SPECTRAL ENERGIES LLC — Department of Defense STTR Phase I: N22A-T023

SPECTRAL ENERGIES LLC — STTR Phase I award from Department of Defense.

Amount
$239,223
Agency
Department of Defense · Navy
Program / Phase
STTR · Phase I
Topic
N22A-T023
Solicitation
22.A
NAICS
Place of performance
OH
Period
2022-06-06 → 2023-10-31

Description

The US Department of the Navy (DON) has recently identified Uncrewed Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) as an emerging technology necessary to the Navy mission. Bio-inspired swimming robots have shown promise in a wide range of applications due to their efficiency, speed, and stealth capability. To prepare our workforce for the UUV technologies of tomorrow, we need to ensure that unique aspects of bio-inspired robots—soft actuators, flexible materials, waterproofing, sensing/controls, periodic motion—are introduced to students throughout their traditional education. We propose a Student-focused Holistic Aquatic Robotics Kit (SHARK) to teach students the unique aspects of aquatic robot design through establishing a research-based design strategy and modern scientific standards for learning objectives. The SHARK will provide groups of K-5th, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th grade students with instructional robot builds and the materials for an annual national soft-robotics competition.