ELITE S2 – A Facility for Quantitative Human Movement Analysis on Board the ISS

• Published in: Microgravity science and technology Vol. 26; no. 4; pp. 271 - 278
• Main Authors: Neri, Gianluca, Mascetti, Gabriele, Zolesi, Valfredo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.11.2014; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aerospace Technology and Astronautics; Assessments; Bilateral agreements; Classical and Continuum Physics; Engineering; Grounds; Human motion; International Space Station; Onboard; Original Article; Segments; Space Exploration and Astronautics; Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics; Space shuttles; Weightlessness; ELITE S2; Motor control of human subject; Passive optoelectronic equipment; Quantitative human movement analysis; User support operations center
• ISSN: 0938-0108; 1875-0494
• DOI: 10.1007/s12217-014-9396-7

This paper describes the activities for utilization and control of ELITE S2 on board the International Space Station (ISS). ELITE S2 is a payload of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) for quantitative human movement analysis in weightlessness. Within the frame of a bilateral agreement with NASA, ASI has funded a number of facilities, enabling different scientific experiments on board the ISS. ELITE S2 has been developed by the ASI contractor Kayser Italia, delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in 2006 for pre-flight processing, launched in 2007 by the Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-118), integrated in the U.S. lab and used during the Increments 16/17 (2008) and 33/34 (2012/2013). The ELITE S2 flight segment comprises equipment mounted into an Express Rack and a number of stowed items to be deployed for experiment performance (video cameras and accessories). The ground segment consists in a User Support Operations Center (based at Kayser Italia) enabling real-time payload control and a number of User Home Bases (located at the ASI and PIs premises), for the scientific assessment of the experiment performance. Two scientific protocols on reaching and cognitive processing have been successfully performed in eight sessions involving three ISS crewmembers: IMAGINE 2 and MOVE.