An Advanced Technology Chemical and Biological Agent Standoff Detection System

Standoff detection of chemical and biological agent clouds is extremely important for the protection of US armed forces. We propose a system that will successfully perform stand off detection of both chemical and biological agents using a unique combination of advanced technologies. An imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) will perform the remote detection of chemical agents from an Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) platform. A novel micro Air Vehicle (¿AV) carried on board the UAV for real time analysis by a newly developed aerosol mass spectrometer. The ¿AV and aerosol mass spectrometer are advanced technologies that are currently being developed by us on other programs. In the Phase I program, we will design an imaging FTS that is optimized for the chemical agent detection problem using our proprietary IR Analysis Tool software. We will address the imaging FTS data analysis problem by reviewing and identifying the optimum analysis algorithm for real time chemical agent detection. We will also evaluate sensor and instrumentation technologies for biological agent detection, including the aerosol mass spectrometer, and determine the ¿AV designs required by these detection approaches. A chem/bio standoff detection system integration study will be performed.