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The purpose of this qualitative study is to first conduct a benchmark analysis of RAPIDx, a new, agile, and innovative organization using the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Framework for Assessing the Acquisition Function at Federal Agencies for the Department of the Air Force (DAF). Second, this study provides a record of lessons learned from the implementation of the RAPIDx office from July 2018 to September 2022. Our research methodology includes a gap analysis to compare RAPIDx against two of the four cornerstones outlined within the GAO Framework. Our analysis also offers insight and visibility into RAPIDx’s effectiveness, and it informs our recommendations for evaluating new, agile, and innovative organizations. In particular, we find that RAPIDx had more areas of concern than best practices when compared against the GAO Framework. We captured 16 best practices and identified 20 areas of concern. Finally, to aid RAPIDx, we provide six recommended courses of action to address RAPIDx’s most significant area of concern, adapt the GAO Framework for innovative organizations, and improve the organization's effectiveness going forward., Captain, United States Air Force, Captain, United States Air Force, Approved for public release. Distribution is unlimited.

Federal agencies with a budget of at least $100 million for research and development (R&D) conducted by others must participate in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. SBIR has four purposes: meet federal R&D needs, stimulate technological innovation, increase commercialization (e.g., sales) of innovations based on federal R&D, and encourage participation in innovation by small businesses owned by disadvantaged individuals and women. The Small Business Administration (SBA) oversees the efforts of participating agencies, which make awards to small businesses using SBIR funds. Congress directed SBA to develop a database with commercialization data for government use in evaluating the program. GAO was asked to determine the following: (1) how agencies have addressed SBIR's purposes, and (2) the extent of data available to evaluate progress in increasing commercialization. GAO analyzed program documents and interviewed officials at SBA and five agencies that accounted for about 96 percent of SBIR awards. These agencies were the Department of Defense (DoD), the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Department of Health and Human Services' National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the National Science Foundation (NSF). GAO recommends that SBA work with participating agencies to do the following: (1) collect data on applications from small businesses owned by disadvantaged individuals and women, and (2) identify best practices for verification of commercialization data. SBA, DOE, and NSF generally agreed with these recommendations; the other agencies GAO reviewed neither agreed nor disagreed., Report to Congressional Requesters.

SBIR Advantage is published quarterly by the Air Force SBIR Program office. This publication offers an overview of AF SBIR issues and information. The purpose of SBIR Advantage is to provide Air Force, DoD, and other government leadership with additional insight into the vital contributions made by the SBIR program to Air Force R&D.

Over the past few years the Armed Services Committees have shown an increased interest in the DoD doing as much as possible to transition SBIR developed technologies into products or services that support the warfighter. As part of the 2006 National Defense Authorization Act they formulated the Commercialization Pilot Program (CPP), which requests that the DoD SBIR program align itself more closely to Program Executive Offices (PEOs), platforms and warfighter needs, and improve the acceleration of SBIR technologies to the field. OSD AT&L responded to that language by requiring the Army, Air Force and Navy develop pilot programs aimed towards that goal. I thought the best way to get started was to appoint an expert, independent "Tiger Team" to perform a comprehensive study of the Navy's best SBIR practices and worst roadblocks which impact technology transition. This report is the sum of their work, and will be a key document in providing guidance as the Navy maintains our continuous improvement philosophy for the best-in-class SBIR program. The report points out that the Navy's program is decentralized, which allows the PEOs and SYSCOMs to play a dominant role in determining SBIR topic and award allocation. PEO ownership of the Navy SBIR program is the key to our success: those with the technology needs and resources determine how to spend the SBIR investment. But, the study also found that there is substantial variation in practice and success; improvements could be gained from better sharing of best practices, standardization of repetitive tasks, and better training of SBIR firms, Navy Technical Monitors, PEOs, Fleet leaders (OPNAV) and our contracting officers. This report provides Navy management with well thought-out, defined and documented findings, recommendations and initiatives that will help guide us as we work to make the Navy SBIR program better.

Congress is in the process of reauthorizing the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, which expires in 2008. One issue being considered in the reauthorization is whether to allow partial use of SBIR set-asides for SBIR program administration costs and, if so, at what levels. Currently, the use of SBIR funds to administer the SBIR program is prohibited, and SBIR administration must be funded from other sources. Our analysis estimates that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) spends, on average, an additional 6 percent on top of the SBIR set-asides to administer its SBIR program. That percentage is higher than that for government programs that predominantly award grants (rather than contracts), equal to or lower than levels for other government R&D programs, and lower than the total compensation levels for venture-capital (VC) organizations. Further analysis is required to understand the benefits of alternative levels of administrative investments for the DoD SBIR program., ISBN: 978-0-8330-4325-2.

