The purpose of this SBIR Phase I proposal is to establish whether existing National Capabilities can be used to fulfill a key warfighting support requirement needed for planning and executing expeditionary warfare operations: providing, to the on-scene commander, accurate, up-to-date information on… More

There is a need to reduce dolphin bycatch in the tuna purse seine fishery in the etp and improve the searching efficiency for tunas not associated with dolphins. arete proposes to design in phase 1 a prototype airborne passive daytime multispectral imaging system for improving the searching… More

There is a need for accurate and cost effective airborne techniques to estimate fish biomass in the open ocean. Arete proposes to develop in Phase I optimal detection algorithms using existing imaging LIDAR data collected with the Fisheye(R) sensor. These algorithms will be developed to allow… More

The goal of this SBIR proposal is to evaluate the suitability of the WESCAM Model 14 EO sensor, currently deployed in the Predator, for oceanographic research use in the Naval Postgraduate School's "Pelican" optionally piloted aircraft. Sensor specifications will be based on Arete's extensive… More

50257-98-I Hollow Optical Waveguide Sensor for Environmental Monitoring--Arete Associates, 333 North Wilmot Road, Sutie 450, Tucson, AZ 85711-2631; (520) 571-8660 Dr. Gregory J. Fetzer, Principal Investigator Dr. John W. McLean, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG03-98ER82533 Amount: … More

Not Available With the increasing demands being placed on military systems, there is a need for each component of the system to perform as many functions as possible. This approach can greatly increase the potential for mission success while reducing the size and weight of the system. Carbon… More

The objective for this SBIR program is to develop and demonstrateone or more integrated sensor devices that will measure,simultaneously and at the same location, temperature, electricalconductivity, and depth (via a MEMS pressure transducer). Weemploy a sensor technology that, by design, can be… More

Optics hold great potential for the implementation of interconnection networks for large-scale parallel computers. A common the goal is to have a reconfigureable crossbar network where each processor can be connected to any other processor or memorydynamically. Central to this topology is a binary… More

The objective of this program is to create a sensor system design utilizing Micro Electro-Mechanical Machine Systems (MEMS) Beam Steering Mirror Arrays and leverage the Streak Tube Imaging LIDAR (STIL) demonstrated previously by Aret¿ . Addition of a MEMSbeam steering array to the STIL technology… More

The goal of this SBIR proposal is to evaluate the feasibility of transferring technology developed by Arete Associates for a UAV surrogate payload, the Airborne Remote Optical Spotlight System (AROSS), to a system capable of being mounted on an aerialphotography airplane. AROSS is a field-tested… More

The goal of this Phase I STTR proposal is to quantify the necessary hardware and processing requirements to enable a ship-based radar system to automatically detect and track whales on the ocean surface at distances of 5 kilometers or more for the purposeof collision avoidance. Long standoff… More

We propose the development of an instrument to measure the concentration of nitric oxide(NO) in exhaled breath as an asthma diagnosis tool. The analyzer uses the combination of a proprietary hollow optical waveguide measurement cell, tunable semiconductor laser, and wavelength modulation… More

"Polarimetric imaging has proved useful in providing an additional discriminator in a number of active and passive sensors. In this Phase II SBIR proposal Aret¿ Associates describes a carefully constructed development and test effort that furtherdemonstrates the capabilities of the Polarimetric… More

"The overall goal of this Phase II STTR proposal is to demonstrate the capability of Naval surface and aircraft-based radars to detect and track marine mammals at representative encounter geometries. There are two major components to the proposed work: 1) acomprehensive land-based demonstration and… More

"The objective of this program is demonstrate a Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) Beam Steering Mirror Transmit and Receive assembly and leverage the Streak Tube Imaging LIDAR (STIL) demonstrated previously by Aret¿ . Addition of a MEMS beam steeringarray to the STIL technology will provide a… More

"The objective of this SBIR program is the development of an electro-optical imaging system for acquiring time-series imagery of the ocean surface suitable for scientific research, which can be mounted and flown in an aerial photography airplane. Thesystem will be designed for low-cost production,… More

"Arete proposes to develop a compact (

"The goal of this Phase I SBIR is to define a unified Maritime ISR processor suitablefor use on the GLOBAL HAWK platform. The Phase I effort will adapt and integratealgorithms developed under a variety of Navy programs, that are suitable for usingwith an imaging EO sensor on a long-duration platform… More

"The goal of this SBIR proposal is to develop and demonstrate a technique for improving the accuracy of DEMs generated from satellite imagery by using appropriate airborne imagery. It is anticipated that the positioning and pointing capabilities of futureUAVs will provide much more accurate… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant):The goal is to develop a sensitive diagnostic sensor for transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that can identify the presence of the abnormal protease-resistant, PrP(SC), conformer in biological materials before they enter the human food, blood or… More

