Microgravity Science and Technology (2020) 32:275–280

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12217-019-09762-2

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Evaluation of the Dr. William Thornton’s Skylab BMMD

Yusaku Fujii 1 & Kazuhito Shimada 2 & Akihiro Takita 1 & William Thornton 3

Received: 29 July 2019 / Accepted: 22 October 2019 / Published online: 18 December 2019
# Springer Nature B.V. 2019

Abstract
The characteristics of a pre-flight model of the Skylab BMMD (Body Mass Measurement Device), which was made around 1970
by the team led by Dr. William Thornton, are accurately evaluated using an optical interferometer on ground. The calibration of
the BMMD is conducted using metal block weights in the range of the total mass of 4.134 kg to 100.131 kg, in which the RMS
value of the differences between the regression line and the calibrated values are 0.018 kg. Using this calibration result, the
BMMD estimates the masse values of human subjects in the range of 33.16 kg to 95.79 kg with the standard uncertainty of
0.21 kg, which corresponds to 0.2% of the maximum value of the mass of the human subjects. It is found that the oscillation of
BMMD seat is disturbed even with quiet breathing of the subject human. This is considered to be caused by the relative change of
the center of mass of the human body due to the movement of internal organs.

Keywords International Space Station (ISS) . Microgravity . Mass . Body mass . Astronaut health . Medical operations

Introduction surrounds the object. The principles proposed as mass mea-

On the International Space Station (ISS), it is necessary to
determine the body mass of astronauts for health monitoring
and the mass of specimens for scientific experiments
(Ritzmann et al. 2017; Zhu et al. 2019; Okoro et al. 2017;
Ivanova et al. 2018; Sundaresan et al. 2017; Bradamante
et al. 2018). However, among the four basic units (m, kg, s,
and A), under microgravity conditions, only the mass cannot
be measured with instruments used on the ground, such as
weight scales, electric balances and load cells. These
ground-oriented mass-measurement instruments use a uni-
form, steady and strong gravitational acceleration field on
earth. Actually, they do not measure the mass directly but
measure the gravitational force acting on the mass. Mass can
be derived via force value, which is the product of mass and
acceleration. In order to measure mass under microgravity, it
is necessary to artificially generate an acceleration field that
* Yusaku Fujii
fujii@gunma-u.ac.jp
1
School of Science and Technology, Gunma University,
Gunma 276-8515, Japan
2
TSUKUBA KOKEN, Ibaraki 305-0032, Japan
3
NASA Astronaut, Houston, USA
surement methods under microgravity conditions can be clas-
sified into the following three principles.
A) Use of the characteristic frequency of vibration
The devices in this category, in which the spring-mass sys-
tem is used, have been widely studied. Their advantage is that
they require only a relatively short measurement time and a
simple device structure (Thornton and Ord 1974; Thornton
and Ord 1975; Sarychev et al. 1980). When measuring a
non-rigid body such as human body, measurement error oc-
curs as the relative position, which is between the center of
mass of the subject and the measurement point, changes due to
deformation of the subject during measurement. The Skylab
Body Mass Measurement Device (BMMD), which was de-
veloped around 1970 in the Skylab Project by Dr. William
Thornton as the world’s first body mass measurement device
used on board, uses this principle (Thornton and Ord 1975).
However, the measurement accuracy of BMMD is unknown,
since no calibration data has been published. This BMMD is
not currently in use on the ISS. The BMMD developed in
former Soviet Union is likewise based on this principle
(Sarychev et al. 1980) and its modified model, the Russian
BMMD, is currently used on the ISS. However, the measure-
ment accuracy of the Russian BMMD installed on the ISS is
unknown, since no calibration data has been published.
276
B) Use of centrifugal force
The advantage of the use of centrifugal force is that it is
constant in time. One of the disadvantages is that a device
using centrifugal force requires a larger device frame.
Another disadvantage is that since the acceleration field
changes in the radial direction, it is necessary and difficult to
estimate the position of the center of mass of the subject. This
method has potential for yielding highly accurate measure-
ments of a rigid and small object (Rivetti et al. 2008).
C) Use of momentum or inertial force
In some methods, the momentum or the inertial force of the
subject is measured (Smith and Kaufman 1998; Fujii et al.
1999; Fujii et al. 2010). The NASA Space Linear
Acceleration Mass Measurement Device (SLAMMD) for the
Human Research Facility (HRF), which is currently used on
the ISS, uses this principle (Smith and Kaufman 1998).
However, the measurement accuracy of the SLAMMD is un-
known, since no calibration data has been published. Authors
propose a method, in which a bungee cord is used to take
advantage of a longer measurement length and a smaller de-
vice size (Fujii et al. 1999; Fujii et al. 2010).
Although the calibration data of the two BMMDs currently
used on the ISS, i.e. the SLAMMD and the Russian BMMD,
has not been published, the relative comparison of the two
devices have been conducted (Campbell and Charles 2019),
in which the reported relative average difference between the
measurement results by the two devices is approximately
1.2 kg.
In this paper, the characteristics of a pre-flight model of the
Dr. William Thornton’s Skylab BMMD (Body Mass
Measurement Device), which was made around 1970, have
been accurately evaluated using an optical interferometer on
ground.
Experiment
Figure 1 shows the diagram of the pre-flight model of the
Skylab BMMD, which is based on the spring-mass system.
The whole structure is made of duralumin. A seat with a grasp
bar, which holds a human subject, is supported by 2 sets of
parallel spring mechanism so that it moves/oscillates in the
horizontal plane. This smart layout eliminates sliding parts
with friction, such as a linear ball bearing and a rotation ball
bearing.
Figure 2 schematically shows the experimental setup.
Figure 3 shows the photos of setup for evaluating the charac-
teristics of the BMMD with optical interferometry. A cube-
corner prism (CC), which is the measurement point of the
optical interferometer, is attached on the seatback.
Microgravity Sci. Technol. (2020) 32:275–280
Stopper
Mechanism
(at release
position)
CC
Seat part Rigid structure
for holding human subject of
parallel spring
structure
Flat
spring/hinge
elements
of
parallel spring
structure
Fig. 1 A flight model of the Skylab BMMD (Top view)
A Zeeman-type two-frequency He-Ne laser is used as the
light source of the optical interferometer. The seat velocity is
calculated from the measured Doppler shift frequency of the
signal beam of the laser interferometer, fDoppler, which is
expressed as.
 
