ESP Engineering Mtg -- Jan 3, 2008

10:30am-12
Present: Jim, Cheri, Addie, Brent, Doug, Scott

Tech Transfer

•    Cheri; plan for hand cold-testing/re-valving by Jan 15

Bruce in chamber on Monday and running a shuffle (looped).  It had stopped with forearm errors.  Brent will help find when/why crashed.  Restarted shuffle on Weds, but after awhile if gets worse and worse and stops.  Does it both in cold and at room temp. 

ACTION: Brent will show Cheri and Addie how to read log (Brent & Cheri & Addie)

•    Status of slow-running intake on GG

GG's pressure sensor broken.  Found that the clamp holes were too small, and installation torqued the sensors so they were wrongly calibrated. Our fix is was to recalibrate when clamps are pressurized, but this masked the  real problem.  Not that pressure sensor mounting holes are correct, must run a sample on GG to see if it's smilar to NEO.

ACTION:  run a sample on GG to compare to NEO (Scott)

•    Status of manipulator hands

Have one hand but lots of calibration issues.  Parts for other two hands still on hold until first one works.  Mike currently working on valve motor mounts and gears. 

ACTION:  meet with Mike Parker to discuss the cam assembly and redesign of the cam motor mount.  Decide about the assembly (Scott)

Will get one hand working then build 3 more.  Cheri discussed the design of the linkage which make the hands not move together when they close.  Currently all arms are the same (non-ideal) design.

ACTION:  Will rev the drawing and have El Camino make enough to retrofit all hands (Doug) 

•    Drill out pressure sensor holes in clamps

ACTION: Will do this when we revalve the cores. (Scott/Cheri)

•    Status of cold-rated syringes?
sent an email but nothing back from company...
ACTION: call and find out where the company is in development (Scott)

•    Status of Dwarf Board order?
Jose adding up inventory.  We will need enough for 2 cores and 8 MFBs and spares (at least 1 full core and enough spares for 8 MFB's[3 dwarves, 2 R's]).  Tally up, look at production run, and scale up for best economy.  Will place order early January.

ACTION: check with Jose and  Tom (Scott)

•    CMORE workshop Jan. 14-17; 

• roll-up core and MFB to Pacific Forum

• clean B125 lab
• clean up MFB (get rid of sleepy/medusa of wires/tubes, have a 'show' script)

Will take sleepy off MFB and give to Brent and substitute with dwarf, and Addie will work on cleaning and gussing up MFB

Final Tech Transfer Issues

The plastic chamber box; should be as near the volume of the cylinder as possible.  Will not be using endcap since it doesn't fit.  Talk to Jim S. to build the  box.

Connectors; have researched how to populate the lid--only one power, ethernet, console, contextual sensors (3), modem, external sampler.  Will remove these from the 1K housing.

ACTION:  move connectors from 1K to the test box (Doug & Cheri)

MFB

• Update on solid Phase Extraction.  Protocol development?

SPE working well now.  Further protocol refinements will  wait until Chris P. has submitted her paper. 

• place order with MAXON for MFB spares (Addie)

Ordered.  just need the PO approved.  6-8 week lead time. 

• Update on PSV valve addition and connection w/ core
•  Should talk to VICI about putting new connector in  AIVports 3, 5, 6, to allow us to connect to 1/4-28 core fittings.  Or see if we can use existing MFB tubing and see if compression fitting works to the 1/4-28 connections. Addie will figure out how to connect ports 3, 5, 6 with no bubbles. (Addie).  They have been called; waiting for response.

•    Report on syringe lubrication.  Success?

Has lubed it several times, but still getting trajectory errors.  The motor is at the edge of it's capability (moving almost TOO slowly).  Addie has 2-3 motors with bigger gear box, 2-3 with better encoder, and 2-3 with both.

ACTION:  will try many of these motors, then work on flipping. Must get to the slow speed of 1ul/sec. (Addie) 

ACTION:  Change PSR name to ASR and change scripts. We need a naming convention for the 3-ways on the MFB.  Brent needs to be brought in on this (Scott/Brent/Addie)

There was discussion of running our reagents out at LLNL to see if we can emulate their results, but with our reagents.  Will discuss with LLNL.

