Intelligent Night Scope. - TechExpo

Volume II Spring 2007 

SBIR - bringing the innovative capabilities of small business to Marine Corps Acquisition Programs 

In This Issue: 

Technology 

Transition 

S&T Efforts: 

True Color Night 

Vision 

Hostile Fire 

Detection System 

...and more! 

Authorized publication 

from the SBIR Program 

Office within Marine 

Corps Systems 

Command

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

11 

12 

Introduction 

A welcome letter by Paul Lambert, SBIR Program Manager 

SBIR Unveils New Website 

Get a preview of SBIR’s new web presence 

Avoiding Market Driven Complexities 

What can the Marine Corps learn from market driven product designs? 

Commentary by Dr. Gary Warren, SAIC 

Upcoming Events 

Mark your calendar 

Some Thoughts on Technology 

Transition 

Best practices in actively managing technology transition 

Commentary by Mr. Jim McGillicuddy, SAIC 

Active Programs 

A quick listing of current programs by Product Group 

Adjacent Efforts 

Six Science and Technology Efforts worth knowing about: 

- OKSI’s Intelligent Night Scope 

- Oceanit Lab’s HostileFire Detection System 

- MKP’s Function-Oriented Material Design for Innovative Composite Structures 

against Land Explosives 

- Datatek’s Mobile IPv6 in a Low Bandwidth Tactical Environment 

- SPEC’s Terrain Mapping Laser Detection and Ranging (LADAR) 

- SDRC’s SensorBone TM 

by Dave Thompson 


VOLUME II SPRING 2007


May 2007 

Welcome back to the SBIR quarterly newsletter. Our objective is to provide increased 

visibility into Science & Technology (S&T) activities occurring within the Small Business 

Innovation Research (SBIR) Program as well as other S&T communities. We will identify 

and highlight selected efforts underway within adjacent S&T communities that may be of 

interest to the Marine Corps and provide you with a summary of those efforts. 

Spring is a busy time of year in the SBIR community. Within the Marine Corps, the 

7.3 Topic Call has wrapped up and the SBIR Program office is preparing for the open 

solicitation to follow. The Navy hosted its annual Navy Opportunity Forum, in May, which 

brought together many small businesses that have been successful in the SBIR program. 

This meeting provided a unique forum to discuss innovative ideas and how they may 

be used to meet not only DoD needs but those of private industry. More information 

regarding SBIR conferences and other key dates may be found in the SBIR Calendar 

located in this newsletter (page 7). 

On a different note, I’d like to extend an invitation to the acquisition community to 

submit articles of interest. 

Small Business Innovation Research Program 

SBIR Office 2200 Lester St. Quantico, VA 22134-5010 

SBIR.Admin@usmc.mil 

If you know of something that you think would be 

interesting or something that you would like to know more about, please contact me at 

SBIR.Admin@usmc.mil. Similarly, I welcome any comments or suggestions you might 

have that would make this a more informative and useful product. 

Sincerely, 

Paul Lambert 

Program Manager 

Small Business Innovation Research Program 

 


SBIR Unveils 

New Website 

http://www.marcorsyscom.usmc. 

mil/sites/tto/SBIR_HOME.htm 

Spring is the time of year for new growth. It’s the time when 

winter’s harsh vestiges are shrugged off and life emerges anew. A 

time of renewal, birth, cleansing and of web page redesigns. 

SBIR is celebrating Spring 2007 by launching a fresh new web 

page. Completely redesigned to partner with the new SBIR 

Program Guide, the new SBIR website sports 

an updated, attractive and useful graphic 

design. The content is divided into logical 

sections that are easily navigated to maximize 

usability. 

Active Programs is a good place to stay informed on what is 

going on with the SBIR. This list describes current contracts and 

groups them by Product Group. 

The Calendar notifies users of upcoming events. The list includes 

the hosting agency and the specific event location. 

Need a primer on SBIR? SBIR 101 is the place to start. This 

page outlines the program structure and describes each phase in 

detail. 

The Publications section contains this newsletter in digital 

form plus Transition Point digital archives and the SBIR Program 

Guide. 

Comments? Complaints? Points of Contact has the vital numbers 

of who to call or email. 

Just the FAQs. Many common questions and answers can be 

found in this section. 

http://www.marcorsyscom.usmc.mil/sites/tto/SBIR_HOME.htm 




Avoiding Market Driven 

Complexities 

Market driven product design 

often contradicts simple and 

efficient design for Marine 

needs. This principle also applies to 

service oriented products – products 

that charge per usage rather than 

for hardware or software purchase. 

Watching for certain factors can help 

Marines adopt and adapt commercial 

products most free of market driven 

complexity. 

One affected feature of particular 

interest is “open architecture.” Open 

architecture allows customers to 

compose a capability via multiple 

vendor product integration. A small 

business is likely to integrate a niche 

product into a Marine system via 

an open interface. The desire for 

successful integration of their hightech 

innovations suggests emphasis 

on testing open architectures for 

market driven and other defects. 

Vendors provide open architecture 

because buyers seek it. However, 

each vendor prefers to sole source 

its product line to customers. While 

many vendors build customer loyalty 

through product quality, some vendors 

solve this marketing contradiction 

by providing a subtly deficient open 

interface. Such an interface will be 

sufficient to declare as open, but in 

practice, has deficiencies that degrade 

the integrated performance of 

competitors’ products to make them 

seem inferior. The fraction of vendors 

that use such practices varies across 

industries. 

For vendors with good open interfaces, 

it saves them money to use their 

open interfaces for their own product 

integrations. Thus, be suspect of 

vendors’ open interfaces who use 

private interfaces to integrate their 

own product suites. If a vendor 

does not use its own open interface 

to integrate its products, ask why. 

Watch out for open interfaces that 

allow only partial access to data. 

Specifying performance metrics for 

open interfaces can help. However, 

performance depends on the quantity 

of data in the system, so be careful to 

specify performance in those terms. 

For service products, the need to 

charge for the service requires 

inclusion of a means to track and bill 

for product usage. That means a link 

to a central billing system. It also 

often means that the service fails 

to complete if access to the billing 

system is blocked, or if the billing 

system is down. 

Even if the service vendor offers 

flat rate billing to mitigate the 

vulnerability risks related to the 

presence of central billing, watch for 

A commentary by 

Dr. Gary Warren, SAIC 

the continued need for the central 

server for related functions. Once the 

market forces create the presence of 

a central server in the architecture, 

it is likely to be used for additional 

functions such as authentication and 

access control. Turning off the billing 

does not always fix the architecture. 

