Award Data

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT: A flow micro-photometer is proposed that can measure absorption and backscatter from single aquatic particles including phytoplankton, detritus and minerals. This instrument will make use of a novel adaptive diaphragm to define an analysis region of interest that exactly matches the size, shape and orientation of each particle being analyzed. A micro-fluidic chip will be used t ...

Robotic actuators exceed human speed, accuracy, and strength, but human hands are regarded as the ultimate in dexterity. We propose this is due absent human-like tactile sensing and intelligent reflexive behaviors in robots. We’ve created multimodal compliant tactile sensors that mimic the sensory ability of the human fingertip and algorithms that fill this absence. In this research we will inte ...

To address the NIST need for an instrument to detect aerosolized-droplet dose delivery of vaccines, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop a new Aerosolized Vaccine Dose Analysis (AVIDA) system based on the combination of planar laser-induced fluorescence, laser diffraction, microscope optics, and an advanced image processing algorithm. This system, using temporal image splitting, p ...

Toyon proposes development of a system which performs automated analysis of images for fish population monitoring and fishing regulation enforcement applications. The proposed system is capable of processing images collected from aircraft, including unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as images collected using boat-mounted or handheld cameras used to observe fish catches landed on the decks of vess ...

We propose to develop a system that can automatically detect, track, measure, and classify fish seen in video collected by stationary underwater cameras. Our approach makes use of a novel method for detecting motion that can mitigate false alarms due to swaying underwater vegetation. We propose a novel technique for tracking the fish in three spatial dimensions allowing for improved knowledge of ...

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT: Tropospheric oxidation capacity is dominated by HOx photochemistry, however halogen atoms and oxides significantly affect these chemical cycles. A sensitive and robust measurement of gaseous HCl is critically important to improve our understanding of halogen chemistry and its impacts on the spatial and temporal oxidation capacity of the atmosphere. In Phase I, we met all of our ...

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT: Recent advances in gas chromatographic (GC) and mass spectrometric (MS) techniques for atmospheric measurements have led to highly complex data sets that have overwhelmed the capabilities of current data analysis software. We propose a new method for the automated reduction of chromatographic data using peak-fitting algorithms. By relying upon constrained peak-fit parameterizat ...

Spontaneous Parametric Down Conversion (SPDC) is currently an active research area in quantum communications (QC) to develop entangled single photon sources. However, the bandwidth of current SPDC sources is too broad for many applications. NIST researchers have modeled a solution to this problem that reduces the bandwidth by >50. We propose to fabricate a prototype of the NIST device by developin ...

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT: We will demonstrate the feasibility and commercial applicability of a novel energy harvesting system that converts thermal energy from air-sea temperature differences into electricity. This capability will extend the endurance and capability of NOAA observing platforms, reduce lithium battery waste, increase human and environmental safety, and support efforts to detect and moni ...

To build a climate-smart and resilient nation, we need to foster a climate-literate public that understands its vulnerabilities to a changing climate and makes informed decisions. A core component of this challenge is to develop simple, intuitive and high-impact visualizations of climate data--data that is and will be made available through the President’s Climate Data Initiative--for education ...