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Quartz Microelectromechanical Systems (Q-MEMS) Oven-Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO)
HRL Laboratories and Bliley Technologies are jointly developing a new Ultra-Low Power (ULP) Quartz Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS)-based quartz Oven-Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO). The Q-MEMS OCXO will provide 50x improvement in Size, 16x improvement in Weight, 13x improvement in Power, and 10x improvement in g-sensitivity when compared to legacy OCXOs. The Q-MEMS OCXO technology is currently at a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3. A three-phase development approach over 42 months is required to advance the Q-MEMS OCXO technology from a TRL 3 to TRL 6. Detailed White Paper available with restrictions: Data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government and shall not be duplicated, used or disclosed―in whole or in part―for any purpose other than to evaluate this proposal. If, however, a contract is awarded to this offeror as a result of or in connection with the submission of these data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the resulting contract. This restriction does not limit the Government’s right to use information contained in these data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction are contained in all sheets
Free Piston Linear Motor Compressor (Linear Compressor)
The Free Piston Linear Motor Compressor’s advantage over traditional reciprocating compressors is its streamlined, fully integrated design made possible by the use of a linear motor. The compressor is driven directly by the linear motor, thus removing the need for a complex crankshaft to convert the motor’s rotary motion into linear piston motion for the compressor. Eliminating the crankshaft assembly reduces the total and wearing parts count, improves end-to-end efficiency, enables starting under full load, improved safety with a <1 stroke stop time, and independent piston control. These attributes contribute to a competitive compressor design for applications requiring high purity, compact footprint, low noise, and high-turndown. The simple design of the linear compressor enables flexibility across a range of applications, with the same drive being suitable for air, natural gas, or hydrogen compression. This flexibility enables the development of standardized drive systems that can be rapidly adapted to meet the demands of a number of industries without sacrificing the efficiency or performance. This improves the time to market and significantly reduces the risk for existing compressor manufacturers that can simply purchase a linear drive and attach their own compressor heads for their specific application.
Ears in the Sky- Airborne Acoustic Testbed
:David Alvord and Alessio Medda from GTRI at Georgia Tech have developed an airborne acoustic testbed that consists of a self-contained acoustic sensing payload installed on an Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV). The acoustic payload can be integrated with any type of UAV and used with additional data streams such as EO/IR or telemetry data. Using the developed signal processing suite, noise sources including self-generated UAV noise, wind, or environmental noise can be removed from the acquired acoustic signal of interest. Future capabilities of the AATB will include live voice acquisition, source localization, or acoustic fingerprinting. The algorithm suite includes digital signal processing algorithms and post-processing functionality to filter the signal, account for flight operations, and process data from distributed microphones (both onboard as an acoustic phased array or across multiple UAVs). Future capabilities that can be developed using distributed acoustic phased arrays across multiple UAVs include speech detection, phased-array beamforming for complex ground source localization, synthetic apertures f
Deployable Gridded Ion Thruster
Ion thrusters are reliable propulsion systems with high specific impulse, making them superior for long-duration and large orbit transfers, but space limitations in small satellites constrain the use of ion thrusters. Technology: Inventors have developed a mechanical method to store a high-performance gridded ion thruster in a small volume compatible with the dimensions of a small (cubesat/nanosat) spacecraft for efficient storage during launch to orbit. Once the spacecraft is ejected from the launch vehicle, the gridded ion thruster is deployed to its full operational geometry and physical size. The small volume of the deployable chamber frees up volume for fuel. Deploying a large ion thruster whose physical dimensions are larger than the platform of a cubesat is advantageous for two reasons. First, the large size of the deployed gridded ion thruster creates a large internal volume-to-surface area ratio in the plasma chamber of the gridded ion thruster, which enables efficient propulsion ionization and high propellant utilization. Second, it creates the required surface area for the thruster to passively cool itself via radiation to the space environment.The design concept for storage and deployment involves the use of elastic, lightweight, multifunctional tiles that are folded and wrapped using slipping folds.