A less apparent issue with service 

products is the emphasis in the 

If a vendor does not use its 

own open interface to integrate 

its products, ask why. 

system design towards maximizing 

billable service. A result can be 

hardware whose capabilities are 

underutilized or even blocked by the 

vendor. Sometimes capabilities are 

blocked because there is no way to 

bill for their use. Sometimes they are 

blocked in order to increase using 

features that are billable. Either way, 

commercial hardware underutilization 

can add weight and other stresses to 

the already heavy Marine load. 

Dr. Warren received his Ph.D. 

in Experimental Particle Physics 

from the University of Rochester. 

His experimental training 

provided a baseline capability in 

complex hardware and software 

integration, which has evolved 

into a career making systems 

that make work easier, faster, 

and more productive. His work 

developing the capability to 

model the impact of wireless 

networks on military operational 

tempo has transitioned to 

various network modeling tools, 

as has his work to make network 

modeling a part of network 

operations and of active network 

management. Dr. Warren’s 

continuing interest is “safe selfsustaining 

systems,” especially 

self-sustaining communications 

networks that adapt to the needs 

of their users. He can be reached 

at gary.warren@saic.com 

 


May 7-10 

Small Arms Symposium 

hosted by NDIA 

Virginia Beach Convention Center 

Virginia Beach, VA 

May 15-17 

National Small Business 

Conference 


Hyatt Regency Houston 

Houston, TX 

May 15-16 

Worlds Best Technology 

Showcase 

hosted by WBT 

Arlington, TX 

June 11-13 

Armaments Technology 

Firepower Symposium and 

Exhibition 


Hilton Parsippany 

Parsippany, NJ 

June 13-14 

Alignment & Experimentation 

Conference 


Radisson Hotel Old Town Alexandria 

Alexandria, VA 

June 25-27 

Joint CBRN Conference and 

Exhibition 


Fort Leonard Wood 

Fort Leonard Wood, MO 

July 25-26 

Missile Def. Agency SBIR 

Industry Day 


Sheraton National Hotel 

Arlington, VA 

July 30 - August 2 

2007 Naval S&T Industry 

Partnership Conference 


Marriott Wardman Park Hotel 

Washington, DC 

August 20 

DoD SBIR 2007.3 Open 

Solicitation 

hosted by DoD 

May 

S M T W T F S 

1 2 3 4 5 

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 

20 21 22 23 24 25 26 

27 28 29 30 31 

June 

S M T W T F S 

1 2 

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 

17 18 19 20 21 22 23 

24 25 26 27 28 29 30 

July 

S M T W T F S 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 

15 16 17 18 19 20 21 

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 

29 30 31 

August 

S M T W T F S 

1 2 3 4 

5 6 7 8 9 10 11 

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 

19 20 21 22 23 24 25 

26 27 28 29 30 31 

May 7-9 

Navy Opportunity Forum- 

Transitioning Technology to 

the Fleet 

hosted by DoD 

Hyatt Regency Crystal City 

Arlington, VA 

May 8-10 

The Rocky Mountain SBIR 

Conference - The Roadmap to 

Commercial Success 

hosted by DoD 

The Renaissance Hotel 

Denver, CO 

May 24-27 

2007 Hawaii International 

Conference on Business 

hosted by University of Hawaii 

Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa 

Honolulu, HI 

June 25-28 

Live Fire Test & Evaluation 

Conference 


SPAWAR Systems Center 

Charleston-Naval Warfare Station 

Goose Creek, SC 

June 27 

Legislative Information Division 

Breakfast Series 


Army Navy Club 

Washington, DC 

July 19 

DoD SBIR 2007.3 Topic 

Pre- Release Date 

hosted by DoD 

July 31 - August 1 

NDIA Greater Hampton Roads 

Chapter JFCOM Industry 

Symposium 


Troy Marriott 

Troy, MI 

August 20-23 

National SBIR Phase II 

Conference 2007 - “Beyond 

Phase II: Ready for 

Transformation” 


Hyatt Regency Crystal City 

Arlington, VA 

August 29-30 

15th Annual Expeditionary 

Warfare Wargame 


Alfred M. Gray Marine Corps Research Center 

Quantico, VA 




Some Thoughts on Technology Transition 

by Jim McGillicuddy, SAIC 

Transition has been the “Holy 

Grail” of the technology 

development community 

for as long as I can remember. 

Everyone seems to be seeking 

more effective ways to apply the 

knowledge and techniques that the 

science and technology community 

generates, and why not? The rate 

at which technology investments 

are actually applied to warfighting 

systems is an important metric 

for the effectiveness of the 

whole Science and Technology 

(S&T) development process. 

The increasing number of S&T 

projects that manifest themselves 

in warfighting systems, coupled 

with the importance of their 

contribution and the timelines 

of their application, provides 

a pretty clear indication of 

the effectiveness of the whole 

technology development and 

application process. 

Within the Department of 

Defense, we spend quite a lot 

of money pursuing technology 

development to ensure that our 

warfighters have the strategic and 

tactical advantage. The Office 

of Naval Research (ONR) spends 

approximately $1.75B annually for 

just these purposes. When you 

roll in ONR’s counterparts in the 

Army, Air Force and the Defense 

Advanced Research Projects 

Agency, the total approaches 

$10B. 

With this level of financial 

commitment, it is no wonder that 

everyone from congressional 

leaders and appointed officials 

to program managers and 

individual Principal Investigators 

are concerned with improving the 

return on the S&T investment. 

MEASURING SUCCESS 

Establishing 

Technology 

Transition output metrics is not a 

straightforward process. There 

is, for example, no clear way to 

measure a technical achievement’s 

contribution that enables other 

technical advancements. Who 

would have thought that Light 

Amplification by Stimulated 

Emission of Radiation (LASER) 

technology would be used in such 

diverse applications as designating 

targets for precision bombing, 

music recording and paper 

cutting? Likewise, it is equally 

difficult to gauge each technical 

contribution’s importance to the 

operational effectiveness of the 

equipment or systems that use 

each technology. 

The Discovery and Invention 

process very nature makes 

measuring its effectiveness 

difficult. The Global Positioning 

System’s technical foundation, 

for example, can be traced to an 

ONR-funded proposal focused on 

methods to improve timekeeping 

accuracy, not geo-positioning. 

