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A NASA spin off is a technology that has been commercialized through NASA funding, research, licensing, facilities, or assistance. NASA also publishes an annual journal by the same name which features products that were developed through NASA funding (such as SBIR or STTR awards,) licensing (from NASA patents), facilities (such as product testing at NASA facilities), NASA assistance (such as former NASA scientists helping to design a product), or NASA research. (ISBN= 978-0-16-079740-8.)
NASA spinoff technologies
For more than 40 years, the NASA Innovative Partnerships Program has connected NASA resources to private industry, referring to the commercial products as spinoffs. Well-known spinoffs include memory foam (also known as temper foam), freeze-dried food, firefighting equipment, emergency "space blankets", Dustbusters, cochlear implants, and now Speedo's LZR Racer swimsuits. There are over 1650 other spinoffs in the fields of computer technology, environment and agriculture, health and medicine, public safety, transportation, recreation, and industrial productivity. Contrary to common belief, NASA did not invent Tang, Velcro, or Teflon.[1]
In 2008, NASA announced an interactive Web feature, NASA City and NASA Home,[2] which uses Flash animation to show some examples of everyday spinoffs.
Below are 25 abstracts of well-known spinoffs.
Twenty-five NASA spinoffs
Health and medicine
Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
The Warp 10 uses NASA LED technology to ease pain and speed healing.
The Light-emitting diode technology used in NASA space shuttle plant growth experiments led to the development of a hand-held, high-intensity, LED unit developed by Quantum Devices Inc. The WARP 10 is said to relieve minor muscle and joint pain, stiffness,and increases local blood circulation. The WARP 10 is being used by the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Navy as a noninvasive “soldier self-care” device for minor injuries and pain. The next-generation WARP 75 has been used to relieve pain in bone marrow transplant patients, and will be used to combat the symptoms of bone atrophy, multiple sclerosis, diabetic complications, Parkinson’s disease, and in a variety of ocular applications. [1]:10-11
Infrared Ear Thermometers
Diatek Corporation and NASA developed an aural thermometer, which weighs 8 ounces and uses infrared astronomy technology to measure the amount of energy emitted by the eardrum, the same way the temperature of stars and planets is measured. This method avoids contact with mucous membranes, and permits rapid temperature measurement of newborn or incapacitated patients. NASA supported the Diatek Corporation through the Technology Affiliates Program.[2]:00-00
Ventricular Assist Device
Collaboration between NASA, Dr. Michael DeBakey, Dr. George Noon, and MicroMed Technology Inc. resulted in a heart pump for patients awaiting heart transplants. The MicroMed DeBakey ventricular assist device (VAD) functions as a “bridge to heart transplant” by pumping blood until a donor heart is available. The pump is approximately one-tenth the size of other currently marketed pulsatile VADs. Because of the pump’s small size, fewer patients developed device-related infections. It can operate up to 8 hours on batteries, giving patients the mobility to do normal, everyday activities.[3]:00-00
Artificial Limbs
Advancements such as Environmental Robots Inc.’s development of artificial muscle systems[4] for use in NASA space robotic and extravehicular activities have been adapted to create more functionally dynamic artificial limbs. Other commercial uses of NASA’s temper foam include moldable materials offering the natural look and feel of flesh, as well as preventing friction between the skin and the prosthesis, and heat/moisture buildup.[1]:46-49
Transportation
Aircraft Anti-Icing Systems
This ice-free airplane wing uses Thermawing's Aircraft Anti-Icing System, a NASA spinoff.
