IVA the Robot: Design Guidelines and Lessons Learned from the First Space Station Laboratory Manipulation System

The first interactive Space Station Freedom (SSF) laboratory robot exhibit has been installed at the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama and has been running daily since March. IVA the Robot is mounted in a full scale United States Laboratory (USL) mockup to educate the public on possible automation and robotic applications aboard the SSF. Responding to audio and video instructions at the Command Console, exhibit patrons may prompt IVA to perform a housekeeping task or give a speaking tour of the module. Other exemplary space station tasks are simulated and the public can even challenge IVA to a game of tic-tac-toe.

In anticipation of such a system being built for the Space Station, a discussion is provided of the approach taken, along with suggestions for applicability to the Space Station environment.