Similarly, technology leading to 

radar development in the Unites 

States was spawned from scientists 

working on ways to improve high 

frequency communication at the 

Naval Research Laboratory. Every 

time a ship passed their Potomac 

River test site, their signal was 

If DSMC has it right, achieving a 

successful technology transition 

is considerably more complex 

than managing the interface 

of only two Communities. 

disrupted. The team initially tried 

to develop ways to reduce the 

effects that ships had on their 

communications until one of the 

researchers said, ‘Hey, do you 

think we could use this to detect 

the presence of moving ships?’ 

Managers tracking technology 

transition effectiveness can have as 

much difficulty in making accurate 

project success determinations. 

Technically, the high frequency 

With this level of financial commitment, 

it is no wonder everyone...is 

concerned with improving the 

return on the S&T investment. 

communication work that led to 

the invention of radar could have 

been viewed as a failure, as the 

initial task objectives were not 

met. 

In these types of situations, 

where measuring process output 

is difficult, it can sometimes be 

helpful to measure and improve 

the activities that lead to process 

success. By identifying a handful 

of key success indicators and 

improving each one of them, the 

assumption is that the process 

itself will become more effective. 

Here we have a lot of help. Over 

the past 10 years, there has been 

on the average, one Government 

Accountability Office study a year 

focused on technology transition 

and how transition success can be 

improved. I have provided a few 

key indicators that have come from 

these analyses and reports as well 

as from a Technology Transition 

Manager’s personal experience. 

» 

Technology Transition 

is a Contact Sport 

The Defense Systems Management 

College (DSMC) identifies eight 

different communities that must 

effectively work in harmony to 

achieve a technology transition. 

 


In these types of situations, where 

measuring process output is difficult, 

it can sometimes be helpful to 

measure and improve the activities 

that lead to process success. 

Indicator: Has a Technology 

Risk Assessment been conducted? 

Have Technology Readiness 

Level goals been assigned to the 

program’s milestones? 

» 

The PM is the Customer 

They include the following 

communities: 

● 

● 

● 

● 

● 

● 

● 

● 

Capability Needs 

Science and Technology 

Research and Development 

Acquisition 

Sustainment 

Test and Evaluation 

Financial 

Security 

Many of us have worked the MCCDC 

/MCSC interface to translate a 

needs-based capability statement 

into a solid performance statement. 

If DSMC has it right, achieving a 

successful technology transition is 

considerably more complex than 

managing the interface of only 

two communities. Additionally, 

each community’s outputs must 

be correctly time phased or the 

whole process breaks down. A 

mature technology that solves 

an operational deficiency that 

matures six months after design 

freeze will not appear in the fielded 

system. Indicator: Is there a 

chartered, functioning Integrated 

Product Team that includes all 

community members required to 

achieve Technology Transition? 

» 

Conduct Adequate 

Testing 

The technologist must realize 

that “proof of concept” testing 

alone may not be sufficient to 

meet the Program Manager’s (PM) 

needs. Tests should be adequate 

to demonstrate agreed upon 

Technology Readiness Levels and 

overall risk levels acceptable to 

the PM. In some cases, testing 

a technology product must be 

sufficient in scope to obtain a safety 

release or even a limited Approval 

for Service Use. PMs should ensure 

the technologist understands the 

unique testing needs early in the 

program to plan and fund for their 

completion. Indicator: Has a Test 

Manager been appointed who has 

orchestrated a fully coordinated 

Technology Demonstration Plan? 

» 

Select Mature Technology 

If a technology program’s goal is 

to achieve transition, it is wisest 

to pursue the most mature 

technology that satisfies the PM’s 

need. Leave the high risk high 

pay-off efforts to the 6.1/6.2 

programs. Recognize that one of 

the acquisition manager’s principal 

functions is to manage program 

cost schedules and performance 

risks. PMs are therefore unwilling 

to accept technical approaches 

that induce higher risk levels to 

the overall program. 

Technologists must realize that the 

PM is the customer. Therefore, he 

or she is entitled to participate in 

the program’s technical exit criteria 

development. Even though the PM 

will most likely not provide funding 

for the technology development’s 

initial stages, knowledge of the 

PM’s technical requirements is 

critical to achieving transition 

at a later date. The PM needs 

to be a responsible customer by 

defining meaningful measurable 

parameters and including 

technology program activities 

in the acquisition program Work 

Breakdown Structure. Indicator: 

Has a Technology Transition 

Agreement been established that 

includes exit criteria, integrated 

program schedule criteria and 

deliverable products? 

Continued on next page 



Some Thoughts on Technology Transition 


» 

Program Management 

and Systems Engineering 

Principles Apply 

When conducting an S&T program, 

the DoD 5000 series provides 

guidelines rather than mandates. 

It is tempting to dismiss much 

of the structure associated with 

project management. Most 

S&T efforts have a limited 

duration, a unique scope, and are 

performed only once. The Project 

Management Institute uses the 

same basic characteristics to 

define efforts that can benefit from 

applying project management 

rules. The acquisition program 

manager must be disciplined in 

planning, documentation and 

testing to support the decision to 

incorporate new technology into 

an ongoing program or planned 

spiral. By providing milestone 

decision quality documentation, 

the S&T program greatly 

enhances its transition chances. 

Indicator: Is there a Technology 

Management Plan that adequately 

defines systems engineering 

applications and S&T program 

related documentation? 

» 

Work the Money 

Work the Money. If funds have 

not been programmed for further 

S&T program development, 

procurement and follow-on 

support, the likelihood of transition 

approaches zero. Most of the 

other transition puzzle “must 

haves” can be accomplished in 

fairly short order. Look at the 

indicators above. Most of the items 

identified could be accomplished 

in a couple of weeks. But money 

is a different story. If funds are 

not currently budgeted, it takes 

upward of two and a half years 

to establish a new project in the 

Mr. McGillicuddy has held a wide variety of defense acquisition program 

management positions within the Department of the Navy, to include 

service at the Marine Corps Systems Command as Director, Program 

Analysis and Evaluation, Program Manager Intelligence Systems, 

and Deputy Commander C4ISR. Subsequent to his retirement from 

government service, he accepted an IPA position and served as the 

Technology Transition Manager for the Littoral Combat Future Naval 

Capability, and as a Deputy Department Head at the Office of Naval 

Research. Mr. McGillicuddy currently works with SAIC in Dumfries, 

VA, as a project manager. He is available to provide insights or lead 

PME events focused on Technology Transition for your organization. 

He can be reached at 540-408-2136 or 

james.r.mcgillicuddy@saic.com. 

POM/Budget Process. Indicator: 

Have funds been programmed for 

follow-on S&T program capability 

development and fielding? 