NASA funding under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and work with NASA scientists advanced the development of a thermoelectric deicing system called Thermawing, a DC-powered air conditioner for single-engine aircraft called Thermacool, and high-output alternators to run them both. Thermawing allows pilots to safely fly through ice encounters and provides pilots of single-engine aircraft the heated wing technology usually reserved for larger, jet-powered craft. Thermacool, an electric air conditioning system, uses a new compressor whose rotary pump design runs off an energy-efficient, brushless DC motor and allows pilots to use the air conditioner before the engine starts.[5]:00-00
Highway Safety
Safety grooving, the cutting of grooves in concrete to increase traction and prevent injury, was first developed to reduce aircraft accidents on wet runways. Represented by the International Grooving and Grinding Association, the industry expanded into highway and pedestrian applications. Safety grooving originated at Langley Research Center, which assisted in testing the grooving at airports and on highways. Skidding was reduced, stopping distance decreased, and a vehicle’s cornering ability on curves was increased. The process has been extended to animal holding pens, steps, parking lots, and other potentially slippery surfaces.[6]:00-00
Improved Radial Tires
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company developed a fibrous material, five times stronger than steel, for NASA to use in parachute shrouds to soft-land the Vikings on the Martian surface. Recognizing the durability of the material, Goodyear expanded the technology and went on to produce a new radial tire with a tread life expected to be 10,000 miles greater than conventional radials.[7]:00-00
Chemical Detection
NASA contracted with Intelligent Optical Systems (IOS) to develop moisture- and pH-sensitive sensors to warn of corrosive conditions in aircraft before damage occurs. This sensor changes color in response to contact with its target. After completing the work with NASA, IOS was tasked by the U.S. Department of Defense to further develop the sensors for detecting chemical warfare agents and potential threats, such as toxic industrial compounds and nerve agents. IOS has sold the chemically sensitive fiber optic cables to major automotive and aerospace companies, who are finding a variety of uses for the devices such as aiding experimentation with nontraditional power sources, and as an economical “alarm system” for detecting chemical release in large facilities.[5]:00-00
Public safety
Video Enhancing and Analysis Systems
Intergraph Government Solutions developed its Video Analyst System (VAS) by building on Video Image Stabilization and Registration (VISAR) technology created by NASA to help FBI agents analyze video footage. Originally used for enhancing video images from nighttime videotapes made with hand-held camcorders, VAS is a tool for video enhancement and analysis offering support of full-resolution digital video, stabilization, frame-by-frame analysis, conversion of analog video to digital storage formats, and increased visibility of filmed subjects without altering underlying footage. Aside from law enforcement and security applications, VAS has also been adapted to serve the military for reconnaissance, weapons deployment, damage assessment, training, and mission debriefing.[8]:00-00
Land Mine Removal
Thiokol Propulsion's demining flare burns through the outer casing to neutralize the explosive agents inside.
Thiokol Propulsion uses surplus rocket fuel from NASA to produce a flare, the Demining Device, that can safely destroy land mines and help NASA reduce propellant waste. The Demining Device flare uses a battery-triggered electric match to ignite and neutralize land mines; it uses solid rocket fuel to burn a hole in the mine’s case and burn away the explosive contents so the mine can be disarmed without hazard.[9]:00-00
Fire-Resistant Reinforcement
Built and designed by Avco Corporation, the Apollo heat shield was coated with a material whose purpose was to burn and thus dissipate energy during reentry while charring, to form a protective coating to block heat penetration. NASA subsequently funded Avco’s development of other applications of the heat shield, such as fire-retardant paints and foams for aircraft, which led to intumescent epoxy material, which expands in volume when exposed to heat or flames, acting as an insulating barrier and dissipating heat through burn-off. Further innovations include steel coatings devised to make high-rise buildings and public structures safer by swelling to provide a tough and stable insulating layer over the steel for up to 4 hours of fire protection, ultimately to slow building collapse and provide more time for escape.[10]:00-00
Firefighting Equipment
Firefighting equipment in the United States is based on lightweight materials developed for the U.S. Space Program. NASA and the National Bureau of Standards created a lightweight breathing system including face mask, frame, harness, and air bottle, using an aluminum composite material developed by NASA for use on rocket casings. The broadest fire-related technology transfer is the breathing apparatus for protection from smoke inhalation injury. Additionally, NASA’s inductorless electronic circuit technology led to lower-cost, more rugged, short-range two-way radio now used by firefighters. NASA also helped develop a specialized mask weighing less than 3 ounces to protect the physically impaired from injuries to the face and head, as well as flexible, heat-resistant materials—developed to protect the space shuttle on reentry—which are being used both by the military and commercially in suits for municipal and aircraft-rescue firefighters.[11]:00-00 [12]:00-00 [13]:00-00 [9]:00-00
Consumer, home, and recreation
[] Temper Foam
Initially referred to as “slow spring back foam,” temper foam matches pressure against it and slowly returns to its original form once the pressure is removed.
