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EVA Exploration Workshop 2020:xEVA System Status

NASA-JSC EVA OfficeJ. BuffingtonFebruary, 2020

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

OutlineThis presentation provides a status of thexEVA System project.

•Perspective Updates (since last workshop)•xEVA System Overview•Hardware Progress•Upcoming Milestone Schedule•Transition of Gaps to Risks

22/18/20

Perspective Updates – Since the last EVA Workshop…

32/18/20

• Significant changes have occurred since the last EVA Workshop:– NASA has decided to fly the xEMU and supporting xEVA System as the lunar

surface suit for the Artemis III/2024 lunar landing

– Corresponding elements such as xEVA Vehicle Interface Equipment (xEVAVIE), EVA Geology Tools, etc have started up

– xEVA has worked to establish interfaces and OpsCons for use of xEVA VIE asthe adapter between each vehicle (xEMU stays the same)

– NASA will utilize the previously planned xEMU ISS Demo to mitigate risk forthe Artemis III/2024 mission

– During the FY19 annual budget planning process, NASA assessed options foran extensive set of options utilizing the xEVA System across humanspaceflight

– xEVA has been consolidated as a Project under the Gateway Program

Accelerating xEVA Hardware for Lunar 2024 (March 2023 Delivery)

• In addition to the xEMU itself, extensive work is underway to fully implement xEVA for 2024, including:– Support to HLS for Lander development including IRCD’s and xEVA Compatibility requirements (BAA App. H)– Staffing ramp up across xEVA– Continued work on the ISS Airlock Modifications and other ISS Demo preparations– Initiation of the xEVA VIE flight hardware project (develops vehicle interface for Artemis Landers)– Initiation of the xEVA Lunar Surface Geology Tools flight hardware projects

xEVA “Visual Manifest”, PPBE21 including 2024/Artemis III Risk Reduction

– Assessment of training hardware and facility needs for FOD’s Plan-Train-Fly process for lunar surface ops

– Release of RFI for xEVA Fleet “Assembly & Test” Contract for beyond 2024

– Eliminating bottlenecks in various acquisition, hardware production and test processes (i.e. Incremental Funding Waiver)

• Programmatic changes are also in-work: – Consolidation of xEVA under Gateway– Creation of a multi-program safety process

facilitating xEVA Certification

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Technical Approach: xEVA Hardware Projects / Work Breakdown

• To enable the OpsCon, xEVA System includes the suit itself (the xEMU) and the supporting projects and products necessary to safely use the suit in flight and in testing and training on the ground:

– xEMU– SERFE ISS Payload– HLS Vehicle Interface Equipment

• Power Supply Assembly• Battery Management/Charging• 3000psi O2 Panel• Vehicle-mounted Radio• Don-Doff Equipment

– ISS Airlock Mods (ISS Demo)– Lunar Surface Geology Tools– Dust Removal/Mitigation Tools– Radiation Dosimeter– Prebreathe Protocol Development – Vacuum Chamber Test Facility Renovation– Risk Reduction tasks

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xEMU Status• The xEMU is the suit designed for operations in LEO, cis-lunar space, the lunar surface and deep

space to the orbit of Mars• The xEMU components for the pre-qual test unit (DVT) are arriving today and are in assembly

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Artemis/HLS Lander xSPCE Assembly Status

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• Conceptual xEVA System Lander VIE includes Servicing, Performance and Checkout Equipment (SPCE) shown at right; wall mounted “rack style”– Height exaggerated relative to width to

show features• Provides for all required modes:

– Nominal Lander Descent/Ascent “Suit Loop”

– EVA Prebreathe– EVA Prep/Post– EVA Suit Servicing (Refill/Recharge)– Contingency Loss of Cabin Press/Fail

to Dock/Hard-seal• See following slide for examples of

individual xEVA SPCE elements

19” Commercial Rack Standard

Charger w/Cables

Cooling H20

Vacuum Access

Suit Loop Ventilation

SPLY

RTRN

SPLY

RTRN

High Pressure O2

SPLY SPLY

PRESS PRESS

ON

OFF

VNT

ON

OFF

VNT

SPLY SPLY

VAC VAC

ON

OFF

VNT

ON

OFF

VNT

SPLY SPLYON

OFF

VNT

ON

OFF

VNT

5.25” (3U)

