Bio-Inspired Sensor Swarms to Detect Leaks in Pressurized Systems

Abstract

Revolutionary technologies for quickly locating and repairing leaks in the pressurized environment of the International Space Station are a critical NASA need. Leaks caused by the malfunction of on-board vacuum systems, or leaks caused by impact with space debris pose very serious safety concerns that must be dealt with rapidly and effectively. The detection of a pressure drop by any one of several primary cabin pressure sensors distributed throughout the pressurized environment release a swarm of highly sensitive pressure sensors in the vicinity of pressure change. Sensors shaped for navigating in microgravity environments compute the air-flow direction and are swept along a decreasing pressure gradient towards the leak. Self-organizing abilities enable the sensor swarm to follow the pressure gradient and quickly detect and plug the leak source. A sensor swarm is a novel bio-inspired technology to detect and fix leaks in any pressurized containment in microgravity environments.