Latest News:

• The Wright Brothers Institute, which supports Air Force research, is helping provide high-tech support to an organization of professional imaging analysts who volunteer time to help locate missing people.

  The institute has opened its Tec^Edge Innovation and Collaboration Center, near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, to the Volunteer Imagery Analysts for Search and Rescue (VIASAR). Members of the Dayton-based group, founded by imaging analyst Chris Rowley in 2008, help search and rescue organizations across the United States locate the missing.

  At Tec^Edge, Rowley’s group has demonstrated a system it calls VIASAR-CAM that uses commercial equipment and software to gather digital pictures simultaneously with geographic data, then embeds them in a map database. That allows analysts to pinpoint the locations of objects they spot in the photos, Rowley said.

  Students collaborating in research at Tec^Edge during the summer helped develop the VIASAR-CAM system.

  Tec^Edge hosts researchers from the Air Force, universities and companies for collaborative efforts to develop technologies for military and commercial use.

  Expanded article available.

   

• Following months of preparation, Dr. Rob Williams led the June 15, 2009 kick-off session for this year’s “Summer at the Edge” (SATE) student intern program. Over 50 students are participating from high school through PhD. Many different schools are represented including the Dayton Early Career Academy (DECA), South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Carnegie Mellon, Arkansas, Michigan, OSU, WSU and UD. The students are working on multiple technology focused projects mentored by professionals from government, industry and academia including: AFRL Human Effectiveness Directorate, AFRL Sensors Directorate, SAIC, Woolpert, Qbase, WSU, and AFIT.

• The AFRL-sponsored 2009 OSU – UM University Challenge took place on 2-3 June at our Tec^Edge Works facility.  The competition is one of many sponsored by AFRL across the country every year, providing rapid reaction and innovative solutions to the Department of Defense’s top urgent needs.  These programs aim to tap into the energy and bright ideas of the junior DoD workforce and academic institutions, while also capitalizing on inherently competitive environments in order to stimulate creativity. 

   

  

  This year’s challenge was to develop a portable solution which allows security personnel to detect persons carrying improvised explosive devices in a heavily crowded environment.  Scores of WPAFB personnel participated in the event, creating a near realistic stage set for the high tech standoff between the two universities.  The University of Michigan ultimately took the day with an innovative three-tiered sensing approach. Event sponsors are confident lessons learned from the competition will help lead to life saving devices and techniques for both the military and public sector.

  Mike Osgood, who manages Tec^Edge Works, participated directly in the planning, development, and hosting of the event  by leading the event scheduling and logistics of facility integration.  Mike established the direct involvement of several City of Dayton departments including Police and Fire to add realism to the event and promote cross pollination of professional expertise.

  (Photo of the crowd at the Tec^Edge Works OSU-UM Competition, showing the random scatter of event attendees interspersed with a few device-carrying individuals. The UM’s traffic cones containing their wireless detection technologies are shown.)

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