By John Keller
ARLINGTON, Va. - Scientists at the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in Arlington, Va., are asking industry on ideas for new unmanned underwater surveillance technologies.
DARPA is releasing a broad agency announcement (BAA), solicitation number BAA06-03, on the Unmanned and Unattended Underwater Surveillance (UUUS) program, which is to develop and integrate enabling technologies into systems for unmanned and unattended underwater surveillance.
The UUUS program seeks to improve underwater surveillance in and along ocean coasts, ocean harbors, lakes, and rivers with a distributed set of stationary and mobile assets. The UUUS is to be a phased, multiyear program, DARPA officials say.
The BAA that DARPA released Oct. 28 solicits proposals including but not limited to:
- miniature low-power underwater sensors and microelectromechanical systems (MEMs) for applications involving acoustic, magnetic, turbulence, electronic-field, imaging, chemical, and biological sensing;
- multiphenomenological sensors;
- multisensor fusion and situation- awareness algorithms;
- real-time and distributed control systems, including intelligent-planning algorithms;
- fixed and mobile surveillance sensors to enable underwater communications, tagging, and geopositioning;
- micro pumping and sampling systems to acquire and move chemical and biological materials;
- electronic sensors and devices to non-intrusively monitor the state and health of divers and marine mammals; and
- electronic sensors and devices to monitor key ocean and freshwater environmental parameters, such as ambient temperature, pressure, salinity, and biological emissions.
DARPA officials say the UUUS program will consist of a one-year phase 1 base period, a one-year phase 2 option period, a one-year phase 3 option period, and a nine-month phase 4 option periods.
Only companies with top secret facilities and clearances-or companies teaming with those that do-are eligible to do the work on this program, DARPA officials say.
Details on additional program objectives, development and integration schedule, and milestone criteria are available in a classified addendum to this BAA.
Proposers should e-mail their facility security officer’s name, phone number, secure fax number, classified registry mailing address, and CAGE code to Eugene.McGoldrick@darpa.mil as soon as possible to receive the classified addendum in time to prepare their proposals. Responses to the BAA are due by Oct. 27, 2006.
The point of contact for the program is Dr. Edward Carapezza, who can be reached by e-mail at BAA06-03@darpa.mil, by post at DARPA/ATO, 3701 Fairfax Drive, Arlington Va. 22203-1714, or online at www.darpa.mil/ato/solicit/UUUS/index.htm.
More information on the UUUS program and this BAA is available online at www.fbodaily.com/archive/2005/10-October/30-Oct-2005/FBO-00923251.htm.