ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (Jan. 12, 2015) -- Army researchers are looking at novel ways to test the latest technologies, including a systems-approach to sensor installation and compatibility.
Advanced sensor technology is making its way into the hands of Soldiers through the Distance Detection Devices, or D3 program. Army scientists and engineers from the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center, part of the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, work with Soldiers and other end-users and provide the most effective handheld biological detectors needed for a given mission.
"Handheld biological detection is critical for warfighters today and in the future," said Janet Betters, ECBC's D3 lead. "These users are out in the field, and away from the laboratories. They need to be able to tell if they are in danger or not, and quickly."
The D3 program is part of the broader Joint U.S. Forces Korea Portal and Integrated Threat Reduction Advanced Technology Demonstration program, known as JUPITR ATD. The multi-year program provides the Republic of Korea and others in the Asia-Pacific region with improved biosurveillance capabilities.
Army researchers traveled to Korea with a suite of equipment, including nine commercial detector systems. Some of the systems are cell phone-adaptable detectors that Soldiers will be able to hold and operate. Testers provide real-time feedback during the scenarios.
End-users such as the U.S. Navy disaster preparedness operations and training specialists, U.S. Air Force bioenvironmental engineers and U.S. Army chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense specialists evaluate the systems in concert with other chem-bio research projects.
Feedback regarding overall effectiveness and ease of use will help ECBC scientists determine the limitations of each device and recommend the necessary changes that will help keep warfighters safe. The team will also evaluate security considerations for these systems. For example, smart phone technology requires a secure network to ensure the safe transfer of information.
"Biosurveillance is about recognizing situations early on so the commander can use accurate data to make informed decisions about force protection," said Dr. Peter Emanuel, ECBC BioSciences Division chief and JUPITR ATD lead. "When the ATD is over, we'll leave behind a capability that leaves the USFK better prepared to deal with a chemical or biological attack. We recognize that an outbreak of a disease is an important threat to national security."
JUPITR, a program led by the Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical and Biological Defense, or JPEO-CBD, and supported by ECBC, provides unique biological detection capabilities to address the demand for stronger biosurveillance capabilities on the Korean Peninsula.
JUPITR combines advanced communications with cutting-edge sensor capabilities that results in rapid and efficient biosurveillance. The program uses an information portal similar to a health surveillance web management tool. The portal houses a library of identified biological substances in a cloud library that authorized personnel can access.
ECBC researchers travel to Korea to work alongside USFK representatives to improve laboratory capabilities.
The program tests a number of biological detectors, and sends the best one to Korea. Finally the Integrated Base Defense is a large multifunctional, all-seeing sensor that can rapidly design a defensive perimeter.
JUPITR forms a dynamic, multifaceted program to advance biological detection capabilities of the Korean Peninsula.
The D3 component is part of a multi-year effort designed to introduce warfighters to new chemical and biological detection technologies that are relatively inexpensive, produce rapid results and are easy to operate. It also integrates equipment to form a complete system of systems that can automate and correlate data for improved detection insights.
Taking a systems-approach to problem solving not only allows researchers to improve the functionality of detectors through integrated means, but also cuts down on individual costs during the design. For example, ECBC scientists have saved production time for the TAC-BIO II, a next generation tactical biological detector that now costs 80-percent less, weighs three times less than its predecessor and uses an energy efficient power source.
"The entire creation of this detector is a paradigm shift for the Army," said David Sickenberger, a former supervisory chemist at ECBC. Since the original TAC-BIO was introduced in 2010, the technology has been named on the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Top 10 List. Four years later, it was redesigned to meet new performance goals that could improve aerosolized bio-threat detection in austere conditions using advanced algorithms to reduce false alarms.
TAC-BIO II exploits a scientific principle that biological aerosols will fluoresce and scatter light when exposed to ultraviole light. These signals can be used to detect the existence of a threat by using a light-emitting diode developed under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency that replaces the larger and more costly UV lasers previously used.
"With the cost per detector cheaper in bulk, it helps the Army and others be able to perform a rapid detection where they can set out multiple detectors in a space," said Aime Goad, acting branch chief of ECBC's Sensors, Signatures and Aerosol Technologies Branch. "More detectors means less false positives with biological detection, ensuring that users can make accurate and fast decisions based on the detector results."
ECBC transitioned the TAC-BIO II to private industry through a patent licensing agreement and a cooperative research and development agreement for large-scale distribution and fielding. TACBIO has already won ECBC the 2012 Federal Laboratory Consortium Award for Outstanding Technology Transfer. To date, the TAC-BIO and TAC-BIO II have earned two patents.
ECBC said they continue to design products that are to simpler, more durable in all weather conditions and more capable within a suite of detector systems.
"Researchers and engineers at the Center continue to pursue novel applications that improve detection accuracy and keep the warfighter safe," Betters said.
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This article appears in the January/February 2015 issue of Army Technology Magazine, which focuses on sensors research. The magazine is available as an electronic download, or print publication. The magazine is an authorized, unofficial publication published under Army Regulation 360-1, for all members of the Department of Defense and the general public.
The Edgewood Chemical Biological is part of the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, which has the mission to develop technology and engineering solutions for America's Soldiers.
RDECOM is a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Materiel Command. AMC is the Army's premier provider of materiel readiness--technology, acquisition support, materiel development, logistics power projection and sustainment--to the total force, across the spectrum of joint military operations. If a Soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it, eats it or communicates with it, AMC provides it.
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