» 

Address the Specialty 

Requirements 

Address the Specialty 

Requirements. When Transition 

is an S&T project’s goal, the 

technologist must be address 

specialty requirements related 

to the type of system under 

development. If you are working 

on a weapon system, ensure the 

designs address Weapons System 

Explosive Safety Review Board 

standards. If an information 

system connects to a network, 

ensure the design is capable of 

obtaining an Authority to Operate. 

There are numerous specialized 

requirements specific to different 

system classes. Ignoring these 

specialty requirements may slow 

What’s difficult is the ability to 

integrate all the disparate activities 

that must happen simultaneously in 

order to achieve the desired payoffs. 

down an S&T project, but it can 

be detrimental to the effort’s 

transition and acquisition program. 

Indicator: Have the specialty 

requirements associated with this 

system class been addressed? 

CONCLUSION 

Technology Transition has often 

received a bum rap as one of 

the things we in the Defense 

Acquisition Technology and 

Logistics community don’t do 

well. While there is undoubtedly 

an element of truth to these 

allegations, I believe the overall 

situation is improving. Only a few 

years ago, technology transition 

tools, processes and knowledge 

were non-existent. For example, 

● 

● 

● 

There weren’t any Technology 

Transition Agreements (TTAs); 

now we have guidelines and a 

standardized TTA format. 

S&T Management training 

did not exist; now there is a 

Defense Acquisition Workforce 

Improvement Act career 

field and two DSMC S&T 

management courses. 

Technology Readiness 

Assessments (TRAs) were 

merely alluded to in acquisition 

policy instructions; now there 

is a 250-page handbook to 

assist those conducting TRAs. 

All in all, I believe we collectively 

have the knowledge base 

to significantly enhance the 

technology transition rate within 

DoD. What is still difficult is the 

ability to integrate all the disparate 

activities that must happen all 

simultaneously in order to achieve 

the desired payoffs. 

10 


Active SBIR contracts grouped by PG (as of 5/2/07) 

ISI (Information Systems and Infrastructure) PG10 Total Contracts: 1 (1 PHI) 

N04-196 Public Key Certificate Acceptance Technology PH II 

IWS (Infantry Weapons Systems) PG13 Total Contracts: 9 (5 PH II/4PH I) 

N02-002 Remote Thermographer to Measure Skin PH II 

Temperature 

N03-163 Remote Non-Contact Personnel Incapacitation PH II 

System 

N04-155 Sensor for Simultaneous Movement and (2 contracts awarded) PH II 

Directed Weapons Fire in all Light 

N04-198 Persistent Illuminators as a Replacement for PH II 

Tritium in Weapons Sights 

N07-002 Single Aperture Passive Rangefinding (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

GTES (Ground Transportation & Engineer Systems) PG15 Total Contracts: 8 (3 PH II/ 5 PH I) 

N99-197 Handheld Remote Fuel Quality Sensor PH II 

N04-154 Fuel Cell Supply Integration and Safety PH II 

N04-193 Integrated Trailer, Generator, Environmental PH II 

Control Unit (ECU) 

N06-101 State-of Charge Technology for Zn/Air Battery (2 contracts awarded) PH I 

Systems 

N06-105 Marine Portable Power Unit (3 contracts awarded) PH I 

CESS (Combat Equipment & Support Systems) PG16 Total Contracts: 23 (5 PH II/18 PH I) 

N03-001 Field Chemical Analysis Tool (2 contracts awarded) PH II 

N03-162 Non-Woven Textile Technologies PH II 

N04-183 Nanotechnology Fabric Innovation PH II 

N04-185 CB Protective Garment Liner Material PH II 

N06-100 Advanced Equipment Maintenance Training (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

Using Revolutionary Video Game Technology 

N06-104 Individual Field Service Drinking Water Cooler (3 contracts awarded) PH I 

N06-107 Extremely Compact and Lightweight Sleeping (3 contracts awarded) PH I 

Bag Development 

N06-108 Cognitive Technology for Advanced (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

Maintenance 

N07-005 Advanced Equipment Maintenance Using (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

Revolutionary Augmented Reality Technology 

EFV (Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle) DRPM AAA Total Contracts: 23 (10 PH II/13 PH I) 

N03-157 Thermal and acoustic barriers for the EFV (2 contracts awarded) PH II 

N03-165 Reduction of Ground Vehicle Observables PH II 

N03-167 Low Cost High Strength High Toughness (2 contracts awarded) PH II 

Corrosion Resistant Materials for EFV 

N04-153 Low Cost Titanium Casting Process and Design PH II 

for Net Shape Components for the EFV 

N04-190 Low Cost, Low Weight, Self-Sealing Fuel Tank (2 contracts awarded) PH II 

Technology Development 

N04-191 Suspension and Track Noise and Vibration PH II 

Reduction for Marine Corps Advanced 

Amphibious Assault Vehicle (EFV) 

N04-192 Development of enhanced active damping PH II 

system for the Marine Corps Expeditionary 

Fighting Vehicle (EFV) 

N06-102 Electrochemical Recovery of Hazardous (3 contracts awarded) PH I 

Contaminants in Bilge Wastewater 

N06-103 Semi-Active Damped Seating Technology for (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) 

N06-106 On The Move (OTM) Ku/Ka SATCOM Capability (3 contracts awarded) PH I 

for the EFV 

N07-001 Ballistic Exhaust Grille (3 contracts awarded) PH I 


PM AMMO Total Contracts: 5 (1 PH II/ 4 PH I) 

N03-005 Polymer-Cased Ammunition for Small Arms PH II 

and Cannon Ammunition 

N07-004 Replacement of Red Phosphorus in Smoke (4 contracts awarded) PH I 

Producing Munitions 

VOLUME II SPRING 2007 11


Conventional Thermal IR 

About the Technology 

In today’s asymmetric combat 

and urban operations, cluttered 

and busy scenes complicate the 

warfighter’s ability to successfully 

discern suspicious objects and 

potential threats using infrared 

viewing devices. Standard night 

vision cameras and scopes such 

as I2 goggles, I2CCD and thermal 

infrared cameras, produce 

monochrome imagery in which 

objects can only be discerned 

by their relative brightness. 

In addition to brightness, the 

human brain is also capable of 

distinguishing objects by their 

spectral properties (i.e., color). 

Based upon the idea and concept 

of turning multi-spectral Long 

Wave Infra Red images into natural 

background with highlighting 

of the targets of interest which 

originated in the Army Armament 

Research, Development and 

Engineering Center (ARDEC), this 

project will develop a thermal 

IR scope/camera that produces 

enhanced color imagery enabling 

better scene understanding and 

target detection. A multi-spectral 

thermal IR viewer will utilize 

spectral information in the scene 

to provide more information to 

the viewer. Regions in a display 

containing potential targets of 

interest will be highlighted and 

colored appropriately, while the 

background will be rendered in 

natural recognizable colors. 

