The mission of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) is to provide timely, relevant, and accurate geospatial intelligence in support of national security. Therefore, NGA pursues research that will help guarantee the information edge over potential adversaries. Information on NGA’s SBIR Program can be found on the NGA SBIR website at http://www.nga.mil/sbir. Additional information pertaining to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s mission can be obtained by viewing the website at http://www.nga.mil/.
Inquiries of a general nature or questions concerning the administration of the SBIR program should be addressed to:
National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
Attn: SBIR Program Manager, IB, MS: P-126
12310 Sunrise Valley Dr. Reston, VA 20191
Email: SBIR@nga.mil
For technical questions about the topic, directly contact the Topic Authors listed under each topic before 20 August 2007, after that questions may be posted through SITIS at http://www.dodsbir.net/sitis/. For general inquiries or problems with the electronic submission, contact the DoD Help Desk at 1-866-724-7457 (8AM to 5PM EST).
PHASE I PROPOSAL INFORMATION
Read the DoD Program Solicitation at www.dodsbir.net/solicitation for detailed instructions on proposal format and program requirements.
NGA has developed topics to which small businesses may respond in the fiscal year 2007 SBIR Phase I iteration. These topics are described on the following pages. NGA will accept only unclassified proposals on its topics.
The maximum amount of SBIR funding for a Phase I award is $100,000 and the maximum period of performance for a Phase I award is 9 months. While NGA participates in the majority of SBIR program options, NGA does not participate in the either the Fast Track or Phase II Enhancement programs.
Selection of Phase I proposals will be in accordance with the evaluation procedures and criteria discussed in this solicitation (refer to section 4.2 of the program solicitation). NGA will apply the criteria in descending order of importance with the first criterion on soundness, technical merit, and incremental progress toward topic or subtopic solution being the most important. Due to limited funding, NGA reserves the right to limit awards under a topic, and only those proposals of superior scientific and technical quality will be funded.
Other Department of Defense (DoD) organizations share many of the goals detailed in these topics. Therefore, representatives of other DoD organizations, including Air Force program officers, might participate in the review, selection, and support of some projects submitted in response to this solicitation.
In some circumstances, non-government, technical personnel from the Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), The Aerospace Corporation, will provide advisory and assistance services on some NGA topics.
Individuals from this organization will be authorized access to only those portions of the proposal data and discussions that are necessary to enable them to perform their respective duties. This organization is expressly prohibited from scoring or ranking of proposals or recommending the selection of a source. In accomplishing their duties related to the source selection process, the aforementioned organization may require access to proprietary information contained in the offerors' proposals.
Pursuant to FAR 9.505-4, the contract with The Aerospace Corporation includes a clause which requires them to (1) protect the offerors’ information from unauthorized use or disclosure for as long as it remains proprietary and (2) refrain from using the information for any purpose other than that for which it was furnished. In addition, NGA requires the employees of the FFRDC that are providing advisory and assistance services on the SBIR program to execute non-disclosure agreements which will remain on file with the NGA SBIR Program Office.
NGA typically provides a firm fixed price level of effort contract for Phase I awards. The type of contract is at the discretion of the contracting officer.
REQUIREMENT: ALL PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS TO THE NGA SBIR PROGRAM MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY
It is mandatory for both Phase I and Phase II of the NGA SBIR Program that the entire technical proposal, DoD Proposal Cover Sheet, Cost Proposal, and the Company Commercialization Report are submitted electronically through the DoD SBIR website at http://www.dodsbir.net/submission. If you have any questions or problems with the electronic submission contact the DoD SBIR Helpdesk at 1-866-724-7457 (8AM to 5PM EST).
Complete electronic submission includes the submission of the Cover Sheets, Cost Proposal, Company Commercialization Report, the Entire technical proposal and any appendices via the DoD Submission site. The DoD proposal submission site http://www.dodsbir.net/submission will lead you through the process for submitting your technical proposal and all of the sections electronically. Each of these documents are submitted separately through the website. You are responsible for performing a virus check on each proposal to be uploaded electronically. The detection of a virus on any submission may be cause for the rejection of the proposal. Your proposal must be submitted via the submission site on or before the 6:00 a.m. EST, 19 September 2007 deadline.
If a vendor occupies space in a NGA activity or has a support contract to provide services outside of an SBIR Phase I, II or III contract award with NGA, they must indicate this on the front of the Proposal Cover Sheet. NGA is concerned with potential conflicts of interest. If a vendor replies yes to either of these questions, and it is determined that their participation in the NGA SBIR program would create a conflict of interest, then the vendor will not be allowed to participate in NGA’s SBIR program.