We present a business model providing an extremely fast method of transferring new research to the command and control community. As any software developer or user knows, there is a vast gulf between research beta prototypes and commercial quality software. By shortening the time between concept and commercialization, command and control programs increase their technological advantage. We demonstrate that a marketplace of multiple competing vendors of similar products works much better than a single anointed government-subsidized solution. In particular, using Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grants to transition to commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) software is more effective than monolithic decade-long programs. We briefly mention the products, as concrete examples of successful commercialization, but defer any detailed description of the products themselves to other literatures. The emphasis in this paper is on the process, not the specific grants or products., Presented at the Command and Control Research and Technology Symposium (CCRTS) held in San Diego, CA on 20-22 Jun 2006. Published in the Proceedings of the Command and Control Research and Technology Symposium (CCRTS), 2006. Briefing charts included. This work was supported in part through DoD Small Business Innovative Research program, grant AF02-109 "Multi-sensory display toolkit."

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was created in 1982 to stimulate research and development among small businesses while providing the government innovative technical and scientific solutions to challenging problems. In the SBIR Program, Phase I awards are made for research projects that evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. Phase II awards are made to further develop selected Phase I projects that demonstrate the greatest potential. In Phase III, the small business or research institute is expected to obtain funding from the private sector and/or non-SBIR government sources to develop the prototype into a viable product or service for sale in the military or private-sector markets. This study identifies and measures the variables that shape the success of the Naval Air System Command's (NAVAIR) SBIR program from the stakeholders' point of view. As different stakeholders have different perspectives on how they perceive success in this program, the authors used a qualitative approach to identify the variables that shape the success of NAVAIR's SBIR program from the small firms' viewpoint. The analysis and results were generated based on the interviewees' perceptions and responses to questions asked in telephone interviews. The authors interviewed a representative sample of firms that had successfully reached Phase III in the SBIR Program. On completion of the interviews, the samples were transcribed and subjected to qualitative comparative analysis. The results were used to identify the variables that represent the main factors leading to program success. The study concludes with the factors influencing firms' success in the NAVAIR SBIR program, and presents several recommendations from the findings. (3 tables, 6 figures, 27 refs.), The original document contains color images.

We report on the development of an innovative program aimed at providing online teamwork training for distributed professionals performing complex, highly interdependent tasks. Examples of teams for which this training would be appropriate include special purpose (e.g., crisis response) teams within command control organizations and operations centers, special operations teams, and medical teams. To maximize learning and flexibility, the program couples synchronous and asynchronous approaches to online learning, uses video judiciously to illustrate teamwork in a specific domain, and uses team members as session leaders., Presented at the International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (10th) held in Crete, Greece on 22-27 June 2003. Published in Proceedings of the International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (10th) (2003), 991-995, Berlin, Germany, 27-29 Nov 2009.

The application of interactive, three-dimensional viewing techniques to the representation of security-related, computer network status and events is expected to improve the timeliness and efficiency of monitoring network security. This document outlines the final status and content of a functional prototype system developed under this Phase II SBIR contract., The original document contains color images. Topic no. AF97-043.

Report developed under SBIR contract for Topic A98-028: The objective is to demonstrate the feasibility of forming precisely ordered and precisely located arrays of semiconductor quantum dots by using biomolecular templates and Low Energy Electron Enhanced Etching (LE4) to define in a substrate an array of holes with diameters comparable to the size of quantum dots sought, and then growing one quantum dot in each "nanohole', by self-assembly of deposited adatoms. In Phase I, key methodology was developed: (1) depositing the biomolecular templates on clean(hydrophobic) Si(100) surfaces; (2) identifying LE4 process conditions for etching the nano-pattern; (3) stripping the template-generated masks after LE4 by wet chemical methods. Phase I Option emphasized: (1) removal of the oxide left on the nano-patterned substrate by the stripping process; (2) preliminary efforts to deposit Ce and GaAs quantum dots; (3) scaling the nano-patterning and deposition processes to cover 1-in. diameter substrates. These quantum dot arrays have potential applications in optical emitters and detectors, single electron transistors, and high-density memory arrays.

