Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!xanth!nic.MR.NET!srcsip!rutgers!bellcore!texbell!merch!cpe!hal6000!trsvax!mike
From: mike@trsvax.UUCP
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Old fashioned control room
Message-ID: <191800014@trsvax>
Date: 3 Apr 89 15:37:00 GMT
References: <2108@botter.cs.vu.nl>
Lines: 42
Nf-ID: #R:botter.cs.vu.nl:2108:trsvax:191800014:000:1533
Nf-From: trsvax.UUCP!mike    Apr  3 10:37:00 1989





> b).  The equipment looks very oldfashioned.

There have been numerous articles in "Electronics Engineering Times"
recently about eventually replacing the antiquated data systems 
associated with missions with the "Real Time Data System (RTDS)".

This system has been beta-tested on every mission since the Challenger
accident.  The "ODS" officer in Mission Control has (I believe) a large
graphics-based Sun workstation which is supposed to constantly display 
a representation of the instruments on the flight deck of the shuttle.

In the March 20 issue of EE Times, RTDS is credited with giving the shuttle
the extra day on STS-29....

"Thanks to NASA'S recently upgraded expert system and data beamed down from
the agency's TDRS satellites, engineers found a real-time solution to a 
problem that might have cut short last week's shuttle flight.

"The Masscomp Corp. consoles added to the Real Time Data System this winter
gave mission control the over-the-shoulder guidance needed to safely   
re-activate a third fuel cell [aboard Discovery]."

From the article, it seems NASA's Apollo-aged mainframes could not have
analysed the data fast enough to make a decision on the fuel cell.

From tapes of the mission, I have caught a distant glance of the RTDS 
consoles.  I am planning a trip to JSC to report on STS-30.

I am wondering if anyone has any more information on RTDS.  If you do,
please reply:


Michael T. Hardeman
Tandy Research & Development
1300 Two Tandy Center
Ft. Worth, TX  76102

(817) 390-2112