Department of the navy (don) 18. 1 Small Business Innovation Research (sbir) Proposal Submission Instructions introduction

Note: To understand the JMPS functionality and appreciate the complexity of the JMPS software and to support the objective of the topic, Government will provide companies awarded a Phase I contract a current version of the software and source code with embedded help files and JMPS Concept of Operation (CONOPS) and Use Cases document.

Work produced in Phase II may become classified. Note: The prospective contractor(s) must be U.S. Owned and Operated with no Foreign Influence as defined by DOD 5220.22-M, National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual, unless acceptable mitigating procedures can and have been implemented and approved by the Defense Security Service (DSS). The selected contractor and/or subcontractor must be able to acquire and maintain a secret level facility and Personnel Security Clearances, in order to perform on advanced phases of this contract as set forth by DSS and NAVAIR in order to gain access to classified information pertaining to the national defense of the United States and its allies; this will be an inherent requirement. The selected company will be required to safeguard classified material IAW DoD 5220.22-M during the advance phases of this contract.

PHASE I: Define and develop a concept for how AI and DL/ML will be applied to the mission and strike planning process as well as dynamic re-planning. Identify what type of processing power is needed for a representative computing environment. Determine, when employing AI and ML, the level of improvement in the mission and strike planning process and in mission planner performance, and how AI and ML would generate mission plans in a near-autonomous mode, given the current workflow. The Phase I effort will include prototype plans to be developed under Phase II.

PHASE II: Develop a prototype approach based on the Phase I concept using available commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) computing environment.

It is probable that the work under this effort will be classified under Phase II (see Description section for details).

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS: Test the developed technology in simulated mission environment and determine if and how much of the prototype is ready for integration into JMPS. Based upon that information, continue working on the prototype with the ultimate goal toward the nearly full autonomous mission and strike planning operation.

AI and ML are used by many companies in various applications ranging from big data analysis to economics to investment and cancer research, just to name a few. The results of this project should benefit various companies that deal with parcel delivery such as Amazon, UPS, FedEx, and others by potentially generating autonomous mission plans—in this case optimized delivery plans for either multiple ground and air vehicles. Another field that could benefit from this technology is traffic engineering, providing a more adaptive approach to traffic control based on various traffic conditions.

REFERENCES:

1. Chen, K. "Watson claims to predict cancer, but who trained it to 'think?'" Recode, August 16, 2016. http://www.recode.net/2016/8/16/12490110/watson-artificial-intelligence-machine-learning-cancer-prediction-human-input

2. Hof, R. D. "Deep Learning." MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/s/513696/deep-learning/

3. Parloff, R. "Why Deep Learning Is Suddenly Changing Your Life." Fortune, September 28, 2016. http://fortune.com/ai-artificial-intelligence-deep-machine-learning/

4. Noyes, K. "5 things you need to know about A.I.: Cognitive, neural and deep, oh my!" Computer World, March 3, 2016. http://www.computerworld.com/article/3040563/enterprise-applications/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-ai-cognitive-neural-and-deep-oh-my.html

5. "Summer Study on Autonomy." Defense Science Board, June 2016, http://www.acq.osd.mil/dsb/reports/2010s/DSBSS15.pdf?zoom_highlight=Autonomy

6. "The Role of Autonomy in DoD Systems." Defense Science Board Task Force Report, July 2012, http://fas.org/irp/agency/dod/dsb/autonomy.pdf

7. “Watson,” IBM website. http://www.ibm.com/watson/

8. Hutson, M. "Self-taught artificial intelligence beats doctors at predicting heart attacks." Science Magazine, 14 April 2017. http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/04/self-taught-artificial-intelligence-beats-doctors-predicting-heart-attacks

KEYWORDS: Artificial Intelligence; Machine Learning; Mission and Strike Planning; Multi-Vehicle; Multi-Domain; Autonomous

TECHNOLOGY AREA(S): Air Platform, Materials/Processes

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: PMA 275 V-22 Osprey

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), 22 CFR Parts 120-130, which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services, including export of sensitive technical data, or the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 5.4.c.(8) of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

OBJECTIVE: Develop a material (and application method) for a hydrophobic/oleophobic coating to an aluminum-bodied, air-cooled, fluid-managing heat exchanger, with the subject heat exchanger of the tube-and-fin configuration.

