DARPA SPO Office Wide BAA

The summary for the DARPA SPO Office Wide BAA grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

DARPA SPO Office Wide BAA: This BAA is open and effective until November 15, 2006; POC: Dr. Brian Pierce, DARPA/SPO Deputy Director, is the overall technical POC for this BAA, e-mail: [email protected]. Contact information for the SPO Program Managers (PMs) under each technical area is specified in the PIP. Proposers are strongly encouraged to contact the relevant PMs directly before submitting a response to this BAA. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES AND DESCRIPTION: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency/Special Projects Office (DARPA/SPO) researches, develops, demonstrates and transitions technologies focused on addressing present and emerging national challenges. SPO investments range from the development of enabling technologies to the demonstration of large prototype systems. Innovative concepts are sought for research efforts to enable U.S. dominance over the proliferating threat posed by our adversarys use of underground structures. Emphasis is on the development and demonstration of technologies to find unknown facilities on both strategic and tactical timescales; to identify facility function, to monitor pace of activity, to determine structural layout or locations of specific vulnerabilities; and to enhance post-attack bomb damage assessment (BDA). Prospective innovations include: exploitation of novel observables or substantially improved methods of detecting/analyzing observables, including active source methods; improved deployable ground and airborne sensors; improved communications across rugged terrain among assets, and for exfiltration uplinks; new methods for sensor and system modeling; exploitation algorithms and signal processing; and new methods for characterizing activities associated with tunnels and caves. These include small and unimproved sites, including those in urban areas. Both close-in and standoff sensor concepts are of interest. Innovative concepts for space systems, sensors, structures, components and materials are sought to support next-generation tactical space operations including rapid access, space situational awareness, space control, robust anti-jam SATCOM, and persistent tactical grade sensing approaches including extremely large space apertures and structures. Of particular interest are large distributed array remote sensing systems, both space based and ground based, for space object location and identification and concepts that support affordable access and thus proliferation of high-performance space control sensors and systems; novel access and propulsion concepts; innovative sensor systems concepts in support of the spectrum of space control applications including extremely large, yet lightweight and stowable aperture technologies; lightweight and low-mass active/passive membranes; large space structures that have extremely small payload volumes (e.g., rigidized inflatables, isogrid composites, etc.); active damping and smart materials for precision control of space structures; self assembly and/or manufacture; novel space-based sensor modalities and systems; high performance micro- and picosat systems; and next generation power generation systems including electrodynamic and momentum tethers, and advanced solar systems. Innovative sensor system and technology concepts are sought across all phases of conflict. Specific technologies of interest include: highly adaptive remote sensing systems that employ externally and internally cued localized onboard processing (i.e. foveated vision) to optimize bandwidth utilization for high frame rate and time critical persistent surveillance applications; very large, low cost, lightweight, and low power density, active phased arrays applicable to space-, airship-, and ground-based radar systems; highly integrated platform-sensor systems with ultra long endurance and minimal logistics tails; stratospheric airship platforms and support systems for large phased array radars and communication systems; efficient and lightweight solar cell and power storage technologies; station-keeping concepts and technologies; lightweight materials and construction methods including inflatable structures; ultra-wideband (greater than 10:1) phased arrays and shared aperture architecture concepts; innovative calibration and alignment methods; low-loss packaged RF phase shifters, switches and T/R modules; lightweight beamformer, control, and power distribution concepts; highly integrated, compact sensor systems amenable to low logistics support deployments; close-in deployment schemes including unattended ground and air sensors; through-wall sensing and building interior mapping; self-geolocation and LPI comms; advanced intelligent signal processing methods that maximize sensor performance and robustness in hostile operating environments; real-time exploitation of environmental/situational knowledge bases; novel, knowledge-aided, adaptive waveform methods leveraging the emergence of software programmability especially those amenable to real-time embedded computing architectures; model-based reasoning for deconvolving radar signals; radar operation in high multipath or dispersive environments. Innovative concepts are sought in systems and component technologies to address a variety of chem/bio/rad/nuclear threats, including threats to buildings and urban environments. Technologies of interest include those appropriate to the protection from, detection of, neutralization of, or decontamination of such agents, either during a release (aerosolized agent), after a release (deposited on surfaces) or prior to release (in containers). Systems of particular interest are those that support real-time, dynamic response of buildings; wide-area urban surveillance for pre-symptomatic detection of releases; protection of areas/spaces with high concentrations of people; high-throughput techniques for quantifying residual contamination levels in the wake of a Bio-Warfare Agent (BWA) attack (e.g., on building surfaces, documents, etc.); studies and modeling of protective systems, protective components, or the transport of agents; Advanced lightweight personal protective systems that do not increase the soldier's heat burden; and data collections to support component development, modeling, and system validation. New technologies in support of assured urban operations are sought. Particular areas of interest include networked and highly distributed emplaced urban sensor systems that have the potential to provide highly responsive, adaptive and even predictive awareness for urban ops; extremely rapid barrier deployment and removal (both for personnel and vehicle applications, sealing off buildings); non-lethal weapons; persistent and ubiquitous intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (including