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Scientists and payload developers can get more information on International Space Station research facilities by contacting the ISS Payloads Office or at 281-244-6187.

Human Research Facility - 1 (HRF-1)
04.26.13

OpNom: HRF-1

Summary | Overview | Operations | Results | Publications | Imagery

Facility Summary

This content was provided by Cynthia P. Haven, and is maintained in a database by the ISS Program Science Office.

Brief Summary

Human Research Facility 1 (HRF-1) provides an on-orbit laboratory that enables scientists conducting human life science research to evaluate the physiological, behavioral, and chemical changes induced by space flight. Research performed using the HRF-1 provides data to help scientists understand how the human body adapts to long-duration space flight.

Facility Manager(s)

  • Cynthia P. Haven, Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, United States

    • Facility Representative(s)

    Information Pending

    Developer(s)

    Johnson Space Center, Human Research Program, Houston, TX, United States

    Sponsoring Space Agency

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

    Sponsoring Organization

    Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD)

    ISS Expedition Duration

    March 2001 - September 2014

    Expeditions Assigned

    2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19/20,21/22,23/24,25/26,27/28,29/30,31/32,33/34,35/36,37/38,39/40

    Previous ISS Missions

    Information Pending

    Availability

  • Onboard

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    Facility Overview

    • Human Research Facility 1 (HRF-1) provides an on-orbit laboratory that enables scientists conducting human life science research to evaluate the physiological, behavioral, and chemical changes induced by space flight. Research performed using the HRF-1 provides data to help scientists understand how the human body adapts to long-duration space flight.


    • HRF-1 consists of items mounted in a rack [based on the EXpedite the PRocessing of Experiments to Space Station (EXPRESS) rack design] as well as equipment kept in stowage and brought out as needed.

    Human Research Facility 1 (HRF-1) was launched aboard STS-102 (Discovery) March 8, 2001 and was installed in the U.S. Lab. During Expedition 21/22, it was moved to the Columbus Module. The HRF-1 drawers provide power, command and data handling, cooling air and water, pressurized gas, and vacuum to experiments.

    The International Space Station (ISS) moderate temperature cooling loop is extended into the HRF to keep the rack at ambient temperature. Each payload can use up to 500W of power and the sum of all payloads can use up to 2000 W of power. HRF-1 is connected to the ISS video services and Ethernet, which allow the ISS and ground operations crews to control payloads. The rack has front-panel access ports for the laptop, vacuum system, deployed payloads, and nitrogen delivery system.

    HRF-1 houses many types of equipment. Descriptions are listed below:

    • A stowage drawer holds the Ultrasound 2 which is ultrasound/Doppler equipment that has research and diagnostic applications. When deployed, the Ultrasound 2 is connected to the front of an HRF-1 by cables that provide power and allow real-time downlink of scanhead video. Ultrasound images can also be saved to the unit and transferred to the HRF PC for later downlink. The Ultrasound 2 replaced the HRF Ultrasound, which was an HRF-1 rack-mounted device, in 2011.


    • The portable computer (HRF PC) is used to install and execute software that supports HRF experiments. It is used to control equipment; to collect and store data, crew notes, and equipment notes; and to provide uplink and downlink capabilities.


    • Workstation 2 is a computer system that provides a platform for the installation and execution of software. The workstation is capable of data collection and archiving, downlink, display, video processing, graphics support, user and HRF rack interfacing, crew notes, and crew tests. It can be connected to one or more drawers in HRF-1 for use in experiments.


    • Two Cooling Stowage Drawers (CSDs) provide stowage for equipment. When in operation, the drawers maintain a uniform temperature by improving air circulation in the rack to remove the heat generated by individual powered payloads that use HRF-1..


