TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER OPPORTUNITY: Smart Optics Material Characterization System (LAR-TOPS-76)

NASA’s Technology Transfer Program solicits inquiries from companies interested in obtaining license rights to commercialize, manufacture and market the following technology. License rights may be issued on an exclusive or nonexclusive basis and may include specific fields of use. NASA provides no funding in conjunction with these potential licenses.

THE TECHNOLOGY:

NASA's Langley Research Center researchers have developed a wireless, open-circuit SansEC [Sans Electrical Connections] sensor that can detect the presence of chemicals without being in contact with the chemical it is detecting. This unique thin-film sensor is used in conjunction with a chemical reactant that detects the presence of the chemical. Because of the way the sensor operates, the reactant can be separated from the sensor itself and placed in caustic or harsh environments, and can still work to detect the specific chemical it was designed to discern. The ingenuity of the thin-film design with the elimination of all wires, connections, and electronic components enables the sensors to be produced cost-effectively. This is an application of the NASA award-winning SansEC sensor, which is damage resilient and environmentally friendly to manufacture and use. The sensors use a NASA award-winning magnetic field response recorder to provide power to the sensors and to acquire physical property measurements from them.

The SansEC sensor is an open circuit without electrical connections, which functions as an electrical simple harmonic oscillator when exposed to a harmonic magnetic field. Its response is dependent upon the measured physical property. It consists of a uniquely designed thin-film electrically conductive geometric pattern that stores energy in both electric and magnetic fields. When wirelessly interrogated using the NASA developed Magnetic Field Response Recorder (U.S. Patent Number 7,159,774), the sensor becomes electrically active, and a chemical reactant works in tandem with the thin-film trace. If the chemical is present, it causes a change to the reactant, resulting in an alteration to the sensors magnetic field response attributes. This change is noted electronically by the Magnetic Field Response Recorder.

To express interest in this opportunity, please submit a license application through NASA’s Automated Technology Licensing Application System (ATLAS) by visiting https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/LAR-TOPS-76

If you have any questions, please e-mail NASA’s Technology Transfer Program at Agency-Patent-Licensing@mail.nasa.gov with the title of this Technology Transfer Opportunity as listed in this SAM.gov notice and your preferred contact information. For more information about licensing other NASA-developed technologies, please visit the NASA Technology Transfer Portal at https://technology.nasa.gov/

These responses are provided to members of NASA’s Technology Transfer Program for the purpose of promoting public awareness of NASA-developed technology products, and conducting preliminary market research to determine public interest in and potential for future licensing opportunities. No follow-on procurement is expected to result from responses to this Notice.