Advanced Health Management Algorithms for Crew Exploration Applications

Achieving the goals of the President's Vision for Exploration will require new and innovative ways to achieve reliability increases of key systems and sub-systems. The most prominent approach used in current systems is to maintain hardware redundancy. This imposes constraints to the system and utilizes weight that could be used for payload for extended lunar, Martian, or other deep space missions. A technique to improve reliability while reducing the system weight and constraints is through the use of an Advanced Health Management System (AHMS). This system contains diagnostic algorithms and decision logic to mitigate or minimize the impact of system anomalies on propulsion system performance throughout the powered flight regime. The purposes of the AHMS are to increase the probability of successfully placing the vehicle into the intended orbit (Earth, Lunar, or Martian escape trajectory), increase the probability of being able to safely execute an abort after it has developed anomalous performance during launch or ascent phases of the mission, and to minimize or mitigate anomalies during the cruise portion of the mission. This is accomplished by improving the knowledge of the state of the propulsion system operation at any given turbomachinery vibration protection logic and an overall system analysis algorithm that utilizes an underlying physical model and a wide array of engine system operational parameters to detect and mitigate predefined engine anomalies. These algorithms are generic enough to be utilized on any propulsion system yet can be easily tailored to each application by changing input data and engine specific parameters. The key to the advancement of such a system is the verification of the algorithms. These algorithms will be validated through the use of a database of nominal and anomalous performance from a large propulsion system where data exists for catastrophic and noncatastrophic propulsion sytem failures.