McQ Inc. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: AF161-003

Description

ABSTRACT: The current procedures for ground based arena tests are time consuming and costly, while only producing a fraction of the desired data. In the current method, the device under test is surrounded by switch screens to record fragment impact time and bundles of foam insulation to capture fragments. Fragments must be recovered by hand to be weighed and measured, requiring weeks of labor. This process is time consuming and gives no way to correlate fragment mass and velocity. Additionally, only a fraction of the fragments are recovered. To meet the need for an automatic method of full hemisphere warhead fragmentation characterization, McQ has developed the Fragment Size Analysis and Tracking (FSAT) system which replaces the ring of switch screens with a network of sensors containing high speed cameras. FSAT will record and analyze video of the warhead fragmentation then automatically produce a report describing the mass, size, speed, and trajectory of each fragment. In Phase I, McQ will enhance the FSAT system by focusing on improvements which will make the system easier to use as well as improve the accuracy and consistency of capturing statistics for a wider range of size/speed fragments.; BENEFIT: The proposed work will provide the Air Force with the critical capability of quickly and accurately performing warhead fragmentation characterization in arena tests. This will offer significant benefit over the current methods which are costly, labor intensive, and incomplete. Due to the incomplete data produced by the current method, past characterizations have been conservative to ensure a minimum guaranteed effectiveness. To match the current need for munitions with minimal collateral damage, higher fidelity fragmentation data is needed. The proposed McQ FSAT system will provide the capability to capture this critical data. The FSAT system will provide complete hemispherical characterization of mass, size, speed, and trajectory for each fragment in an automatically generated report. Additionally, the fragment data will be available for import into existing fragmentation modeling software. The proposed system will be scalable to match the needs of numerous military and commercial high velocity projectile tracking applications. The modular design will allow immediate use for arena testing, yet the flexibility to provide enhanced performance in the future as COTS high speed cameras and other front end components are developed to provide additional capabilities of interest.