Award Data

THREE TO FOUR MILLION YOUNG CHILDREN FROM ALL LEVELS OF SOCIETY ARE EXPOSED TO ENVIRONMENTAL SOURCES OF LEAD AT CONCENTRATIONS THAT PLACE THEM AT RISK FOR ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS. YET, THERE IS NO TOOL AVAILABLE FOR MEASURING TOTAL PEDIATRIC BODY BURDEN OF LEAD. THIS PROJECT WILL DEVELOP AN X-RAY FLUORESCENCE (XRF) INSTRUMENT THAT WILL ALLOW MEASUREMENT OF BODY LEAD BURDEN IN CHILDREN IN VIVO AND N ...

CENTRIFUGAL BLOOD PUMPS HAVE BEEN USED EXTENSIVELY FOR SHORT-TERM CIRCULATORY ASSISTANCE AND PERFUSION PUMPS. THEIR UTILITY FOR LONG-TERM VENTRICULAR ASSISTANCE IS LIMITED BY THROMBUS FORMATION AT THE SHAFT SEAL. ABIOMED, INC., WILL DEVELOP A MAGNETICALLY SUSPENDED CENTRIFUGAL BLOOD PUMP THAT WILL HAVE NO SHAFT SEAL AND BE SUITABLE FOR LONG-TERM CIRCULATORY SUPPORT IN EITHER AN IMPLANTED OR EXTRAC ...

THIS RESEARCH WILL DEMONSTRATE THAT A NEW 1.9-MU M LASER CAN PERFORM LASER-ASSISTED VASCULAR ANASTOMOSES OF SMALL-DIAMETER VESSELS (1 TO 5 MM). THE 1.9-MU M LIGHT HAS OPTIMAL ABSORPTION CHARACTERISTICS TO ENSURE AN EVEN DEPOSITION OF ENERGY IN THE VESSEL WALL. THIS SHOULD RESULTIN A MORE DESIRED TEMPERATURE PROFILE IN THE REGION OF THE ANASTOMOSIS WHEN COMPARED WITH ALTERNATIVE SOURCES. THE PROPOS ...

THE OBJECTIVE IS TO DEVELOP A PERIODONTAL PROBE CAPABLE OF MEASURING SITE TEMPERATURE AND POCKET DEPTH SIMULTANEOUSLY AND AUTOMATICALLY. THE PROBE IS INTENDED TO BE A RAPID SCREENING DEVICE FOR THE STATE OF PERIODONTAL HEALTH DURING ROUTINE DENTAL EXAMINATIONS. STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT THE INFLAMED SULCUS IS ACCOMPANIED BY ELEVATED SITE TEMPERATURES. POCKET DEPTHS ARE ROUTINELY MEASURED DURING DENT ...

The objective is an optical periodontal probe tailored to automatically measure and record multiple tissue parameters deemed important for disease detection and treatment monitoring. As a first step in the development of a multi-functional device, a probe designed to mimic the visual measurements made by dental clinicians to determine pocket depth, bleeding on probing (BOP) and tissue coloration w ...

CURRENT FRAME BUFFER TECHNOLOGY IS NOT OPTIMIZED FOR USE WITH GENERAL PURPOSE PROCESSORS. THIS PROPOSAL IS FOR A PROGRAM TO DEVELOP A BREADBOARD FRAME BUFFER WHICH IS EFFICIENTLY ACCESSED BY SUCH PROCESSORS. THE FRAME BUFFER IS BASED ON THE VME BUS AND IS SCALABLE TO LARGE AMOUNTS OF IMAGE MEMORY AND VERY FAST IMAGE ACQUISITION RATES. ALL IMAGE DATA IS RANDOMLY ACCESSIBLE AT HIGH SPEED. ANTICIPATE ...

We live in a three dimensional world, where we can go around an object and observe it from all angles. The current displays: TVs, movie screens, and computer monitors are all two dimensional devices. These displays give us only "flattened" realities. The missing third dimension carries with it tremendous amounts of information that is absolutely vital to the users. ACT has demonstrated the princip ...

In the field of seismic event identification, three spatial dimensions and one time dimension are almost always coupled together. This may create confusion in data perception and interpretation. A novel multi-D display device wchih can improve data visualization is needed. The object of this project is to develop a Volumetric Image Display (VID) capable of displaying multi-D volumetric images in a ...

Two approaches are proposed to attack the problems of fixturing process. First, a novel hardware holding system, Dexterous Vise, is proposed. Functionally, a single Dexterous Vise is capable of revealing four faces of the clamped workpiece to the cutting tool without re-fixturing, which actually increases one degree of freedom to the machine tool. A pair of Dexterous Vises, the "Dual-Vise", ena ...

The proposed effort investigates the use of smart materials (such as strain actuators and sensors) and modern control theory to suppress unsteady buffet loads encountered by vertical tail aircraft such as the F/A-18. The active smart material system proposed has distinct advantages over traditional passive damping treatments and active articulated control surface techniques. This innovative smart ...