This project demonstrated the feasibility of an innovative design that combines centrifugal separation, cross-flow filtration (CFF), Dean flow surface cleaning, and back-flush techniques into an effective micro-filtration unit. The centrifugal separation is effective in separating debris which has higher specific gravity than that of the DFM for particles as small as 20 microns. CFF makes use of the shear force parallel to the filter medium to reduce the cake formation on the filter surface, and is especially effective for feed flow with colloidal solids. Dean flow is a secondary flow created in a curved flow passage. The resulting flow profile takes the form of a toroidal vortex. The vortex profile generates a high shear rate which acts to transport material such as colloidal solids and fine debris away from the membrane surface. The combination of these features with an automatic back-flushing device forms a compact, self-cleaning, and continuously operable unit suitable for pre-filtration in Navy shipboard fuel oil systems. A bench-scale model was created which proved that all the features are feasible. The operation of Dean Flow was visually observed and documented photographically. Structural integrity of the housing was investigated with finite element analysis. Variable filter media, including ceramic and polymeric as well as metal filter membranes, were tested specifically for their suitability for fuel oil filtration applications. Parametric studies of back-flush were performed, and quantitative benefits of back-flushing were documented for the candidate filter media. All these tasks were performed to lay the foundation for the development of a prototype with a capacity of 135 gpm in Phase II., N99-086.

The work accomplished in this SBIR project demonstrated that the addition of boron nitride (BN) powder to a composite laminate significantly increases the through the thickness thermal conductivity (kz) of a composite laminate. The importance of this work is that the improved kz results in significantly lower operating temperatures for thermal applications such as composite thermal planes for advanced electronic applications and space based radiators. The advantage of this material compared to competing materials that it can be used to fabricate high strength, high thermal conductivity, relatively thin structures less than 0.050" thick. Typical graphite fiber reinforced composite thermal planes have an in-plane thermal conductivity (Kx & Ky) in the range 300-650 w/m/K, based on the fiber selection. But, the relatively low kz of a typical composite laminate significantly reduces the efficiency of the thermal plane due to the high impedance to getting heat in or out of the laminate. Finite element analysis of typical composite thermal planes shows that by increasing the kz from about 1 w/m/K for a typical laminate to about 4 w/m/K, as achieved in this project, results in temperature reductions in the order of 30%., BMDO 99-013.

An in-situ corrosion sensor based on electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) has been used to detect moisture ingress into aluminum-aluminum and aluminum-composite adhesive bonds. Both wedge tests and tensile button tests (aluminum-aluminum bonds only) were performed. Upon moisture absorption, the impedance spectra change shape with the low-frequency region becoming resistive. The low-frequency impedance decreases by several orders of magnitude, depending on the adhesive and the experimental conditions. For bonds with stable interfaces, such as phosphoric acid anodized (PAA) aluminum, the absorbed moisture causes an initial weakening of the adhesive resulting in reduced strength or small crack propagation. A substantial incubation time prior to substrate hydration and bond degradation allows warning of potential joint deterioration and enables condition-based maintenance. For bonds with smooth interfaces with little or no physical bonding (mechanical interlocking), crack propagation can proceed interfacially with minimal moisture absorption. A comparison of the incubation times for Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) surfaces both bonded to epoxy adhesives and freely exposed to water or humidity at different temperatures shows that hydration occurs with the same activation energy, independent of whether or not the surface is covered with adhesive. However, the pre-exponential factor in the rate constant is dependent on the concentration of free moisture at the interface so that the hydration rate varies by several orders of magnitude. The results of this study demonstrate that the electrochemical sensor technology can detect the ingress of moisture into an adhesive bond and should be further developed to provide a means to warn of potential degradation.

ORT DEVELOPED UNDER SBIR contract for Topic A98-028: The objective is to demonstrate the feasibility of forming precisely ordered and precisely located arrays of semiconductor quantum dots by using biomolecular templates and Low Energy Electron Enhanced Etching (LE4) to define in a substrate an array of holes with diameters comparable to the size of quantum dots sought, and then growing one quantum dot in each nano-hole" by self-assembly of deposited adatoms. In Phase I, key methodology was developed: (1) depositing the biomolecular templates on clean (hydrophobic) Si(100) surfaces rather than on oxidized (hydrophilic)surfaces, in order to simplify the subsequent LE4 process; (2) identifying LE4 process conditions for etching the nano- pattern; (3) stripping the template-generated masks after LE4 by wet chemical method Deposition of GaAs by Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) produced quantum dots randomly distributed over the surface, because the mask stripping process oxidizes the etched surface. In Phase I Option, methods for removing this oxide without destroying the etched nano-pattern will be demonstrated. These arrays have potential applications in optical emitters and detectors, single electron transistors, and high-density, memory arrays.