The ability to map ocean waves around an unmanned surface craft and provide intelligent feedback control for survival steering in high sea states will enable the use of high speed, inexpensive, commercial watercraft to meet military requirements in thelittoral. Aret¿ Associates brings extensive… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The major objective of the proposed project is to develop methodology that will allow fast and efficient detection of infectious prion proteins prior to the onset of clinical symptoms. This includes the detection of infectious prions in mortal products, early… More

Aret¿ Associates proposes to develop a 24-point array of temperature or temperature/conductivity sensors for use in the Tactical Acoustic Measurements and Decision Aid Environmental Sonobuoy Program (TAMDA) sonobuoy. The pre-deployed array nests in a 2

Historically acoustical sensors have performed the bulk of Mine Countermeasures for the Navy. Electro-Optic Identification (EOID) has recently proven itself as an important technology in the identification of mines. With the AN/AQS-20A adaptation programnow providing EOIDs to the fleet, the EOID… More

The war against terrorism in Afghanistan has underscored the importance of using UAVs as long-dwell-capable Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance assets. Tactical UAVs having time-series imaging (i.e., video-like) capability are extremelyimportant to be able to detect partially obscured,… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this Phase II program we propose continued development of a new nitric oxide (NO) sensor. The sensor is intended for use in assessment of airway inflammation with applications in asthma diagnosis and management as well as in other health care applications… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this Phase II program we propose continued development of a new nitric oxide (NO) sensor. The sensor is intended for use in assessment of airway inflammation with applications in asthma diagnosis and management as well as in other health care applications… More

The program objective is to develop and evaluate a prototype spectral polarimeter that could be used as an ISR sensor package on organic UAVs. The sensor employs advanced, visible-band technology to support littoral-zone warfare mission products, such asoceanographic characterization in VSW,… More

The goal of this Phase II program is to produce a conceptual system design for passive EO and IR sensors, hosted by High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAVs such as GLOBAL HAWK, for the purpose of maritime ISR. An initial conceptual design would beproduced during the baseline program. Under the… More

The goal of this Phase II program is to produce a conceptual system design for passive EO and IR sensors, hosted by High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAVs such as GLOBAL HAWK, for the purpose of maritime ISR. An initial conceptual design would beproduced during the baseline program. Under the… More

The objective of this program is to develop a novel Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA) architecture & design approach that leverages the MEMS Beam Steering (MBS) sensor miniaturization technology currently being developed by Aret¿Associates. The MEMS Beam Steering (MBS)… More

Laser BeamRiding missiles such as the Bofors RBS 70 are one of the more significant threats to airborne or sea-based Naval assets. Given the guidance system of the missile is looking towards the laser source on the launch platform, the missile isessentially jam-proof. The objective of this proposal… More

The AQS-20(A) towed minehunting system incorporates an electro-optic imaging lidar sensor that provides high fidelity 3D imagery crucial for identification of mines. While a real-time algorithm to automatically detect, classify, and identify targets fromthe image outputs of the EO system is entirely… More

Aret¿ Associates proposes to develop a novel sensor using low-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC), thick-film technology, to measure changes of dissolved hydrogen concentration in the ocean environment. We will employ a unique layout of the classicWheatstone bridge design that uses… More

A multi-channel time series imaging system is being designed, constructed and evaluated for providing unique spectral polarimetric imaging data for ONR programs that are developing advanced algorithms for littoral warfare ISR. Twelve channels of data are collected simultaneously from an aircraft in… More

Providing the war fighter near-real-time Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA) information can be a major factor in the success of a Special Operations mission. In the case of urban warfare, accurate knowledge of dimensions for an enclosed space such as a cave, tunnel or… More

This submission is based on the ONR funded Phase SBIR Phase 1 program, contract # N00014-03-M-0290 undertaken for SBIR Topic N03-111, Laser Beamrider Optical Countermeasures. An AMBS-based countermeasure system that can simultaneously address multiple IR heat-seeking missile and laser beamrider… More

Arete Associates and National Jewish Medical and Research Center propose to develop an instrument to measure the concentration of ethane in exhaled breath. The analyzer uses the combination of a proprietary hollow optical waveguide measurement cell, tunable semiconductor laser, and wavelength… More

Arete will develop a non-fouling, robust, monolithic, sensor package that will yield accurate salinity calculations from temperature and conductivity measurements. The sensor comprises a unique conductivity cell, a thick-film thermistor, and an embedded ultrasonic cleaning device used to remove all… More

