Award Data

Among the factors that inhibit the use of composite materials in both general aviation aircraft and DoD platforms are the high cost of engineering and the cost of certification. Unless manufacturers can control risk when introducing new materials and pro

There is a need to achieve 10^-9 reliability for actuators for critical aerospace applications and this precludes single point failure for all but the simplest and most reliable electrical and mechanical components. LC Drives proposes a method of constructing a high reliability linear actuator for critical aerospace applications that is designed such that jams caused by conventional electrical a ...

Looking Glass is an immersive, story-driven game experience that enables computer science education for students K-12. It presents learning in a game-based series of challenge levels that permit a high degree of player choice in tailoring educational progression and adapting game systems that present both STEM and SEL interactions. Gameplay occurs within a futuristic Wonderland, where proficiency ...

The dried blood spot (DBS) method is an alternative to venipuncture. The available data indicates that the DBS method is both precise and accurate for a diverse range of compounds. We discovered that proprietary additives vastly improve extraction of proteins in DBS using electrospray. Our unexpected results appear to dramatically increase analyte recovery concentration while reducing DBS prep, an ...

This SBIR Phase I proposal will conduct an exploratory study to establish the feasibility of a multimodal framework for monitoring the emotion of a person using an non-intrusive sensor suite that includes video, audio, and thermal sensing. This will lead to the development of a portable gauge for robustly monitoring the emotional state of people in operational environments. The following five dyna ...

We propose to develop a highly capable disaster-response robotic system called SpinnerBot for use in confined and/or collapsed-structures for survivor search, site-investigation and -assessment. SpinnerBot will: 1) Provide for a small and light footprint and have a user-friendly GUI; 2) Allow for long-term deployment of at least 12 hours or more; 3) Be capable of carrying crucial sensor-modalitie ...

The Lightweight Beam Director Phase II effort will develop a beam director and beam control concept for use in DARPA programs. Brashear LP will incorporate advanced, lightweight mirror designs, innovative design approaches, advanced/lightweight materials and new control systems approaches as necessary to develop a beam director concept suitable for use with the DARPA lasers under development.

The Lightweight Beam Director Phase II effort will develop a beam director and beam control concept for use in DARPA programs. Brashear LP will incorporate advanced, lightweight mirror designs, innovative design approaches, advanced/lightweight materials and new control systems approaches as necessary to develop a beam director concept suitable for use with the DARPA lasers under development.

Single crystal piezoelectric actuators are proposed as a means of significantly increasing the stroke of a smart actuator to control the trailing edge flap of a helicopter rotor for vibration control and noise suppression. Conventional piezoelectric ceramic actuators have exhibited inadequate levels of stroke and/or force required to produce an angle of rotation of ±8° at 40 Hz. Single crystal ...

Implementation of new doctrine in structures such as the Unit of Action (UA) has resulted in command organizations that are distributed, fluid, and highly mobile, in contrast to legacy organizational structures which relied on a co-location in a 'big tent.' Battle lab experiments show that commanders and executive officers can easily lose awareness of the situation with their distributed staff org ...