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STTR Phase I: RECONFIGURABLE SENSORS FOR AUTONOMIC MONITORING ACROSS FREQUENCY AND LENGTH SCALES

Award Information
Agency: National Science Foundation
Branch: N/A
Contract: 0711234
Agency Tracking Number: 0711234
Amount: $149,991.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: STTR
Solicitation Topic Code: EL
Solicitation Number: NSF 06-598
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2006
Award Year: 2007
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): N/A
Award End Date (Contract End Date): N/A
Small Business Information
6960 Firerock Court 6745 HOLLISTER AVENUE
Boulder, VA 80301
United States
DUNS: 112811364
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 Robert Owen
 Dr
 (303) 530-1248
 rowen@extremediagnostics.com
Business Contact
 Robert Owen
Title: PhD
Phone: (303) 530-1248
Email: rowen@extremediagnostics.com
Research Institution
 VPI
 Daniel J Inman
 
1880 Pratt Dr
Blacksburg, VA 24061 5400
United States

 (540) 231-4709
 Nonprofit College or University
Abstract

This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I research project researches a single sensor patch capable of sensing damage across several length and time scales in an autonomous fashion, enabling this sensor product to reach a wider market and, more importantly, removing a technical barrier from the structural health monitoring and non destructive evaluation technologies. The proposed research solves the problem of monitoring structural integrity across multiple time and distance scales by integrating three detection methodologies into a single sensor device combined with reconfigurable computing and energy harvesting to produce a wireless, standalone, multifunctional sensor/actuator patch. The innovation here is the use of one physical transduction principle (piezoelectric effect) to simultaneously sense and actuate across large frequency (time) and length scales combined with concepts of reconfigurable computing to select different sensing scales. This sensor solution will vastly improve monitoring capabilities in public utilities and industries ranging from the nuclear power utilities to the aircraft industry. The proposed sensing solution would greatly reduce the required number of sensing units, substantially reducing the cost and complexity of monitoring systems, thus enabling more industries to seek monitoring solutions extending the life and safety of their products. The increased ability proposed here will directly improve public safety.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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