A--U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) Broad Agency Announcement for RF Technology Solutions to Detect and Locate Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Threats.

The Army Research Laboratory is soliciting proposals describing innovative RF technology solutions to detect and locate Improvised Explosive Device (IED) threats. In particular, for Phase 1, ARL is seeking prototype, technically mature, RF technology to participate in an experiment in a relevant environment. The RF sensor system that will be considered acceptable for the purposes of this solicitation shall be technically mature such that: "The RF technology must be either capable of performing on the move (at least 8mph) or have SWAP (Size Weight and Power) characteristics that would allow it to operate as a hand held unit. "The technology shall be capable of detecting and geo-spatially locating IEDs at 10m range for moving systems and 1m range for hand-held units (thresholds for the purposes of this solicitation). "The operator should only need a cursory level of interaction with the sensor system during normal operations. The Army Research Laboratory plans to set up a temporary facility to conduct the RF technology experiments. ARL is requesting proposals from organizations that currently have a prototype that is capable of gathering data at this facility. Proposals selected for funding for Phase I will be awarded a cooperative agreement with only the following activities to be funded: (NOTE: Fee or Profit is not permitted under a cooperative agreement.) " Preparation of system for field experiment " 1 week of experiments at the Army facility " Data analysis " Written final report (one month after the experiment) o Report must include a description of the RF technology set up during the experiment. The results of the experiment. A technology maturation plan that could be implemented if the government selects the system for a phase 2 effort. " Funding not to exceed 6 man-months Recipients of the cooperative agreements will have access to the prepared test site for up to one week (on a non-interference basis with other systems). Based on the Governments assessment of the analysis of the results from these experiments, ARL may invite successful performers to submit proposals for further development and technology maturation, which is Phase 2. Such technology development efforts are expected to be performed under a procurement contract. The objective system which may be developed under this further effort will require additional features, such as: "The human interface must simplify the operation and allow someone with limited technical knowledge to operate the sensor system. "Analysis of collected data must be automated so that a human operator would not be considered part of the processing loop "The overall solution must function in a heavy electromagnetic environment (EME) and be interoperable with all robots, communication, navigation, and Counter Radio Controlled IED Electronic Warfare (CREW) equipment. There is a classified (Secret) addendum that more accurately describes the expected RF technology systems capabilities that all offerors MUST review before submission of a proposal to participate in the RF experiment. Offerors must determine the classification of proposals and the report of the results of the experiments based on the Security Classification Guide provided along with the addendum. Offerors MUST possess a security clearance to be able to review the classified information. Proposals awarded for further technology development will contain security requirements as appropriate for those specific efforts. Requests for the Secret addendum and any questions concerning security issues may be directed to the Technical Point of Contact. (Please see Full Announcement)