v ¼ λair f Doppler =2;
f Doppler ¼ −ð f
beat –f rest Þ;
where λair is the wavelength of the signal beam under the
experimental conditions, fbeat is the beat frequency, i.e., the
frequency difference between the signal beam and the refer-
ence beam, frest is the rest frequency, which is equivalent to
fbeat when the moving part is at a standstill. The position of the
CC is calculated by integrating the velocity. The origin of the
period is defined as the center of the oscillation.
The frequency fbeat appearing at photo diode (PD) is mea-
sured using an electric frequency counter (model: R5363;
manufactured by Advantest Corp., Japan). It continuously
measures and records the beat frequency, fbeat, 3000 times at
a sampling interval of T = 40,000/ fbeat, and stores the values
in its memory. This counter continuously measures the inter-
val time every 40,000 periods without measurement dead
time. The sampling period of the counter is approximately
15 ms at a frequency of 2.7 MHz. Another counter of the same
model measures the frequency frest, which is approximately
2.7 MHz and appears at the output port of PD embedded in the
laser head. The counters measure the frequencies without dead
time and the sampling interval T can be exactly calculated
using the measured frequency f and the expression T =
40,000/f.
Experiments consist of 2 parts. First, measurements using
reference masses are conducted to calibrate the BMMD.
Second, measurements using human subjects are conducted
to evaluate the uncertainty of the BMMD in measuring the
body mass of human subjects.
For the first part of measurements, 20 combinations of
metal block weights in the range of the total mass of
Microgravity Sci. Technol. (2020) 32:275–280 277

Trigger signal
DAC

GP-IB
Computer

Counter Counter
Advantest R5363 Advantest R5363
Stopper
Mechanism
(at holding fbeat frest
position)
CC
PD