Phase I contracts will include a requirement to produce one-page monthly status reports and a more detailed interim report not later than 7 1/2 months after award. These reports shall include the following sections:
The interim report shall be no more than 750 words long. The report shall be prepared single spaced in 12 pitch or 11 point Times New Roman font, with at least a one inch margin on top, bottom, and sides, on 8 ½” by 11” paper. The pages shall be numbered.
PHASE II GUIDELINES
Phase II proposals are invited by NGA based upon Phase I progress to date as demonstrated in the interim report, continued relevance of the project to NGA, and funding availability. The invitation will be issued in writing by NGA.
NGA typically provides a cost plus fixed fee contract as a Phase II award. The type of contract is at the discretion of the Contracting Officer.
Phase II proposals shall be limited to $500,000 over a two year period, with a $250,000 base proposal (first year) and a $250,000 option period (second year). Phase II base and Phase II option costs shall be shown separately in the proposal. A work breakdown structure that shows the number of hours and labor category broken out by task and subtask, as well as the start and end dates for each task and subtask, shall be included. The option shall be included with the base proposal at the time of submission.
Selection of Phase II proposals will be in accordance with the evaluation procedures and criteria discussed in this solicitation (refer to section 4.3 of the program solicitation). Those SBIR participants that are selected to submit Phase II proposals will receive a detailed package of NGA submission requirements, which will include the relevant importance of the evaluation criteria and also may include additional evaluation criteria.
Phase II contracts shall include a requirement to produce one-page monthly status reports and an interim report not later than 10 months after contract award. These reports shall include the following sections:
The report shall be no more than 750 words long. The report shall be prepared single spaced in 12 point Times New Roman font, with at least a one inch margin on top, bottom, and sides, on 8 ½” by 11” paper. The pages shall be numbered. The report shall be evaluated in accordance with this solicitation (refer to section 4.3 of this solicitation).
CONTRACT SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
This solicitation will be/is unclassified and does not contain security requirements or a Contract Security Classification Specification, DD Form 254.
In accordance with restrictions required by Executive Order 12470, the Arms Export Control Act (Title 22, USC) (Sec 275), the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), or DoD directive 5230.25, Withholding of Unclassified Technical Data from Public Disclosure, no foreign nationals will be permitted to work on a contract without express permission of the Contracting Officer.
Should the government determine that the technology has developed to a point where the information warrants protection under Executive Order 12958, Classified National Security Information, a DD Form 254 and an approved classification guide will be issued to the contractor and appropriate steps will be taken under the contract to protect the material.
NGA PROPOSAL CHECKLIST
This is a Checklist of Requirements for your proposal. Please review the checklist carefully to ensure that your proposal meets NGA SBIR requirements. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your proposal not being considered for review or award. Do not include this checklist with your proposal.
_______ 1. The Proposal Cover Sheet along with the full Technical Proposal, Cost Proposal, and Company Commercialization Report were submitted using the SBIR proposal submission system, which can be accessed directly at http://www.dodsbir.net/submission. The Proposal Cover Sheet clearly shows the proposal number assigned by the system to your proposal. Indicate if you are a NGA support contractor.
_______ 2. The proposal addresses a Phase I effort (up to $100,000 with up to a nine-month duration) .
_______ 3. The proposal is limited to only ONE NGA solicitation topic.
_______ 4. The Project Content and other content provided on the Proposal Cover Sheet contains no proprietary information and is limited to the space provided.
_______ 5. The Technical Content of the proposal includes the items identified in Section 3.5 of the program solicitation.
_______ 6. The Company Commercialization Report is submitted online in accordance with Section 3.5.d. This report is required even if the company has not received any SBIR funding (This report does not count towards the 25-page limit).
_______ 7. The proposal is 25 pages or less in length (excluding the Company Commercialization Report). Pages in excess of this length will not be considered for review or award.
_______ 8. The proposal contains no type smaller than 12 pitch or 11 point font size (except as legend on reduced drawings, but not tables).
_______ 9. The Cost Proposal has been completed for the Phase I costs. The Cost Proposal has been filled in electronically or included as the last page of the uploaded technical proposal. The total cost should match the amount on the cover pages.
_______ 10. The proposal must be electronically submitted through the online submission site (http://www.dodsbir.net/submission) by 6a.m. September 19, 2007.
NGA SBIR 07.3 Topic Index
NGA07-001 High-Sensitivity Military GPS Receivers
NGA07-002 Alternative PNT Augmentations for Handhelds
NGA SBIR 07.3 Topic Descriptions
NGA07-001 TITLE: High-Sensitivity Military GPS Receivers
TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Information Systems, Electronics
OBJECTIVE: Design, develop algorithms, simulate, implement, and test GPS receiver software algorithm(s) that provide significant “high-sensitivity” signal tracking performance over conventional military GPS receivers.