Specialized mathematical 

algorithms will be used to produce 

the enhanced imagery. In a 

“learning” mode, the system 

uses spectral libraries to optimize 

the algorithms for specific 

environments. In operational 

mode, the optimized algorithms 

run on an onboard processor 

to produce a real-time display. 

The resulting “Intelligent Scope” 

provides components of ATR/AiTR, 

and can also become a part of net 

centric combat environments. 

The Phase-I project demonstrated 

the “intelligent” processing 

algorithms including target/ 

anomaly detectors and color 

rendition of thermal scenes. Under 

Phase-II a prototype “concept 

demonstration” brassboard scope/ 

camera will be developed and 

The Intelligent Night Scope 

under development will improve 

intelligent personal support. 

Thermal Pseudo Color 

Color Thermal (sim.) 

implemented. Objective figures of 

merit and subjective human viewer 

tests will be used to optimize and 

evaluate performance. 

Military and Commercial 

Significance 

The system under development 

will improve day and night 

operations of the mounted and 

dismounted soldier by providing 

intelligent personal support. The 

sensor is designed to be operated 

by individual soldiers as a handheld 

scope/camera/ scene viewer. 

As such, it has potential for high 

volume commercial sales. The 

12 


system is specifically appropriate 

for today’s military operations in 

urban environments, providing a 

wide field of view to provide overall 

improved situational awareness. 

The output signal, in addition 

to the display, will be available 

over GEthernet via TCP/IP, thus 

making it net-centric compatible. 

Each sensor in the filed is then 

linked to the command, allowing 

individual soldiers to view a scene 

from various aspects based on 

placement of individual warfighters 

in the scene. 

Applications 

Individual soldier or vehicle 

mounted, for military operations 

in urban terrain, law enforcement, 

border patrol, anti terrorism 

operations and homeland 

security. 

Conventional I2CCD Night Vision 

About the Company 

OKSI was founded in 1991 

specifically to take advantage 

of emerging new technologies 

for remote sensing and imaging 

with multi- and hyper-spectral 

capabilities. The OKSI business 

model is to provide full R&D and 

system engineering capabilities to 

solve unique problems in imaging, 

spectroscopy, and remote sensing 

over the entire EO/IR spectral 

range. Examples include diverse 

and unique sensors such as for the 

Missile Defense Agency for missile 

plume signature measurements, 

and for missile intercept events, 

on the one hand, and a spectropolarimetric 

imaging camera 

for enhancing the target-tobackground 

contrast (for mobile 

ground targets) to color night 

vision. 

OKSI provides all necessary 

capabilities from phenomenology 

and signature analysis, sensor 

definition and performance 

analysis, design of optics, 

electronics, development, 

integration and testing. 

Opto-knowledge 

systems inc. 

SBIR Branch: Army ARDEC 

Technology Name: Intelligent Night Scope 

Topic Number: A05-012 

SBIR Investment: $729,997 

Company Contact Information: 

Nahum Gat 

nahum@oksi.com 

310-756-0520 ×237 

Opto-Knowledge Systems, Inc. (OKSI) 

19805 Hamilton Ave 

Torrance, CA 90502-1341 

Army Technical POC: 

Dr. Paul Willson 

paul.d.willson@us.army.mil 


True Color Night Vision 

VOLUME II SPRING 2007 

13

ADJACENT EFFORTS 



HostileFire Detection System 

(HFDS) is designed to detect 

attacks from close range weapons 

and locate enemy combatants. 

HFDS is based on Oceanit’s 

patented MOST focal plane 

which utilizes a time-intensity 

identification technique that rapidly 

detects weapons fire and rejects 

false signals such as sun glint. 

HFDS is configurable and consists 

of two Line Replaceable Units: 

Optical Sensor Modules (OSMs) 

and the Electronic Control Unit 

(ECU). The OSMs will be custom 

designed, while the ECU will utilize 

a commercial-off-the-shelf/nondevelopmental 

item approach. The 

system will detect hostile events in 

The HFDS will provide a costeffective 

tool to help solve some 

of the most critical problems that 

beset the U.S. military today. 

1/10th second and locate enemy 

combatants in one second or less. 

This research and development is 

based on 

successful 

Air Force 

and Missile 

D e f e n s e 

A g e n c y 

programs. 

Phase I (complete) demonstrated 

feasibility, and Phase II will 

develop prototypes for test and 

experimentation. When fully 

developed, the system will support 

a range of Anti-Terrorism/Force 

Protection requirements including 

protection of troops in hostile and 

non-hostile areas and protection of 

U.S. facilities such as embassies. 

The system will also provide 

Homeland Security protection for 

commercial airports and ports. 


Significance 

The HFDS will provide a costeffective 

tool to help solve some 

of the most critical problems that 

beset the U.S. military today. 

Ground troops, vehicles and 

aircraft are subject to sniper 

and ambush attacks from small, 

hidden groups of insurgents 

using light weapons. HFDS will 

provide near instantaneous alerts 

of these attacks – faster than 

14 


Oceanit 

Laboratories, Inc. 

SBIR Branch: Army - CERDEC 

Technology Name: HostileFire 

Detection System 

human reaction time – enabling 

immediate defensive actions and/ 

or automated counter-attacks 

whereby potentially saving many 

lives. 

Applications 

HFDS applies to a wide range of 

security applications outside of 

the military as well as protecting 

U.S. embassies and consulates 

overseas. Important overseas 

commercial facilities could 

incorporate the system into their 

security systems as well. Any 

location that maintains perimeter 

alarms and defenses, especially 

those that maintain a security 

guard force, would significantly 

bolster their defensive posture with 

HFDS installation. HFDS could be 

used to protect airports, nuclear 

power plants, chemical plants 

and other high-risk assets. HFDS 

can protect commercial airliners 

from shoulder launched missiles 

– its cost allows for a price point 

that can allow for widespread 

deployment in the commercial 

market. 


engineering companies with a 

focus on aerospace/defense, 

life science/biotechnology, 

information technology and 

consulting engineering services. 

