We have been pretty busy for the last two years doing SBIR proposals. They are interesting and at least address the needs of customers who want something for use in space and actually have the money to pay for it! If you try it, keep in mind that the customer usually has something specific in mind – which may not be all that obvious in the solicitation. Try to figure it out, since “Innovative” suggests a wider range of possibilities than most customers are ready to consider. Also keep in mind that these are small projects, from the funding standpoint, and won't carry a radically new idea very far toward a usable product. (Skip new SSTO launcher proposals!) In fact, these customers have a LOT of experience with “New Ideas” which went nowhere!

For years the SBIR customers (particularly in the DOD) have been trying to encourage companies who are organized to actually develop and produce products, and discourage “SBIR Mills” which produce only concept paperwork, which sits in a file, or a “prototype” with no potential for production.

A history of producing customized products for DOD, Researchers and Industry shows that focus and often gives you “Modules” you can reuse as you address the new need. A proposal has a lot better chance if it shows real insight and preliminary “Phase Zero” (self funded) effort to rough in some of the ideas. Although the process is slow, encouraging “debrief” notes can produce a “Win” the next year since the outlined need will often not be satisfactorily filled for several years.

We are doing preliminary work (unfunded until the contracts are signed) on our NASA “Lunar Navigator” with encouraging results. The wide field optical systems we have evaluated look pretty good, and will reduce the number of camera modules we need to monitor the entire sky with the required resolution. This effort has also led to the recognition of both enhanced operating modes and terrestrial applications for the same basic system in “GPS Compromised and GPS Denied” environments.

Another of our proposed technology efforts has received promising reviews from DARPA. This involves application of our operational, magnetic propulsion and sensing system for use to assemble and maintain formations of small satellites. In addition to our self funded efforts to upgrade our magnetic demonstration systems, we are now programming a microprocessor to do the signal analysis required for 6DOF magnetic position sensing and handle the orbital dynamics of planning, and generating, the forces needed to optimize the position of member satellites in the formation. It looks like these computing systems will mass only 2 to 5 grams – allowing their use in the smallest satellites.

We have plenty of operational hardware to implement representative sensing and propulsive fields, but a full demonstration will require operation in a tiny orbital satellite cluster. We have roughed in plans for conversion of our lab hardware to a demonstrator that could be run in a “Zero Gee” aircraft flight, but even those flights will require moderate funding.