Space Shuttle Flight Demonstration of the Manipulator Position Display

During the STS-69 Space Shuttle flight scheduled for July, 1995, the Manipulator Position Display (MPD) and the Joint Angle Display (JAD) will be used for the first time on-orbit. The display software runs on a laptop computer, and the displays will be viewed on the laptop's monitor by the astronauts during maneuvers with the Space Shuttle's robot arm, the Remote Manipulator System (RMS). The display software will use real-time RMS data from the space shuttle computers to drive the display algorithms. By providing control cues, the displays will assist astronauts and also be evaluated during the RMS tasks performed on the flight.

This paper will discuss the displays, the objectives of the flight evaluation, and preliminary ground based data. Ground based results have indicated that the displays will provide savings in on-orbit operations time and in ground based training. They are also being integrated into future space robotics display systems including the Space Station Robotics Workstation.