Award Data

Threaded fastening systems in vibrating environments require a secondary locking feature, augmenting primary locking provided by an applied preload, to prevent vibration-induced loosening. The secondary locking feature can be mechanical, prevailing torque-type, or an adhesive. Self-locking nutplates and inserts are often more expensive than adhesives, require retorquing or on-torque adjustments, a ...

Physical Sciences Inc. has successfully demonstrated the operational capability of a filament wound composite case designed to mitigate against slow cook-off, fast cook-off, bullet and fragment impact threats for solid rocket motor (SRM) systems. The implemented manufacturing, quality control and assurance processes enable production of small and large diameter motors to satisfy strategic and tact ...

The Missile Defense Agency seek solid propellant, propulsion control systems with longer operation times, increased performance, and reduced size, weight, power, and cost.Solid propellant exhaust gases are commonly 2,000-4,000F.Proportionally controlled actuators that are capable of enduring higher temperatures while aiming to maintain performance and/or reduce SWaP-C will improve the robustness o ...

To address the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) need for tooling and processes for repeatable adhesive dispensing onto threaded fasteners in missile production, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes, in Phase II, to advance development of the new Locking Adhesive DIspensing onto threaded Fasteners (LADIF) system. During Phase I effort, POC developed and demonstrated the feasibility of the LADIF c ...

Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) proposes to utilize a ground-based simulation facility based upon its patented FAST technology to obtain critical data necessary to validate and extend the capabilities of the MDA’s high altitude plume code, SOCRATES-P, to model plume signatures with high fidelity. In Phase I PSI demonstrated the model validation approach by measuring the velocity dependent cross sec ...

Novel algorithms for improving the performance of IMU without changing the sensor hardware were demonstrated during the Phase I research. These improvements consisted of higher-order nonlinear transfer alignment and calibration filters incorporating detailed models of sensor uncertainties, de-noising algorithms to eliminate the impact of shock and vibration on the IMU navigation solution, and more ...

The efforts will leverage advanced multi-scale material modeling, multi-physics additive manufacturing (AM) simulation technologies to suggest optimized AM process and build parameters before printing in an attempt to deliver quality Direct Metal Laser Sinteringparts.Components/materials fabricated will meet MDA/Raytheon specifications. The qualification of each component will be shown by DOE, and ...

To address the MDAs need for a repeatable manufacturing process for aerospace-grade, thinned-walled aluminum alloy propellant tanks, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) developed the new Robotic Bonding (ROBOBOND) system, which utilizes conventional computer numeric control (CNC) machinery to perform friction stir welding (FSW) with minimum setup, allowing the technology to become widely available. ...

A key requirement for IR sensors in interceptor seekers is to continue to image through adverse environments, including the radiation from nuclear events. This radiation hardening requirement is addressed with a multifaceted approach that includes a novel filter, implemented in the unit cell, that mitigates the effects of gammas, betas, and protons, while leaving the IR signal unaltered. Other rad ...

Performing post-intercept assessment (PIA) is challenging due to the dual problems of first, extracting usable data in a highly cluttered and unpredictable post-intercept environment, and second, fusing that disparate data in a flexible and rapid way. Toyon and Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. (MTSI) propose a two-pronged approach to PIA dealing with the feature-finding and feature-fusion aspects ...