NASA has selected for development 368 small business innovation projects that include research to minimize aging of aircraft, new techniques for suppressing fires on spacecraft and advanced transmitters for deep space communications.
Chosen from more than 1,600 proposals, the competitively selected awards will address agency research and technology needs. The awards are part of NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
Six of the awards will develop technologies for the Innovative Partnership Program at NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center. Three of the projects were chosen through the SBIR program:
- “System for Acquisition and Analysis of Energy-Based Acoustic Data for Rocket Noise” with Blue Ridge Research and Consulting in Asheville, N.C.
- “COAST Map Sharing Plugin” with Geocent, LLC in Metairie, La.
- “Semantic Sensor Web Enablement for Coast” withVcrsoft, LLC in Arlington, Texas.
Three other Stennis-related projects were chosen through the STTR program:
- “Innovative Solid State Lighting Replacements for Industrial and Test Facility Locations” with Energy Focus Inc. in Solon, Ohio, and Lighting Innovations Institute in University Heights, Ohio.
- “Gaseous Helium Reclamation at Rocket Test Systems” with Sierra Lobo Inc. in Fremont, Ohio, and the University of Hawaii in Honolulu.
- “Hydrogen Recovery System” with Sustainable Innovations, LLC in Glastonbury, Conn., and the University of Connecticut in Storrs.
The SBIR program selected 335 proposals for negotiation of Phase 1 contracts, and the STTR program chose 33 proposals for negotiation of Phase 1 contract awards. The selected SBIR projects have a combined value of about $33.5 million. The selected STTR projects have a combined value of about $3.3 million.
The SBIR contracts will be awarded to 245 small, high technology firms in 36 states. The STTR contracts will be awarded to 31 small high technology firms in 19 states. As part of the STTR program, selected firms will partner with 26 universities and research institutions in 20 states.
Past innovations from the program have benefited a number of NASA efforts, including air traffic control systems, Earth observing spacecraft, the International Space Station and the development of spacecraft for exploring the solar system.
A few of the research areas among this group of selected proposals include advanced aerospace adhesives to minimize aging and increase durability of aircraft; novel computational tools to better design future hypersonic spacecraft; new approaches to fire suppression in spacecraft environments, technologies to monitor crew health and well being using very small-scale testing devices; new instruments for small lunar rovers or landers to enable critical mineralogical analysis for studying regolith, rock, ice, and dust samples; and advanced transmitters for deep space communications
The SBIR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It provides qualified small businesses – including women-owned and disadvantaged firms – with opportunities to propose unique ideas that meet specific research and development needs of the federal government.
The criteria used to choose these winning proposals included technical merit and feasibility, experience, qualifications and facilities, effectiveness of the work plan and commercial potential and feasibility.
The SBIR and STTR programs are part of NASA’s Innovative Partnerships Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. NASA works with U.S. industry to infuse pioneering technologies into agency missions and transition them into commercially available products and services. NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., manages the SBIR and STTR programs for the Innovative Partnerships Program. Each of NASA’s 10 field centers manages individual projects.
For a list of the selected companies and proposals, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/offices/ipp/technology_infusion/sbir/index.html
For more information about NASA’s Innovative Partnership Program, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/offices/ipp/home/index.html
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text-only version of this release
Chris McGee, NASA News Chief
NASA Public Affairs Office
Stennis Space Center, MS 39529-6000
(228) 688-3249
Christopher.Mcgee@nasa.gov