Award Data

The invasion of woody vegetation into native plant communities is a growing problem on many of the Nation's rangelands, resulting in the loss of pastureland and the need to make alterations in livestock management. The Loess Hills of Western Iowa have been severely impacted by ERC and other encroaching woody vegetation, resulting in the loss of native prairie and a threat to the economic and socia ...

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I research project will investigate the feasibility of using a high-speed linear array of micro grating light modulators (GLM) for cost-effective maskless lithography. Current maskless lithography tools are low-throughput instruments designed for the highest resolution markets (50-200 nm). ALCES proposes a maskless, high-throughput, lithography tool fo ...

On average, nine collisions occur each day in the U.S. between trains and road vehicles. These collisions result in fatalities forty times more often than for other vehicle accidents. Eighty percent of collisions occur at railroad crossings that do not have train-activated warning systems. Using conventional equipment to upgrade these 80,000 public crossings will cost over $10 billion, and take mo ...

Two low-mass, linear throttling, high-efficiency, leak-proof cryogenic valves of diameters 1/2" and 4" will be built and tested. Based upon cryogenically-proven Venturi Off-Set Technology (VOST) the valve has no stem-actuator, few moving parts, and an overall cylindrical shape. The valve geometry will help reduce launch vehicle complexity and facilitate assembly and testing. Reliability and saf ...

A novel cryogenic coupling will be designed and modeled. Intended for in-space use at cryogenic propellant depots, the coupling is based on patented Venturi-Offset Technology (VOST) and will provide small fluid and heat leakage at high flows with a low pressure drop. Entirely mechanical, insertion opens the passage, removal closes the passage. Mating force and alignment requirements are small. ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project addresses the difficulties of authoring intelligent tutoring systems. Intelligent Tutoring Systems have proven to be highly effective in delivering computer-based instruction, but have historically been expensive and difficult to build, requiring specialized skill in Artificial Intelligence and production systems programming. This pr ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant) Cyntelix, Inc. in collaboration with the Hazardous Materials Training and Research Institute (HMTRI) at Kirkwood Community College will undertake the Hazard Response Technology (HaRT) Case Study Training Innovation Project. The goal of the HaRT Training Innovation Project is to construct an expert system with dynamic E-tools and semantic Web search capabilitie ...

Millions of dollars in personal property and thousands of acres of natural resources will be saved annually if wildfires can be controlled effectively by increasing the safety and efficiency of helicopters in aerial firefighting. The purpose of this project is to research and develope a computer controlled water bucket system to increase safety and efficiency by automating weight management of loa ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II research project aims to produce a working prototype sensor array monitoring system that detects, identifies, and localizes the infrasound generated by snow avalanches. The goal of the project is to bring to commercial form automated monitoring systems that improve the safety and welfare of those impacted by avalanche activity. Avalanche-gene ...

Innovative Materials Technologies, Inc. (IMTT) is proposing a Flat Geometry Remote Field & Super Sensitive Eddy Current (FG RFEC & SSEC) technique for the inspection of fastener holes in thick multi-layer structures. Inspection of fastener holes in thick multi-layer structures described in the Topic AF04-134, is a big challenge to all existing or emerging nondestructive inspection (NDI) techniques ...