    • The Space Linear Acceleration Mass Measurement Device (SLAMMD) was installed in HRF-1 during Expedition 11. The SLAMMD measures the on-orbit mass of the crewmembers by applying Newton's second law of motion (force is equal to mass times acceleration). This device can measure a mass between 95 and 240 lb using the force generated by two springs inside the SLAMMD drawer. Each spring is attached to a cam, which is also attached to a centrally located shaft with a flywheel mounted on top of it. The cam is designed such that, as the springs are stretched over a distance, a constant force is applied to the central shaft. A lanyard wrapped around the large flywheel is fed through a small slit on the SLAMMD front panel. The lanyard is latched onto the SLAMMD guiding arm, where the crewmember sits for a body mass measurement. Attached to the guiding arm is a leg support assembly around which the crewmember wraps his or her legs (as one would for a leg curl machine), a belly pad to help align the stomach, and a headrest.

    HRF-1 was originally launched with the following components: the HRF Ultrasound, Gas Analyzer System for Metabolic Analysis Physiology (GASMAP), portable computer, workstation, and cooling stowage drawers. During Expedition 11, the GASMAP was moved to Human Research Facility 2 (HRF-2), and SLAMMD was moved to HRF-1 from HRF-2. During Expedition 13, the original workstation was replaced with the Workstation 2. During Expedition 28, the HRF Ultrasound was replaced with the Ultrasound 2.

    Payloads in the HRF-1 can operate independently of each other regardless of their cooling and power needs and the flight schedule. The HRF power converter delivers 120V of direct current (DC) power from the utility outlet panel to the rack and converts it to 28 Vdc for distribution to the payloads. Payload computer and video operations can be conducted from the ground or on the space station. The crew performs periodic checks of all connections and hardware and performs payload operations as needed.

    Operations

    Facility Operations

    Payloads in the HRF-1 can operate independently of each other regardless of their cooling and power needs and the flight schedule. The HRF power converter delivers 120V of direct current (DC) power from the utility outlet panel to the rack and converts it to 28 Vdc for distribution to the payloads. Payload computer and video operations can be conducted from the ground or on the space station. The crew performs periodic checks of all connections and hardware and performs payload operations as needed.

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    Results/More Information

    Information Pending

    Results Publications

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    Ground Based Results Publications

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    ISS Patents

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    Related Publications

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    Related Websites
  • NIH BioMed-ISS Meeting Video Presentation, 2009?HRF-1
  • NIH BioMed-ISS Meeting, 2009?HRF-1
  • ISS Medical Project

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    Imagery

    image NASA Image: ISS02E6028 - Human Research Facility 1 shown after its installation in the U.S. Laboratory, Destiny, during Expedition 2.
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    image NASA Image: ISS006E07133 - Astronaut Donald R. Pettit, Expedition 6 NASA ISS science officer, works to set up Pulmonary Function in Flight (PuFF) hardware in preparation for a Human Research Facility (HRF) experiment in the Destiny laboratory on the International Space Station (ISS). Expedition 6 was the fourth and final expedition crew to perform the HRF PuFF experiment on the ISS.
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    image NASA Image: ISS08E06860 - Expedition 8 mission commander and science officer Michael Foale is shown wearing a customized Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS) and balancing on the footplate of a special track attached to the Human Research Facility (HRF) rack in the Destiny laboratory to perform a calibration for the Foot Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (Foot) experiment.
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    image NASA Image: ISS012E12597 - Astronaut Bill McArthur sets up the Space Linear Acceleration Mass Measurement Device (SLAMMD) in the Destiny laboratory during Expedition 12. The SLAMMD guiding arm, leg restraint, and head rest are attached to the Human Research Facility 1 (HRF-1).
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    image NASA Image ISS013E38340 - View of astronaut Jeffrey N. Williams, NASA Expedition 13 science officer and flight engineer, inserting a subrack payload into the Human Research Facility (HRF) in the U.S. Laboratory, Destiny.
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    image NASA Image: ISS025E013209 - Human Research Facility 1 in its current location, the Columbus Module, during Expedition 25. The HRF Ultrasound will be removed and replaced by stowage drawers during Expedition 28.
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    Information provided by the investigation team to the ISS Program Scientist's Office.
    If updates are needed to the summary please contact JSC-ISS-Program-Science-Group. For other general questions regarding space station research and technology, please feel free to call our help line at 281-244-6187 or e-mail at JSC-ISS-Research-Helpline.
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