The Streak Tube Imaging LIDAR (STIL) combines streak tube and CCD imaging technology to yield high-resolution 3D imaging systems. The technology was developed primarily for ocean imaging and the operational wavelength is around the blue green portion of the visible spectrum. However, laser eye… More

The Streak Tube Imaging LIDAR (STIL) combines streak tube and CCD imaging technology to yield high-resolution 3D imaging systems. The technology was developed primarily for ocean imaging and the operational wavelength is around the blue green portion of the visible spectrum. However, laser eye… More

The Streak Tube Imaging LIDAR (STIL) combines streak tube and CCD imaging technology to yield high-resolution 3D imaging systems. The technology was developed primarily for ocean imaging and the operational wavelength is blue green. However, STIL and STIL derivatives have been demonstrated to be a… More

The goal of this Phase I SBIR is to define a set of algorithms that will detect and characterize static man-made objects highly obscured by foliage within multi-view, multi-channel optical data collected passively from UAVs or other aerial platforms. The proposed algorithm stream will be constructed… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Phase I Arete Associates and Infrared Imaging Systems Inc. propose an innovative technology development that will safely and efficiently improve vascular access for cannulation by providing real-time high resolution enhanced imagery of the vascular… More

STIL-NAVS will use STIL (streak-tube imaging lidar) technology to produce accurate ocean wave field maps. In Phase II, Aret¿ Associates will adapt an existing Aret¿ breadboard sensor. STIL-NAVS is planned to image waves sampled at 36Hz and at a lateral distance of 50m to 150m from a mast height of… More

The goal of this SBIR Program is to enhance the AQS-20A computer-aided classification and identification performance by constructively exploiting acoustic and EO sensor measurements. Benefits from this program will accrue to underwater mine countermeasures due to improved probability of mine… More

The XSVA is a 24-element vertical array of temperature and conductivity sensors, integrated into a standard sonobuoy, providing continuous estimates of sound velocity over a 72-hour measurement period. In Phase I, Aret¿ Associates demonstrated the key elements of the XSVA array concept. We built… More

Aret¿ has developed a CAD / CAC / CAI algorithm for 3D range data collected by the AQS-20A EOID sensor. The algorithm, called Automatic Real-time Computer-Aided IDentification (ARCAID) performs detection, MLO/NMLO classification, shape classification, Mine/Non-Mine/Unknown identification (ID) and… More

Aret¿ Associates proposes to develop a novel sensor using thick-film technology to measure variations in the concentration of dissolved hydrogen in the ocean environment. We will employ a unique layout of the classic Wheatstone bridge design that uses screened-palladium metal resistors as the… More

Under our Phase I SBIR effort, and also under a complementary Arete Associates IR&D-funded airborne program, Aret¿ successfully defined and performed preliminary airborne, long-standoff, demonstration of critical elements of novel, passive, multi-view, multi-channel algorithms for performing FOPEN… More

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Phase I Arete Associates and Infrared Imaging Systems Inc. propose an innovative technology development that will safely and efficiently improve vascular access for cannulation by providing real-time high resolution enhanced imagery of the vascular structure… More

Current models do not include realistic representations of sea spike generators, such as breaking or near-breaking waves. This STTR proposal will address this short-coming by developing realistic physical models of sea spike generation and incorporating these models into existing state-of-the-art… More

A key near-term objective of the Mission Equipment Packages (MEP) for Class II Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) program is to develop ultra-compact eyesafe 3D ladar and active 2D sensors for deployment on organic unmanned aerial vehicles. This will enable beyond-line-of-sight reconnaissance,… More

Remote detection of shoulder-fired rocket residues (SFRR) on enemy combatants is needed to discriminate enemy combatants from civilians in urban warfare environments. Arete Associates' FLUOR-Scope sensor concept utilizes thermal imaging and laser induced fluorescence spectroscopy for identification… More

Aret¿ Associates and the Applied Research Laboratory of the Pennsylvania State University (ARL) are collaborating to develop a sensor/communications capability to aid the Navy gain much needed oceanographic data in denied areas. The plan is to design and demonstrate an expendable, in-situ sensor… More

High-resolution LADAR imaging provides three-dimensional images that have distinct advantages in comparison to conventional two-dimensional imaging. Advantages provided by the range information are the ability to remove clutter, to discriminate decoys from targets, and to provide an additional… More

We propose to develop a computational model and associated software library to calculate the transport and dispersion (T&D) of hazardous materials into and through the water. The model is developed for incorporation into HPAC and will compliment its existing atmospheric T&D model for CBRN (including… More

Arete proposes to develop a wavelength converter to extend the STIL operating range into the near infrared. The converter exploits high quantum efficiency detectors, VLSI electronics and Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers. In Phase I multiple channel WC devices were produced and used to… More

