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| volume 5, number 2: SPRING 2007 |
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Each year, the Innovative Partnerships Program (IPP) Office hosts the New Technology Reporting (NTR) Program to recognize innovators who have filed NTRs, received patents, or made significant efforts to assist in establishing partnerships or transferring technology. The annual NTR Program also gives them a chance to learn about the latest IPP developments, partnership success stories, and trends in innovation. An entrepreneur and the third private citizen to orbit the Earth aboard the International Space Station, Greg Olsen will be the keynote speaker at this year’s program to be held May 10. During his illustrious career, Dr. Olsen has founded several businesses, including fiber-optic detector manufacturer EPITAXX, near-infrared camera manufacturer Sensors Unlimited, Inc. (SUI), and currently the “angel” investment company GHO Ventures*—all of which have been involved in NASA’s Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR)* program. “I think the SBIR program has tremendous value,” Dr. Olsen said during a telephone interview. “It enables small business to do research so that they can then turn that research into a commercial product.” This was dramatically demonstrated by SUI, which developed technologies that have been used in such applications as night vision and covert surveillance, fiber optics networks, the food processing industry, and many others. Founded in 1992, the company was sold to Finisar Corp. for $600 million in 2000, repurchased by the management team in 2002 for $6 million, then sold again to Goodrich Corp. in 2005 for $60 million. SUI’s technologies also benefited NASA, including the Space Shuttle Discovery’s Return to Flight mission. Praising SBIR for its help in building the capabilities of small companies, Dr. Olsen noted that “SBIR helps companies make their technology better. The array we made in 2005 [and used on Discovery] was better than the array we made in 2000 which was better than the array we made in 1995 under SBIR. In a sense, the SBIR program helped us to develop all of those technologies.” Dr. Olsen earned a BS, a BSEE, and an MS in physics from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and he was awarded a Ph.D. in materials science from the University of Virginia. He holds 12 patents, has written more than 100 technical papers, and is an IEEE LEOS Fellow and the first recipient of the prestigious IEEE Aron Kressel Award.
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What it is: This microspherical laser system is a satellite-based lidar transmitter of broad laser lines. It is also referred to as a “white-light laser system” because its microspheres can be doped with various lasing materials that can emit broad laser lines. What makes it better: Unlike existing laser technologies, the system does not require a laser cavity, making it insensitive to the harsh environments and intense vibrations in space. The microspheres are excited for lasing using far less pump energy than conventional systems. In addition, the emission from the microspheres is guided along a fiber, making the system very compact and lightweight. Finally, the system is inexpensive and durable, and it offers the flexibility of controlling the lasing energy by controlling the number of microspheres being used. How it might be used: The laser can be designed to lase fine single or multiple lines simultaneously. A multiline system makes it ideal to replace several conventional lasers for many space-exploration applications, such as surface-chemical analyses as well as detection of organic compounds and biomarker gases on other planets. It can also be used for remote measurements of atmospheric aerosols, clouds, ozone layer, water vapor, carbon, and methane as well as profiling wind measurements, performing surface topography, mapping vegetation, and measuring subsurface ocean layers. In addition, it can be used as a single optical source for dense optical communication and to activate multioptical logic gates with various laser lines in future optical computers. Tech transfer status: A provisional patent application has been filed. Goddard’s Office of Patent Counsel will be following up the provisional patent application with a nonprovisional filing in the next few months. While no license agreements are in place as of press time, the IPP Office continues to engage with interested companies and universities to understand needs and requirements for potential technology transfer opportunities. Report your innovations on eNTRe*. For more information, contact Goddard’s IPP Office (6-5810).
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Test Your TTQ* *technology transfer quotient When is the right time for filling out an NTR? Decide whether the following technology development situations warrant completion of a New Technology Report (NTR).
