Structural Nervous System

GTL proposes to further the development of its SNS technology towards adoption into aerospace structures. The SNS technology is an enabler technology for the expanded use of structural health monitoring systems. It allows the large data architectures needed for these types of systems to be implemented with minimal mass and impact to structural performance. GTL will accomplish this by automating the manufacturing process of its SNS conductor elements to enable the production of conductors on a large length scale. GTL will then use this automated fabrication process to produce SNS first products. These first products will validated in a series of tests. Small scale tests will validate the consistent properties of these first products. Large scale tests will validate the properties of the SNS first products at a scale relevant to large aerospace structures. Vacuum thermal cycling tests will validate SNS first product use in a representative space environment. To conclude the effort, testing with large scale engineering model structures will validate the integration of SNS first products into representative pressure vessel and wing structures. This testing with engineering models will also demonstrate the operation of SNS technology under loads representative of typical aerospace structure operation. GTL will then provide an SNS technology first products kit to NASA.