DESCRIPTION: The naval aviation community, as owner and operator of aerospace systems, continuously seeks improvement in the manufacturing arena. As such, the Navy occasionally faces issues with heat exchanger performance in mechanical systems due to the accumulation of dirt and debris on the thermal transfer surfaces.

Developing a cost-effective, innovative technology for a coating material and application method, designed to reduce the build-up of organic material on the thermal transfer surfaces of the heat exchanger, would increase the available usage time of a mechanical system. This would result in a decrease in cost to the Government by removing the need to clean or remove components that have diminished heat-rejection capability.

An accompanying application method of the coating material must provide even distribution coverage of the coating to the external surfaces that provide the thermal transfer capability.

These thermal transfer surfaces could include use in either wet or dry environments. In dry environments, the particulate build-up would be more easily cleaned from the surface when using a water rinse. In wet environments, the particulate matter would have a reduced tendency to adhere to the surface and be primarily carried away in solution with the water.

The intent is to provide longer duration of use. The expectation is of longer periods of trouble-free use, which could provide more remote usage of a device. Heat exchanger size could be reduced to account for higher resulting efficiency.

The heat exchanger of interest has separate circuits. Specifications are as follows:

Heat Exchanger Requirements with Hydrophobic/Oleophobic Coating

Internal Lubricant. The hot side lubricant fluids for the heat exchanger should be any oil conforming to MIL-L-7808, MIL-L-23699 or DOD-L-85734.

Internal hydraulic fluid. The hot side fluid for the heat exchanger should conform to MIL-H-5606 or MIL-H-83282.

Rated air flow and pressure drop. The heat exchanger is designed for a rated air flow of 7951 cubic feet per minute (CFM) with an inlet temperature of 130ºF and an inlet air pressure of 14.6psia. The corresponding air side total pressure drop should not exceed 8.9 inches of water.

Oil heat rejection. Each oil cooler assembly should provide the minimum heat rejection performance specified at the rated oil side and air side flow conditions. Two circuits with the widest ranges are listed:
Minimum Heat rejection (BTU/M) 7245 / 490
Rated oil flow (GPM) 36.4 / 4.5
Maximum Oil Out Temp (°F) 230 / 204

Air fins. The minimum opening between fins is 0.032 inches. Length of fins are up to 5 inches.

Humidity. Specified performance should be maintained during and following exposure to the following relative humidities:

Temperature (ºF) Temperature (ºC) Relative Humidity (%)
70 21 45
100 38 95
126 52 80
160 71 20

Salt spray. Specified performance should be maintained during and following exposure to sea salt fallout of 200 parts per billion (PPB).

Sand and dust ingestion. The heat exchanger should not leak throughout its operating range at ground environmental conditions with air containing sand and dust in concentrations up to 1.32 x 10-4 pounds of sand and dust per cubic foot. The heat exchanger should be operated for 10 hours in accordance with the endurance test schedule while ingesting the specified concentration of sand and dust. During this 10-hour test, heat transfer performance should be measured at 3.3 hours, 6.7 hours, and at test completion. In addition, heat transfer performance should be measured after cleaning the test unit. This data will be used to determine cleaning intervals. The specified sand and dust contaminant should consist of crushed quartz with the total particle size distribution as follows:

Quantity, percent by weight

Surface finish.

PHASE I: Demonstrate the concept and breadboard of the material and application method that allows a determination of distribution and coating quality on a representative surface. Demonstrate and compare the heat-transfer capability to an untreated sample. Demonstrate the hydrophobic/oleophobic-coating performance on a sample to ensure properties are maintained with a developed material and application method.

PHASE II: Demonstrate the material and application method on representative samples. Demonstrate and compare the heat-transfer capability to an untreated, production-representative sample. Demonstrate the hydrophobic/oleophobic-coating performance on a production representative sample to ensure properties are maintained with a developed material and application method.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS: Conduct final testing that includes adhesion and coating consistency evaluation. Transition would be a commercial offering of a coated product either on an individual application basis or as a complete pretreated heat exchanger assembly. Parties interested in licensing this product would include Off-Highway vehicles, mining equipment, and automotive applications intended for off-road use. Devices that use heat exchangers in austere and also wet or day environments would benefit.

