The ability to build inflatable paraboloid reflectors with a surface rms accuracy of 0.76mm has been demonstrated. the major source of error is the stiff seams needed when large reflectors are made. this program will examine methods of improving the seam configuration to reduce surface error to… More

A scheme is proposed to allow data transfer across rotating interfaces using magnetic induction. several mechanizations will be studied in the laboratory using simple test, and analysis will be performed of supporting electronics. the objective of phase i is to determine the best configuration that… More

Feasibility of a gas-emitting flare for use as an optical countermeasure during the reentry flight of an icbm is to be examined. the weight and volume requirements for such a flare are to be calculated based upon the required ir energy as a function of altitude and velocity. to do this, an expanded… More

A flight experiment planning study of an inflatable solar concentrator is proposed. a large solar concentrator system is intended for eventual application as the collector for the solar rocket. this study will define the flight test hardware and performance requirements of a subscale solar… More

Space structures which can be deployed in space by inflation have been successfully developed and utilized. This type of structure has significant advantages over alternate types of space structures. These include a low stowage volume requirement during launch, a low weight, a simple deployment… More

Not Available Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop an innovative compression technique that combines high compression ratio (4,000:1, for NTSC/VGA), high image quality, and low internal system latency. The compression ratio is at least 10 times higher than current technology. The… More

Not Available A field-usable multi-analyte BW sensing system employing an integrated sample preconcentration stage is proposed. To enable operation in real-world environments, the system employs a particle filter and magnetic immunobeads to clean and concentrate the target analytes in the… More

Inflatable membrane concentrators for space solar power currently have two large weight penalties. The extra inflatant needed to make up for gas leaked through construction defects or meteoroid holes can dominate system weight for long missions. Also the inefficiency of the canopy over the reflector… More

Planar antenna systems such as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Waveguides offer a sophisticated method of providing transmit/receive communications for spacecraft. They have the significant advantage in space of being electronically steerable. From the mechanical viewpoint, the advantage of the… More

Past efforts have demonstrated how inflatable parabolic reflectors could be made for space antennas. More recent laboratory studies have shown how a broadband antenna can result by coupling parabolic reflectors to specially designed impedance-matchingsupport arms. We propose to combine the two… More

Inflatable membrane concentrators for space solar power currently have two large weight penalties. The extra inflatant needed to make up for gas leaked through construction defects or meteoroid holes can dominate system weight for long missions. Also the inefficiency of the canopy over the reflector… More

Inflatable membrane concentrators for space solar power currently have two large weight penalties. The extra inflatant needed to make up for gas leaked through construction defects or meteoroid holes can dominate system weight for long missions. Also the inefficiency of the canopy over the reflector… More

"Phase II will carry out a system study of a membrane optics system utilizing inflatably deployed rigidizable conical booms. The boom packaging/deployment concept was conceived by L'Garde and results in a minimum weight system. It requires essentially zeroadditional mass. The use of rigidizable… More

Planar antenna systems such as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Waveguides offer a sophisticated method of providing transmit/receive communications for spacecraft. They have the significant advantage in space of being electronically steerable. From the mechanical viewpoint, the advantage of the… More

Planar antenna systems such as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Waveguides offer a sophisticated method of providing transmit/receive communications for spacecraft. They have the significant advantage in space of being electronically steerable. From the mechanical viewpoint, the advantage of the… More

"Phase II will carry out a system study of a membrane optics system utilizing inflatably deployed rigidizable conical booms. The boom packaging/deployment concept was conceived by L'Garde and results in a minimum weight system. It requires essentially zeroadditional mass. The use of rigidizable… More

"With today's high launch costs and tightening launch opportunities, low payload mass, cost, and packaged volume can determine mission feasibility. L'Garde has developed the Inflatable Torus Solar Array Technology (ITSAT) to supply power to the growingfleet of small satellites in the 1kW class… More

In the first phase of this SBIR, Long Lived Solar Concentrator for Space Power, NAS3-02031, L?Garde has focused on development of inflatably deployed rigidizable parabolic reflectors for space based solar power. L?Garde has proposed the novel approach of utilizing an inflated solar concentrator for… More

In the first phase of this SBIR, Long Lived Solar Concentrator for Space Power, NAS3-02031, L?Garde has focused on development of inflatably deployed rigidizable parabolic reflectors for space based solar power. L?Garde has proposed the novel approach of utilizing an inflated solar concentrator for… More

Efficient future space-based military as well as commercial assets require large antenna apertures. These include space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) systems such as the SBR (space-based radar). As spacecraft are severely power-limited, aperture is the most important… More