Solopulse Radar
Background: “RADAR” was originally an acronym for RAdio Detection And Ranging; hence, the very name emphasizes the natural solution radar provides for down-range profiling. Cross-range profiling in radar, on the other hand, has long been a challenging problem. Georgia Tech offers a breakthrough solution called “Solopulse” for the cross-range detection problem in both azimuth and elevation that only requires the transmission of a single radar pulse. Technology: Solopulse digital signal processing, combined with digitized array hardware, produces a volumetric image within a range window field of view that spans azimuth and elevation dimensions. This new array signal processing technique achieves cross-range imaging with a single, solitary radar pulse, or said more simply, with a “solopulse.” Solopulse processing is efficient and effective, and provides a landmark technology that will empower many new computed imaging applications and capabilities in radar, terahertz sensing, medical imaging, seismology, sonar, etc.
3D and AM Dimensionally Stable Silicon Carbide
Goodman Technologies demonstrated 3D printing and additive manufacturing (AM) of silicon carbide for optics and opto-mechanical structures via Phase I SBIR Contract NNX17CM29P; three patents are pending. Our Phase I-III SBIR technology roadmap and program plan directly addresses creation, demonstration and validation of the technologies most critical for substantive near-term progress on strategic priorities identified by NASA and leads to commercial 3D/AM in microgravity. We were directly responsive to the needs of topic S2.03 Advanced Optical Systems and Fabrication/Testing/Control Technologies for EUV/Optical and IR Telescope. The objective of the topic is to mature technologies in order to affordably manufacture, test or operate complete mirror systems or telescope assemblies. Referencing the 2016 Cosmic Origins (COR) Program Annual Technology Report (PATR), the COR Program Office recommended that the NASA Astrophysics Division at HQ solicit and fund the maturation of technologies associated with Priority 1 technology gaps. Our technology fills multiple Priority 1-4 gaps, reduces cost of mirrors by almost 2 orders of magnitude and schedule by years. We enable the next generation of survivable, athermal space structures.
Multi-Energy Persistent Airborne, Long Endurance Unmanned Aerial System (UAS)
Our fixed-wing 'pseudo-satellite' tactical UAV can stay airborne for a near infinite timeframe based on the precision harnessing of naturally occurring energy sources including thermal soaring and wind, solar and nuclear based technologies. The UAV is based on a unique precision airfoil with multi-vehicle cooperative UAS swarming capabilities Key features of our Group-1 and Group-2 UAS platforms include: - Power Management Decision Systems allowing for the onboard management for multiple energy sources (Kraus IP) - BLOS C2 and ISR capabilities with unlimited range from operator - Onboard artificial intelligence (AI) to maximize airborne endurance - Precision multi-constellation satellite navigation - Runway independent - Redundant onboard systems and sensors - Fully autonomous - Encrypted communications systems Utilizing its own technology, Kraus Aerospace further provides end-to-end ISR services and UAS operations. This is inclusive of processing real-time sensor data and Predictive Autonomous Intelligence utilizing Neural networks and Machine Learning.
NanoVinyl Camouflage System
Military Wraps has patented its concept of a vinyl wrap visual camouflage system with nano particles inserted to provide thermal or radar suppression. The company is in the initial phases of product development but believes existing nanotechnology research expedites this process
Athens, OH
www.ohio.edu/engineering/ceer/
Booth: 428
Advanced Electrolytes for Thermal Batteries
Thermal batteries are used for many military applications, primarily as power sources for guided missiles (Tow, Patriot, Sidewinder, Cruise, etc.) and proximity fuzzes in ordinance Devices. The thermal batteries use a solid electrolyte that is inactive at ambient temperature and can be stored with little to no power loss for long periods (>25 years). However, the battery could be activated instantly (<1s) to produce enormous power output ranging from watts to kilowatts. The battery activation is achieved by drastically raising the temperature using a carefully designed pyrotechnic heat source which melts the solid electrolyte and facilitates ion conduction and the eventual activation of the battery. The electrolyte properties such as melting point and ionic conductivity are crucial for the energy density and operational lifetime of the battery. Several eutectic electrolyte mixtures such as LiBr-RbBr/CsBr and LiBr-CsBr/LiBr-KBR-CsBr have been successfully demonstrated to reduce the melting point by changing alloying element and/or additives. However, improved novel electrolytes based on HF and KF can be used to lower the melting point (i.e. improved operating conditions) as well as increase ionic conductivity. This would lead to higher energy and power densities and cheaper pyrotechnic sources.
