A human factors evaluation of a methodology for pressurized crew module acceptability for zero-gravity ingress of spacecraft

The purpose of this research was to develop a methodology for evaluating the performance and acceptability characteristics of the pressurized crew module volume suitability for zero-gravity (g) ingress of a spacecraft. The methodology was tested by performing an evaluation of the operational acceptability of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Crew Return Vehicle (CRV) for: zero-g ingress of astronaut crew; volume for crew tasks; and the general crew module and seat layout.; This research is significant because no standard or methodology has ever been established for evaluating volume acceptability in human space flight vehicles. Volume affects the ability of the astronauts to ingress and egress the vehicle, to maneuver in the vehicle, and to perform critical operational tasks inside the vehicle. Much research has been conducted in the areas of aircraft ingress, egress, and rescue in order to establish military and civil aircraft standards. However, due to the extremely limited number of human rated spacecraft, this topic has been unaddressed.; The NASA CRV was used for this study. The prototype vehicle can return a seven member crew from the International Space Station in the event of a medical or station emergency. The vehicle's internal arrangement must be designed to facilitate rapid zero-g ingress, zero-g maneuverability, ease of one-g egress and rescue, and ease of operational tasks in multiple acceleration environments. A full-scale crew module mockup was built and outfitted with representative adjustable seats, crew equipment, and a volumetrically equivalent hatch.; Human factors testing of this mockup was conducted in three acceleration environments (zero-g, one-g, and 1.8-g's) using ground based facilities and the KC-135 aircraft. Performance and acceptability measurements were collected. Data analysis was conducted using analysis of variance and nonparametric techniques.