Efficient structures requiring low-volume and low-mass have an important role in future military and commercial missions especially in theatre of space. These structures can increase the peformance of applications requiring large apertures such as space-based intelligence, surveillance, and… More

We are proposing to support the development of a daily, on-orbit, calibration test opportunity for BMDS assets. Our proposed system would include a conical vehicle, about 2 m long, and a spherical vehicle about 1 m in diameter. Phase 1 concentrates on the radar signature of such targets, and… More

The MTS system will encompass a conical target payload that will provide a threat representative radar return. This target will be an inflatable structure, which will be packaged around the exterior of the spacecraft bus and within the ESPA ring volume allotment. The payload will use the work… More

The use of micro-satellites to provide target complexes for BMD investigations can reduce program costs; targets would no longer need be launched every time a sensor test is desired However, the exoatmospheric flight of real threats lasts for only 20 minutes or so, while the orbiting targets may… More

Of great interest and strategic advantage to the military is the rapid deployment of surveillance assets to monitor a point of interest or quickly changing situation. An ideal solution would be a rocket deployed unmanned air vehicle (UAV) able to be accurately positioned and then capable of long… More

The NASA/L'Garde Inflatable Antenna Experiment (IAE)flown in STS-77 has showed the potential of this class of structures in significantly reducing the costs for space access. It also pointed the way to future work. Numerous studies and ground tests on real hardware conducted by L'Garde since then,… More

The proposed effort will provide MDA with a low cost alternative to the calibration and teting requirements of new Radar and STSS technologies. The system uses inflatable technology develped by L'Garde to create a threat representative spacecraft. In addition, two ejectables are included for close… More

Development of the electro-optical sensors for use by the MDA requires flight testing against calibration targets that have well characterized radio frequency, optical and infrared cross sections. These tests are very expensive therefore there is a compelling need for low cost calibration targets.… More

In Phase I, L'Garde sought to mature a concept for inflatable wings for High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAV's. The concept used inflatable spars to support flight loads and tension the skin. During Phase I, the maturity of the concept has been significantly advanced. L'Garde developed an… More

LGarde will develop a technology to enable the tensioning of planar phased array systems maintaining their planarity to within 1 mm rms. This will mitigate the use of expensive and bulky metrology and RF compensation systems. Effort will be focused on the cable-net configuration because of its low… More

Low cost, low stowed volume calibration objects with known EO, IR, and RF signatures are essential to ensure precise and accurate calibration of Space Object Sensor Identification (SOSI) systems. In the proposed work, technologies and designs are being developed to enable space-based calibration… More

A significant number of space launches, both government and commercial, have considerable mass margin that could be used by inserting an EELV Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) ring. This ring could be transformed into a standard spacecraft bus with capability to add up to five different payloads or… More

A significant number of space launches, both government and commercial, have considerable mass margin that could be used by inserting an EELV Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) ring. This ring could be transformed into a standard spacecraft bus with capability to add up to six different payloads or… More

L'Garde is developing a new technology to enable the tensioning of planar phased array systems maintaining their planarity to within 1 mm overall out-of-plane deformation. This will mitigate the use of expensive and bulky metrology and RF compensation systems. The main objective of Phase II is to… More

There is a need for base camps to reduce their heat signature to maintain a low-observable (or stealth) capabilities. Without masking the heat signature, enemy units can easily determine the location of base camps, presence of personnel and electronic equipment within the camp, as well as the type… More

Low cost, low stowed volume calibration objects with known EO, IR, and RF signatures are essential to ensure precise and accurate calibration of Space Object Sensor Identification (SOSI) systems. In the proposed work, Phase II will continue to build on the work performed in Phase I. The conceptual… More

In this Phase I effort, L''Garde will establish the feasibility of using a netted trap with integrated solar sail to capture and deorbit high-payoff space debris from high and medium Earth orbits. A subscale model of the trap will be built and tested. The high-payoff debris is a hundred or so spent… More

The proposed innovation is for the development of a thermally-stable composite made of carbon fibers and elastomeric resin. This combination of materials will allow a composite with higher stiffness and strain compared with materials currently in use for space. The significance of this innovation is… More

ABSTRACT: The sensitivity of tactical mid-wave imaging sensors has been shown to be extremely sensitive to background temperature. In our approach we cool down a 1m x 1m panel with a hole at its center through which a blackbody cavity simulator can radiate through. The front panel and blackbody… More

Base camp heat or infrared (IR) signatures can allow enemy units to easily determine the location of camps, the presence of personnel and electronic equipment within the camp, the type of activities occurring within the camp, and their operational tempo (OPTEMPO). Low-observability or camouflaging… More