Meeting Notes on OpenMCT, Bresina & Morris, MMOC

OpenMCT

• Open-source software dedicated to downlinked telemetry & tracking, health monitoring and sensor data output visualization
• Telemetry pipeline: S/C->ITOS->Warp Server->OpenMCT
  • ITOS can be replaced by Ball Aerospace COSMOS (https://cosmosrb.com/), cFS (https://cfs.gsfc.nasa.gov/), Hammers (https://www.hammers.com/products/ground-system-software/galaxy/), YAMCS (https://www.yamcs.org/)
• MARCO mission (https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cubesat/missions/marco.php) currently uses OpenMCT for:
  • Monitoring solar panel deployment and energy harvesting
  • Detumbling + orbit insertion monitoring
  • Works a situational awareness tool
  • They have their own command & control plug-in that works for the uplink part
• May be found on https://nasa.github.io/openmct/
  • A couple of functionalities need to be requested such as e.g. 
• Receives a BSON message format, in csv. file.
  • Need time-stamps
• WorldWind (https://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/) for visualization + orbit propagation based on Two-Line-Elements (TLE)
• Some missions flying with OpenMCT for monitoring:
  • Jason-3
  • MARCO
  • ICESat-2
• How to deploy OpenMCT server: Deploying Open MCT Server.pdf
• They recommend monitoring/tracking the S/C in every orbit, not only every pass (8) above Trondheim
• Open to work with us on development (orbit propagation, VV of S/C maneuvers, command & uplink etc.)
• Multi-mission operations at different locations (think Trondheim, Svalbard, Porto, NASA Ames) at the same time

Bresina & Morris

Bresina and Morris worked with Kanna on the MER mission for MAPGEN. Slides on MAPGEN functional view are at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3mwkok8nnlvbq23/MAPGEN-MER.pdf?dl=0

• MAPGEN as a model for HYPSO is important, since we will be using the 'mixed-initiative' (human-in-the-loop) control methodology. See GDS slides at: <GDS slides on this Wiki> to show the recommended evolution 
• Fundamentally there is a front end visualization framework (JPL's APGEN software) and the back end AI Planner
• We cannot use MAPGEN since it is export controlled and old now
• Open-Spify is the "new" MAPGEN with caveats
  • It can come with and with a new Java front-end + constraint engine + planner (optional)
  • The constraint engine does local propagation to detect planning/scheduling conflicts but does not resolve the conflicts. With a planner, the resolution occurs aided by a model with heuristics to minimize search. 
  • There can be two types of planning engines (both EUROPA based https://github.com/nasa/europa/wiki/Europa-Background)
  • Batch and dynamic – typically batch processing implies a set of goals are fed into the planner, when the crank is turned the planner generates a possible plan, as an outcome (assuming a plan is viable). This was what MAPGEN was doing on MER.
  • A dynamic planner will continuously modify an output plan while interacting with the front end and/or other sources of information.
  • For HYPSO, we will rely on the simpler form of (static or batch) planning and push to look towards how to formulate resource constrained plans.
  • This will ensure, we are building something useful operationally for HYPSO, and then build some novel resource optimization work on top ideal for a PhD dissertation.
• More info on Spify being collated. 

MMOC

Links: A Flexible Control Center Architecture-v5.pdf; MMOC-Overview-PESS2-180619.pptx

Tools to investigate are for telemetry & commanding: 

• InControl (good functionality and robust; pricey): https://www2.l3t.com/trf/incontrol/index.htm
• ITOS: https://itos.gsfc.nasa.gov/itos-capabilities.php
• ASIST: https://software.nasa.gov/software/GSC-15832-1
• OASIS (should be open to public): http://lasp.colorado.edu/home/mission-ops-data/operational-software/

Recommendations:

• Have at least 2-5 operators working 5 days a week, half-day (ref. LADEE mission)
• Have COTS (PCs, screens etc.) for ground station equipment for operations, go cheap
• Include large screens with clocks, simple setup
• If flying a tech demo, payload, experimental payload on a NASA mission, then the MMOC service will be for free
• Limitation: need to downlink at government-allocated frequencies, not amateur or flexible bands
• Encryption/decryption of science data will delay the distribution of data by at least 1 hr
  • Data segmented in downlink to be collected again on ground
  • Going through private companies (KSAT) will cost money and delay distribution
• Monitor/tracking of S/C only each pass above Trondheim, otherwise expensive