STRATOM, INC. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: N201-021

Description

The Navy has identified an opportunity for significant capability improvement. Transporting Cargo on aircraft is a complex mission requiring an understanding of aircraft and cargo capabilities. Typically, much of this complexity is removed from day to day activity by using standard packaging equipment and securement practices. In the DoD, this is typically done with 463L Pallets. Unfortunately, not every mission can be packed onto a standard pallet. In this case, the complexity bubbles back to the surface. Aircraft loadmasters face a variety of challenges when it comes to planning unique cargo transportation missions. The difficulty of the problem combined with technological or training deficiencies place aircrews in a compromising situation. They must execute the mission without verification that their cargo is sufficiently secured. An easy to use software application capable of recommending approved cargo loading configurations for a variety of aircraft and cargo types will improve the safety and efficiency of cargo transportation missions. Stratom is proposing the development of the Automated Cargo Assistant (ACA), a mobile software application capable of generating cargo configurations that meet Navy and USMC standards for aircraft.