Hub Fin Device for Improving Propeller Efficiency
Most marine propellers consist of a central hub with attached blades in the form of helicoidal surfaces that acts as “screws” into the water to generate thrust. The rotation of the blades usually results in the formation of a strong vortex in close proximity to the propeller hub. This vortex can cause reductions in shaft torque, induce damage to the propeller, and lead to an overall loss of efficiency of a ship’s propulsion system. The invention is a hub fin device for improving the efficiency of a propeller. The device can be fit to new marine propellers or retrofit to existing propellers. The device can include a propeller having a hub and a number of propeller blades that extend radially outward from the hub. Each of the propeller blades has a trailing edge region. The fin, which can be located in the trailing edge region of at least one of the propeller blades, extends radially outward from the hub and reduces or eliminates a hub vortex that is normally present during operation of the propeller.
Eye wear for visually enhancing projected laser spot and/or line
An eye wear is capable of visually enhancing a laser spot projected by laser gun sight. The eye wear transmits the laser light but partially blocks other light. The transmittance of the laser light is close to 100%, but other light transmittance is only 20% for example. Consequently, the user will perceive such that the laser spot is amplified by 5 times.
Lane Keeping and Platooning for automated road transportation
Globally, majority of technology developments in the automated transportation space have focused on addressing specific human related problems that cause these accidents. However functional safety standards that would address the system level issues causing accidents are yet to be fully established. We are building appropriately designed automated transportation solutions with functional safety addressed with a correctness by design approach not only improve safety, but also makes it more operational and fuel efficient. We are solving challenges in road transportation with 'SAE Level 4' automated driving systems, especially with buses & trucks where technology provider can 'assure’ safety for automated driving. Sirab’s approach relies on matured radar solutions with high RCS systems on vehicles and leverages dedicated lane infrastructure that allow high assurance lane keeping and reliable vehicle platooning. The core technology consists of radar based guidance and wireless control for lane keeping and platooning if vehicles.
The Zorb Platform: Enabling tactile communication
Current augmented reality solutions focus solely on two modalities that are already overloaded: hearing and vision. We augment a user’s sense of touch. Our full-stack platform, Zorb, provides the most versatile development and creation tools on the market to deliver high-resolution haptic feedback. Our software, Zorb Design Studio, enables third party developers to easily customize the tactile feedback provided to an end-user (directions, alerts, instructions) and provides a platform that supports the integration of sensors, apps, and other software. We provide our customers with a reference design, which can fit a variety of form factors and designs. Using our Zorb Evaluation Module, a customer can quickly implement tactile alerts and notifications in wearable devices including wrist bands, baseball caps, hard hats, and belts. Unlike any other augmented reality product on the market, our platform’s modular design enables third-party developers to quickly integrate haptic feedback in existing products and systems for use in real-time operations. We provide an unobtrusive, hands-free solution to communicate critical, real-time information that is felt as a sensation on a user’s skin. The Zorb Platform can be used to enhance situational awareness and communication for military, manufacturing, automotive, and space exploration customers.
Canberra, ACT
researchers.anu.edu.au/researchers/neshev-d
Booth: 630
Ultra-thin optical systems for enhanced night vision
Night vision devices provide us with the ability to see in low light environments and have numerous applications, both military and civilian. Current technologies work by converting the light to electrons, which are multiplied and then converted back into an image. This process results in devices that are bulky, heavy, monochromatic and opaque in the visible spectrum. We have developed a device that converts light frequencies directly from infrared (IR) to visible wavelengths, eliminating the need for conversion of optical to electronic domains. Using a novel technique of fabricating semiconductor nanocrystals embedded in a transparent polymer on a glass substrate, we have demonstrated nonlinear frequency conversion in an ultra-thin layer of nanocrystals on a glass surface. We have also used different sizes of these unique semiconductor nanocrystals to produce multiple colors of visible light from different IR frequencies. The nanocrystals allow for strong light concentration inside them, such that the incoming infrared image can mix with a strong laser beam to generate a new visible image which can be observed in a conventional CMOS sensor or by the naked eye.
