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September 20, 2018 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR

DARPA contract aims to design circuits in months, not years

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The Defense Advanced Research Agency announced an $8 million contract modification for the University of Southern California's Information Sciences Institute to work on a program that develops circuits that be quickly adapted rather than wholesale reinvented.

The work is part of DARPA's Circuit Realization at Faster Timescales (CRAFT) research program. The modification brings the total value of the contract to $28 million, according to a Sept. 17 announcement from the Pentagon.

The program is designed to dramatically shorten the design cycle and the expense numbers for custom integrated circuits, which are essential in a wide variety of military equipment such as drones and tactically useful 3D imagery production. Currently, it can cost up to $100 million and take more than two years to design these circuits, according to a DARPA release. The CRAFT program aims to cut that timeline down to a matter of months.

“Reducing the time and cost for designing and procuring custom, high-efficiency integrated circuits, should drive more of those in the DoD technology community toward best commercial fabrication and design practices,” CRAFT program manager, Dr. Linton Salmon in a program information release. “A primary payoff would be a versatile development environment in which engineers and designers make decisions based on the best technical solutions for the systems they are building, instead of worrying about circuit design delays or costs.”

Work will be performed by USC in Marina Del Ray, California, with an expected completion date of December 2019. DARPA has been working on the program since 2015.

https://www.c4isrnet.com/industry/2018/09/19/darpa-contract-aims-to-design-circuits-in-months-not-years

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  • GA-ASI and SENER Aeroespacial Team to Develop New NATO Pod for MQ-9

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    GA-ASI and SENER Aeroespacial Team to Develop New NATO Pod for MQ-9

    SAN DIEGO, Sept. 1, 2020 /CNW/ -- Since General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and the engineering and technology firm SENER began collaborating in 2008, the international partnership has resulted in significant agreements regarding the MQ-9A Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) for Spain and its adaptation to the requirements of the Spanish Armed Forces. The latest joint development effort is a NATO Pod, designed and built by SENER Aeroespacial, part of the SENER Group. GA-ASI will integrate the NATO Pod onto the MQ-9 aircraft line to increase its configuration and payload options. NATO Pod development is driven by GA-ASI's initiative to provide customers with a customizable pod for carriage of sovereign, cross-domain Intelligence, and Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) sensors that can be integrated onto GA-ASI-built MQ-9A and MQ-9B RPA Systems. GA-ASI is working with European suppliers to add sensor capabilities to the new European-built payload pod that meets NATO airworthiness standards. The NATO Pod is a flexible, scalable, certifiable, aerodynamic, and low-cost enclosure that enables customers to add sovereign sensor capabilities developed in their respective countries using a common set of interfaces to the aircraft system. This approach reduces integration time and cost. "With the NATO Pod, European sensor suppliers will be provided a standard Size, Weight and Power (SWAP) and Interface Control Document (ICD) to the aircraft system to efficiently integrate their payloads. This offers our customers a broader range of ISR capabilities and makes ISR-system upgrades faster," said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. "Interface standardization also allows sovereign containment of payload hardware and data by customers, when required." Andrés Sendagorta, president of the SENER Group, said: "Since the beginning in 2008, the relationship between GA-ASI and SENER has been based on the existence of a common corporate philosophy where the technological component represents a fundamental link. This has led to an alliance in which the development of value-added products and technology by SENER has been applied to meet the demanding needs of GA-ASI over the years and, particularly, now with the NATO Pod that will be integrated onto the MQ-9 line. As we have stated on previous occasions, and once the first system of this type has come into operation in Spain, SENER reiterates its commitment to make available to the Spanish Ministry of Defense its capabilities and strengths in support of national industry through alliances, industrial cooperation and the development of an increasingly wide range of products." Having successfully completed the system definition and specification phase, the conceptual and preliminary design phases, as well as the Critical Design Review at the beginning of the summer, SENER Aeroespacial is currently working for GA-ASI on the detailed design phase of the NATO Pod. SENER Aeroespacial is designing the NATO Pod from the ground up to be certifiable, having established a wide set of certification base requirements that will fulfill the vast majority of demands from European certification agencies. About GA-ASI General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), an affiliate of General Atomics, is a leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) systems, radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems, including the Predator® RPA series and the Lynx® Multi-mode Radar. With more than six million flight hours, GA-ASI provides long-endurance, mission-capable aircraft with integrated sensor and data link systems required to deliver persistent flight that enables situational awareness and rapid strike. The company also produces a variety of ground control stations and sensor control/image analysis software, offers pilot training and support services, and develops meta-material antennas. For more information, visit www.ga-asi.com. SkyGuardian, SeaGuardian, Predator and Lynx are registered trademarks of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. About SENER Aeroespacial SENER Aeroespacial has been a leading supplier of high-performance aerospace systems for Defense, Space and Science for more than 50 years, with high added-value technological developments. In Defence, it develops electromechanical systems, COMINT (communications intelligence), and communications links (D-Link), as well as helicopter modernization services. In Astronomy and Science, it produces precision mechanical equipment for terrestrial telescopes and engineering services. And, finally, its ATC & Broadcast division is a supplier of antennas and passive units. In Space, SENER Aeroespacial is participating in the main programs of ESA and in the Space commercial market, as a key supplier for the leading international manufacturers of communications satellites. SENER Aeroespacial is part of the SENER engineering and technology group, founded in 1956. The SENER Group has 2,300 professionals in offices in four continents and the group's operating revenue exceeded 589 million Euros (2018 data). CONTACT: GA-ASI Media Relations General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. +1 (858) 524-8101 ASI-MediaRelations@ga-asi.com Related Images ga-asis-mq-9a-remotely-piloted.jpg GA-ASI's MQ-9A Remotely Piloted Aircraft GA-ASI and SENER's international partnership has resulted in significant agreements regarding the MQ-9A Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) for Spain and its adaptation to the requirements of the Spanish Armed Forces. The latest joint development effort is a NATO Pod. SOURCE General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. Related Links http://www.ga-asi.com https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/ga-asi-and-sener-aeroespacial-team-to-develop-new-nato-pod-for-mq-9-866418525.html

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