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Tell us a bit about the research you’ve been doing for Goddard. I am working to incorporate nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes and silicon nanowires, into next-generation scientific instruments for manned and unmanned solar system exploration. I’m involved in an applied nanotechnology effort in the Materials Engineering Branch*—we are responsible for growing high-quality nanomaterials on a substrate using a catalyst-assisted vapor-liquid-solid (or chemical vapor deposition) growth method, fabricating prototype devices, and testing the performance of these devices. What kinds of technologies use these nanomaterials? Right now, I am focusing on developing three technologies. The first is a nanoscale magnetometer that operates using the piezoresistive properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes. The magnetometer may have potential application in helping us to measure magnetic fields in space and on the surface of planets, and the strain-sensing mechanism may be generalized in the future for other sensor applications. I’m also working on high-aspect ratio electrodes using carbon nanotubes for application in field emission electron guns and field amplification. Finally, I’m developing a well-ordered array of silicon nanowire transistors for potential use as a biosensor for astronaut health monitoring on long spaceflight missions. What have you been doing with the IPP Office? I’ve been involved in various memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with organizations such as Lehigh University, and I’m working on upcoming agreements with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the University of Maryland, College Park. What are you doing with Lehigh University? Our work with Lehigh University has focused on making their world-class electron microscopy facilities available for use by Goddard researchers. In fact, we have established a remote interface to a state-of-the-art transmission electron microscope housed at Lehigh for advanced nanoscale imaging and elemental analysis. In the near future, we are planning to use the focused ion beam capability at Lehigh to fabricate suspended NEMS (nanoelectromechanical systems) structures, and I am planning to host a graduate student intern from Lehigh this summer to work on fabrication and modeling of carbon nanotubes for electron gun applications.
And with NCI and the University of Maryland? The National Cancer Institute, the University of Maryland, College Park, and our team at Goddard are partnering to develop an advanced nanobiosensor using silicon nano-wires and carbon nanotubes as the sensor element. This new detection approach promises to replace the current time-intensive fluorescence technique of performing a DNA analysis with a fully electronic method. Using nanoelectronic materials will enable a miniaturized, simplified, low-power, and potentially handheld diagnostic device that we envision could be part of a medical toolkit in exploration missions. For example, we may be able to locate biomarkers in astronauts’ genetic makeup to predict a susceptibility to cancer or to monitor their blood over a long period of time to detect radioactive damage on long spaceflight missions. Have you benefited from your work with the IPP Office?
Do you think NASA has benefited from the work that the IPP Office has been doing? How? The IPP Office plays a central role in maximizing the impact of technologies developed at Goddard. The engineers and innovators benefit from support in the areas of commercialization and partnerships that can be easy to neglect when focused on technical work. Spaceflight projects benefit from greater maturity and greater capability in instruments and systems made possible by leveraging these approaches. NASA as a whole benefits from lower costs of technology development and shared investment with outside partners that have common interests. What do you see as the value of technology transfer and/or partnering with outside organizations in collaborative R&D? In the current competitive funding climate, it’s more important than ever to get the most out of small amounts of funding to keep innovative new technology development going. One way to make the most of limited resources is to develop relationships between organizations that have common goals, and the IPP Office is integral to identifying new partners and putting the framework in place so that we can work together. Any advice for your colleagues? I would say that it’s important to take full advantage of the resources available to you in the IPP Office. Make sure they know about your innovations. They are great at identifying partnership and funding opportunities that you might not otherwise come across.