DESCRIPTION: Many military users need to operate in areas where GPS signal reception is impeded by building walls, dense foliage and urban canyon. Current military GPS receivers do not operate robustly in these environments. Some vendors in the commercial sector, however, have been fielding so-called “High-Sensitivity Receivers” that can track GPS signals 30 dB below conventional civilian/military GPS receivers. In field tests, it has been demonstrated that these receivers can operate in environments (inside buildings, car trunks, etc…) where most of GPS satellites in view are blocked or severely attenuated. These and other techniques need to be explored and validated utilizing secure military GPS signals.
PHASE I: Investigate and develop algorithms required to implement a high-sensitivity military GPS receiver. Algorithm design criteria should include tolerance to jamming, achievable P(Y) and M-code accuracy in a low signal-to-noise ratio / jamming environments and an assessment of its utility for various types of military users. Provide modeling and simulation as required to validate your algorithm(s). Prepare and deliver a technical report that describes Phase I efforts including your algorithm modeling and simulation results and your assessment of potential military users.
PHASE II: Design, build, and deliver a prototype receiver and demonstrate the receiver’s high sensitivity capabilities. Prepare and deliver a technical report detailing the results of your Phase II efforts, including the details and results of the demonstration plan.
PHASE III: Design refinement/low rate initial production. Introduce design changes necessary to fully meet the objectives of the study. Produce limited quantities of the final production design for use in government operational assessment. Expected usage of the receiver includes Special Operations as well as military surveyors and first responders. Navigation indoors, under thick canopy, underground and in urban/natural canyons would be of great value to these communities.
REFERENCES: 1. “GNSS Receivers for Weak Signals”, by Nesreen I. Ziedan, Artech House, Inc., 2006, ISBN 10: 1-59693-052-07.
2. MacGougan, G., Lachapelle, G., Klukas, R., Siu, K., Garin, L., Shewfelt, J., Cox, G., Performance Analysis of a Stand-alone High-senstivity Receiver, GPS Solutions, pp. 179-195, Volume 6, No 3, December 2002.
3. Carver, C., Myths and Realities of Anywhere GPS, GPS World, September 2005.
KEYWORDS: GPS, High Sensitivity, Robust Operation, Military GPS Receiver, Low Signal-to-Noise Radio Tracking, Urban Warfare
NGA07-002 TITLE: Alternative PNT Augmentations for Handhelds
TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Information Systems, Electronics
OBJECTIVE: Design, develop algorithms, simulate, implement, and test GPS with alternative sensor technologies that provide significant cost / performance benefits to GPS anti-jam and / or information assurance.
DESCRIPTION: GPS User Equipment (UE) has been successfully integrated with Inertial Navigation Systems (INS) / Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) to provide significant anti-jam improvements to the warfighter. Size, weight and power (SWAP), as well as cost limitations still prohibit integrating INS/IMU with handheld GPS units (as well as or other SWAP/cost constrained GPS solutions). Alternative Precision Navigation and Time (PNT) augmentation sensor information, coupled with innovative algorithms, will provide the Warfighter with significant anti-jam performance and/or information assurance improvements required to meet future Protection of Navigation (PRONAV) requirements.
PHASE I: Perform cost/benefit trade study of available PNT augmentation sensor technologies taking into account SWAP and cost. Develop innovative algorithms to utilize this sensor data to provide GPS anti-jam and / or information assurance benefits. Provide modeling and simulation as required to validate algorithms. Prepare and deliver a technical report that describes Phase I efforts, results of sensor trade-off studies, and algorithm modeling and simulation results.
PHASE II: Design, build, and deliver a prototype receiver system (military GPS receiver, alternative sensor(s), and algorithm) and demonstrate the receiver’s improved performance with the integrated alternative sensors. Prepare and deliver a technical report detailing the results of your Phase II efforts, including the details and results of the demonstration plan.
PHASE III: Design refinement/low rate initial production. Introduce design changes necessary to fully meet the objectives of the study. Produce limited quantities of the final production design for use in government operational assessment. Expected usage of the receiver includes Special Operations as well as military surveyors and first responders. Navigation indoors, under thick canopy, underground and in urban/natural canyons would be of great value to these communities.
REFERENCES: 1. Yi, Y., Grejner-Brzezinska, D. A., and Toth, C. K., Performance Analysis of a Low Cost MEMS IMU and GPS Integration, Proceedings, ION AM, pp. 1026-1036, June 26-29, 2005.
2. Renaudin, V., Yalak, O., and Tome, P., Hybridization of MEMS and Assisted GPS for Pedestrian Navigation, InsideGNSS, pp. 34-42, January-February 2007.
KEYWORDS: GPS, Position, Navigation and Time (PNT), Anti-jam, Handheld Receiver, Information Assurance, PRONAV