NASA Picks 18 Small Business Tech Transfer Projects For Continued Development

WASHINGTON -- NASA has selected 18 innovative technology proposals for negotiation of Phase 2 contract awards in the Small Business
Technology Transfer program, or "STTR." The selected projects have a
total value of approximately $11 million. The contracts will be
awarded to 18 high technology firms that are partnering with 15
universities in 12 states.

As an investment opportunity, STTR innovations address specific
technology gaps in mission programs, provide a foundation for future
technology needs, and are complementary to other NASA research
investments. Examples of some STTR technologies being pursued in
current selected proposals include:

- An autonomous health monitoring system for improved stability,
safety, and performance of advanced aerospace vehicles under adverse
conditions

- Advanced components for direct-detection LIDAR (Light Detection And
Ranging) that can be used on new unmanned aircraft systems or
aircraft platforms. LIDAR instruments will be required for remote
sensing measurements from future Earth science missions

- Development of novel fabrication techniques for high efficiency
thermo-electric devices. More efficient thermo-electric devices which
convert heat directly into electricity are of interest to NASA for
extracting power from "wasted heat" - heat energy from turbine
engines, the hot side of spacecraft, or even the body heat of
astronauts.

Participating firms and research institutions submitted 31 Phase 2
proposals. The criteria used to select the winning proposals included
technical merit and innovation, Phase 1 results, value to NASA,
commercial potential, and company capabilities.

The STTR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It
provides qualified small businesses -- including women-owned and
disadvantaged firms -- with opportunities to propose innovative ideas
that meet specific research and development needs of the federal
government. In addition, the STTR program requires a collaborative
research effort between small businesses and research institutions.

Phase 1 is a feasibility study to evaluate the scientific and
technical merit of an idea. Awards are for up to 12 months in amounts
up to $100,000. Phase 2 expands on the results of the development in
Phase 1. Awards are for up to two years in amounts up to $600,000.
Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and
requires the use of private sector or non-STTR federal funding.
Wednesday's NASA awards are for the second-phase in this competitive
process.

NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist, through its Innovative
Partnerships Program, has oversight of the STTR program as part of
its focus on emerging technologies and efforts to advance
technological innovation for agency purposes. NASA partners with U.S.
industry to infuse innovative technologies that result from the STTR
program into agency missions and help transition technologies into
commercially available products and services for other markets.

NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., manages the STTR
program, with individual projects managed at each of NASA's field
centers.

For a list of selected companies, visit:

http://sbir.nasa.gov

For more information about NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/office/oct

Source: NASA