MIMIK was a prototype training application for astronaut training that I was the project lead on. It is a 3D sandbox environment that tracked how the user interacted with objects, tools, experiments, etc in the scene. MIMIK consisted of action blocks (move, rotate, depress button, attach, etc) that could be performed on objects in the 3D environment. As the user interacted with objects in this way, MIMIK would basically make a list of these actions and the object they were performed on.

An instructor or scientist could use MIMIK to recreate the steps of a procedure of using a specific tool or even a whole science experiment. MIMIK would track these interactions and then when the instructor was done, they could export a training module package, complete with extra notes, reference photos, and videos attached to specific steps if they wanted. An astronaut could then take one of these training modules and load it into MIMIK and work through the training course in a gamified way. MIMIK would give them feedback as they progressed through the training.

MIMIK was lightweight enough to be run on a laptop, which is a common tool for astronauts, whether they are on earth or in space. MIMIK was an on demand training application, meaning that astronauts could load MIMIK, run through a training course real quick before doing or while doing the actual experiment or using the actual tool. This kind of training will be crucial when visiting destinations far from Earth, like Mars, where these is a long delay in communications between the astronaut and mission control.

Being the lead on this project, I was tasked with designing the architecture of the code. My initial design actually worked very well and we didn’t deviate from it. It proved to be very flexible and was capable of requesting changes from our testers.

Besides programming, my other duties as project lead was to delegate work to the other programmers and artists on team, making sure we met deadlines, conducting tests with play testers (usually astronauts), keeping management and the funding board updated with our progress. It was a challenging project, but extremally rewarding.