SBIR-STTR_2016_Year_in_ReviewV6-WEB

FY 2015
TRANSITION SUCCESSES
In fiscal year 2015, the Air Force CRP successfully
transitioned 24 STTP and STMPs. To be considered a
transition success, a project must lead to the production
and delivery of products, processes, technologies, or
services for sale to or use by the federal government
or commercial markets. Transition successes are
providing significant benefit to the nation’s warfighters
in improved performance, new capabilities, increased
reliability, and cost savings. From these 24, here are
three of our top transitions:
• STTP 2012-47 with small business GATR
Technologies, titled “4-Meter Class Inflatable
Antenna,” built on their previously successful
inflatable antenna technologies to develop
and field a prototype four-meter class Kuband
inflatable antenna to address SOCOM
requirements for a lightweight, multi-carrier
satellite communications (SATCOM) hub terminal.
This new sized inflatable antenna provides a
high capacity communications hub capability
with 80+percent less volume and weight than
comparable deployable rigid antennas are
drastically reduced and shipping costs. Additionally,
it can be set up in under an hour without the
need for special tools to enable rapid insertion
into remote and contingency applications for
DoD, intelligence, and homeland security. GATR
has recently agreed to be acquired by Cubic Corp.
for $232.5M, including this technology and other
related SBIR technologies transitioned with CRP
assistance.
• STTP 2013-09 with small business General Nano,
LLC, titled “Manufacturing Next Generation
Multi-functional Carbon Fiber Laminated
Composites for Air Vehicles,” resulted in nonmetallic
multi-functional composites for air
vehicles branded under the name Veelo. These
multi-functional composites were developed to
help Boeing’s Research and Technology’s Next
Generation Composition Team who at the
time were adding metals to their composition
structures, which added parasitic weight, and
were often incompatible with the host materials.
General Nano’s multi-functional composites
reduce parasitic weight and also enable order of
magnitude improvement in electrical and thermal
conductivity. Boeing is expected to acquire $12M
worth of Veelo sheet material per year to be
used in several applications. Ball Aerospace has
also selected Veelo as its ultra black body on a
NASA satellite launching in 2018, as well as other
applications that include lightweight EMI shielding
and lighting strike protection.
• Finally, STTP 2014-07 with small business Physical
Optics Corporation, titled “Micro Weather
Sensor,” resulted in a sensor to fulfill Air Force
Special Operations Command’s (AFSOC)
need for a surface weather/meteorological
sensing system that is small, lightweight, and
remotely programmable, with a low probability
of detection and delivering a high range of
weather data parameters and imagery via satellite
communication from denied/inaccessible areas
for 90 consecutive days without servicing. The
previous system required a helicopter and two
men for set up and would involve a meteorological
Aviation Report at 20, 60, and 180 minutes
intervals and 360° daytime color imagery
fully integrated into the AFW-WEBS weather
monitoring system. This sensor provides improved
performance at a fraction of the size/weight/cost
and will result in a savings of more than $200K
per system totaling $20M per 100 systems for
operational use.
28