Hybrid Multi-Material Rotor (HMMR)

archived

FULL BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT IS ATTACHED Current rotor design practice treats the individual physics disciplines associated with each of the many competing design requirements in a largely uncoupled fashion, an approach that gives rise to lengthy, high cost, iterative development cycles. The goal of the program is to shrink the design cycle from the current timeline (on the order of 8 years) to two years.The very large size (in excess of 20ft in diameter) and geometric complexity of US Navy submarine rotors, their attendant nominal, off-design and casualty load conditions, durability requirements, cost and weight limitations, and [BAA2] are unachievable with existing single-material systems. Tailored multi-material systems offer the opportunity to meet these disparate multidisciplinary goals. To put the goals in context, this program will strive to achieve reductions in the weight of individual rotor blades by 50%, increase in the blade stiffness by a factor of 1.5x, and [BAA3] over the Nickel/Aluminum/Bronze (NAB) baseline.Accordingly, DARPA is soliciting innovative research proposals focused on the development and demonstration of revolutionary advancements in multi-material systems and manufacturing processes, enabled by state-of-the-art, physics model coupling and High-Performance Computing (HPC). These transformational technologies are required for the rapid design, development and demonstration of lightweight, high-performance multi-material solutions that can be transitioned to the US Navy for future submarine rotor applications. Key to successful and affordable transition is for the government to have the requisite Intellectual Property (IP) rights that facilitate alternative acquisition strategies.Research proposals shall address one or both of DARPA’s Areas of Interest as defined in Tasks 1 and 2 below: • Task 1: Coupling Software Environment Development and DemonstrationThe objective of this effort is to develop and demonstrate an innovative multi-physics coupling software environment (CSE) to enable rapid and accurate multidisciplinary performance design and analysis simulations for lightweight, multi-material US Navy submarine rotors.• Task 2: Multi-Material Rotor Manufacturing Design, Process Development, and DemonstrationThe objective of this effort is to develop and demonstrate innovative material solutions and associated manufacturing and quality control processes for multi-material US Navy submarine rotors that meet Navy-specified weight and multidisciplinary performance goals.All administrative correspondence and non-classified questions on this solicitation, including requests for information on how to submit a full proposal to this BAA, should be directed to the administrative addresses below; e-mail is preferred:BAA AdministratorPhone: (571) 218-4565E-mail: DARPA-BAA-09-75@darpa.mil DARPA/DSOATTN: DARPA-BAA-09-753701 North Fairfax DriveArlington, VA 22203-1714FULL BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT IS ATTACHED

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