As the result of a program designed to develop a padding concept to improve crash protection for airplane passengers, Ames Research Center developed a what is now called memory foam. Memory foam, or "Temper Foam", has been incorporated into mattresses, pillows, military and civilian aircraft, automobiles and motorcycles, sports safety equipment, amusement park rides and arenas, horseback saddles, archery targets, furniture, and human and animal prostheses. Its high-energy absorption and soft characteristics offer protection and comfort. Today, temper foam is being employed by NASCAR to provide added safety in racecars.[7][14][15][12][16][3][1]:46-49
Enriched Baby Food
Commercially available infant formulas now contain a nutritional enrichment ingredient that traces its existence to NASA-sponsored research on algae as a recycling agent for long-duration space travel. The substance, formulated into the products life’sDHA and life’sARA and based on microalgae, can be found in over 90 percent of the infant formulas sold in the United States, and are added to infant formulas in over 65 other countries. Martek Biosciences Corporation's founders and principal scientists acquired their expertise in this area while working on the NASA program.[17]
Portable Cordless Vacuums
For the Apollo space mission, NASA required a portable, self-contained drill capable of extracting core samples from below the lunar surface. Black & Decker was tasked with the job, and developed a computer program to optimize the design of the drill’s motor and insure minimal power consumption. That computer program led to the development of a cordless miniature vacuum cleaner called the Dustbuster.[12]
Freeze Drying Technology
In planning for the long-duration Apollo missions, NASA conducted extensive research into space food. One of the techniques developed was freeze drying. Action Products commercialized this technique, concentrating on snack food. The foods are cooked, quickly frozen, and then slowly heated in a vacuum chamber to remove the ice crystals formed by the freezing process. The final product retains 98 percent of its nutrition and weighs only 20 percent of its original weight. Today, one of the benefits of this advancement in food preparation includes simple nutritious meals available to handicapped and otherwise homebound senior adults unable to take advantage of existing meal programs.[11][18][19]
Environmental and agricultural resources
Water Security Corporation's Discovery Water Filtration System
Water Purification
NASA engineers are collaborating with qualified companies to develop systems intended to sustain the astronauts living on the International Space Station and future Moon and space missions. This system turns wastewater from respiration, sweat, and urine into drinkable water. Commercially, this system is benefiting people all over the world who need affordable, clean water, especially in remote locations. By combining the benefits of chemical adsorption, ion exchange, and ultra-filtration processes, this technology can yield safe, drinkable water from the most challenging sources, such as in underdeveloped regions where well water may be heavily contaminated.[20][4]
Solar Energy
Homes across the country are now being outfitted with high-performance single crystal silicon solar power cells that allow them to reduce their traditional energy expenditures and reduce pollution. The advanced technology behind these solar devices—which provide up to 50 percent more power than conventional solar cells—originated with the efforts of a NASA-sponsored 28-member coalition forming the Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) Alliance. ERAST’s goal was to develop remotely piloted aircraft, intended to fly unmanned at high altitudes for days at a time and requiring advanced solar power sources that did not add weight. As a result, SunPower Corporation created advanced silicon-based cells for terrestrial or airborne applications. [1]:66-57
Pollution Remediation
NASA’s microencapsulating technology enabled the creation of a "Petroleum Remediation Product," which safely cleans petroleum-based pollutants from water. The PRP uses thousands of microcapsules—tiny balls of beeswax with hollow centers. Water cannot penetrate the microcapsule’s cell, but oil is absorbed into the beeswax spheres as they float on the water’s surface. Contaminating chemical compounds that originally come from crude oil (such as fuels, motor oils, or petroleum hydrocarbons) are caught before they settle, limiting damage to ocean beds.[19][10]
Computer technology
Virtual reality research
NASA is collaborating with Google Inc. to solve a variety of challenging technical problems ranging from large-scale data management and massively distributed computing, to human-computer interfaces—with the ultimate goal of making the ocean of data more accessible and usable. NASA continues to fund and collaborate on other software advancement initiatives benefiting such areas as photo/video image enhancement, virtual-reality/design, simulation training, and medical applications.[1]
Structural analysis software
NASA software engineers have created thousands of computer programs over the decades equipped to design, test, and analyze stress, vibration, and acoustical properties of a broad assortment of aerospace parts and structures. The NASA Structural Analysis Program, or NASTRAN, is considered one of the most successful and widely-used NASA software programs. It has been used to design everything from Cadillacs to roller coaster rides. Originally created for spacecraft design, NASTRAN has been employed in a host of non-aerospace applications and is available to industry through NASA’s Computer Software Management and Information Center (COSMIC). COSMIC maintains a library of computer programs from NASA and other government agencies and sells them at a fraction of the cost of developing a new program.[7][14][11][15][18][12][13][21][16][22][2][23]
Remotely controlled ovens
Embedded Web Technology (EWT) software—originally developed by NASA for use by astronauts operating experiments on the International Space Station—lets a user monitor and/or control a device remotely over the Internet. NASA supplied this technology and guidance to TMIO LLC, which developed remote control and monitoring of a new intelligent oven product named “ConnectIo.” With combined cooling and heating capabilities, ConnectIo refrigerates food until a customized pre-programmable cooking cycle begins. The menu allows the user to simply enter the dinner time, and the oven automatically switches from refrigeration to the cooking cycle, so that the meal will be ready as the family arrives home for dinner.[1]
Industrial productivity
Powdered Lubricants
Oil-free coating PS300 (on these bushings) was created by Adma with NASA resources.