building penetration techniques and standoff detection of explosives); asymmetric weapons countermeasures (such as methods to counter Improvised Explosive Devices or IEDs); detection of weapons caches; and methods for infrastructure protection and rapid replenishment; signature reduction technologies for urban combat; reduction of visible, IR, olfactory, and auditory signatures; novel sensor architectures and innovative algorithms for operating in dense urban clutter. New technologies in support of combat casualty care are sought. Particular areas of interest include battlefield portable high resolution imaging tools; automated tools that allow for the delivery of first aid such as IVs by untrained personnel or by the soldier himself; and advanced methods for treating injuries on the battlefield. Innovative concepts are sought for research efforts that lead to significant military capability improvement in the area of guidance and navigation. Of particular interest are technologies that allow precision navigation in GPS denied scenarios including jamming environments, building interiors, underground facilites, etc. Methods are sought that employ both natural and/or manmade signals of opportunity as well as novel next generation extremely compact INS technologies. In all of these areas, SPO efforts encompass the full range of activities required to develop complete prototype systems, from hardware development and characterization to algorithms, exploitation techniques, and full-scale system experimentation. Proposed efforts may address the development of prototype components, or systems; studies and modeling of existing or proposed systems; and data collections that will overcome deficiencies in existing data. The PIP provides additional information and POCs for these areas of interest; Proposers are encouraged to contact these POCs before submitting a response to this BAA. This information is provided to focus interest on innovative concepts that contribute to ongoing SPO investments, but is not meant to preclude white papers on other research efforts that seek to address emerging threats or enhance the US ability to operate in challenging environments. PROGRAM SCOPE: The main purpose of this BAA is to provide exploratory funding to determine the suitability of an idea for further substantial investment. Principal funding of this BAA and the anticipated award of contracts will start in FY 05 and may occur at any time through the closing date as funds are available. Individual awards are expected to be shorter than 12 months and less than $1M. Awards of efforts as a result of this BAA will be in the form of contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or other transactions depending upon the nature of the work proposed. GENERAL INFORMATION: In response to this BAA SPO is accepting proposal abstracts followed potentially by full proposals. The purpose of the abstract is to preclude unwarranted effort on the part of an Proposer whose proposed work is not of interest under this BAA. To further reduce burden, it is suggested that the Proposer directly contact the cognizant Program Manager (PM) by email (preferably) or telephone prior to submission of an abstract to ensure Proposers ideas are aligned with DARPA/SPO needs. The PIP contains a further detailed delineation of topic areas of interest as well as a list of cognizant PMs. For those submitting abstracts, a PM most closely related to the submitted topic will review within approximately 30 days. A written response will then be sent to the Proposer. Those Proposers whose abstract are found to be of interest and consistent with the intent of this BAA will be encouraged to submit a technical and cost proposal. Such encouragement does not assure that the submitting organization will receive a subsequent award. Abstracts and proposals determined to not be of interest under this BAA will not be considered if resubmitted unless significant changes in the approach or new technical information becomes available. Proposals submitted will be evaluated as they are received. Individual proposal evaluations will be based on acceptability or non-acceptability without regard to other proposals submitted under the announcement. Evaluation of proposals will be performed using the following criteria: a) Overall Scientific and Technical Merit; b) Potential Contribution and Relevance to DARPA/SPO Mission; c) Plans and Capability to Accomplish Technology Transition; d) Proposers Capabilities and Related Experience; e) Cost Realism. Awards will be made to those proposers whose proposals are considered most advantageous to the government. All awards will be subject to availability of government funds. The government reserves the right to select for award any, all, part or none of the proposals received in response to this announcement and to make award without discussions. No portion of the BAA will be set aside for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) or minority institutions (MI) participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete severable areas of research for exclusive competition among the entries. DARPA/SPO will accept classified responses to this BAA when the classification is mandated by classification guidance provided by an Original Classification Authority of the U.S. Government, or when the proposer believes the work, if successful, would merit classification. Security classification guidance in the form of a DD Form 254 (DoD Contract Security Classification Specification) will not be provided at this time since DARPA is soliciting ideas only. If a determination is made that contract award may result in access to classified information, a DD Form 254 will be issued upon contract award. The point of contact for classified responses is the Director of SPO Security at 703-812-1984. Proposers who are unsure about the appropriate classification of their proposal should contact this POC before submitting a response. Information generated after award may be controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), 22 CFR 120-130, therefore contractors may be required to protect information pursuant to the ITAR and are encouraged to consider this when proposing. SUBMISSION INFORMATION: DARPA will employ an electronic upload process for abstract/proposal submissions for BAA 06-02. Abstracts will be submitted via http://www.tfims.darpa.mil/baa. Performers may find guidance for abstract/proposal submission at: http://www.darpa.mil/spo/solicitations.htm.This announcement and the PIP may be retrieved via the WWW at URL http://www.darpa.mil/ in the solicitations area. The cost of preparing proposals in response to this announcement is not considered an allowable direct charge to any resulting contract or any other contract. Proposers are warned that only Contracting Officers are legally authorized to commit the Government.