A key near-term objective of the Mission Equipment Packages (MEP) for Class II Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) program is to develop ultra-compact eyesafe 3D ladar and active 2D sensors for deployment on organic unmanned aerial vehicles. This will enable beyond-line-of-sight reconnaissance,… More

High-resolution lidar imaging provides fully three-dimensional (3D) images that have distinct advantages in comparison to two-dimensional images. Some of the advantages provided by the additional range information are the ability to reject clutter, to accurately discriminate decoys from targets,… More

Due to the limited number of P-3 aircraft, the most economical and expeditious way to enhance operations and ensure crew safety is to incorporate a low-cost expendable Sonochute Launched Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) or (SL-UAS). Due to size, power, and weight limitations it is unrealistic to apply… More

Due to advances in technology and decreasing costs, LADAR systems are becoming a more common tactical element of Future Combat Systems. This presents a need for developing approaches and processes that optimally exploit the use of LADAR sensors in the battlefield environment. Models and… More

Within the past decade, ballistic missiles have emerged as major threats to American and friendly armed forces. As of early 1998, at least 30 nations were known to have more than 10,000 ballistic missiles in their arsenals and the threat is growing daily. Several of these countries are also known to… More

Under this Phase I proposal Areté proposes to research the feasibility of developing a small, light-weight, low power imaging system for use on a small TUAV for supporting environmental parameter retrieval algorithms in littoral missions. This research will include a detailed requirements analysis… More

Passive electro-optical (EO) imaging of submerged submarines has been the subject of research for almost three decades. Previous efforts, which have focused on the use of passive, multi-spectral imaging methods to detect, classify, and localize submerged submarines, have been hampered by scene… More

DDG 1000's Integrated Undersea Warfare system will employ high frequency sonar for floating MLO detection. This sensor responds to a variety of noise sources at the air-sea interface and typically cannot distinguish between different classes of floating objects. However, by cueing an EO/IR sensor… More

Light reflected from the ocean surface is highly polarized, where the state of the polarization is dependent on the orientation of the ocean surface. By measuring the Stokes vector of the reflected light Areté Associates proposes to retrieve both the cross-look and the look components of the… More

Areté Associates proposes to demonstrate a low-cost, commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) electro-optical (EO) navigation sensor as a Target Detection Device (TDD) solution which offers several advantages over the RF sensors used in air-delivered munitions fuzes. Prototype sensor development and… More

To counter emerging threats of theater ballistic missiles the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has sponsored the development of the Airborne Laser (ABL) system. For the ABL system to defeat multiple targets over the theater of operation it must be capable of accurately tracking multiple targets… More

Arete Associates' is proposing to develop a hyper-spectral, IOP sensor system that can be deployed by a variety of means in the surfzones of forward areas. It will measure, record and report IOPs that are vital to naval MCM operations. The sensor system will be inexpensive enough to be expendable,… More

The next generation of ultra-small magnetic sensors will be deployed on small UAVs for a variety of military and commercial applications. The algorithms resulting from this SBIR will allow these new sensors to perform near their sensor noise level. While the U.S. Navy will accrue obvious benefits… More

As adversarial submarines become quieter and operate in increasingly adverse acoustic environments, the U.S. needs effective non-acoustic detection capability deployed from maritime patrol aircraft. Air-dropped buoys exploiting submarine ELF emmissions offer unique advantages over MAD and other… More

For the Space Radar system, the ability to detect, track, and characterize targets of interest, whether stationary or moving, is of critical importance. Operational performance and functionality in open ocean, littoral, and ground environments can be significantly enhanced in these areas by… More

An attractive approach for IED detection is to deploy inconspicuous, unmanned vehicles traveling at normal highway speed that can detect, discriminate, and localize IEDs and transmit data to a remote operator. Arete Associates and Applied Research Associates propose to combine their proven hardware,… More

Arete Associates proposes improving VLF channel capacity, bit error rate, and range of operations for submarines and supporting aircraft. By implementing adaptive cancellation of atmospheric noise, the SNR of the received signal will be enhanced as much as 6dB at the VLF receiver. The noise… More

The U.S. Navy would benefit greatly from a tool that could produce realistic scenes of the littoral environment based upon standard meteorological and oceanographic inputs in near real time; simulate a wide range of sensors aboard platforms above, below, or on the ocean surface; and allow the user… More

Rapid and reliable identification or discrimination of friendly and hostile targets at beyond visual ranges remains a major technical challenge that may be best served by advances in ladar technology. Next-generation intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) ladar systems will tackle the… More