Low-Cost, Contactless and Accurate 3D Fingerprint Identification System
Automated personal identification using biometrics characteristics is commonly used for civilian and law-enforcement applications around the world. Contact-based acquisition of biometrics scans by rolling or pressing of palms or fingers against the hard surface (glass, silicon, polymers) often results in partial or degraded images due to skin deformation, slippages, smearing, or due to sensor noise. As a result full potential from contact based imaging is not realized. Therefore, contactless 3D biometrics systems have emerged to provide ideal solutions to above intrinsic problems. Such 3D approaches can also provide more accurate personal identification as rich information is available from 3D biometrics images. The main obstacles for emerging 3D biometrics technologies are: (a) their complexity, bulk and high cost, which mainly results from the usage of multiple cameras or structured lighting system; and (b) lack of effective 2D contactless imaging models to represent and recover 3D minutiae features. Dr. Ajay Kumar and his team members who have been working to address these challenges have now developed a low-cost, and more accurate contactless 3D fingerprint identification system.
Angle Difference Method for Vehicle Navigation in Multilevel Road Networks
Existing vehicle navigation systems use consumer-grade GPS that can deal with nonparallel road level when the flyover has a different (x, y) coordinates than the ground level but they cannot deal with parallel flyover system. This invention can help users to determine which road level the vehicle is on when the vehicle is entering or exiting a parallel flyover with accuracy. It improves the safety and reduces stress and uncertainty in driving in multilevel road network of high-density cities such as in Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul, Bangkok, and Hong Kong often with parallel flyovers.Our Angle Difference Method compares the in-vehicle inclination angle with the inclination angles of different road levels calculated from road elevations stored in a GIS-T database to map match the vehicle to appropriate road level when the vehicle is entering or exiting multilevel road networks.Existing in-vehicle inclinometers are costly and fixed to the vehicle. We enable the in-vehicle inclination angle to be measured in high accuracy with low-cost portable devices, such as smart phones, for implementing the Angle Difference Method. It can be calibrated before using in both stationary-mode and dynamic-mode with external 3D GIS-T database to ensure high accuracy of inclination angle measurement.
Bulk Metallic Glass from Amorphous Powder
Metallic glasses (amorphous metals) have an advantage over the crystalline form in that they have high hardness and high elastic energy. However, the need to reduce crystallization speed has constrained both the material choices and the application space. TXL Group is producing bulk metallic glass by beginning with an amorphous metal powder and then densifying the powder using an explosive shockwave to create rods and tubes. The very brief, very high, axisymmetric pressure pulse serves to bond powders into fully dense bulk material without an attendant grain growth. Significantly, the approach allows the use of powder milling as a means for amorphous metal powder production without the status quo constraint of having to choose material sets that will crystallize slowly upon cooling. This opens the door to new material sets that have not previously been implemented as a bulk metallic glass.
Autonomous Vehicle Navigation with Signals of Opportunity
UCR researchers have developed a highly reliable and accurate navigation system that exploits existing environmental signals such as cellular and Wi-Fi, rather than the Global Positioning System (GPS). The technology can be used as a standalone alternative to GPS, or complement current GPS-based systems to enable highly reliable, consistent, and tamper-proof navigation. The technology could be used to develop navigation systems that meet the stringent requirements of fully autonomous vehicles, such as driverless cars and unmanned drones.qGPS signals alone are extremely weak and unusable in certain environments like deep canyons; second, GPS signals are susceptible to intentional and unintentional jamming and interference; and third, civilian GPS signals are unencrypted, unauthenticated, and specified in publicly available documents, making them spoofable (i.e., hackable). Current trends in autonomous vehicle navigation systems therefore rely not only on GPS/INS, but a suite of other sensor-based technologies such as cameras, lasers, and sonar. The unique approach taken by UCR researchers is to exploit signals that are already out there in the environment.