These business units act as 

incubators where engineers and 

scientists are brought together 

in cross-collaborating teams 

to produce a range of dual-use 

technologies which are spun off 

into new ventures. Recently, 

Oceanit’s incubator approach, 

which combines government 

research funding, has produced 

two venture funded life science 

companies, Hoana Medical (www. 

hoana.com) and Nanopoint (www. 

nanopointimaging.com), which 

have raised over $40 million of 

venture capital, and one internally 

funded group called Mosaic 

(www.mosaicoptics.com). One 

of Oceanit’s largest and most 

advanced programs is deploying a 

worldwide network of small, lowcost, 

autonomous optical ground 

stations to create the world’s 

most advanced Space Situational 

Awareness system. Every year, 

Oceanit is ranked as one of the top 

ten “Best Places to Work in Hawaii” 

by Hawaii Business magazine. 




Mr. Basil Scott 

bscott@oceanit.com 

808-338-9000 

Oceanit Laboratories, Inc. 

828 Fort Street Mall, Suite 600 

Honolulu, HI 96813 


Michael Cannizzaromichael. 

cannizzaro@us.army.mil 


Oceanit is one of Hawaii’s largest, 

most diversified science and 


15



Explosive-Soil Modeling 

Vehicle Modeling 

About the 

Technology 

MKP Structural Design 

Associates, Inc. is 

developing advanced 

design methodologies, 

simulation models, 

associated software 

tools, and physical 

prototypes for 

innovative composite 

structure concepts 

that can be used in the 

Army’s future ground 

vehicle programs such 

as Future Combat 

Systems (FCS), Future 

Tactical Truck Systems 

(FTTS) and Joint 

Lightweight Tactical 

Vehicles (JLTV) to 

protect vehicles 

and occupants 

against various land 

explosives. Under a current 

Army sponsored SBIR Phase-II 

program, a multi-level and multiscenario 

blast simulation and 

design system is being developed, 

which integrates three new major 

technologies developed at MKP 

Inc., namely an advanced minesoil-composite 

interaction model, 

a new function-oriented material 

design methodology and a novel 

biomimetic composite material 

concept. The developed system 

will enable the prediction, design 

and prototyping of composite 

Protecting military ground vehicles 

against landmines, IEDs, or 

other explosives will be of great 

importance in future wars. 

structures for a wide range of 

damage scenarios in various 

blast events ranging from vehicle 

rollover, localized structural failure 

and fragment penetration to crew 

injuries. The different levels of 

simulation and design capabilities 

will be implemented in an integrated 

software system with well-defined 

graphic user interfaces for general 

Blast Load Prediction 

Deflector Shape Design 

16 


design purposes. The major goal 

is to integrate the innovative 

blast-protective structure design 

with other design requirements, 

such as light-weight, flexibility, 

maintainability and reduced lifecycle 

cost. With the new system, 

new and innovative composite 

concepts will be optimized using 

modeling, simulation and design 

capabilities developed and the 

performance of structural concepts 

will be evaluated and validated by 

experiments or virtual prototyping 

studies. 


Significance 

Protecting Army ground vehicles 

against landmines, IEDs or 

other explosives will be of great 

importance in future wars. The 

integrated simulation and design 

system will cover a broad range 

of military and civilian security 

applications, ground vehicle and 

countermine equipment designs, 

Explosive Ordnance Disposal and 

personal protection issues. Some 

of the Army applications of blast 

models and blast and biomimetic 

design methodologies will be for 

the Army’s FCS for both manned 

and unmanned combat vehicles 

and also for the FTTS and JLTV. The 

commercial application of the new 

technology includes passenger 

automobiles for VIPs and 

armed vans for carrying 

valuables such as those 

used by banks. For civilian 

security applications, the 

software can be utilized in a 

variety of homeland defense 

technology developments as 

well as by the police bomb 

squad. 

Applications 

Commercial and military 

armored vehicles. 


MKP Structural Design 

Associates, Inc. 

SBIR Branch: Army - TARDEC 

Technology Name: Function-Oriented Material 

Design (FOMD) for Innovative Composite 

Structures against Land Explosives 




Dr. Zheng-Dong Ma 

734-975-8860 

Email address: mazd@mkpsd.com 

MKP Structural Design Associates, Inc. 

2500 Packard Suite 105 Ann Arbor, MI 

48104-6827 


ATTN: AMSRD-TAR-R [Dr. Basavaraju B. Raju] 

586-574-6065 

basavaraju.raju@us.army.mil 

U. S. Army RDECOM/TARDEC 

6501 East 11 Mile Road, MS 255 

Warren, MI 

48387-5000 

In 2001 MKP Structural 

Design Associates, Inc. 

was formed in Ann Arbor, 

Michigan to engage in 

research and development of 

advanced design methodologies, 

simulation and analysis models 

and innovative structural and 

materials concepts for military 

and commercial applications. 

These developments include 

the innovative and functionoriented 

material design system 

based on topology optimization 

and resultant structural and 

material concepts, multi-level and 

multi-scenario blast simulation 

and design system, advanced 

composite armor concepts, blastprotective 

structures, and active/ 

reactive structures for improved 

vehicle safety. The goal is to 

achieve technological excellence 

through the development of cutting 

edge structures and materials, 

and also through consultation and 

advising services. MKP works with 

various manufacturers around the 

world and is currently exploring 

additional partnerships with a wide 

array of commercial companies 

and U.S. government agencies. 


Composition 

Layout 

Optimal Design 


17




Datatek Applications, Inc. proposes 

to execute a Phase II SBIR effort 

to build upon the successful Phase 

I SBIR program on this same topic. 

This SBIR Phase II program will 

leverage the results of the Phase 

I study and proof-of-concept to 

produce a working prototype that 

facilitates the mobile operation of 

legacy Internet Protocol Version 

4 (IPv4) tactical devices in the 

emerging IP Version 6 (IPv6) 

environment. The U.S. Army and 

Department of Defense (DoD) are 

planning to migrate core networks, 

hosts, devices and applications to 

IPv6 over the next several years. 

There will be residual devices, 

hosts and applications that will 

not be upgraded to IPv6 at the 

same time as the core network. 

In fact, some may never be 

upgraded. The Army and DoD 

are seeking tools to facilitate the 

transition, including mechanisms 

for extended interoperability with 

devices that cannot be upgraded 

to IPv6 and methods to extend 

the advantages of IPv6, Mobile 

IPv6 (MIPv6) and security to these 

IPv4-only legacy devices. 

Datatek’s IPv4/IPv6 Transformer 

changes a legacy IPv4-only host 

into a dual-stack IPv4/IPv6 host. 