Arete will define the algorithmic, sensor, and platform requirements needed to perform airborne radar-based detection, tracking, and characterization of marine mammals in ocean or littoral battle spaces during Naval anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training and testing activities. Achieving performance… More

Processor manufacturers are no longer able to rely on near Moore's Law like increases in straight line instruction throughput and clock frequency to provide users with the performance increases that they have become accustomed to. Instead, hardware developers have begun to take a different approach… More

Current airborne search techniques rely on an operator to look out a window with binoculars or at a video monitor connected to a turreted camera system. Disparities in crew training, experience, qualification, and attentiveness (as well as fatigue) lead to an undesirable variability in manual EO/IR… More

To counter emerging threats of theater ballistic missiles the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has sponsored the development of the Airborne Laser Weapons System (ABLWS). For the ABLWS to defeat multiple targets over the theater of operation it must be capable of accurately tracking multiple targets… More

Passive polarimetry will be used in an innovative fashion to extract the ocean surface slopes. The Phase II program will consist of the construction of a state-of-the art imaging polarimetry sensor system, the further development and refinement of the algorithms for extracting the slope values from… More

Passive electro-optical (EO) imaging of submerged submarines has been the subject of research for almost three decades. Previous efforts, which have focused on the use of passive, multi-spectral imaging (MSI) methods to detect, classify, and localize submerged submarines, have been hampered by… More

Detection and countermeasure of Laser Activated Devices (LADS) in today's battlefield is of great importance. Current optics detection technology can be extended to the LADS detection mission, but often suffer from several operational challenges. Arete Associates approach can provide rapid optics… More

This project develops an innovative, enabling technology for precision attitude control of guided munitions. An imaging sensor system is used to precisely measure airframe attitude relative to the velocity vector, eliminating the time dependent heading angle inaccuracies common to all GPS/INS based… More

Technology research and development in such areas as next-generation atomic clocks, quantum information processing with trapped ions, and atomic spectroscopy is impeded by the lack of commercially available laser sources that meet the required specifications of wavelength tuning range, output power,… More

Arete Associates (Arete) proposes to develop advanced algorithms for landing area characterization from LADAR data for the purpose of assisting helicopter landing during brownout. Our algorithms will discriminate ground from non-ground objects; remove outlier data; identify flat… More

Arete proposes to create the software application PERICLES (PERIscope CLassification of Ships) capable of automatically recognizing and classifying marine targets viewed in submarine imaging systems.

One of the major technical challenges of modern military and commercial rotary wing aviation is effective instrument aided navigation in brownout or whiteout conditions that can occur during landing or maneuvering in sandy, dusty, snowy or marine environments. Helicopter prop-wash churns up dense… More

A principal limiter of airborne MAD systems is geomagnetic noise. The long coherence length of geomagnetic noise recommends the use of correlation processing against a reference sensor outside the search area for noise mitigation, and an air-deployed buoy-mounted geomagnetic reference sensor system… More

The problem of sniper detection and neutralization proves to be one of the more significant issues facing the troops presently deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan today. This unfortunate reality has spurred both industry and the DoD to press for immediate and effective solutions to the detection and… More

In recent years the number, capabilities, and types of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has grown dramatically, resulting in an increase in the variety and complexity of mission scenarios for these vehicles. The successful proliferation of UAV assets into missions, such as convoy protection,… More

There is a demonstrated need for improved detection of improvised explosive devices in the modern battlefield. Thermal detection of disturbed soils associated with IED burial offers a robust signature, but the signature strength in the presence of natural clutter (including effects due to… More

Missile systems such as Hellfire provide outstanding lethality, but use traditional gimbaled seeker heads that are too expensive and heavy to meet increasing missile loadout requirements. The reduced weight and lower cost of Strapdown Semi-Active Laser seekers enable missile loadouts that provide… More

Predetermined, hard-wired processing architectures with static resource allocation and task distributions suffer from single points of failure, inefficient performance or failure in dynamic situations and have little to no run-time decision making ability concerning task redistribution and… More

Rapid and reliable identification or discrimination of friendly and hostile targets at beyond visual ranges remains a major technical challenge that may be best served by advances in ladar technology. Next-generation intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) ladar systems will tackle the… More

Arete Associates has created a software architecture to develop a flexible, user-friendly modeling and simulation tool providing a capability for performance evaluation of direct detection LADAR systems operating in a battlefield environment. The Phase I model requirements analysis, software design… More

As adversarial submarines become quieter and operate in increasingly adverse acoustic environments, the U.S. needs effective non-acoustic detection capability deployed from maritime patrol aircraft. Air-dropped buoys exploiting submarine ELF emmissions offer unique advantages over MAD and other… More

