1995), May 31, 1995, Page 5, https://archive.org/details/nasa-jsr-program-progress-report-nasa-hq.-91.02.05
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