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The IPP Office is pleased to announce the following new agreements:
A new reimbursable SAA has been entered into between Goddard and BAE. Under the terms of the agreement, NASA will provide the company with technical support, consultation, and VHSIC Hardware Description Language (VHDL) code modifications, enabling BAE to integrate Goddard’s SpaceWire link-and-switch technology into its new application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) design. The new ASIC will make SpaceWire an embedded feature in the company’s space computer, bringing greater standardization to the SpaceWire technology and providing SpaceWire functionality with fewer parts and at a lower cost to NASA and other aerospace organizations that may purchase the company’s redesigned onboard computer. This start-up in Pasadena, Maryland, is the second company to license Goddard’s innovative process for manufacturing single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). As discussed in the Fall 2006 issue of Goddard Tech Transfer News, retired Goddard researcher Jeannette Benavides developed an innovative process for manufacturing SWCNTs without using a metal catalyst. The absence of the metal catalyst dramatically reduces pre- and post-production costs: “The cost savings is staggering,” said Tim Irwin of E-City NanoTechnologies. The company is passing those savings along to its customers—which could include NASA—while achieving its mission of producing the highest quality SWCNTs to meet the ever-growing needs of an expanding array of industries worldwide. Sales will generate royalty revenue for Goddard. Enduro Medical Technology has secured an expanded field of use for its license of Goddard’s patented Cable-Compliant Joint (CCJ) technology, enabling further product development. The company’s original license of the technology was used to successfully develop the Secure Ambulation Mode (SAM), a revolutionary rehabilitative walker enabling patients to stand and ambulate without the aid of a physical therapist. SAM is currently being used to help soldiers and other patients with a variety of injuries at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and at Kindred Hospital in Greensboro, NC. A youth version (SAM-Y) has also been developed and tested. With the newly revised and expanded license, Enduro plans to secure equity funding in order to develop an equine version of the walker to help rehabilitate injured horses. Interest from the equine and veterinary communities has been high, and the company plans to work to develop prototypes with researchers at the University of Georgia and an equine surgery and rehabilitation center in Lexington, Kentucky, once funding has been secured. A new nonreimbursable SAA between Goddard and LogicNets will enable collaborative development of an intelligence modeling and runtime environment for autonomous robotic systems. These intelligence models will have the capability to control real vehicles and to make the decisions for the interaction between the robotic vehicle systems and the environment. LogicNets will provide its expert system application modeling and runtime environments to be used as the basis for the project, while Goddard will provide domain knowledge and software procedures and rules to develop the robotic test system. Researchers at both organizations will work together to develop a robotic system that can be defined and tested in any exploration scenario. Potential applications for intelligent autonomous vehicles are vast, including mapping, exploration, and monitoring of land and water surfaces on Earth as well as unknown planetary surfaces.
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A Partnership Primer As noted previously in this magazine, NASA is working to leverage the resources of other organizations in pursuing exploration and science goals. These resources include outside organizations’ technology and capabilities that can be “infused” into NASA missions, programs, and projects via a partnership arrangement. 'Since partnerships are a new concept for some researchers, Goddard’s Innovative Partnerships Program (IPP) Office has prepared the following summary information. Partnership Basics
Why Partner
What Makes a Partnership Successful
How to Get Started Goddard’s IPP Office can provide assistance as you start to consider partnering, including:
Contact the IPP Office at to learn more about establishing partnerships to benefit NASA.
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Federal Funding Solicitations Federal agencies often issue notices for funding of research and development (R&D) projects that might overlap with NASA mission work. With some modifications, existing project/proposal summaries (e.g., for IRAD, IPP Seed Fund) might be submitted as white papers or executive summaries as a first step in pursuing funding from these agencies. Below is just one example. Agency: Sensors Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Solicitation: Advanced Component Technology for Sensor Systems (ACTSS) (BAA-07-01 PKD) Relevant areas of interest: Radio frequency, electro-optical, and mixed-signal devices and subsystems; electronic sensing devices; MEMS; intelligent sensor component processing; sensor data compression; and avionic component architectures Closing date: September 30, 2009, white papers only, no full proposals accepted. Find other federal funding opportunities online. If you are interested in submitting a white paper, please contact Nannette Stangle-Castor of Goddard’s IPP Office at 919-873-1457.
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Tech Transfer Training a Success Register now for the May 15th session!
In February, the IPP Office presented “An Introduction to NASA Goddard Technology Transfer” — a very successful overview course designed to familiarize NASA civil servants and contractors with policies and procedures related to technology transfer. Special emphasis on Goddard-specific practices provides participants with the knowledge and tools they need to work with the IPP Office on many different technology transfer and partnership activities. Why attend technology transfer training? Technology transfer training is vital to helping you understand key concepts that can benefit both you and Goddard. In the training, you will learn:
The next Tech Transfer Overview Course is scheduled for May 15. Civil servants can register* online. Contractors can register by contacting Dale.L.Hithon.
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You can report new project technologies through the online eNTRe* system.
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Chief: Nona Cheeks Goddard Tech Transfer News is the quarterly magazine of the Innovative Partnerships Program Office (Code 504) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. This magazine seeks to inform and educate civil servant and contractor personnel at Goddard* about actively participating in achieving NASA’s technology transfer goals:
Please send suggestions or feedback about Goddard Tech Transfer News to the editor or go to our online feedback system. |
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