Award Data

We propose a rapid mapping and 3-D visualization system especially suited for inside buildings, tunnels, urban canyons, and other environments where GPS may be poor or not available. The system--which was fully demonstrated in our Phase I effort-- includes mobile Sensor Nodes that wirelessly supply compressed 3D range data and color imagery to a central Fusion Node. The Fusion Node runs 3D recon ...

Few-cycle mid-infrared lasers are highly demanded for a variety of practical applications. NP Photonics and University of Arizona propose to develop a wavelength tunable and power-scalable optical parametric laser system at 8-12 micron capable of producing collimated few-cycle pulses with pulse energy>100 microJoule. In this phase I program, we will design the whole laser system and do a feasibil ...

We propose a wearable, dual-use neurotechnology device. The Personal Brainwave Headband, driven by tablet or smartphone, is designed for noninvasive closed-loop acoustic stimulation, to permit improved circadian regulation. It will measure brain electrical activity from scalp overlying four key sectors of cortex, perform high-resolution spectral analysis of the signals, and use software algorith ...

This project address the fabrication of solar blind detectors from the MgZnO material system. Both MBE and MOCVD material growth techniques will be used for deposition of the required material layers. Simulation software we be used to aid in the design of the photodetector structure. Devices will be fabricated from the grown structures and their electrical and optical characteristics determined.

ProtoInnovations, LLC (PI) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have formed a partnership to research, develop, and experimentally test a suite of methods for significantly improving the safety, mean travel speed, and rough-terrain access of wheeled planetary exploration rovers. We will accomplish this by developing algorithms for all-terrain adaptive locomotion. This will include a ...

Deep-ultraviolet (UV) Raman spectroscopy is a powerful method to collect chemically specific information about complex samples because deep-UV (?? < 250 nm) excitation shows an over 200-fold greater efficiency compared to commonly used 785 nm excitation and has the ability to avoid fluorescence background in the Raman spectra. The availability of compact, robust, and reliable deep-UV laser source ...

Our aim in this project is to apply the state-of-the-art in science autonomy, including the PI's recent work at Carnegie Mellon in areas of automatic spectrometer targeting and spectra collection, science-guided path planning, and orbital terrain classification, to the creation of Intelligent Spectrometry for Robotic Explorers (ISRE). In our vision, ISRE will enable real-time, on-board analysis of ...

Robots need to know their location to map of their surroundings but without global positioning data they need a map to identify their surroundings and estimate their location. Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) solves these dual problems at once. SLAM does not depend on any kind of infrastructure and is thus a promising localization technology for NASA planetary missions and for many ter ...

Legacy refractory materials that have origins dating to the original Saturn program are commonly used in current launch facilities. Although they fail to meet the target requirements, they are the only approved material. Our research team has demonstrated a baseline system during the Phase I effort that combines a non-cement binder, a high temperature macro aggregate, and reactive nano aggregates ...

As the power density of advanced engines increases, the need for new materials that are capable of higher operating temperatures, such as ceramic matrix composites (CMCs), is critical for turbine hot-section static and rotating components. Such advanced materials have demonstrated the promise to significantly increase the engine temperature capability relative to conventional super alloy metallic ...