Challenges of CPAS Flight Testing

Ray, Eric; Morris, Aaron L.

doi:10.2514/6.2011-2557

Cited by 18 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 11 publications

(9 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The PTV does not have an active control system (required for controlled subsonic flight). As a result, the PTV cannot achieve the nominal entry deploy conditions using standard LVAD extraction altitudes as a starting point 3 . This limitation is most relevant to the Forward Bay Cover jettison and drogue phases of the CPAS design without loss of control.…”

Section: Figure 1 the Pcdtv And The Ptv Test Articlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Orion Boiler Plate Airdrop Test System

Machin

Evans

2013

AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems (ADS) Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

On the 29th of February 2012 the Orion Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) project attempted to perform an airdrop test of a boilerplate test article for the second time. The first attempt (Cluster Development Test 2, July 2008) to deliver a similar boilerplate from a C-17 using the Low Velocity Air Drop (LVAD) technique resulted in the programmer parachute failing to properly inflate, the test article failing to achieve the desired test initiation conditions, and the test article a total loss. This paper will pick up where the CDT-2 failure investigation left off 1 , describing the test technique that was adopted, and outline the modeling that was performed to gain confidence that the second attempt would be successful. The second boiler plate test (Cluster Development Test 3-3) was indeed a complete success and has subsequently been repeated several times, allowing the CPAS project to proceed with the full scale system level development testing required to integrate the hardware to the first Entry Flight Test vehicle as well as go into the Critical Design Review with minimum risk and a mature design.

show abstract

Section: Figure 1 the Pcdtv And The Ptv Test Articlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Orion Boiler Plate Airdrop Test System

Machin

Evans

2013

AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems (ADS) Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Other mid-air separation systems have had vehicles with active control systems or vehicle shapes that are more aerodynamically stable than the platform and capsule shapes. 7 Neither the PTV2 nor the CPSS will have an active control system. Fortunately, experience with delayed load transfer extractions has shown that the attitude motion upon extraction is predictable, at least in a qualitative sense.…”

Section: Boilerplate Test Concept Of Operationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the method used to deliver the Apollo boilerplate capsule to the test condition is infeasible due to the size of the Orion capsule and the available airframes. 7 CPAS has investigated an alternative technique that uses a modified Low Velocity Aerial Delivery (LVAD) system to extract a truncated boilerplate from a C-17 and deliver it to the test condition. The concept of operations for this technique will be described.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of a Smart Release Algorithm for Mid-Air Separation of Parachute Test Articles

Moore

2011

21st AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems Technology Conference and Seminar

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Crew Exploration Vehicle Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) project is currently developing an autonomous method to separate a capsule-shaped parachute test vehicle from an air-drop platform for use in the test program to develop and validate the parachute system for the Orion spacecraft. The CPAS project seeks to perform air-drop tests of an Orion-like boilerplate capsule. Delivery of the boilerplate capsule to the test condition has proven to be a critical and complicated task. In the current concept, the boilerplate vehicle is extracted from an aircraft on top of a Type V pallet and then separated from the pallet in mid-air. The attitude of the vehicles at separation is critical to avoiding re-contact and successfully deploying the boilerplate into a heatshield-down orientation. Neither the pallet nor the boilerplate has an active control system. However, the attitude of the mated vehicle as a function of time is somewhat predictable. CPAS engineers have designed an avionics system to monitor the attitude of the mated vehicle as it is extracted from the aircraft and command a release when the desired conditions are met. The algorithm includes contingency capabilities designed to release the test vehicle before undesirable orientations occur. The algorithm was verified with simulation and ground testing. The pre-flight development and testing is discussed and limitations of ground testing are noted. The CPAS project performed a series of three drop tests as a proofof-concept of the release technique. These tests helped to refine the attitude instrumentation and software algorithm to be used on future tests. The drop tests are described in detail and the evolution of the release system with each test is described.

show abstract

“…The primary method of testing is through Low-Velocity Aerial Delivery (LVAD) drop tests. 1 During the current Engineering Development Unit (EDU) phase of testing, speciallydesigned test vehicles are extracted from an aircraft at 25,000 ft-Mean Sea Level (MSL), and a programmer parachute is used to achieve the desired conditions at Drogue parachute deployment. One of the primary test vehicles is the Parachute Test Vehicle (PTV).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of a Smart Parachute Release Algorithm to the CPAS Test Architecture

Bledsoe

2013

AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems (ADS) Conference

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

One of the primary test vehicles for the Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) is the Parachute Test Vehicle (PTV), a capsule-shaped structure similar to the Orion design but truncated to fit in the cargo area of a C-17 aircraft. The PTV has a full Orion-like parachute compartment and similar aerodynamics; however, because of the single-point attachment of the CPAS parachutes and the lack of an Orion-like Reaction Control System (RCS), the PTV has the potential to reach significant body rates. High body rates at the time of Drogue release may cause the PTV to flip while the Pilot parachutes deploy, which may result in the severing of Pilot or Main risers. In order to prevent high rates at the time of Drogue release, a "smart release" algorithm was implemented in the PTV avionics system. This algorithm, which was developed for the Orion flight system, triggers the Drogue parachute release when the body rates are near a minimum. This paper discusses the development and testing of the smart release algorithm; its implementation in the PTV avionics and the pre-test simulation; and the results of its use on two CPAS tests. Nomenclature

show abstract

Challenges of CPAS Flight Testing

Cited by 18 publications

References 11 publications

Orion Boiler Plate Airdrop Test System

Orion Boiler Plate Airdrop Test System

Development of a Smart Release Algorithm for Mid-Air Separation of Parachute Test Articles

Application of a Smart Parachute Release Algorithm to the CPAS Test Architecture

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About