Littoral METOC products are required for planning efficient and safe expeditionary warfare operations in the littorals. Present Navy programs are addressing long- and medium-term solutions for acquiring these products, but these solutions require modest-size or larger theater or national systems to… More

Arete Associates' is proposing to develop a hyper-spectral, IOP sensor system that can be deployed by a variety of means in the surfzones of forward areas. It will measure, record and report IOPs that are vital to naval MCM operations. The sensor system will be inexpensive enough to be expendable,… More

In Phase II of this SBIR program, Arete Associates proposes to demonstrate the Inboard Magnetic Quieting System (IMaQS) and develop the Electric Magnetic Matched Field Tracker (EMMFT) as two complementary aspects of a next-generation magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) system that will enable… More

Monitoring bathymetry changes in shipping channels of rivers and estuaries is vital to the US economy. The standard method of sonar depth sounding from survey ships, though accurate, is slow to perform. Thus, we propose a new and innovative approach for rapid assessment of shipping channel… More

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop a novel, compact, low cost, semiconductor transmitter to serve as a guide star source. The same technology will be extended in a very straightforward fashion to produce a polychromatic guide star (PGS) source. This program… More

Technology research and development in such areas as next-generation atomic clocks, quantum information processing with trapped ions, and atomic spectroscopy is impeded by the lack of commercially available laser sources that meet the required specifications of wavelength tuning range, output power,… More

In recent years the number, capabilities, and types of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has grown dramatically, resulting in an increase in the variety and complexity of mission scenarios for these vehicles. The successful proliferation of UAV assets into missions, such as convoy protection,… More

The proliferation of unmanned surveillance & reconnaissance aircraft is reaching our enemies. In order to accomplish covert missions, our Special Operations Forces must avoid being observed by this expanding enemy capability. The ability to organically eliminate the threat of an enemy UAV would… More

Range-Resolved Doppler Imaging (RRDI) ladar has been singled out as the most promising advanced discrimination technology to augment existing advanced seekers on board MDA missile interceptors. Efforts are underway to develop compact RRDI ladar seekers to test against objective decoys and targets.… More

To counter emerging threats of theater ballistic missiles the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has sponsored the development of the Airborne Laser (ABL) system that will locate and track missiles in the boost phase of their flight, then accurately point and fire a high-energy laser, destroying enemy… More

Arete will use a physically realistic sophisticated non-linear simulation of wind-generated gravity and capillary waves called the Irrotational Green Water Model and/or the "Convergent Stokes Waves" Model to meet the objectives of this SBIR solicitation. The realistic ocean surface simulation will… More

As US military mission change on the modern battlefield, so must the techniques and algorithms providing battlespace awareness. Asymmetric threats such as civilian vehicles operating in urban environments are increasingly becoming important. Current GMTI systems have difficulty in generating and… More

Techniques to retrieve militarily relevant parameters of the nearshore region using panchromatic or single-channel electro-optical (EO) data have been demonstrated. However, airborne sensors are being developed and fielded that collect multi-spectral data and the present-day methods do not take… More

Aret, Associates is proud to offer a unique approach to address the stabilized laser designator in a compact robust package that will provide the light weight, high performance absent in existing approaches. Aret, Associates' SCan-mirror Inertial Laser Stabilizer (SCILS) system being proposed here… More

Directed energy (DE) is widely viewed as a transformational game changer technology in military operations. Applications in space control, force protection, counter rockets, artillery and mortars (CRAM), and defense against man portable air defense systems (MANPADS) are of particular interest due to… More

Dynamic Scene Analysis - a real time implementation of an image registration, target detection, tracking, and geo-location software product. Registration is based upon Mutual Information, a more efficient and robust technique than traditional feature-based methods. Reference imagery and live imagery… More

This project develops an innovative, enabling technology for precision attitude control of Penetrating Munitions. An imaging sensor system is used to precisely measure airframe attitude relative to the velocity vector. The measurement is used by the autopilot to accurately align the airframe with… More

Arete Associates proposes to create the software application PERICLES (PERIscope CLassification of Ships) to automatically recognize and classify marine targets viewed in a submarine imaging system.