5.25” (3U)

5.25” (3U)

5.25” (3U)

5.25” (3U)

3.5” (2U)

RTRN RTRN

FILL

LOOP

OFF

FILL

LOOP

OFF

Hardline PWR/DATA/COMM

P1ON

OFFP2

PWR DAT COM COM DAT PWR

ON

OFF

EV1 EV2

29.75”

Com

mercial R

ack Standard Heights

Artemis/HLS Lander xSPCE Assembly Status – xBMS Example

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• xEVA SPCE includes the Battery Management System (xBMS) which enables in-suit charging of the xEMU Batteries– Acts in concert w/PLSS to provide Hazard Controls for Lithium Ion battery charging

• Several iterations of prototype Charge Cards have been built, tested and packaged• The xBMS Project conducted the ISS Demo config Preliminary Design Review (PDR) in December 2019 and is in-work

delivering ground test units to the xEMU team for joint testing

FilterCard

SystemCard

6X ChargeCards

xBMS CARD CHASSIS ASSEMBLY

Power Connector

Battery Status LED Connector

Charge Circuit Connectors

xBMS ASSEMBLY

User Accessible Charge Cable Port

Battery StatusIndication LEDs

Individual Charge Card

Artemis/HLS Lander xSPCE Assembly Status

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• One xEVA SPCE assembly will be installed in each HLS Lander– HLS is discussing having multiple Lander Suppliers– Each Lander Ascent Cabin may be reusable

• This will require significant, active interaction with the Lander companies

– Development of the xEVA-Lander IRCD’s specific to each Lander

– Data deliverables between NASA and the Lander builders– Design milestone reviews – Joint fitchecks and integrated testing with xEMU-xSPCE-

Landers, etc• Longer term, the Gateway micro-g Airlock outfitting will also require

xSPCE

The xEVA System is different for each vehicle – the xEMU suit itself, the largest cost item, stays the same but the Vehicle Interface Equipment changes to adapt to each spacecraft

Artemis/HLS Lander xSPCE Assembly Status• In addition to xSPCE, xEVA VIE also includes:

– xEMU Don/Doff support structural interface– HLS Descent/Ascent Crew Restraint Hardware

• This project has begun by conducting TIMs to standardize don-doff interfaces across ground test facilities, microgravity and partial gravity vehicle interfaces

10Apollo Lunar Lander Crew Restraint SystemxEMU Don-Doff option, micro-g scenario

xEVA Geology Tools Status

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The exact order, priority and combination of surface EVA tasks will be set by the ops

team which includes science members

• Tools and Procedures will be designed to achieve mission objectives with suited crew members’ capabilities

• An example set of Science Tasks includes: – Observations

•Macro-scale (regional) context•Micro-scale (local) context

– Sample Acquisition•Curation & Containment•Sample Types [tool(s) to aid sampling]

– Rock Samples– Regolith Samples– Volatile Samples [Specialized tools and containers]– Atmospheric Samples [Specialized tools and containers]

– Data Collection•Handheld (in-situ) instrument measurements•Geotechnical measurements

– Emplacement•Science payload deployment

Notional Dust Mitigation Tool Kit Status

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• There are existing/previously flown EVA Tools that could potentially be used for dust mitigation on the moon; some may be reused as-is and some might need modifications.

• The xEVA Tools team is working to quantify the efficacy of dust removal performance with these tools and coupon-level xEMU PGS samples prior to scaling up to a full project

Apollo Dust Brush:

• Used during Apollo lunar surface missions to dust off the suit before ingress.

Apollo Lens Brush:

• Used during Apollo lunar surface missions to dust off lenses on cameras, LRV, etc.