The Transformer will be inserted 

into the host’s network connection 

to talk IPv6. No changes to the 

host’s software 

or hardware are 

needed - it is 

just a bump in 

the wire. The 

Transformer also 

adds Mobile IPv6 

capabilities to nonmobile 

legacy IPv4 

hosts. In addition, 

the transformer 

operates as a 

dedicated in-line 

security processor, 

providing FIPS 

140-2 Level 2 

certified IPsec and IKE IP security 

for legacy hosts that don’t comply 

with new security/information 

assurance regulations. 

The Datatek IPv4-IPv6 Transformer 

is shown below operating with 

both IPv4 and IPv6 networks in a 

dual-stack fashion. The IPv4-IPv6 

Transformer enables an IPv4 host 

to continue to operate with other 

IPv4 hosts with no disruptions. 

Protocol and address translation 

are implemented seamlessly as 

are higher-level protocol mediation 

and termination functions such as 

DNS, ICMP, DHCP and ARP. 

The IPv4-IPv6 Transformer 

platform is based on proven design 

experience that has evolved from 

Datatek’s line of carrier-class 

protocol mediation products. 

Some key features include: 

● 

● 

● 

● 

State-of-the-art highperformance 

processor 

Highly reliable, based on 

proven hardware & software 

Graphical User Interface 

Low power design 


Significance 

The advanced features to be 

developed and integrated in 

this Phase II program will be 

instrumental in advancing the 

Army/DoD transition plan for IPv6 

by providing several mechanisms 

for interoperability and the 

means for legacy IPv4-based 

applications, hosts and devices 

to take advantage of IPv6 core 

network infrastructure and IPv6 

features and capabilities. These 

innovations have the potential 

of saving the DoD and other 

U.S. Government organizations 

substantial expenditures for 

18 


Datatek’s IPv4/IPv6 Transformer 

changes a legacy IPv4-only host 

into a dual-stack IPv4/IPv6 host. 

Datatek applications, 

Inc. 

SBIR Branch: Army - CERDEC 

Technology Name: Mobile IPv6 in a 

Low Bandwidth Tactical Environment 

dual-stack operation and early 

replacement of legacy equipment 

during an extended transition 

period. 

For legacy equipment with long 

refresh times or where impractical 

to upgrade to IPv6, the use of 

Datatek’s IPv4-IPv6 Transformer 

will allow the legacy host to be 

instantly IPv6-compatible. No 

costly upgrades to the legacy 

equipment will be required. 

Operational costs will be reduced. 

The transfomer will instantly add 

IPv6 capabilities such as security 

and mobility to the embedded 

base of IPv4 legacy equipment. 

No disruption will occur to 

continued IPv4 operations - IPv4 

hosts continue to communicate 

with other IPv4 hosts. It is a 

transparent solution - no software 

or hardware changes are required 

for legacy equipment. 

Applications 

Ground/Air Combat Elements, 

Tactical Elements, Net-Centric 

Operations, Increased Optempo. 


Datatek Applications, Inc. is a 

New Jersey-based small business 

provider of products and custom 

software and hardware solutions 

for military, commercial and 

telecommunications customers. 

The staff includes experts in 

protocols, network security, 

high-availability and multi-tiered 

applications, high-performance 

software and hardware, 

infrastructure design and network 

architecture. Datatek is working 

with the U.S. Army and the DoD 

in their IPv6 transition efforts. 

The company offers intellectual 

property services, including patent 

research and reverse engineering. 

Datatek was founded in 1998. 




Dr. Zheng-Dong Ma 

Lorraine Chin 

Principal Investigator 

732-667-1080 x159 

Alan Stultz 

Business Development Manager 

732-667-1080 x163 

Datatek Applications, Inc. 

379 Campus Drive, Suite 100 

Somerset, NJ 08873-1125 

Email: info@datatekcorp.com 

URL: www.datatekcorp.com 


Kwai-Fung Chan 

kwai.chan@us.army.mil 



19




Systems & Processes Engineering 

Corporation (SPEC) proposes a 

compact 3-dimensional (3-D) 

imaging Terrain Mapping LADAR 

Terrain Mapping LADAR (TML) 

sensor and image processor 

for the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers Engineer Research 

and Development Center. This 

compact TML sensor will leverage 

from LADAR system hardware and 

software components previously 

developed by SPEC. The initial 

TML system integration and 

field testing will facilitate rapidly 

developing next generation 

hardware and software to better 

utilize this compact TML for 3- 

D terrain mapping. Key features 

incorporated into the TML are: 

operation in rain, dust, fog and 

smoke; last pixel processing of 

the ground from obscuring weeds/ 

grass; installation alignment 

elimination; vehicle tilt; and 

calibration errors. These features 

are designed to address lessons 

learned from the first field tests 

as well as allowing rapid vehicleto-vehicle 

hardware installation 

without arduous alignment or 

cable installation. 


Significance 

The TML will provide Army 

vehicles the ability to maneuver 

across unknown terrain under 

all environmental conditions. 

The TML provides high fidelity 

information about unknown terrain 

on a near-real time 3-D data 

display, thereby greatly enhancing 

route optimization capabilities in 

theater. This enhancement will 

result in faster and safer troop 

movements. The TML development 

will significantly reduce high 

performance LADAR costs while 

increasing performance and 

opening new markets for this low 

cost compact technology. These 

performance improvements at 

significantly lower system costs 

will transition high performance 

and compact LADAR systems into 

new applications. 

20 


The TML will provide military vehicles 

the ability to maneuver across unknown 

terrain under all environmental conditions. 

Applications 

Department of Defense 

applications include unmanned 

aerial vehicles, unmanned ground 

vehicles, 3-D targeting, trip 

wire detection, disturbed earth 

land mine detection, defeating 

advanced camouflage and 3-D 

imaging for obstacle avoidance. 

Commercial applications include 

3-D machine vision for automatic 

production robots or quality control 

inspection, 3-D imaging for inorbit 

inspection of space vehicles, 

3-D facial imaging for security 

identification and 3-D contour 

mapping for object cataloging and 

reproduction. 


SPEC is a privately held corporation 

formed in 1986, with corporate 

headquarters in Austin, Texas and 

a satellite office in Washington, 

D.C. 

SPEC is a leader in creating unique 

and innovative technologies and 

developing integrated product 

solutions. SPEC develops 

technologies in its R&D laboratory, 

then transitions these technologies 

into integrated product solutions 

which are offered to global markets 

by SPEC, its subsidiary divisions, 

and related spin-off companies. 

SPEC’s Net-Centric Solutions goes 

to the Edge and beyond by providing 

flexible standards-based solutions 

that enable users to experience 

garrison-like operations in 

environments that extend beyond 

the Global Information Grid, 

including the last tactical mile. 