We have proposed and carried out a series of experiments that could be of significance to the development of high power cladding pumped optical fiber lasers. First, at low power, we have shown how a more complex cavity can result in increased power by combining fiber lasers using a truncated 2x2 coupler. We believe that this can lead to the concatenation of many couplers while still using the more convenient technique of end pumping. Experiments are in progress to investigate this concept further. Finally, we propose a technique, that has been demonstrated by others in Nd bulk glass, for increasing the ionic concentration of ytterbium and erbium in fiber lasers and still avoid problems associated with concentration quenching.

The optical true-time-delay line is a crucial building block for future photonic phased array antennas. In this research program, we have developed an integrated optical true-time-delay module based on ultra low-loss polymeric waveguides that have many advantages over existing approaches. The photolithography defined polymeric waveguides enable us to fabricate a 10-meter long optical channel waveguide circuit with sub-micron accuracy in a five-inch silicon wafer, providing optical true-time-delays over tens of nanoseconds with sub-picosecond time resolution. The unique detector-switched operation achieves a nanosecond switching time over 60 GHz bandwidth. Optical heterodyne technique is developed to generate optical RF signal in the range from 0-60 GHz. The demonstrated optical waveguide true-time-delay module employs wavelength-division-multiplexing technique for multi-beam operation. The monolithic integration of the polymeric channel waveguides, waveguide grating couplers, and high-speed photodetectors drastically reduces the system payload and the packaging complexity while improving the system reliability. Through the Phase I research, we have successfully demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed concept by realizing an integrated optical true-time-delay module based on ultra low-loss polymeric waveguide circuits., BMDO 98-003B.

This program developed the designs for lightweight, fiber-reinforced structures to contain turbine engine rotor failures. These containment ring designs were based on a hybrid sandwich panel concept whose core consisted of several plies of a dry, ballistic fabric laminate. The structure of the panel consisted of metal facesheets mechanically connected with many small-diameter rods penetrating through the thickness of the fabric core laminate. This concept was developed by testing containment rings against a fixed energy level provided by the tri-hub disk burst of a T-53 power turbine stage. Ten spin tests were performed and the ring designs were varied to obtain the lightest-weight ring which would contain the rotor burst. Facesheet and rod structural elements were fabricated from either aluminum or titanium and candidate core materials were S glass, Kevlar(registered), and Zylon(registered) (PBO). The Kevlar and Zylon organic fabrics performed well even at elevated temperature while the S glass was not very effective. Finally, a Kevlar/titanium containment ring design developed during the program was tested on a full-scale T-53 engine. The containment ring stopped the three disk fragments as they began to penetrate the engine case wall. This program resulted in containment ring and hybrid structure designs which can be used in either existing or new installations to satisfy specific containment requirements for certification.

To be economically attractive, weight and performance for small earth-to-orbit launch systems and station keeping space vehicles must be improved at significantly lower costs while maintaining required payloads. A major weight and cost factor in any of these devices is the tankage for propellants and pressurant gases. Innovative and proven manufacturing technologies such as electroforming have been over-looked as means to meet these needs. Electroforming offers the means to fabricate seamless tanks with no property degrading welds. In conjunction with filament winding electroforming can produce improved tanks in greatly reduced time frames, because it can produce the material and the net shape simultaneously. In this study, it has been shown that pure nickel electrodeposits in very small thicknesses suitable for tank liners can be made with ample ductility for expansion as a sealant against outer shells of high modulus such as filament wound graphite fibers. Ability to electroform seamless thin-wall tanks with integrated fill/drain ports has been shown. Electroform joining of tank components without thermal means has been proven.

Three cylindrical thermophotovoltaic generators were fabricated under this contract, using gallium antimonide photovoltaic converter arrays. The converter arrays consist of twelve air-cooled circuits each, with each circuit containing thirty cells. The arrays were tested with an electrically heated emitter at 200 cubic feet per minute of air cooling, with the anticipated power output of 150 Watts; at higher air volumes, array output reached 540 Watts. One of the three arrays was fitted for further testing, and the other two were incorporated into propane-fired systems. These propane-fired systems use silicon carbide emitters and are fitted with recuperators to put some of the waste heat back into the combustion process. At one pound of fuel per hour, a system output of 135 Watts was achieved. Management of the heat load on the cells was a limiting factor, with the conclusion that it is critical to limit the amount of non-useful longer wavelength energy being emitted. A way to do that has been identified and is being pursued under separate funding.