NASA developed a solid lubricant coating, PS300, which is deposited by thermal spraying to protect foil air bearings. PS300 lowers friction, reduces emissions, and has been used by NASA in advanced aeropropulsion engines, refrigeration compressors, turbochargers, and hybrid electrical turbogenerators. ADMA Products has found widespread industrial applications for the material.[1]
Improved Mine Safety
An ultrasonic bolt elongation monitor developed by a NASA scientist for testing tension and high-pressure loads on bolts and fasteners has continued to evolve over the past three decades. Today, the same scientist and Luna Innovations are using a digital adaptation of this same device for non-destructive evaluation of railroad ties, groundwater analysis, radiation dosimetry, and as a medical testing device to assess levels of internal swelling and pressure for patients suffering from intracranial pressure and compartment syndrome, a painful condition that results when pressure within muscles builds to dangerous levels. [11][1]
Food Safety
Faced with the problem of how and what to feed an astronaut in a sealed capsule under weightless conditions while planning for human space flight, NASA enlisted the aid of The Pillsbury Company to address two principal concerns: eliminating crumbs of food that might contaminate the spacecraft’s atmosphere and sensitive instruments, and assuring absolute absence of disease-producing bacteria and toxins. Pillsbury developed the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) concept to address NASA’s second concern. HACCP is designed to prevent food safety problems rather than to catch them after they have occurred. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has applied HACCP guidelines for the handling of seafood, juice, and dairy products.[2]
History of the Spinoff publication
Spinoff is a NASA publication featuring technology made available to the public. Since 1976, NASA has featured an average of 50 technologies each year in the annual publication, and Spinoff maintains a searchable database of these technologies. When products first spun off from space research, NASA presented a black and white report in 1973, titled the "Technology Utilization Program Report." Because of interest in the reports, NASA decided from then on to create the annual publications in color. Spinoff was first published in 1976,[3] and since then, NASA has distributed free copies to universities, the media, inventors, and the general public. Spinoff describes how NASA works with various industries and small businesses to bring new technology to the public. As of 2008, there were over 1600 Spinoff products in the database, dating back to 1976.
See also
- NASA for information on NASA in general.
- NASA STI Program for NASA's Science and Technical Information program.
- NASA Tech Briefs for NASA innovations that are not necessarily commercial yet.
- NASA Edge for the NASA TV show and podcast describing NASA's work and connections to the public.
- spin-off for other uses of the spin-off concept, including media and corporate meanings.
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h NASA (2005). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 0-16-075266-3, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/Spinoff2005/index.html.
- ^ a b c NASA (1991). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1991.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (2002). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 0-16-077275-3, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff2002/index.html.
- ^ a b NASA (2004). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/Spinoff2004/index.html.
- ^ a b NASA (2007). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/Spinoff2007/index.html.
- ^ NASA (1985). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1985.pdf.
- ^ a b c NASA (1976). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1976.pdf.
- ^ NASA (2001). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff2001/index.html.
- ^ a b NASA (2000). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff2000/index.htm.
- ^ a b NASA (2006). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/Spinoff2006/index.html.
- ^ a b c d NASA (1978). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1978.pdf.
- ^ a b c d NASA (1981). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1981.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (1982). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1982.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (1977). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1977.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (1979). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1979.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (1988). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1988.pdf.
- ^ NASA (1996). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff1996/index.html.
- ^ a b NASA (1980). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1980.pdf.
- ^ a b NASA (1994). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1994.pdf.
- ^ NASA (1995). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1995.pdf.
- ^ *NASA (1986). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1986.pdf.
- ^ *NASA (1990). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/back_issues_archives/1990.pdf.
- ^ NASA (1998). Spinoff. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff1998/index.html.
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