ACTION:  talk to Tony and get timeline on next MFB (Jim) 

Software

•    Status of current Ruby version.  Close to lock-down?

Brent has written a fix that is more efficient when bouncing between threads.  So no garbage collection issues now.  Was unable to recreate the error with DWSM, but found a problem with driving the I2C bus with a fast laptop--maybe something related to how quickly data is driven to the serial command bus.  

Ruby interpreter is stable for this year.  As close to 'frozen' that we'll get. 

ACTION: Set-up sleepy board and an elmo on desk to emulate (Brent)

ACTION:  change laptops and ARM boards and install the new Ruby interpreter (Brent)

ACTION:  working on a cue of interrupts in the threading environment--[low priority] (Brent)

ACTION:  Work with the auto-cal code (Brent)

•    Issues for Wayne:
o    Low power CPU replacement
o    USB camera porting from Kernel 2.4 to Kernel 2.6
o    Improve dwarve DC servo control algorithm
o    Improve ESP hardware simulator (Ruby)

Low power CPU being put off until after spring deployment.   Sirus (sp?) chip may work,  but Russian company has a great sleep state DRAM board.  From now to March, we should explore both these options.  March we make a decision, and then bring in Wayne the help with the implementation.

ACTION:  Speak with Wayne about his timeline with BIOSA and his ability to commit to low-power studies for us.  (Jim) 

Sphere and 4K DWSMS

•    New order of Pucks placed?  Charges went through Chris S?
•    Serial numbering of pucks
ACTION: Collect and inventory all pucks (Chris S to get Nilo).  Then will send 1/2 to Mike Parker to be etched (Scott).  Still be to done.
•    Pressure pots.  Ordered 1 five, 1 ten.

•    Battery/power issues for spring deployments
stick with alkaline.  Do we need more boxes?  Need 4 boxes initially.  Not working on low power issues.  Must order minimum of 1 box of batteries in early 2008.

We need a total of 6 boxes for the spring deployment, and have 5.  4 of those 5 are D-cells.  Two boxes will run around $4K (without batteries)

ACTION:   Buy two boxes, populate with D-cells.  One with lead-acid will remain lead-acid. (Scott) Jim get account # to charge.

•    4K DWSM update
o    machining
o    proof of concept steel housing?
•    Progress on 1K article?

Will not use Ti for the sampling system.  Until we prove the aqualung works, no need to make out of Ti.  So will make out of SS for around $8K for the housings.  Next month we'll build up a plastic system we can run up to 100psi.

ACTION: will try and have model done by end of Jan--depends on pumps (Doug) 

Items Pending:

Chris P. must work with Brent before spring deployments to solve sampling problem
Chris P. and Brent need to address high volume issues for Sept deployment.
BIOSA integration as a contextual sensor.  ACTION: how will BIOSA integrate and drivers needed (Brent & Wayne)
Three new surface cans for 2008

ACTION: Get quote from Gene and place order (Jim)

Timeline (This schedule is its own page in Confluence):
1.  Cold Test Bruce with his new hand and re-valve Mack with new motors and mounts
(2 weeks; Dec 31--->Jan 15)
2. Cold test Mack w/ his new valves/hand and re-valve both Bruce and Neo (2 weeks; Jan 15-->Jan 29)
3. Begin 1 month test in chamber with MACK (~4 weeks; Feb 1-->Feb 25)
          * Cheri to design and construct box
          * Use fittings from deep canister
          * sample pressure pots
4. Prep for Spring deployments (Feb 25-->Feb 29)
5. Deploy MACK (March 3)
          * Cold test Bruce (Mar 3 - Mar 17) and Neo (Mar 17 - Apr 1)
6.  Recover MACK, Deploy BRUCE (Apr 1)
7.  Recover BRUCE, Deploy MACK (May 1)
8. Recover MACK (May 27), Deploy both BRUCE and NEO (May 28)
9. End mission Jun 30.