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NASA ICB 2018 Awards


Invention of the Year Award

Winner: Government and Commercial: NASA PS/PM400: A New High Temperature Solid Lubricant Coating for High Temperature Wear Applications

Center: GRC

The NASA Government and Commercial Invention of the Year Award is awarded to the invention NASA PS/PM400: A New High Temperature Solid Lubricant Coating for High Temperature Wear Applications, from the Glenn Research Center. The PS/PM400 is a composite material that is environmentally stable and functions with reduced friction and wear in extreme temperatures. PS400 is the coating version of the lubricant composite applied via Plasma Spray (PS) Techniques, and PM400 is the free-standing solid version of the lubricant composite made via Powder Metallurgy (PM) Processes. The key features of the invention include:

  • Extreme temperature capability — greater than 900° C
  • Long life (years) to 760° C
  • Low friction and wear
  • Improved creep resistance, strength, and dimensional stability
  • Low fabrication costs and flexible manufacturing technique
PM bushing test and PS400 coated turbine shaft, invention of the year 2018
PM bushing test and PS400 coated turbine shaft, invention of the year 2018


Software of the Year Award

Winner: OnSight

Center: JPL

OnSight allows scientists and engineers to immerse themselves within a reconstruction of the Mars terrain around the Curiosity rover. Prior to OnSight, scientists worked primarily by viewing 2D images or panoramas sent back by the Curiosity rover. However, it is extremely difficult to get a sense of three dimensional relationships by viewing 2D images. Three-dimensional visualization on traditional computer screens has been available to a subset of Mars mission operations teams since the late 1990s. However, these interfaces have not been available to the full mission science team and do not offer the intuitive understanding gained when the environment is explored in the same ways as an environment on Earth.

Using an immersive display, OnSight can render a reconstruction of Mars at full scale, and allow users to navigate the model by simply walking and looking around. There are many potential applications for this technology, including Earth based terrain visualization (e.g., caves, lava fields, remote field sites), as well as other planetary and asteroid surfaces.

OnSight in action
OnSight in action