Virtual World Editor

NASA has identified a need for a tool that will give a non-expert the ability to quickly create animation of a mission scenario. This type of depiction can be important during a mission's development phase. Animation can show things that are not possible to see in the physical world and can help explain difficult concepts. Animation allows visualization of the mission without having to understand all the physics required. The communication of any mission scenarios through the medium of video - be it live action or animation - requires a particular set of skills: most notably, a sense of timing and layout. The sense of timing in animation can be compared to that of music; length, rhythm and order are the crucial elements for an effective delivery of an idea or emotion. Professional animators acquire this knowledge through formal training, education and years of experience. Although it would be impossible to impart this knowledge instantaneously, with current technology it can be encapsulated within a set of "digital elements" that can be manipulated and arranged to form a coherent stream of images (video) with order and meaning. Our proposed innovation is to develop a set of tools that can be used by a non-expert to build a virtual mission scenario that can be used for analysis, presentations and outreach. We will create a method for developing a collection of elements (objects, actions) with initial focus, space mission specific. The toolset will have elements that have the animation expertise incorporated. This will reduce the need for the user to have animation experience.

Outreach: Animated videos can be built by subject matter experts to illustrate a mission, for example a planetary research mission, to be used as part of an educational packages. These packages can be distributed to educational institutions or to the general public. Presentations: Engineers, mission planners and public affairs personnel can create animated videos to be used for press releases, or during government committees presentation, such as appropriation or science committees.

DoD - building mission scenarios for training and planning, troop deployment to a location, securing a building, etc. Oil industry applications could be drilling operations: sending the pipe into the earth, adding additional pipe, capturing a core sample, etc. Any industry with a need to allow the user to visualize an operation, a sequence of activities to fulfill a goal.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 3) — 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.

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.