SBIR/STTR Research Award

HellHivesTM for Weapons Pitch Day

Award identifier ea7f72f364b0fe73832ce864a907b23104eb53a1121a39d7b6b637e07c9abf75Awarding agency Department of Defense · Air Force

Award amount

$49,897

Program and phase

SBIR · Phase I

Award year

2021

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Award details

Awarding agency
Department of Defense
Branch
Air Force
Recipient company
VR REHAB INC
Proposal award date
2020-12-16
Contract end date
2021-03-16
UEI
PW6TQ7M8WH66
Solicitation number
20.3
Topic code
AF203-001

Research abstract

HellHivesTM are modern Pandora’s Boxes from which large Swarms of very inexpensive expendable Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) called KillerBees emerge to inflict overwhelming damage & destruction to our enemies. HellHives supporting KillerBee Swarms fulfills this topic’s Affordable Mass requirements for: (1) Enabling blue forces to utilize large numbers of very low-cost KillerBees that launch directly from their HellHive containers–no unpacking, no prep, enables very rapid firing of Swarms; (2) Our VRR/ASU team has already developed both HellHives & KillerBees using very low-cost materials & rapid agile mass manufacturing processes (KillerBees are <$200 bill of materials, plus cost of existing munitions added as payloads); (3) HellHives are disposable or re-usable dispenser vehicles for VRR’s KillerBees, or any other small UAS selected; (4) KillerBees already support open-system payload architectures &technologies from our innovations of evolving ‘smart weapon’ Swarms by adding on existing munitions to our low-cost UAS, along with supporting gimbaled optical/sensor ISR payloads, &supporting ongoing UAS borne electronic/cyber warfare payloads in support of Multi-Domain Operations (MDO). HellHives are fully scalable comprised of any number of multiple parallel vertical stacks of multiple UAS.  Existing storage &shipping containers are converted by adding a simple base with dual launch rods for each vertical stack of UAS. Distributed scalable agile mass manufacturing capabilities include the ability of each distributed manufacturing node to produce 1000 KillerBees packaged within 20 HellHive shipping containers that double as Swarm launching platforms weeks at LRP at a cost of under $200 per UAS. Agile manufacturing plans include all USA parts options in the case of a China Embargo/War. HellHives’ KillerBee swarms are controlled using VRR’s Fused Augmented Realities common controller that supports modular open-system payload architectures & technologies. HellHive containers are fully scalable, for example from the rear-bed of a pickup truck supports the launching of a swarm of 50 KillerBees swarm in 20 seconds. In collaboration with our Arizona State University (ASU) team partner, we have already developed both HellHives &KillerBees using low-cost materials & rapid agile mass manufacturing. The result is the ability of each distribute node to produce 1000 KillerBees packaged in 20 HellHive container/launchers weeks at LRP at a cost of under $200 per UAS. Agile manufacturing plans include all USA parts options in the case of a China Embargo/War. HellHive’s KillerBees also directly fulfills this topic’s requirements for a system being disposable or reusable. KillerBee payload options include inexpensive conventional munitions that when carried by KillerBees become ‘smart weapons’. Further, low-cost UAS reusable versions also support ISR & electronic/cyber warfare modules to further our ongoing support of Multi Domain Operations concepts & capabilities.

Technology keywords

Not reported

Other awards by this recipient

Verified by the same UEI. These are other public SBIR/STTR award pages, not a merged company record.

Awards with the same topic code

Verified by an exact topic code match. This is not a text-similarity match.

Research funding history

20 SBIR/STTR records share this UEI (2016–2024). Reported award amounts total $9,592,233. Reported amounts are not federal obligations.

Phases: Phase I, Phase II, Phase II – Direct to Phase II

Agencies: Department of Defense

Agency intelligence

Department of Defense

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