Key capabilities include Global 

(Enterprise) Connectivity, Local 

Presentation & Management, 

Bridging Technologies, and Ground 

Truth. 

systems & processes 

engineering 

corporation 

SBIR Branch: Army - Edgewood Research, 

Development and Engineering Center 

Technology Name: Terrain Mapping 

Laser Detection and Ranging (LADAR) 




Bradley Sallee 

Systems & Processes Engineering 

Corporation (SPEC) 

6800 Burleson Rd., Bld 320 

Austin, TX 78744-2306 

Email: sallee@spec.com 

URL: http//www.spec.com 


Lulu Edwards 

LuluEdwards@erdc.usace.army.mil 

601-634-3644 



21




SensorBone System 

Architecture and its 

Dual-Use Applications 

SensorBone enables real-time remote 

environment and event monitoring 

with thousands of sensors deployed 

over lands and training facilities 

administrated by the DoD. 

San Diego Research Center 

(SDRC) is currently designing 

and developing the SensorBone TM 

system, a self-organizing, energyefficient, 

scalable, cost effective, 

rapidly deployable and secure 

wireless backbone system. 

SensorBone TM enables real-time 

remote environment and event 

monitoring with up to thousands of 

heterogeneous sensors deployed 

over military lands and training 

facilities administrated by the 

Department of Defense (DoD). The 

vast size of lands to be monitored, 

together with lack of reliable and 

cheap electricity, makes current 

wireless technologies inadequate, 

inefficient and costly. During the 

Phase I study, SDRC designed and 

evaluated the SensorBone system 

architecture that addresses 

fundamental challenges such 

as energy-efficient, long-range 

and low-duty-cycle optimized 

radio design, scalable networking 

protocols and modular and costeffective 

hardware platforms. 

The novel design leverages 

the latest developments in the 

mobile ad hoc network lowduty-cycle 

sensor network, and 

energy-efficient sensor radio 

technologies for SensorBone 

system implementation and 

demonstration. Phase II work 

encompasses the entire system 

design cycle, including system 

architecture design and evaluation, 

hardware platform development, 

SensorBone radio development, 

protocol stack implementation 

in both the network simulator 

and on the hardware platform, 

and network deployment and 

management tool development. 

The resulting SensorBone 

system prototype is planned 

for demonstration using actual 

environmental sensors deployed 

at Ft. Benning, GA, near the end 

of FY07. 


Significance 

The core technologies and 

intellectual properties under 

development consist of: 

SensorBone node architecture 

(radio frequency unit, digital board 

with general purpose processor, 

and interface to sensors); 

SensorBone protocol suite; 

SensorBone deployment tool; 

and the prototype hardware and 

22 


San diego research 

center, Inc. 

SBIR Branch: Army - ERDEC 

Technology Name: SensorBone TM Self- 

Organizing, Energy Efficient, Scalable 

and Cost-Effective Wireless Backbone 

to Monitor Large Remote Areas 




Liangping Ma 

San Diego Research Center, Incorporated 

6996 Mesa Ridge Road Suite A 

San Diego, CA 92121-2933 

Tel: 858-623-9424 

Fax: 858-623-9433 

E-mail: lma@sdrcinc.net 


Theresa Salls 

theresa.a.salls@hq02.usace.army.mil 

software of these components. 

The self-organization capability 

and the energy efficient radio 

and network protocols improve 

the system’s robustness and 

minimize maintenance, lowering 

operational costs and increasing 

security for system operators. 

Because of the high scalability, 

fast responsiveness (less than 

five sec), and the large dynamic 

radio communication range, 

the SensorBone system fits a 

broad range of applications of 

various network sizes and traffic 

patterns. 

Applications 

On the tactical military side, 

DoD is highly interested in the 

development of unattended ground 

and littoral sensors that need to 

operate over an extended period of 

time without recharging, including 

both environmental monitoring 

and intelligence gathering. To 

this end, the SensorBone project 

has recently attracted external 

investment from the Office of 

the Naval Research with the 

goal of adapting the developed 

technologies for tactical uses. 

On the civilian side, in addition to the 

original environmental monitoring 

applications, border security 

agents will require SensorBonelike 

systems that provide extended 

coverage and fast responsiveness 

to detect unwarranted passage. 

SDRC is vigorously marketing the 

developed SensorBone system 

to specific Homeland Security 

programs. 


SDRC, a wholly owned subsidiary 

of Argon ST, has highly 

qualified professionals with 

extensive experience in military 

communication and networking 

system modeling and simulation. 

The SDRC team has solid expertise 

in advanced communications 

and networking design, including 

Sensor Network BackBone 

(SensorBone) for Army untended 

water/weather monitoring 

applications, Robust and 

Extremely Energy Efficient Sensor 

Networking for Navy tactical 

applications, Low Probability of 

Detection/Anti-Jam, Directional 

Antenna Networking, Future 

Combat Systems Communications 

high-band systems, Multiple 

Input Multiple Output techniques, 

channel measurements and Field 

Programmable Gate-Array-based 

beam-forming for Navy underwater 

applications. This proven in-depth, 

hands-on experience will ensure 

successful project performance. 

Cost (hardware and operation) of the traditional approach (everything is 

done manually), state-of-the-art approach (every node is equipped with 

a cellular modem), and the SensorBone approach (shown in Figure 1). 

The numbers are based on a 50 sensor nodes network 50 miles from the 

control center, the cellular modem is priced at $239 each, the service fee 

is $500 per year, and the SensorBone node is priced at $500 each. 



23

Transition Point 

SBIR - Bringing the Innovative 

Capabilities of Small Business to 

Marine Corps Acquisition Programs 

Volume II Spring 2007 

The Transition Point quarterly newsletter is 

published by the Program Manager for USMC 

SBIR, Marine Corps Systems Command. 

Photos not credited are official USMC photos. 

Articles provided herein are to enhance the 

technical situational awareness of Marine 

Corps Personnel involved with acquisition 

programs. This newsletter is an authorized 

publication and the contents are not 

necessarily the official views of, or endorsed 

by, Marine Corps Systems Command, the 

U.S. Marine Corps and the Department 

of Defense. Comments are welcome. 

SBIR Office 

2200 Lester St. 

Quantico, VA 

22134-5010 

Program Manager 

Paul Lambert 

Contributing Authors 

Dave Thompson 

Dr. Gary Warren 

Jim McGillicuddy 

Doreen Weber 

Managing Editor 

Carol Bachmann 

Graphics/Lay-Out Manager 

Kirk Nelson 


Volume II Spring 2007

Intelligent Night Scope. - TechExpo

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