DHS Is Searching For Some Good Ideas

February / March 2007 Volume 5 Number 1

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The Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency, or HSARPA, in the Department of Homeland Security launched its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program in 2003. The agency administers the SBIR Program for DHS's Science and Technology Directorate and the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office. The goal is to increase the participation of innovative and creative small businesses in federal research programs and challenge industry to bring innovative homeland security solutions to reality.

The Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program began in 2006. In this program, small businesses, universities and research institutions partner for research and development efforts. The program encourages the transfer of intellectual concepts and ideas from research institutions through the entrepreneurship of small business concerns, while the primary goal of this cooperative effort is to develop innovative solutions to challenging DHS scientific and engineering problems

Following are several examples of what DHS is looking for in security systems and products.

SBIR/STTR TOPIC NUMBER: H-SB06.2-003
TITLE: ADVANCED UNATTENDED GROUND SENSOR
(UGS) TECHNOLOGIES

TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Border and Transportation Security
OBJECTIVE: Develop state-of-the-art Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) technologies for detection of humans and vehicles in border regions.
DESCRIPTION: The concept is to develop an advanced sensor that detects the passage of humans and vehicles across border areas. Although any and all sensing/detection mechanisms are sought, specific detection mechanisms must be proposed. The units will be used primarily in areas where the terrain is difficult and/or foliage is present; areas where tower mounted radars and cameras would not be effective.
Innovative technologies may be proposed for an overall package, or for specific UGS technologies such as energy management, miniaturization, sensors and communications. The unit must have the ability to communicate (either directly or via relay) data or detection reports to a control center at a distance up to 50 miles away.
Desirable features of the proposed UGS include the following:
—€ Be able to be covertly deployed and/or employ a method of protection to prevent them from being disabled
—€ Have an unattended lifetime of at least two years (without power replacement)
—€ Survive in any extreme weather state
—€ Have robust and secure communications
—€ Use multi-sensor and/or signal processing techniques to lower the false alarm rate

SBIR/STTR TOPIC NUMBER: H-SB06.2-002
TITLE: MOBILE PERIPHERAL DEVICE FOR BIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS
TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Biological Countermeasures, Detection.
OBJECTIVE: Design, develop and a test mobile peripheral device capable of performing standard laboratory molecular biological analysis techniques.
DESCRIPTION: Mobile electronics are ubiquitous and offer resources available for use in many innovative ways. For instance, the first responder community would benefit if the capabilities of mobile electronics were expanded to easily and inexpensively test for bioagents. The focus of this effort is to use available mobile electronics to provide (some or all of) the necessary support functions (e.g., power, communications, control, data storage, etc.) to run highly sensitive and specific biological analyses on a peripheral mobile device. Envisioned systems would be able to be "plug-and-play" with the host mobile device and adhere to the limitations of the interface utilized, i.e., not requiring more power from a USB port than is normally available. Supplemental power may be necessary; as such, proposed systems should address power needs and schemes for providing additional power. The following factors should be considered for the mobile peripheral device:
—€ The size and weight should be commensurate with portable computing devices.
—€ Samples for analysis can be either from swabs or liquids; and the time for analysis should be less than 30 minutes.
—€ Minimal operational costs, as well as use of disposables, consumables and re-usables should also be considered.

SBIR/STTR TOPIC NUMBER: H-SB06.2-005
TITLE: 3-D VISUALIZATION SYSTEM TO SHOW FIRST RESPONDERS AND ASSETS WITHIN BUILDING STRUCTURES IN URBAN AREAS FOR SITUATIONAL AWARENESS
TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Emergency Preparedness and Response
OBJECTIVE: Develop an innovative 3-D visualization system that will accept location measurements of individuals in building structures and that will provide the incident commanders with readily understandable situational awareness on an incident scene.
DESCRIPTION: The responder community needs situational awareness tools and technologies to identify, locate, and track resources, responders and victims in urban area infrastructures such as buildings. The ability to quickly visualize and track the movement of people and resources in buildings will provide incident commanders with effective decision-making capabilities in terms of search and rescue and task assignments. While there are a variety of sensors that provide location information, the visualization aspects are lacking, especially in cases where building blueprints, if available, are static 2-D drawings.
The focus of this topic is to produce an innovative technology that: provides for quick representation of building infrastructure in 3-D; will show tracks and various architectural elements, such as rooms, storage and stairs; and will allow for the addition of extra features to be relayed to the base station (by the responders) dynamically and quickly in seconds.
For more information, contact:
Elissa Sobolewski, HSARPA SBIR program manager, (202) 254-6768, elissa.sobolewski@dhs.gov
Jonetta Fantroy, HSARPA SBIR management analyst, SETA, 202-254-6106, Jonetta.Fantroy@dhs.gov

Department of Homeland Security
DHS S&T/HSARPA
Attn: (Name and Phone)
Washington, DC 20528

Structure of the SBIR and STTR Programs

Phase I is the startup phase to determine scientific and technical merit and feasibility of a proposed effort. Phase I awards are up to $150,000.

Phase II is a continuation of the Phase I work to develop the prototype. Phase II awards are up to $1 million and typically no more that two years in duration. Funding is based upon the results of Phase I and the scientific and technical merit and commercial potential of Phase II.

Phase III is the commercial application. Phase III must be funded by sources other than the SBIR Program. Small businesses must find funding from the private sector or a Federal agency to develop the technology into a product or service.

STTR is similar to SBIR program in that both programs seek to increase the participation of small businesses in federal R&D and to increase private sector commercialization of technology developed through federal R&D. The unique feature of the STTR program is that, for both Phase I and Phase II projects, at least 40 percent of the work must be performed by the small business, and at least 30 percent of the work must be performed by a non-profit research institution. Such institutions include federally funded research and development centers, universities, non-profit hospitalsand other non-profits.