Virtual Training of Compressor Control Room

MYMIC will analyze, design, develop and evaluate the Virtual Control Room – Compressor Station (VCoR-CS) training system. VCoR-CS will provide procedural training to NASA operators within a 3D virtual environment that realistically models the Compressor Station Control Room. It will include an accessible information repository to store expert knowledge and Standard Operating Procedures for display via a simple, training interface. VCoR-CS will leverage a "crawl-walk-run" learning approach with practice and assessments levels in order to allow users to slowly increase the cognitive load and difficulty of their training. A log-in capability will enable user performance to be tracked and training to be accessed on-demand. MYMIC will evaluate the effectiveness of VCoR-CS training prototype and adherence to its learning objectives. Project efforts and results will be incorporated into a Final Report. MYMIC will also conceptualize the expansion of VCoR-CS to include emergency preparedness and scenario-based training modules for future, follow-on efforts.

NASA would benefit from the Virtual Control Room – Compressor Station (VCoR-CS) capability to meet its knowledge capture and ubiquitous training requirements. As budget constraints continue, meeting the needs of a diverse and reduced workforce, as well as capturing expert knowledge for capability sustainment, is critical to NASA mission needs and projects. A virtual control room capability provides an engaging and effective virtual, procedural training tool that also acts as an updateable knowledge repository. This ubiquitous training technology is especially applicable to NASA high air compressor and wind tunnel research facilities as well as all other facilities that require complex Standard Operating Procedures. MYMIC's initial commercialization strategy would begin with Langley Research Center facilities and expand out to include the other three Aeronautical Test Program (ATP) Research Centers.

The virtual control room training capability has wide-market applicability beyond NASA. As an agile, ubiquitous training technology and knowledge capture tool, VCoR provides similar non-NASA markets with an effective and efficient solution to meet their reduced workforce and capability sustainment needs. There are wind tunnel and air compressor facilities that are not operated by NASA, which would provide a primary target market for Non-NASA commercialization. Moving beyond air compressor and wind tunnel facilities, the VCoR-CS technology has applicability to a wide variety of markets as a virtual, procedural training and knowledge capture tool. Facilities and organizations, such as those in the manufacturing industry, that require staff to understand complex procedural training in order to operate safely within a high-technology environment would greatly benefit from a VCoR training tool. MYMIC will further explore these markets to develop an optimum strategy to successfully commercialize the VCoR-CS training technology and tool.

This is a mature technology (TRL 8) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.