Reference
beam GTP

CC
Seat part Zeeman type
for holding human subject He-Ne laser
Signal
beam PBS

Fig. 2 Experimental setup (Code: CC = cube corner prism, PBS = polarizing beam splitter, GTP = Glan-Thompson prism, PD = photo diode, DAC =
digital-to-analog converter)

4.134 kg to 100.131 kg are prepared as the reference masses
for the calibration of the BMMD. The 20 combinations of the
reference weights are pre-calibrated with an uncertainty of 2 g
using an electronic balance.
For the second part of measurements, 9 human subjects, i.e.
1 male child and 8 male adults, in the range of body mass of
33.16 kg to 95.79 kg participated. The mass values of the 9
human subjects are pre-calibrated with an uncertainty of 10 g
using an electronic balance.
The following is the measurement procedure performed at
the time of the Skylab project.
[1] The seat is held at the initial position using the stopper
latch.

Experimenter Grab bar Human subject Cube corner Prism

Frame of Seat for holding Rigid structure of

BMMD human subject Parallel spring mechanism
Spring/hinge element
Fig. 3 Photos of the flight model of the Skylab BMMD
278 Microgravity Sci. Technol. (2020) 32:275–280

[2] The subject astronaut under test sits on the seat and
makes his/her body as rigid as possible.
[3] The stopper is released by the experimenter. The seat
begins to oscillate at its characteristic frequency.
[4] The average period of the oscillation is measured using a
motion sensor, i.e. light switch.
[5] The mass of the subject is estimated by applying the
calibration result obtained beforehand to the measured
period.
[6] How to breathe is not specified throughout the
measurement.
In this experiment, the movement of the seat is accurately
measured using the optical interferometer instead of the mo-
tion sensor. The period of the oscillation is calculated as the
average value of the first 10 periods, which is defined as the
difference between the first zero-crossing time from negative
to positive and the eleventh one.
Results
Figure 4 shows the change in position of the measurement
point, i.e. the optical center of the cube corner prism (CC)
attached to the backside of the seat of the BMMD. Figure 4
(a) shows the result with the metal weight of 63.498 kg.
Figure 4 (b) shows the result with the human subject of
61.41 kg, in which the subject, at the beginning, halts breath-
ing for approximately 30 s, then starts a slow and soft breath-
ing. It is observed that the vibration of BMMD is disturbed by
breathing.
Figure 5 shows the relationship between period and mass
of the reference weights. The results of 20 swing measure-
ments using the reference weights of the mass range of
4.134 kg to 100.131 kg and one without using any weight
are shown.
The regression line,
M ¼ 0:418T 5 −3:8458 T 4 þ 11:344 T 3 þ 5:7614 T 2
þ 11:065 T−13:131 ð1Þ
is also shown in Fig. 5.
The RMS value of the differences between the regression
line and the calibrated values are 0.018 kg.
Figure 6 shows the relationship between period and mass
of the human subjects. The results of 9 swing measurements
with the human subjects of the mass range of 33.16 kg to
95.79 kg are shown. The calibration result, i.e. the regression
line (1) obtained from the results of the reference weights, is
also shown. The RMS value of the differences between the
calibration result and the calibrated values of the human sub-
jects are 0.21 kg. Therefore, the standard uncertainty in mea-
suring the mass of human subjects in the rage of 33.16 kg to
95.79 kg is estimated to be 0.21 kg.

Fig. 4 Change in position 0.010

0.008
x (m)

0.006
0.004
0.002
0.000
-0.002
-0.004
-0.006
-0.008
-0.010
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0

(a) Reference weight (M=63.498 kg) t (s)

No breathing Breathing
0.010
0.008
x (m)

0.006
0.004
0.002
0.000
-0.002
-0.004
-0.006
-0.008
-0.010
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0
t (s)
(b) Human subject (M=61.41) (“Breathing” is stopped for the first 25 seconds)
Microgravity Sci. Technol. (2020) 32:275–280 279

