BENEFITS OF SPACE EXLORATION: TECH TRANSFER

TECH TRANSFER: From the office of NASA’s Chief Technologist: “The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 that created NASA called for the new agency to disseminate its technology for public benefit. Accordingly, NASA is obliged to provide for the widest practicable dissemination of information concerning results of NASA’s activities. Subsequent legislation further formalized NASA’s obligation to find secondary uses for its technologies.”

NASA’s Technology Transfer Mission: Since NASA’s inception in 1958, it has transferred the knowledge and technology it developed to commercial and other organizations! 

Technology Transfer Office: NASA has for decades maintained a Technology Transfer Office to promote and manage the “transfer of NASA technology to promote the commercialization and public availability of Federally-owned inventions to benefit the national economy and the U.S. public.” Unlike spin-offs, where the new application was not envisioned at the time the technology was developed, tech transfer was usually planned for as part of the development process. In some cases, NASA partnered with outside entities to develop technology that would have both NASA and non-NASA uses from the get-go.

U.S. Space Foundation Technology Hall of Fame: Long-time recipients may remember that I have showcased the USSF Tech Hall of Fame items in the past in Air and Space this Week. The USSF recently altered their website to make how I’ve been showing HoF entries less convenient, but I still want to show important and sometimes-unexpected examples of technology developed initially for NASA’s that wound up with valuable unrelated commercial uses when the technology is transferred to the private sector. 

Sometimes new technology has applications unforeseen by its developers. Sometimes the applications were known ahead of time and guided the development process. This is a great example of the former. The first of the two 2015 USSF HoF inductees is “Seismic Damper Technology.”

The process of jettisoning hoses and other mechanical gear from launch vehicles must be done safely, but those events are rather violent and can produce motions that compromise safety. NASA has been building motion dampening systems since the 1960s, first with hydraulic dampers, then with computer-driven oil-based hydraulics, and finally with a system using a compressible fluid capable of operating at transonic and supersonic speeds. Such a system is presently in use on the ISS.

NASA worked with the Taylor Devices company to take the dampers designed for NASA use and modify them “to protect buildings and bridges from the destructive vibrations induced by earthquakes. These seismic dampers proved far more effective than the best stress-relieving technologies used at the time. Today, the technology is successfully defending hundreds of buildings and bridges around the world against the effects of high winds and earthquakes.

“The Millennium Bridge in London, is one of many applications for a structure that utilized Taylor’s seismic dampers. In addition, the Buddhist HQ in Taiwan and the Seattle Elevated High Rail both used the Lock-up devices to allow unrestricted motion when the bridge structure slowly expands and moves, allowing the structure to withstand harsh input energy and reduce harmful deflections, forces and accelerations.

“Both 432 Park Avenue in New York City as well as Cumberland River pedestrian bridge in Nashville, Tennessee applied Tuned mass dampers to reduce acceleration when subjected to high winds as well as reducing human and pedestrian induced vibrations within bridges, stadiums and theatres.

“Other notable installations in the U.S. include the Los Angeles City Hall, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, four elementary schools for the Ceres Unified School District in Ceres, Calif., and at North American Air Defense Command at Cheyenne Mountain AFS.”

Taylor Seismic Dampers are also widely-used in a number of countries for protecting buildings and other structures from earthquakes and other “environmental situations.”

Thank you, NASA!

NASA Info Helps All! NASA has awarded $15.6 M in grants for 15 projects that support the maintenance of open-source tools, frameworks, and libraries that are freely available to everyone as part of the goals of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. For more on this story, see: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasa-funds-open-source-software-underpinning-scientific-innovation.

NASA Supports Tech Innovations: NASA has a long tradition of technological advancement and commercialization. They have announced the creation of two new Space Technology Research Institutes, one for engineering tech, particularly in 3D printing and other manufacturing techniques, and the other for climate research; see: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-awards-advance-3d-printing-quantum-tech-for-climate-research. NASA also distributed $5M in awards for research into advanced aircraft manufacturing and composite materials; see: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-awardees-to-develop-sustainable-aviation-composite-tech and: https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/nasa-awards-50-million-for-aviation-composite-tech-development.

NASA Supports New Technologies: “NASA has selected hundreds of small businesses and dozens of research institutions to develop technology to help drive the future of space exploration, ranging from novel sensors and electronics to new types of software and cutting-edge materials. The newly awarded projects under the agency's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program also.” For more information about how NASA research needs are being met by hundreds of small companies, many of which will spin-off new non-NASA products of value, see: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-supports-small-business-research-to-power-future-exploration!

Small Business Innovation Research: NASA has for years had a program designed to help entrepreneurs develop technology. They recently announced an investment of $105 million for their Small Business Innovation Research program. The awardees will use NASA-developed technologies for other commercial applications. These programs have the potential to be very beneficial to the American taxpayer. So, the next time you hear somebody complain about NASA “wasting” American resources, cite this stuff back at them! For more information on this wonderful program for all of us, see: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-invests-105-million-in-us-small-business-technology-development.

NASA Software Available for Business and Public Use: The public can now download NASA computational innovations originally designed to support its missions. To find out more, and to access NASA’s catalog of available software, see: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-software-benefits-earth-available-for-business-public-use.

TECH TRANSFER LINKS AND OTHER INFO

NASA Office of Chief Technologist, Technology Transfer, and Spinoffs: Website closed down

https://spinoff.nasa.gov/pdf/AIAA%202011%20Quantifying%20Spinoff%20Benefits.pdf

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/new_interactive_website_homeandcity

Introduction: https://technology.nasa.gov/network

T2 Portal: https://technology.nasa.gov

NASA Software Catalog: https://software.nasa.gov

NASA Patent Portfolio: https://technology.nasa.gov/patents

JPL Tech Transfer Office: https://ott.jpl.nasa.gov

NASA Scientific and Technical Information Program: https://sti.nasa.gov