ISS Hydrazine Brush:

• Used on ISS to wipe hydrazine and ammonia off of the EMU or equipment.

• Developed after an ammonia Fluid Quick Disconnect leaked.

Other Ideas:• Kapton Tape Roller:

• Rolls over suit to remove dust.

• Beta Cloth Tarp:• Placed on lunar

surface at the base of lander ladder.

• Boot Scrubber:• Use before

ascending ladder to remove dust from boots.

Shuttle EVA Wipe:

• Soft good mitt-shaped wipe developed for Shuttle missions to clean off grease from tile repair clean up operations.

ISS Connector Cleaner Tool:

• Used on ISS to clean debris out of electrical connectors.

• Has a compressed nitrogen cylinder with a nozzle and trigger.

COTS/Custom

Active Integrated Dosimetry Status

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• The radiation environment beyond LEO is significantly higher than that in LEO

• To address this, xEVA is attempting to provide maximum flexibility for radiation monitoring

• The current approach is to mount an Active, Integrated Dosimeter on each xEMU

• This dosimeter can alert crew to changing radiation environments in real time

Preliminary functional diagram and mechanical design of xEMU Active Integrated Dosimeter

Test and Verification

• Several Ground Facilities require update in order to adequately testthe xEMU and supporting equipment prior to flight

• Construction work has already begun for the upgrades needed tocomplete full scale human-in-the-loop thermal vacuum chambrtesting of the xEMU in 2022

• Modifications to these facilities began in 2019, the most complexupdates have already reached CDR maturity and physicalconstruction work is underway

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Hardware Progress – xEMU DVT Assembly• The Development Verification Test (DVT) xEMU PLSS is in assembly

152/18/20

Primary Oxygen Regulator 2.0 Carbon Dioxide Removal System (RCA 3.0)

Final xEMU PLSS Packaging (Aug 2019)

xEMU PLSS Pre-Qual test unit (DVT) Backplate

Latest generation components mount onto PLSS Backplate

xEMU DVT PLSS Assembly (Jan 2020)

Test and Verification

• Crewloads testing on prototype xEMU pressure garment assembly is underway• Validates analytical models of combined loads from suit delta-pressure and crew strength• Data from instrumentation on the suit itself, the foot restraint plate the load input (the Active Response Gravity Offload System, ARGOS) is viewed in real time • This is a novel use of ARGOS as a load cell originally conceived purely for gravity off-load

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xEMU SERFE Payload• The Spacesuit Evaporation Rejection Flight Experiment (SERFE) Payload is designed to reduce xEMU risks• Specifically, SERFE contains an xEMU “mini-PLSS” that runs the xEMU Thermal Loop in a miniaturized vacuum

chamber – this allows shirtsleeve access to ISS crewmembers while in the microgravity environment• SERFE is planned for delivery for launch integration this spring, installation and operations on ISS planned for the

upcoming months• Extensive test operations on ISS and ground test units will be executed, with resources such as ISS Water set aside to

simulate/test 25x 8-hr-long EVAs

17SERFE Assembly – Side View of Primary Chassis,

Remove from ISS Rack LockerMini xEMU PLSS w/SWME, Pumps,

Controllers, Check Valves, etc.SERFE Assembly – Primary Chassis in ISS

Rack Locker

Upcoming Milestone Schedule• The xEVA System Project utilizes Control Milestones to synchronize the parallel activities

across all the elements:

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# xEVA Commitment Control Milestone Type Date1 xEMU Delta SRR (Lunar content in addition to ISS xEMU Demo) NLT End of Dec 20192 SERFE Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of June 20203 xEMU Delta PDR (Lunar content in addition to ISS xEMU Demo) NLT End of July 20204 VIE PDR (Assumes HLS-xEVA IRCD’s drafted NLT June CY20) NLT End of Dec 20205 DVT/PDR-Level Fitcheck H/W avail. for testing w/Vehicles NLT End of Dec 20206 xEVA Tool Kit CDR Initiated NLT End of Dec 20207 xEMU CDR Initiated NLT End of Mar 2021 8 xEMU Qual Initiated NLT End of Oct 20219 VIE CDR NLT End of Dec 2021