120.0

M (kg)
100.0
80.0
60.0
40.0
20.0
0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
t (s)
Fig. 5 Relationship between mass and period (reference weights)
Discussions
In the ground experiment, with the Skylab BMMD, the body mass
values of the human subjects are measured with the standard un-
certainty of 0.21 kg by using the result of calibration with the
reference metal weights. This uncertainty has been accepted for
astronaut health management for the ISS medical operations.
In the microgravity environment, it is expected that the
calibration curve shown in Fig. 5 will slightly change.
However, except the effect by the deformation due to gravity
of the mechanical structure of the Skylab BMMD, including
the frames, the parallel springs and the seat, and the effect of
pneumatic resistance, the Skylab BMMD should work on the
ISS with the similar accuracy as on ground. Since it moves/
oscillates in the horizontal plane, the effect by the deformation
due to gravity will be small. It can be ignored if the calibration
using the standard weights is conducted on the ISS. The effect
by pneumatic resistance can be also ignored if the calibration
is conducted under the same atmospheric pressure on the ISS.
120.0
M (kg)
As for the two BMMDs currently used on the ISS, i.e. the
SLAMMD and the Russian BMMD, the measurement uncer-
tainty is unknown, since their calibration data has not been
published. However, the average measurement difference be-
tween the two is reported to be 1.2 kg (Campbell and Charles
2019), which is approximately 6 times larger than the standard
uncertainty of 0.21 kg with the Skylab BMMD. It is surprising
that the Skylab BMMD made around 1970 seems to be more
accurate than the devices currently in use on the ISS.
The major advantage of the Skylab BMMD is its smooth mo-
tion, which is realized by its simple mechanical structure without
any sliding contact. On the other hand, the SLAMMD, which is
2.5
currently used on the ISS, has a complicated and weak mechanical
structure with many sliding contacts (Smith and Kaufman 1998).
The Russian BMMD uses a liner ball bearing to realize a liner
motion of the subject astronauts, however, a relatively large change
in posture of the subject during the measurement are still observed
even from the video observation (Campbell and Charles 2019). In
addition, relatively large sound noise due to sliding motion is
produced. These facts, such as the posture change of the subject
and the friction inside the device, might result in measurement
errors. The Russian BMMD was replaced in 2018, but its design
principle stayed the same.
It is found that the oscillation of BMMD seat is disturbed by
breathing, even by a quiet one. This is considered to be caused by
the inertial force generated by the relative movement of the center
of mass of the human body due to the movement of respiratory
organs. In another experiment, it is also observed that the oscilla-
tion of the seat is amplified by respiration and the seat continuously
collides on both sides of the frame. This is considered to be caused
by the subject’s unconsciously synchronizing the breathing cycle
to the BMMD oscillation cycle. The force caused by the airflow
generated by breathing might also affect the oscillation.
Since the Skylab BMMD has a strong mechanical structure, it
can work accurately even on ground with gravitational accelera-
tion field. That means it can also work accurately on Moon and on
Mars. If the usage environment is limited to a weightless environ-
ment, a lighter and smaller configuration may be considered.
In the future, we would construct a numerical model of the

BMMD including human body, and then clarify the influence

100.0 of the following factors on mass measurement, by the com-
parison of the numerical analysis and the experiment results.
80.0

(1) Level of gravity and the magnitude of deformation of the

60.0
seat and its frame.
(2) Human posture and muscle relaxation.
40.0
(3) Breathing.
(4) Heart beat and blood flow.
20.0

0.0
We would like to improve the understanding on the Skylab
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 BMMD and to develop the improved device and its measure-
t (s) ment procedure for realizing the highest measurement
Fig. 6 Relationship between mass and period (human subjects) accuracy.
280
Conclusion
The characteristics of a pre-flight model Skylab BMMD
(Body Mass Measurement Device), which was manufactured
around 1970, is accurately evaluated using an optical interfer-
ometer. The BMMD estimated the mass of human subjects in
the subject mass range of 33.16 kg to 95.79 kg with the stan-
dard uncertainty of 0.21 kg, which corresponds to 0.2% of the
maximum value of the mass of the subject. It is also confirmed
that the subject’s breathing has a significant effect on the
measurement.
Acknowledgments The authors thank the Master-course students of
Gunma University, who helped in the experiment, especially Mr. K.
Suzuki and K. Nakaya.
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