SAN DIEGO, Calif., 10 March 2005. Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) announced today that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded SAIC a contract to deliver 800 high-performance solid state flashlight prototypes. The flashlights will be supplied to U.S. forces deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq for in-the-field experimental evaluation and feedback.
SAIC and SureFire, LLC, a leading manufacturer of tactical flashlights, have been collaborating for several years to develop new technologies that enhance flashlight performance. This DARPA project will experimentally evaluate the effectiveness of inserting a range of state-of-the-art optical technologies into these flashlights, while maintaining the same form factor that troops in the field are already using.
The prototypes will integrate SAIC's nonimaging optics, SureFire's flashlight manufacturing technology, and Lumileds Lighting's high-brightness light-emitting diode (LED) light sources.
"The project's purpose is to rapidly bring to the field cutting-edge optical technology at the prototype level for experimental evaluation by the warfighter," said Doug Kirkpatrick, DARPA program manager.
The DARPA flashlights will provide exceptional high-intensity illumination and dimmable light output in a compact and ergonomic design. The flashlights will feature high-powered LEDs and hard-anodized, precision-machined aluminum construction with O-ring seals to provide resistance to moisture and dust. The lenses are molded out of a tough, heat-resistant polymer, which can survive severe mechanical shock and large temperature variations. In addition to the main white-light dimmable output, the flashlights also will be capable of emitting red, green, blue and infrared light.
"We are very pleased to be able to apply our leading-edge technology to provide the warfighter with superior mission tool products," said Don Foley, SAIC chief engineering and technology officer.
SAIC is a pioneer in nonimaging optics, and develops optical solutions for the collection, concentration and projection of light. SAIC's designs are optimized using the nonimaging concentrator synthesis software with the dynamic-synthesis global optimization method. These designs achieve extremely high light output, concentration and desired beam quality up to the thermodynamic limit. SAIC's principal investigator on the project is Neri Shatz. In this project, SAIC's collaboration with SureFire is rapidly bringing the technology capability of SAIC's design expertise to prototype product development.
SAIC is the largest employee-owned research and engineering company in the United States, providing information technology, systems integration and eSolutions to commercial and government customers. SAIC engineers and scientists work to solve complex technical problems in national and homeland security, energy, the environment, space, telecommunications, health care, and logistics. With annual revenues of nearly $7 billion, SAIC and its subsidiaries, including Telcordia Technologies, have more than 45,000 employees at offices in more than 150 cities worldwide. For more information, see www.saic.com.