10 Qual-Level Fitcheck H/W avail. for testing w/Vehicles NLT End of Sep 202211 xEMU ISS Demo A/L Mods H/W Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of Sep 202212 xEMU Artemis III/Lunar Flight Units Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of Mar 202313 xEVA Tools Flight Units Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of Mar 202314 xEVA VIE Flight Units Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of Mar 202315 xEMU ISS Demo Flight Unit Delivered for Launch Int. NLT End of Jun 2023

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Giver/Receiver Outside Project

Giver/Receiver Inside Project

Transition of Longer-Term Gaps back to Near-Term Risks

202/18/20

• Within EVA, an easy way of differentiating between “risks” and “gaps” is how soon the giventopic must be addressed

• For example, known challenges with Mars Surface thermal management merit support fortechnology development but are not addressed with the same urgency as a threat that isabout to reduce EVA capability in flight today

• Thus, when the national space policy for Artemis’ 2024 landing emerged, several things thathad been understood as longer-term Gaps became “now” Risks, for example:

Risk ID Status Risk Title Risk Statement Risk Score

Mitigation Plan Status

55 Open Lunar Ejecta

Given that the potential layup for the xEMU {for 2024} is the same as the existing ISS Layup, there is a risk that Lunar ejecta could penetrate the layers and result in loss of mission and loss of crew.

3x3 1. Conduct low {ballistic} velocity impact testing through XI5 using existing ISS layup material. 2. XI5 to generate test report and use results to feed ejecta model.3. Compare results to the PnP in SSP 51073 and assess the design. 4. If the layup design requires changes, retest.

• Funding slated for transfer to XI5 to set up testing with SwRI San Antonio in March

• Sample swatches to be delivered to JSC at the end of February

Policy changes lead to priority changes, reinforcing the value of having Gaps identified and work underway so that when changes occur, NASA is well prepared to overcome the risk

Conclusion

• xEVA and the xEMU have transitioned to implementation for Artemis III/2024

• Early Testing has significantly accelerated hardware maturity

• Upcoming integration with HLS vehicles is facilitated by:– People: SEI talking to SEI– Documentation: Mature IRCDs– Hardware: Using SPCE architecture which partitions

suit from spacecraft

• An aggressive risk management approach continues to identify and mitigate threats to schedule and performance

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xEMU Pressure Garment PrototypeNASA-HQ Artemis Suits Media Day with

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, Fall 2019

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Questions?

Risk Management Approach

• xEVA System risk management is conducted by team members at all levels of the project organization

– Project-level risks are tracked and managed by the respective Project Managers (xEMU, xBMS, ISS A/L Mods, xSPCE, EVA Tools)

– Risks that are elevated for awareness or transferred to the System Level will be tracked and managed by the EVA Office

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Gateway & ISS Risk Processes

xEVA Projects

xEVA System

xEVA Projects

– The EVA Office will elevate risks to the customer Program’s risk database when warranted

– For xEMU ISS Demo, ISS’ Integrated Risk Management Application (IRMA)– For Artemis, Gateway’s Active Risk Manager (ARM)

Test and Verification

• xEVA has emphasized early Test and Verification to reduce technical and schedule risk– The most novel components of the xEMU Portable Life Support System (the thermal control loop) has been packaged

as an ISS Payload– Testing will be executed in micro-g simultaneously with a ground unit in 1g, enveloping lunar performance– The hi-fidelity DVT PLSS unit is already in assembly and will be extensively tested in CY20– From the initiation of the project in 2017, xEVA has planned for Test and Validation of the xEMU in flight using ISS

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SERFE ISS Payload – xEMU PLSS Thermal Subsystem Flight Testing

xEMU DVT PLSS Unit in Assembly, January 2020

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