Printed Electronics Processing for Structural Integrity (PEPSI)

NextGen Aeronautics, Inc., teamed with Penn State and Virginia Tech, proposes to apply cutting edge research in flexible organic electronic devices and circuits toward the development of a unique printing technology for structural integrity monitoring sensors. Innovative concepts that NextGen can bring to bear on this challenge include existing flexible sensor technologies and associated flexible circuits, conductive polymer printable interconnects, and nanotechnology-based printing. The objective is a low-cost structural health monitoring system that may be applied to a diverse array of military and commercial business sectors. The primary advantages offered by the proposed system versus state-of-the-art alternatives are: low cost; light weight; continuous operation, on-demand assessment; and the ability to evaluate the state of an entire large structure. Additionally, the proposed system will be equally applicable to metallic, composite, plastic, ceramic, adhesive, sealant and coating materials. Objectives of the Phase I effort will be to design a printable sensor with associated signal processing electronics and demonstrate printed sensor fabrication as a cost-effective alternative to existing methods. In so doing, the NextGen/Penn State/Virginia Tech team will raise the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of this approach from 1 to 3.