SBIR/STTR Award attributes
To address the Army’s need for electronic textile impedance modeling software and soldier worn networks, Intellisense Systems, Inc. (Intellisense) proposes to develop a new Toolset for Impedance Modeling of etextile Structures (TIMES) based on a new design that utilizes new software algorithms and commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components. Specifically, the innovation in impedance modeling algorithms will enable TIMES to generate an accurate representation of transmission line impedance based on fundamental math models of generic woven structures serving as ground truth, adjusted for vendor-specific material properties. As a result, this process promises to improve performance in areas such as development, demonstration, validation, and evaluation of a variety of functional textile-based data networks to provide soldiers with enhanced capabilities that increase their ability to quickly understand and react to emerging battlefield situations. Proposed etextile technologies can be rapidly modeled and simulated to verify their appropriateness for high-speed, low-loss data transmission protocols such as USB, Gigabit Ethernet, Serial, SMBus, and I2C without requiring iterative physical experimentation, which directly addresses the Army requirements. In Phase I, Intellisense will determine the technical feasibility to develop new design tools and guidelines for a signal line impedance model to be based on a combination of first principles and empirical data. Proof-of-concept bench-scale data networks will be designed, fabricated and evaluated and at the end of the Phase I effort, Intellisense will deliver a tangible proof-of-concept network demonstration article, conceptual impedance model and design tools, and survey of shielding options to demonstrate the feasibility of TIMES by modeling an existing etextile structure and verifying TIMES-generated simulation results against actual measured results from high-speed data passed through the physical test article. In Phase II, Intellisense plans to make improvements to the conceptual model and design tools using data collected and lessons learned from Phase I testing. Intellisense will then use these tools to develop methods for improving the impedance characteristics of etextile networks. The improved networks will be tested to verify their ability to support high-speed data transmission while maintaining efficiency, size, weight, and power consumption metrics equal to or better than the incumbent wired cabled networks. At the end of Phase II, the finalized and validated impedance model, design tools, and related software will be delivered, along with prototype etextile network systems that have been evaluated for MIL-STD-810 and MIL-STD-461 compliance through a combination of benchtop and electromagnetic interference (EMI) chamber testing prior to delivery to the Government.
