2009 Issue 1 - Raytheon

This method is more economical and environmentally
responsible than older oil shale
extraction techniques, as it uses far less
power, does not severely disrupt the landscape
or leave behind residue that can
enter groundwater supplies.
Raytheon sold its technology to extract oil
from shale and tar sands to Schlumberger Ltd.,
a leading oilfield services company, in 2008.
Global Public Health Surveillance System
Disease surveillance at the national and
international levels can provide critical information
for early detection and containment
of emerging health threats. However, disease
surveillance systems have evolved
without international standards or collaborative
protocols for specific data types,
resulting in a wide variety of unique databases
containing valuable information.
Information-sharing across the various
reporting systems (human, veterinary and
wildlife) happens via human-intensive, timeconsuming
activities such as the exchange
of e-mails or faxes.
The Global Public Health Surveillance
(GPHS) system would connect all existing
healthcare networks and add additional
virological disease-monitoring capabilities
to provide real-time global situational
awareness. The system leverages technologies
developed for the U.S. Department of
Defense with the existing public health
communications infrastructure to provide
data exchange.
Applications automatically process the
metadata in real time, and software agents
continuously search the metadata for virological
disease anomalies and trends using
numerical, temporal and geographic criteria
for alerting human operators when and
where appropriate. A metadata catalog provides
a substantial information resource for
human exploration using visualization tools
and data mining applications.
Feature
Detection of Threats Using Honeybees
For more than 100 years, it has been
known that honeybees can be conditioned
to detect chemical substances. In fact, the
bees can detect chemicals in parts per
quadrillion — orders of magnitude more
sensitive than the best man-made sensors.
Training insects to detect threats is not a
new concept. Using associate conditioning,
bees are exposed to a scent and then fed.
Within a couple of hours, bees associate
the scent with food. When they detect
the scent, they swarm to the source to
find the food.
Raytheon has built on this established
research and leveraged its expertise in RF
technology to improve upon previous
methods. Raytheon has developed a technique
of attaching RF identification tags to
honeybees. When bees that have been
trained to detect chemicals swarm to a
location, that location becomes a point of
interest for security officials.
Previous methods to track insects have
relied on “line of sight” methods, which
are difficult to maintain. Using RF
technology, the swarm can be monitored
electronically, out of sight of the handler.
In the short term, applications of the
technology could include locating landmines
and buried devices. Future uses could
involve homeland security applications such
as sensing explosives and illegal drugs.
Innovation for Global Stewardship
Raytheon is a leader in defense, homeland
security, and other government markets,
but the company now applies its
technologies and capabilities beyond
our core businesses, emphasizing our
responsibility of “global stewardship” to
solve issues threatening our world: global
warming, renewable energy, biological
diversity protection, world health,
education, and civil defense.
ENGINEERING PROFILE
Colin Whelan
Engineering Fellow
IDS
Whether developing
the next generation
of radar technology
or modifying sports
cars, Colin Whelan’s
passion for innovation
is unmistakable.
“I always wanted to
understand how
things worked, so I could try to improve
their performance and use them in new ways,”
said Whelan.
After joining Raytheon in 1998, Whelan led the
development of the Metamorphic High Electron
Mobility Transistor technology used in low-noise
microwave receivers. InP had long been the ultimate
low-noise transistor, but was cost prohibitive.
“Our diverse team of skilled engineers and technicians
took an innovative approach to the problem.
By discovering how to grow InP transistor layers
on low-cost gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrates, we
realized the performance and manufacturing
advantages, without the associated costs,” noted
Whelan. Following the successful transition of the
technology to Raytheon’s production GaAs
foundry, the team was recognized with Raytheon’s
Excellence in Technology Award.
With such projects, Whelan became fascinated
with “driving innovation through the right technology
investments, leadership and organizational
and team structures.” He graduated from
Raytheon’s Engineering Leadership Development
Program and Raytheon Integrated Defense
Systems’ Program Management College. He also
earned executive education certificates in strategy
and innovation and management and leadership
from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
In his present role as technology director for IDS’
Advanced Technology group, he fosters the innovation
of state-of-the-art materials, software and
sensors to meet our warfighters’ needs by partnering
with our customers, universities and small
businesses. Specializing in radar module technology,
Whelan leads the development of gallium
nitride (GaN), a semiconductor circuit technology
that offers disruptive capabilities in efficient
microwave power generation. “We needed numerous
innovations to bring this technology from
initial concept to its current robust state. Led by a
core group of dedicated Raytheon engineers, our
diverse team of government customers, universities
and business partners were able to significantly
accelerate the development,” he said. As GaN
now transitions into Raytheon’s systems, it will
enable a new generation of smaller, more affordable
RF sensors that produce even higher power.
“Raytheon has honed its development activities
to produce not just inventions, but innovations,
where cost-effective technology solutions for our
customers’ needs are created and quickly moved
to production.”
RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGY TODAY 2009 ISSUE 1 11