Registered: Nov 1999
Location:
Posts: 62

I think that the Visor would be a great astronauts companion. Years ago, I read that NASA made special modules for the HP 41CV calculator for performing orbital calculations and other necessary functions in the event of an on-board computer failure. I think that with a little thought, a bunch of software could be written and an "Asto-Visor" springboard developed.

Some of the things I can think of are:

1) Operational Check Lists
2) Experiment Instructions, notes and results
3) Orbital calculations
4) Biology reference texts
5) Oxygen, Carbon Monoxide sensors
6) Bluetooth communication net
7) Accelerometer

I think that a lot of the things that they use laptops for now could be done with a Visor.

What else can this creative crowd think of that an Astronaut could do with his Astro-Visor?

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 22

I'd buy a Pocket-SETI device, with capabilities to send and receive messages between another civilizations (hey, if we can decode the software of alien computers in "Independence Day", we can do this)

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

A few years ago, someone from NASA was asking for help with a program that one of the astronauts on the Shuttle was having with their PalmPilot.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Potomac, MD, USA
Posts: 90

JHromadka--

Are you saying that Palms have been up in space?

That would be awesome (and a great marketing device). All of the successful missions can have big PalmOS logos or Handspring Logos on them, while the probes that crash into Mars can have big WinCE logos on them .

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JakeBlues2
"the BAND!"

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: Barnegat, NJ, USA
Posts: 72

I dont think the BlueTooth would be possable from so far away from the ground...

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Baltimore MD, USA
Posts: 717

Some sort of geiger counter springboard could come in handy.

I remember seeing a Grid Compass laptop at the Smithsonian Air and Space museum that was a shuttle back-up unit. It was running a program that showed a map of the earth with sine-wave orbital tracks on it, like you see at NASA Mission Control. That would be a useful Visor app.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

Yep, someone from NASA posted about it. Click here to read it. You can also go to the Pilot Mailing list archive at www.ultraviolet.org and do a search on NASA.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Nov 1999
Location:
Posts: 62

Hey JHromadka,

That is pretty cool! Thanks for the link.

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 95

Was the NASA version called a "PalmAstronaut"?

Sorry!

MJH <><

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Mililani, HI, USA
Posts: 256

Brennerj,

Why would bluetooth not work in space? I thought it doesn't depend on a cell network, but is strictly limited to unit-to-unit transmission. That's why its range is so short. It's not a alternative to wireless networking proper.

I think it would be great for use between astronaut-to-astronaut in different parts of the shuttle or station, provided the units are within range.

Or have I misunderstood bluetooth technology?

[This message has been edited by ragamuffinn (edited 11-16-1999).]

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

Heck, Bluetooth may work better in space because there isn't much there to interfere with the radio frequency.

I personally am looking forward to Bluetooth so I can chat with people in meetings. I have the BSBingo game, now I'm ready to send useless comments to coworkers!

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 54

Not completely related to Visors, but NASA is developing Personal Orbiting Assistants, little orb like things apparantly about the size of a grapefruit, that will have independant propulsion and navigation systems. They're intended to hover around and about the astronauts while working (both inside and out), measuring environmental conditions, as well as poking around in areas (with an onboard camera of course) that an astronaut may not be able to see or reach.

While I'm sure these things have some kind of proprietary control device, who knows, with bluetooth and a visor, we might all have our own little personal orbiting device someday?

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: Barnegat, NJ, USA
Posts: 72

Ragamuffin,
I dont know about you but i dont know anyone in space let alone anyone else in space who has bluetooth in space any way where would the signal originate from? a satalite maybe but thats not currently available on the Hubble.

Registered: Nov 1999
Location:
Posts: 62

Hey Zephyr,

I read about that. It is very cool stuff. It uses fans on three axis for motion. Alegedly it will respond to voice commands, patrol the station unattended to monitor for problems and be able to do visual inspections in areas of the shuttle that haven't been looked at since it was assembled (small tight spaces).

I thought Bluetooth would be useful for communicating with each other in the spacecraft, and even for automated science payloads. If you built in the right hardware into the experiment package, you could use a bluetooth equipped Visor to query the status and make adjustments etc. like a portable remote control.

[This message has been edited by beaker (edited 11-16-1999).]

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Potomac, MD, USA
Posts: 90

Bluetooth should definitely work in space, as the radio waves from it would propagate easily through the Ether which fills all of outer space allowing various forms of EM energy to travel in a vacuum. The higher presence of ether in space could potentially improve communication.

By the way, this information is from my Physics textbook from 1852, and if anybody has any updates that change my understanding of how this stuff works, I'd be glad to hear. For now, it should be good enough....

(I'm an EE by the way)

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Mililani, HI, USA
Posts: 256

brennerj,

Thw whole point is that the bluetooth signal originates from the units themselves. Bluetooth is all about unit-to-unit "networks"--which are not dependent on a cell network. Their range is supposedly limited to a measly 30 feet. (Though, if I'm reading correctly what JakeBlues2 has written, there is a possibility that transmission range in space could be greater by default.) Imagine that bluetooth is a data-transceiver technology (like walkie-talkies, but different). It isn't dependent on a backbone system. It's obvious that this technology is quite unlike what is currently en vogue now. It's new territory. Go to http://www.bluetooth.com/v2/faq/default.asp
It's all there. What's important is that it's secure radio networking for cheap, small form factors and on it's way to industry standardization.

Like you, I don't know any astronauts on earth or in space, and I therefore cannot speculate on whether any one of them owns a Palm device. But if such knowledge were the requisite criteria for contributing to this thread, I suspect that there would be no participants. We are merely speculating on the possible uses of bluetooth in space. Whether an astronaut or cosmonaut would even want to use a Visor with bluetooth is another question. But whether there is or could be a use, and whether that use is viable are the discussions at hand.

I apologize if my question to you seemed direct. I didn't mean for it to be. I asked you my question only because I thought maybe I didn't understand what bluetooth was all about and that maybe you knew something about it that the rest of us didn't.

[This message has been edited by ragamuffinn (edited 11-17-1999).]

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Deep Space.
Posts: 76

The astronaut office at NASA JSC is unfortunatly considering two WinCE devices, but I haven't heard of any definitive decision yet. Since it takes about a year to actually get the hardware certified for flight, this type of decision takes awhile, and once made is costly to change.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

Hmm,

If WinCE devices are so difficult to read outside, imagine how hard they will be to read in space!

Hopefully they were going to use Everex or Phillips and will have to redecide.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Deep Space.
Posts: 76

Actually, if memory serves, the Phillips Nino was one being talked about. We'll have to see how this turns out.

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: Barnegat, NJ, USA
Posts: 72

Ragmuffin,
That is not what i ment its simply that where is the internet signal coming from? it has to come from somewhere first a sort of transiever that takes in maybe internet data via statelite and transmits the internet using blue tooth that is why only certain citys have bluetooth now cause there signal does not range very far the signal "hops" from Bluetooth to bluetooth not from phone to bluetooth I know that But it The internet has to come from some where first before its transmitted in bluetooth to bluetooth to bluetooth etc. so since there is no bluetooth transiver in space yet this cannot be accomplished sorry if i am wrong but this is how a developer explained it to me.

Justin