Power Transmission Shafting for Air Cushion Vehicles

The purpose of this SBIR initiative is to develop an improved system of power transmission shafting for Air Cushion Vehicles (ACVs). The Phase I effort involves a number of tasks leading to the selection of an optimized shaft design for follow-on qualification and test. These tasks include a review of the current shafting design, operational performance, reliability and maintainability experience. Based on this analysis, a set of design criteria will be established for the improved system. Design tradeoff studies will be conducted for a number of candidate approaches against the design criteria, resulting in the selection of the most promising design. Analysis of the impact of the new drive shaft system on the performance of the Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC) will be accomplished, including an assessment of its applicability to the Joint Maritime Assault Connector (JMAC) requirement now in development. A Final Report will be prepared, summarizing the results of the trade-off and sensitivity studies that lead to the selection of the final design to be pursued. Planning for the Phase II final design and development program for the prototype shafting will be accomplished during the Option phase, including the detailed Statements of Work for that effort.