REFERENCES:

1. Cadogan, D. and Ferl, J. “Dust Mitigation Solutions for Lunar and Mars Surface Systems.” SAE Technical Paper 2007-01-3213, 2007. http://papers.sae.org/2007-01-3213/

2. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics report: “Desert Research and Technology Studies – Exposure of Lotus Coated Electrodynamic Shield Samples”, NASA. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20110005671.pdf

3. MIL-H-5606, Hydraulic Fluid, Petroleum Base. http://everyspec.com/MIL-SPECS/MIL-SPECS-MIL-H/MIL-H-5606G_5998/

4. MIL-PRF-83282, Hydraulic Fluid, Fire Resistant, Synthetic Hydrocarbon Base. http://everyspec.com/MIL-PRF/MIL-PRF-080000-99999/MIL-PRF-83282D_7238/

5. MIL-PRF-7808, Lubricating Oil, Aircraft Turbine Engine, Synthetic Base. http://everyspec.com/MIL-PRF/MIL-PRF-000100-09999/MIL-PRF-7808L_5699/

6. MIL-L-23699, Lubricating Oil, Aircraft Turbine Engine, Synthetic Base. http://everyspec.com/MIL-SPECS/MIL-SPECS-MIL-L/MIL-L-23699E_25009/

7. DOD-L-85734, Military Specification: Lubricating Oil, Helicopter Transmission System, Synthetic Base. http://everyspec.com/DoD/DoD-SPECS/DOD-L-85734_AMENDMENT-3_24867/

KEYWORDS: Heat Exchangers; Hydrophobic; Oleophobic; Off-Highway; Particulate Accumulation; Coating

TECHNOLOGY AREA(S): Battlespace, Electronics, Materials/Processes

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: PMA 290 Maritime Surveillance Aircraft

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), 22 CFR Parts 120-130, which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services, including export of sensitive technical data, or the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 5.4.c.(8) of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

OBJECTIVE: Develop, fabricate, test, and demonstrate a low-frequency, high-powered, underwater acoustic transducer that employs the enhanced properties of PMN-PT (lead magnesium niobate - lead titanate) textured ceramic and allows for integration into an air-deployable sensor.

DESCRIPTION: Coherent low-frequency underwater acoustic transducer designs are typically of the flextensional or flexural type and are optimized to operate under small-volume constraints. These designs commonly employ piezoelectric ceramic lead zirconate titanate (PZT). In these devices, the power output is field-limited and not stress-limited. Application of these transducers toward air-deployable expendable sensors - sonobuoys - poses unique limitations on size, power, and cost. The recent development of ferroelectric PMN-PT textured ceramics, which have electromechanical properties between those of conventional PZT and relaxor PMN-PT crystals, has shown the promise of increased power output, relative to Navy Type III piezoceramic, of at least 10dB without significant cost increase. This increase in performance allows for transducer designs that are better suited to operate at high stress- and field-limits while maintaining a compact form factor. These improvements in source level and bandwidth would yield a considerable performance increase in terms of target detections and extended detection ranges. The end use of these projectors is for an array that is capable of generating high acoustic power while exhibiting broad bandwidth that could be integrated into an A-sized air-deployable sensor. A notional design would be a transducer that is approximately 5 inches in diameter, can achieve source levels that exceed those achievable by conventional PZT ceramics, and maintain as broad an operational bandwidth as possible at the 0.5kHz to 2kHz range. Variations on established flextensional and/or flexural type transducers should be considered; however, final design considerations are not limited to these technologies.

Work produced in Phase II may become classified. Note: The prospective contractor(s) must be U.S. Owned and Operated with no Foreign Influence as defined by DOD 5220.22-M, National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual, unless acceptable mitigating procedures can and have been implemented and approved by the Defense Security Service (DSS). The selected contractor and/or subcontractor must be able to acquire and maintain a secret level facility and Personnel Security Clearances, in order to perform on advanced phases of this contract as set forth by DSS and NAVAIR in order to gain access to classified information pertaining to the national defense of the United States and its allies; this will be an inherent requirement. The selected company will be required to safeguard classified material IAW DoD 5220.22-M during the advance phases of this contract.

PHASE I: Design and demonstrate the feasibility of a device that can meet the notional need and be optimized to exploit the properties of PMN-PT textured piezoceramic. Undertake at least two paper design variations to assess the strengths of the approach. Select a single prototype design to pursue/develop in Phase II; analyze all aspects of the design; and perform a cost analysis for production.