The Objective of the Phase 1 AROSS program was to develop a system concept that could provide coastal zone wave spectra measurements and promote scientific advances in littoral oceanography. Coastal wave spectra measurements were based on space/time imaging for algorithm development. The resulting… More

Aret, Associates will develop an "ocean terrain" model for use with standard Missile Defense Agency (MDA) radiation code to create high fidelity simulations over the ocean. Specifically, Aret, will apply its Synthetic Ocean Scene Generator (SOSG) to create ocean surface radiance fields in the… More

Evolving threats of modern warfare have placed new demands on the development and delivery of robust intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) solutions. As such, recent development has focused on sensor systems that provide wide field of view persistent surveillance (WFVPS) technologies.… More

Micro-Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (MAVs) are among the newest class of UAVs that have been added for deployment at the squadron level, these systems typically have a less than one pound payload and are remotely controlled through a joystick, a hobbyist style RC controller, or simple computer interface.… More

Brownout conditions have been blamed on the loss of more than 20 helicopters and 50 lives since 2001." There is a compelling need to develop and field a DUSt PENetrating (DUSPEN) LADAR sensor and generate 3D terrain and obstacle maps of the landing zone in near real-time to provide active and… More

Arete proposes to develop an innovative approach to micro-LADAR that requires low SWaP and is completely non-mechanical. Arete will use coded illumination in an entirely novel way to create a system that is suitable for both reconnaissance and sense-and-avoid on small UAVs. Arete will be bring its… More

The overall objective of the Phase I effort is to design and demonstrate the feasibility of an approach to exploit the multipath scattering from a target in a complex scattering environment for RCS classification, and to assess the requirements and limitations of the algorithm. Isolation of the… More

The framework for a nonlinear physically realistic simulation of internal waves and interactions will be developed to better comprehend large-scale sea surface features. This framework will provide the basis to develop and construct dynamic simulations of internal waves using realistic, continuous… More

The creation of a comprehensive laser design tool, usable by a broad customer base is long overdue. At present lasers are used as elements of numerous applications. With a large array of goals and design constraints competing for attention, an engineer needs help executing a specific laser design. … More

Dynamic Scene Analysis - a real time image registration, moving target detection, tracking, and geo-location software product. Registration is based upon Mutual Information, a more efficient and robust technique than traditional feature-based methods. Reference imagery and live imagery are utilized… More

High-resolution lidar imaging provides fully three-dimensional images that have distinct advantages in comparison to two-dimensional images for target detection and identification. Advantages provided by the additional range information improvements in clutter removal improving detection, to lower… More

Current infrared counter measure (IRCM) system for rotary wing platforms require cues from the missile warning system (MWS) that detects the launch of a surface to air missile. The current state-of-the-art MWS have been challenged with false alarm issues and handoff errors that stress the… More

Range-Resolved Doppler Imaging (RRDI) ladar has been singled out as the most promising advanced discrimination technology to augment existing advanced seekers on board MDA missile interceptors. Efforts are underway to develop compact RRDI ladar seekers to test against objective decoys and targets.… More

The Forward Observer Laser Designator Unmanned Aerial System (FOLD-UAS) concept has been developed as the airborne component of the Precision Urban Mortar Attack (PUMA) program. The PUMA program has targeted the tier II STUAS as the unmanned aerial vehicle of choice for this program. A successful… More

The Navy has invested considerable resources in research and development of state-of-the-art characterizations of the ocean response to ambient and perturbed surface and subsurface structures and related techniques to discriminate natural and anthropogenic, motion-induced perturbations. This… More

Aret, Associates proposes development of an automatic image fusion capability that provides superior scene content than any of its spectral components with less operator workload. To do so we will focus on overcoming the challenges of registration (spatial and temporal) and noise in the fused… More

One of the key limitations in optical band underwater imaging and communications systems is the excessive attenuation and scattering light experiences in traversing the intervening media. Strong attenuation fuels the demand for high transmitter energy and high sensitivity (photon counting)… More

Aret, Associates proposes to design a prototype Sea Water Attenuation Remote Measurement by LIDAR (SWARM-L) system for measuring the optical attenuation coefficient, Kd, of sea-water based on our extensive experience of designing and fielding blue-green LIDAR systems. Core design components of… More

Advances in laser, receiver, processing, and navigation technologies enable development of a compact, lightweight lidar system that is compatible with small UAVs. By leveraging the best of these technologies, Arete Associates has designed a Pushbroom Imaging Lidar for Littoral Surveillance (PILLS)… More

The Debye effect---electric and magnetic fields from the acceleration of seawater particles---is an unexplored submarine detection method that should be investigated for feasibility. It offers several potential advantages over other non-acoustic detection methods. The work proposed here will… More

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project conducts research and development of a unique laser technology that simultaneously provides a compact and low-cost alternative to laser guide star and polychromatic laser guide star sources. Guide star lasers are used in ground based… More

The proliferation of inexpensive radar and communication devices has complicated the target identification problem for modern submarine EW systems. Arete Associates and ARL Penn State propose real-time software called Submarine Multi-Sensor Automatic Target Recognition (SMS-ATR). The approach… More

