NASA SBIR 2011 Solicitation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
ATI Industrial Automation, Inc.
1031 Goodworth Drive
Apex, NC 27539 - 3869
(919) 772-0115

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Dwayne Perry
dwayne.perry@ati-ia.com
1031 Goodworth Drive
Apex, NC 27539 - 3869
(919) 772-0115 Extension :125

Estimated Technology Readiness Level (TRL) at beginning and end of contract:
Begin: 2
End: 5

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (Limit 2000 characters, approximately 200 words)
The use of automated robotic tooling is required in a number of space missions. It is possible to have better tool control if the robotic arm could report loads experienced by the tooling.

ATI Industrial Automation proposes to develop and prove technologies to be used in a low weight, low outgassing multi-axis force and torque transducer that can be used at cryogenic temperatures. The transducer will require strain gage excitation electrical power and output strain gage level voltage signals. These signals can be digitized and then mathematically transformed into values that represent the transducer's loads as forces in the X, Y, and Z axes and torques about the X, Y, and Z axes.

The primary goal of this phase I proposal is to develop, produce, and characterize a proof of concept strain-sensing beam that can survive the harsh environments expected to be encountered on a Mars lander mission. The main challenges of this proposal are the development of a strain-sensing beam that can 1) survive and operate over wide temperature ranges, and 2) operate at low atmospheric pressure with minimal outgassing.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
There are a number of potential NASA applications for six degree of freedom force and torque transducers which are able survive these harsh conditions. They include:
* Providing loading feedback to a robot arm controller about the arm's end effector, such as a robotic drill or corer. The feedback can allow the operation to be adjusted for best performance.
* Providing loading feedback from an end effector on a teleoperated robotic arm, perhaps on the ISS or another body in space.
* Providing loading feedback for limbs in a Robonuat-type application.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
There are a number of potential non-NASA commerical applications for six degree of freedom force and torque transducers which are able survive these harsh conditions. They include:
* Robotic arm loading feedback for remote vehicles operating on the moon, such as would be needed for commercial exploration of the moon.
* Sensing loads in a space tug when it connects to a satellite that is being moved to a another orbit.
* Sensing loads caused by an experiment or operation being conducted in orbit.
* Providing loading feedback experiments and remotely operated vehicles in the cold of the Earth's polar regions.
* Providing loading information for tasks conducted in a near vacuum environment.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING (NASA's technology taxonomy has been developed by the SBIR-STTR program to disseminate awareness of proposed and awarded R/R&D in the agency. It is a listing of over 100 technologies, sorted into broad categories, of interest to NASA.)

Contact/Mechanical