PHASE II: Complete the high-powered, low-frequency underwater projector design selected in Phase I and fabricate two prototypes. Undertake a complete electroacoustic analysis of the prototypes including high-power in-water testing, continuous duty high-power operation, and a design review package. Verify the computer model of the transducer design with measured data to assess the viability of the model and its ability to modify performance parameters while maintaining tractability. If necessary, make adjustments to the design, fabricate revised prototypes, and repeat the testing and model verification regime. Compare the final test and model results with the notional performance goals.

It is probable that the work under this effort will be classified under Phase II (see Description section for details).

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS: Continue to extensively test the prototype fabricated in Phase II and test for severe environmental conditions of depth, power output, duty cycle, and sensor deployment. Fabricate, assemble, and test an array to assess performance. Working with a Navy POC, match the achieved performance with current Navy needs and transition this technology for its intended purpose. The development of this technology will have application to the oceanographic community and the oil exploration industry.

REFERENCES:

1. Stephen F. Poterala, Susan Trolier-McKinstry, Richard J. Meyer Jr., and Gary L. Messing. “Processing, texture quality, and piezoelectric properties of <001>C textured (1-x)Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)TiO3 - xPbTiO3 ceramics.” Applied Physics Letters Vol. 110, Issue 1, 0145105 (2011), http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3603045

2. Poterala, Stephen F., Meyer, Richard J., and Messing, Gary L. “Fabrication and properties of radially <001>C textured PMN-PT cylinders for transducer applications.” Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 112, Issue 1, 014105 (2012). http://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/1.4730938

3. Holler, Roger A., Horbach, Arthur W. and McEachern, James F. The Ears of Air ASW: A History of U.S. Navy Sonobuoys. Navmar Applied Sciences Corporation, 2008. ISBN 978-0-615-20113-9, 2008. https://www.abebooks.com/9780615201139/Ears-Air-ASW-History-U.S-061520113X/plp

4. Introduction to Theory and Design of Sonar Transducers. ISBN 978-0932146229, 1989

KEYWORDS: Transducer; Sonobuoys; Textured Ceramics; Underwater Acoustics; Source Level; Bandwidth

N181-021

TITLE: Innovative Ultra Violet and Ozone Resistant Material for Hydraulic Clamp Cushions

TECHNOLOGY AREA(S): Materials/Processes

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: PMA 265 F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet

OBJECTIVE: Develop an alternative material for hydraulic clamp cushions that is resistant to both ultra violet (UV) and ozone exposure and compatible with the relevant hydraulic fluids of the Navy.

DESCRIPTION: The Navy uses cushioned clamps to fasten, support, and protect hydraulic tubes from loading and vibration. These clamps are comprised of a metallic band that utilizes a soft cushion material to reduce the loading and vibrational effects. There are several versions of these clamps, one of which is composed of an elastomeric, nitrile rubber. The nitrile clamp cushions sporadically crack shortly after installation on aircraft due to a combination of UV and ozone exposure. Any cracking on the clamp’s cushion that is visible by the un-aided eye as well as any major discoloration dictates a clamp failure, which results in replacement of the failed clamp. Because cushioned clamps can be used on hydraulic, fuel, and electrical applications, the cushion material can be exposed to fuel and petroleum-based hydraulic system fluids. At the part level, the replacement activity for these cushioned clamps equates to $640 per clamp for the CH-53K. Multiplying the cost to replace a clamp by the total number of clamps out in the fleet provides insight into how expensive the direct cost of replacing these clamps truly is. The indirect cost associated with a clamp failure is more important. Once a clamp fails, the hydraulic or fuel tube is no longer adequately supported, which could result in two immediate problems: the hydraulic tube might break or the hydraulic tube might chaff against another tube or structure. Either scenario creates a detrimental effect for the aircraft, further increasing cost and decreasing fleet readiness. The clamp cushion must meet the performance requirements as specified in MIL-DTL-85052/1C and MIL-DTL-85052B.

PHASE I: Develop concepts for alternative materials for hydraulic clamp cushions that are resistant to both UV and ozone exposure and compatible with the respective hydraulic fluids used by the Navy. Demonstrate the feasibility of the developed cushion material concept to meet the Navy’s unique environmental requirements for hydraulic, fuel, and electrical clamp applications. The Phase I effort will include the development of prototype plans for the clamp cushion material for Phase II.