Arete Associates, in collaboration with the NanoRobotics Laboratory of Carnegie Mellon University, plans to design and demonstrate a desktop-sized assembly system utilizing a coordinated team of micro-robots. Called MECA-BOTS (Miniature Electromagnetically Controlled Assembler Robot Swarm), this… More

Raman spectroscopy is a highly effective non-contact laser remote sensing method for detecting and identifying chemicals in every-day field environments. Raman spectroscopy is particularly suited for detecting trace surface contaminants that may indicate the presence of explosives, harmful chemical… More

Advances in compact lasers operating at 1 to 5 microns that require minimal or no cooling during fly-out timelines are required to support future MDA missions. Packaging concepts that enable integration of the transmitter into spaces in and around existing passive detectors and optical elements are… More

In this proposal, Arete Associates describes a novel approach to dismount detection, tracking and classification in ground-based infrared image sequences. The proposed approach leverages state-of-the-art hierarchical machine learning algorithms (HMLA) for autonomous target detection and activity… More

The evolving threats of modern warfare have placed new demands on the development and delivery of robust intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) solutions. Arete proposes an operational solution to the challenging problem of automatically detecting and tracking low-contrast dismounted… More

Hydrodynamic effects induced by moving watercraft are modeled within a nonlinear ocean surface simulation.

One of the key limitations in optical band underwater imaging and communications systems is the excessive attenuation and scattering light experiences in traversing the intervening media. Strong attenuation fuels the demand for high transmitter energy and high sensitivity (photon counting)… More

Adverse environmental factors can greatly reduce a submarine"s ability to see ships in the visible band alone. Infra-red imagers can add valuable content, but at the cost of increased workload. Arete Associates proposes an end-to-end fusion system to leverage the power of multi-band imaging… More

The overall project objective is to develop an autonomous bathymetric/topographic mapping system compatible with a small UAV, with performance equivalent to current manned systems. During Phase 1, an integrated design was developed that is fully compatible with the Navy's selected STUAS… More

Arete Associates, in collaboration with the NanoRobotics Laboratory of Carnegie Mellon University, plans to design and demonstrate a desktop-sized assembly system utilizing a coordinated team of micro-robots. Called MECA-BOTS (Miniature Electromagnetically Controlled Assembler Robot Swarm), this… More

Arete Associates and Luminex Corporation propose to leverage Luminex"s award-winning bead-based multiplexing technology with Arete"s decision-theoretic processing algorithms to develop a portable, Point-of-Care (POC) system that enables rapid identification of known and de novo pathogens.… More

Arete Associates, Ringtail Design, and the University of Texas at Austin propose a collaboration to develop transformative mobile applications ("apps") for improved epidemiological situational awareness. We propose to combine biosurveillance-data-enhanced disease spreads models,… More

ABSTRACT: Arete Associates proposes development of a novel ladar receiver in the combined Phase I and Phase II program. Arete will design and build a receive module for LADAR that captures target returns as well as a"copy"of the outgoing pulse. Collection of the outgoing pulse provides… More

Over the past decade, enormous advancements in the field of compressive sensing have provided a new framework for reconstructing signals from incomplete measurements, thus offering feasible mathematical tools for efficient data collection. Applying compressive sensing to sea-based radar could result… More

The U.S. Navy has a pressing need to develop a new antisubmarine warfare (ASW) approach for the P-8A Poseidon aircraft, which is to replace the aging P-3C Orion fleet. Unlike the P-3C, the P-8A will not carry magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) equipment aboard the aircraft. To execute its ASW mission… More

The results of the Phase I activities confirm the feasibility of using the swept frequency FD-OCT approach for measuring the separation and relative amplitude of optical elements withing a seeker at long range. In the Phase I analysis it was shown that various methods, including the originally… More

Investigations will be conducted to identify physical mechanisms that could be involved with the generation of specific large-scale ocean features of interest to the Navy. The objective is to unravel the generation of these features and to derive an understanding of the source.

Arete Associates and our partner Lefthand Design Corporation (LHDC) will develop and test an advanced fast two-axis beam scanner component in support of the Office of Naval Research (ONR Codes 31/35), and the Program Executive Office, Air ASW, Assault & Special Mission Programs, H-53 Heavy Lift… More

Arete Associates proposes to design, build, and test a LIDAR-based, hand-held sea water attenuation measurement device. This device, referred to as the K-meter, will be tested and characterized both in the lab and against a variety of water types both ocean and coastal. In the base period, Arete… More

Raman spectroscopy is a highly effective non-contact laser remote sensing method for detecting and identifying chemicals in every-day field environments. Raman spectroscopy is particularly suited for detecting trace surface contaminants that may indicate the presence of explosives, harmful chemical… More