Wireless Hybrid Identification and Sensing Platform for Equipment Recovery (WHISPER)

Advanced Systems & Technologies proposed WHISPER (Wireless Hybrid Identification and Sensing Platform for Equipment Recovery) solution to NASA's need for automatic location and tracking of a large number of individual crew items in a space habitat microgravity cabin is to combine a EPCglobal compliant WISP wireless identification and sensing platform (a quarter-sized device that is powered and read by off-the-shelf UHF RFID readers and contains a microcontroller and INS) with an IR sensor that works in conjunction with AS&T's existing Low Latency Infrared Positional Operating Projection (LOLIPOP) system. This would enable simple wireless location tracking of an unlimited number of items such as fasteners, hand tools, and clothing but would also do more complex orientation and velocity tracking. WHISPER modules can also be attached cold thruster maneuver platforms or even personnel for monitoring tasks or exercise.

NASA applications of this system will location tracking of various small and large items in space but will also include exercise monitoring, robotic poise control, vestibular compensation of motion sickness for space travel, musculoskeletal injury monitoring in astronauts, head tracking and tele-factoring for astronauts and internal navigation for SPHERES modules on board the ISS. The system could be incorporated, for example, by NASA into unmanned rovers such as Curiosity and adapted to provide dynamic load carriage compensation and multi-segmental inertial tracking.

The ability to tracking multiple items in close proximity to each has been a constant focus in the warehousing, manufacturing and shipping industries. In many cases it is also highly advantageous to also be able to determine the orientation and pose of items such as robotic arms, servos, and even human actions for training, medical, simulation, and even time/motion studies. While current RFID tags are capable of determining location they cannot effectively track motion or pose. The AS&T proposed AS&T WHISPER system, due to its hybrid technology of INS, optical tracking (through AS&T's LOLIPOP technology), and RFID technology, using PSO data fusion methods, will be able to provide low power, postage stamp-sized location, orientation, and kinematic information over a wireless WISP network for industrial, medical, training, and simulation uses in a wide variety of related industries. In essence the WISPER tag is an idealization of a position pose tracking spime.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 5) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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