During the week of 1-5 April 2019, DoD's Weapons, Sensors, and Autonomy Communities of Interest (COIs) have joined together to sponsor the crosscutting 2019 Weapons - Sensors - Autonomy Communities of Interest (CoIs) Independent Research & Development (IR&D) Technology Interchange Meetings (TIMs) being held in parallel with the National Defense Industrial Association's (NDIA) 20th annual Science & Engineering Technology (S&ET) Symposium in San Diego, CA. The venue is expected to be the San Diego Marriott Mission Valley, San Diego, CA. The invitation is open to all industry IR&D participants, including large and small businesses, as well as academia. This IR&D engagement has broad goals to increase awareness, stimulate collaboration, and seek alignment between industry's IR&D innovative portfolios and DoD's high-priority science and technology needs. Leading Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from DoD's Weapons-Sensors-Autonomy CoIs are expected to participate. The 2019 Weapons-Sensors-Autonomy CoIs IR&D TIMs will focus on the following crosscutting focus areas: Processing . This is a new Sensors subarea, with strong Weapons and Autonomy components. Radio Frequency (RF) and Electro Optics (EO)/Infra-Red (IR) target ID, cross cueing and sensor fusion, Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms for real time target detection, classification, tracking. Target detection for bi-Static and multi-Static radar, Autonomy focus that automates the battlefield, with advanced algorithms, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, and asymmetric vision. Operations in controlled, degraded, and operationally limited environment . Weapons and Sensors interest. Natural and manmade obscurants continue to trouble even modern sensors. Need for Active/Passive multipurpose sensing & Advanced 3-D Read-Out Integrated Circuit (ROICs) for multifunction capabilities. Seamless synthetic reality on immersive heads up displays is also of significant interest. Open architecture with ensured cyber resiliency . Autonomy focus with Weapons and Sensors application. Formally composable software systems which provide rigorous principled guarantees for autonomous systems using the architecture (i.e., interoperability, safety, functionality, flexibility, etc.). Seamless interfaces, data exchanges between/among heterogeneous resources/assets and needs for human-machine interface (minimizing risks in semi-autonomous systems) call for standards in system architecture including languages, governance, and operational protocols. Innovative approaches are needed to identify critical elements of the analytics enterprise and employ a hierarchical hardening methodology. Networked Precision & Accuracy . Weapons , with Sensors and Autonomy applications. Seekers, datalinks, control methods that are robust in adverse weather, can exploit multiple tactical and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) networks, ad-hoc secure adaptive networks, decentralized path planning and cooperative control algorithms. Autonomy governed by data fusion can form the central theme for an enterprise system of systems-level architecture. Some of the key considerations from an analytics standpoint are accuracy/precision, risks, latency, and above all, adequacy and sufficiency for acceptance. Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V)/Trust for Autonomous Systems and Artificial Intelligence Weapons. Autonomy/Weapons interest. Methods, Metrics, and Tools. Requirements Development and Analysis, Evidence Based Design and Implementation, Cumulative Evidence through Research, Development, & Operational Testing, Run Time Behavior Prediction and Recovery Assurance for Autonomous Systems are highly significant interest areas. Please note, after this FedBizOpps announcement, all subsequent updates will be posted only to the Defense Innovation Marketplace Weapons IR&D TIM webpage, https://defenseinnovationmarketplace.dtic.mil/technology-interchange-meetings/2019-weapons-sensors-autonomy/, along with instructions on expressing interest and key documents important to this dialogue with industry. The following schedule is for planning purposes and is subject to change: • 15 October 2018: IR&D project nomination window opens • 04 December 2018: IR&D project nomination window closes • 04 February 2019: Invitations to present sent to selected companies • 04 March 2019: Selected companies provide read-ahead briefs • 1-5 April 2019: Weapons - Sensors - Autonomy IR&D TIM conducted Disclaimers The government is not obligated to enter into a contract with any entity as results of IR&D collaborations from our dialogue. Data exchanges, as a result of these dialogue activities, follow the International Traffic Arms Regulations (ITAR), including export controls and restrictions in accordance with Department of Defense Instruction 5230.24, Department of Defense Directive 5230.25, the Arms Export Control Act (Title 22, U.S.C., Sec 2751, et seq.), and/or the Export Administration Act of 1979 (Title 50, U.S.C., App. 2401 et seq.), as ammended. Some information we intend to share may be classified or unclassified and can only be released as Distribution C, D, or F material (see http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/submit/distribution_limitations_and_statements.html). Dates and locations listed for this event are subject to change. Refer other requests for additional documents and data to
[email protected].