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Large diameter, tightly toleranced fastener patterns are commonplace in aerospace structures. Satisfactory generation of these holes is often challenging and can be further complicated by difficult or obstructed access. Bespoke tooling and drill jigs are typically used in conjunction with power feed units leading to a manual, inflexible, and expensive manufacturing process. For 777X flap production, Boeing and Electroimpact collaborated to create a novel, automated solution to generate the fastener holes for the main carrier fitting attachment pattern. Existing robotic automation used for skin to substructure assembly was modified to utilize extended length (up to 635mm), bearing-supported drill bar sub-assemblies. These Long Assembly Drills (LADs) had to be easily attached and detached by one operator, interface with the existing spindle(s), supply cutting lubricant, extract swarf on demand, and include a means for automatically locating datum features.

Clothing accounts for a surprisingly large quantity of resupply and waste on the International Space Station (ISS), of the order of 14% of the equivalent system mass (ESM). Efforts are underway in the ISS program to reduce this, but much greater changes are likely to be possible and justifiable for long duration missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Two approaches are being assessed for long duration missions: to reduce the mass of the wardrobe through use of lighter fabrics, and to clean clothing on board for reuse. Through good design including use of modern fabrics, a lighter weight wardrobe is expected to be feasible. Collateral benefits should include greater user comfort and reduced lint generation. A wide variety of approaches to cleaning is possible. The initial evaluation was made based on a terrestrial water-based washer and dryer system, as this represents the greatest experience base.

Equivalent system mass (ESM) was defined in 1997 as an integral part of the Advanced Life Support project metric. It is particularly suited to comparing technologies that differ in mass, volume, power, cooling, and crew time during the early phases of a program. In principle, ESM can also be used to compare technologies that differ in other parameters. In practice, the necessary data is generally not available, and this limits this application. ESM has proven to be a useful tool. Like any tool, its strengths and weaknesses must be understood. This paper documents the history, capability and methods used in connection with ESM.

Conclusions based on the airborne experiments with laser radars are summarized in this paper. Details of the equipment and the flight procedures will be displayed during the oral presentation at the conference.