The product approach developed herein has excellent potential as a training tool for various RADARs. It provides an operator interface with the actual on site RADAR hardware. There is some minimum modification that is done to the RADAR system to accept the RSG. Due to the flexibility of die RSG output, RADAR signal injection can be made anywhere from the RF front end (after the 1st LNA), through various points in the IF processing chain, all the way to selected points in the digital processing. Additionally, The RSG serves as a performance verification tool for RADAR hardware as it lives out its life cycle. As the hardware or operational software receives upgrades, the RSG can be applied as a final checkout prior to live engagement. The benefit of using the RSG is that the RADAR environment is electronically synthesized, and therefore is exactly repeatable. The RADAR performance improvement then can be assessed objectively as the RADAR goes through its upgrade cycles. The Multispectral High Fidelity RADAR Scene Generator represents a portable and comprehensive test and training environment for the Navy's RADAR assets. Additionally, the option of providing a RADAR evaluation service for other RADAR sponsors becomes available, where the Navy can maintain a center that could assist other RADAR users in the evaluation of RADAR assets and training of operators.

It was the objective of this activity to make metal steel foam panels with low carbon steel face sheets by hot isostatic pressing. Panels were successfully made with strontium carbonate foaming agent by both HIP plus foam and HIP plus forge plus foam. Resulting foam density was 50%, representing the best steel foam to date using Fraunhofer USA Delaware technology. It is planned to apply foam steel structural panels in applications such as Naval vessel doors and Carrier elevators, where light weight and high specific stiffness are important.

Under a Phase I SBIR program, METSS has demonstrated the technical feasibility of developing environmentally benign deicing/anti-icing fluids based on glucose, lactates, and their salts. Models developed by METSS to identify potential replacement materials for the current glycol-based systems governed the selection of these materials. These simple models take into account a number of physical, chemical, and structural attributes determined to be important to materials that exhibit good deicing/anti-icing behavior. Known structural attributes for biodegradability governed the selection of materials that would address environmental concerns. The formulations developed by METSS were subjected to tests derived from SAE AMS 1424. BOD and COD tests were performed to assess environmental impact. The results of the Phase I program clearly indicate the technical feasibility of developing direct replacement deicing/anti-icing fluids based on glucose and lactate systems that address environmental impact issues without compromising performance. Near term commercialization of the proposed systems is assured by the abundant supply of these low cost agricultural products, low processing costs, and a number of parties who have a vested interest in expanding markets for these materials. Further development of the proposed technologies should emphasize performance optimization, materials compatibility testing and formulation optimization efforts needed to support foil qualification testing against AMS 1424 and 1428 specifications.

The STTR Phase I program targeted the development and application of advanced optical based systems the determination of surface-pressure distributions on test models in the Subsonic Aerodynamic Research Laboratory (SARL) at Wright Laboratory. The low-speed flows (0.1 less than or equal M less than or equal 0.5) encountered in the SARL facility effect relatively small changes in surface pressure, typically 1-2 psi about ambient (14.7 psia). As a result, quantitative surface-pressure determination in this environment remained contingent on the development of innovative pressure-sensitive paint (PSP)-coating and optical-measurement technology possessing the requisite sensitivity characteristics. The technical effort encompasses three primary objectives-the development of advanced PSP systems, data-acquisition instrumentation and measurement techniques, and post-processing software. In the Phase I effort, we have coupled the tools of sol-gel-processing technology and inorganic synthetic chemistry for the development of stable PSP's exhibiting tunable performance characteristics. Phase I research has produced sol-gel-based PSP's exhibiting significant improvements in sensitivity about ambient pressure, reduced temperature sensitivity (80%), and fast (>1 kHz) temporal response. Non-intrusive, optical-based measurement techniques capable of accurate pressure measurements in low-speed wind tunnels will find immediate application in commercial- and military-aircraft, automotive, and architectural industries in the United States.

Report developed under SBIR contract. The overall objective of this Phase I research program was to develop a nonintrusive method to image the art work of interlayer printed circuit board. Using forward Compton scattering and innovative design of a high-efficiency and high-resolution ring-slit Compton scattering camera, we have both theoretically demonstrated and experimentally verified the feasibility of reverse engineering the circuit board. An algorithm using 2-D projection and Compton scattering data was proposed for image reconstruction of the layout of the printed circuit board, layer by layer. This algorithm is highly efficient, less computational, straightforward, and easy to implement.