Award Data

The Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) Automated Track Inspection Program uses optical systems such as cameras or laser-based systems to monitor rail performance throughout the country. These systems are hindered by adverse weather conditions that allow water, dirt and mud to coat their optical components resulting in unwanted maintenance costs. Thus FRA is seeking a low-cost, practical s ...

At present, trains use various dissipative braking systems to slow and stop, and this significant braking energy is ultimately converted to heat and wasted. APEI, Inc. has proposed a hybrid tender which can capture and reuse a significant fraction of this braking energy (at least 50%). The hybrid tender draws power from the rails using a regenerative braking technique rather than by being electr ...

The scope of this research initiative addresses what is best practice for delivering mobile applications while ensuring a safe, consistent experience given the differing communications standards, operating systems and hardware limitations of existing and prospective personal communications devices.  It is assumed the scope of this initiative is limited to exploration of applications for consumer devices only, not on-board OEM equipment/applications that may use a passenger's personal communications device to provide network connectivity.  However, the ability of a personal device

Positioning and navigation have become a mainstay of everyday life in the U.S.; applications of interest include navigation of vehicles of all kinds, infrastructure mapping, and safety of life systems. Many of these recent applications have become possible through the GPS. With the recognized vulnerabilities of GPS, it is evident that equivalent backup systems must be developed. One possible so ...

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Special Operations Forces (SOF) require a real time display of appr opriate data to allow the helmsman to access the damage potential to his cargo (equipment/personnel) and support his decision relative to speed and course selection when operating in rough water. Furthermore, maintenance support personnel need quantitative data to support design decisions and maintenance activities. This proposa ...

A RAPID FIELD TEST IS PROPOSED TO EVALUATE THE PERMEABILITY OF OPEN-GRADED ROAD BASES AND OTHER DRAINAGE LAYERS. THE SAME TEST ALSO SHOULD BE ADAPTABLE TO EVALUATE PERMEABILITIES OF OTHER EXPOSED PAVEMENT LAYERS INCLUDING THOSE COMPOSED OF BITUMINOUS OR PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETES, AS AN INDEX TO PERMEATION AND POSSIBLY TO DETERIORATION. IT IS PROPOSED THAT THE PERMEABILITY BE EVALUATED THROUGH USE ...

THE PROPOSED PROJECT WILL DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY OF THE USE OF ADVANCED TYPE II FLUIDS FOR THE DE-ICING/ANTI-ICING OF GENERAL AVIATION (GA) AIRCRAFT WITH TAKEOFF SAFETY SPEEDS (V2) OF GENERALLY LESS THAN 85 KNOTS. TYPE II FLUIDS WILL BE APPLIED TO SEVERAL GA CATEGORY AIRCRAFT. THE ICE PROTECTION CAPABILITY OF THE FLUID WILL BE EVALUATED FOR DIFFERENT FREEZING PRECIPITATION CONDITIONS. THE EFFEC ...

KVH INDUSTRIES PROPOSES TO THOROUGHLY INVESTIGATE BOTH CONVENTIONAL AND INNOVATIVE USES FOR THE SELF POWERED VEHICLE DETECTOR (SPVD) AND TO MODIFY THE EXISTING DESIGN, IF REQUIRED, TO MEET THE SPECIFICATIONS OF THE NEW APPLICATIONS. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THE PROPOSED SBIR PHASE IEFFORT CAN BE SUBDIVIDED INTO THREE FUNDAMENTAL OBJECTIVES: RESEARCH INTO THE VARIOUS APPLICATIONS OF SPVD TECHNOLOGY AND ...