Press Releases

For Immediate Release - November 21, 2006

ChemImage Awarded Phase II Fast Track Funding for Raman-Based Detection System For Unmanned Ground Vehicles

PITTSBURGH, PA — August 31, 2006 —ChemImage Corporation, makers of high-speed, wide-field imaging solutions and Applied Perception, a leader in the field of unmanned vehicle software and system integration, have been awarded a follow-on $730,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the US Army Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Center (TATRC) for the development of a chemical, biological and explosive (CBE) agent detection system for use on unmanned ground vehicles (UGV).  As a supplement to this award, the National Center for Defense Robotics (NCDR) is contributing an additional $195,000 Fast Track funding to this program for the design of a robot arm system that will allow the CBE detector to be used on the newest and most agile UGV platforms. 

In Phase I of the Raman Bio Identification (RBI) project, ChemImage Corporation and Applied Perception, Inc. (API) teamed together to model, design and demonstrate proof of concept of a Raman CBE detector system.  As a key part of this effort, the Team showed that the RBI detector concept will be adaptable to a wide range of UGV platforms and will find widespread use in medical, unexploded ordinance and environmental surveillance UGV systems.  The Phase I work ended with the successful integration of the prototype detector on a Northrop Grumman Remotec ANDROS Wolverine UGV.

“Raman spectroscopy has been used as a laboratory chemical identification tool for many years. The work in Phase I of the RBI project shows the feasibility of extending Raman spectroscopy to the routine identification of biological materials in remote detection. We are very excited to have the opportunity to continue this effort with the Phase II award,” says Charles Gardner, Ph.D, Principal Investigator.

Phase II of the RBI project will develop the specifications for a “plug-and-play” type interface for chemical, biological and / or explosive (CBE) detectors.  Using this specification, the team of ChemImage and Applied Perception will design and build the next generation Raman CBE Detector for UGV use.  A key part of the Phase II project will be the integration of the Raman CBE module into the Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS) environment and proof-of-concept testing on a fast, small UGV platform.
Two major benefits are anticipated through the work in Phase II. The system requirements document will form the basis of a de facto standard for the integration of chemical, biological, radiation and explosive detectors on unmanned vehicles.  This provides a framework for JAUS integration of new detectors into new and existing unmanned systems.  The second anticipated benefit is the advancement of Raman detection technology for environmental monitoring.  Raman offers the ability to rapidly (<5 min) perform remote analysis of potential biowarfare agent contamination sites without direct personnel exposure. The reagentless nature of Raman provides a great logistical advantage during deployment and removes the “one reagent – one threat” limitation of most bio detection technologies. Raman detection provides for rapid and simultaneous testing for the presence of hundreds of biological and chemical agents.

“This project is representative of a new shift in robotics industry where companies are focusing their attention and resources on combining mobile robotics platforms with detector technologies such as ChemImage’s. These next generation robots make it possible to perform remote detection of biological / chemical threats in battlefield situations as well as in civilian emergency response situations”, commented Bill Thomasmeyer, President of the National Center for Defense Robotics.

About ChemImage Corporation
ChemImage’s patented technologies enable one to see detailed molecular-level information quickly and clearly so you can make better decisions faster. ChemImage’s high-speed solutions combine wide-field Raman spectroscopy and sophisticated spatial imaging to reveal subtleties that are simply not obtainable through other techniques.
With ChemImage technology, you can view the morphology, composition and structure of chemical or biological samples and visually understand the relationship between the size, shape and distribution of chemical constituents in two or even three dimensions. All in a format that is easily understood by both scientists and non-scientists alike.

About Applied Perception, Inc.
Applied Perception was founded in 2001 by graduates of Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute and is focused on developing and licensing unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) related technologies in the fields of defense, transportation, and agriculture. Applied Perception specializes in complete robotic system integration with a focus on computer software and sensors, but also encompassing electrical, mechanical, and communication technologies. These systems feature sophisticated perception, planning, and control capabilities to provide robust solutions to customer-driven problems. Applied Perception provides services and solutions to a wide variety of clients including Fortune 500 companies, federal and state government agencies, and academic research labs.

About The National Center for Defense Robotics (NCDR)
The National Center for Defense Robotics (NCDR) is a congressionally funded initiative of The Technology Collaborative, a non-profit technology-based economic development organization based in Pittsburgh, PA. The mission of the NCDR is to benefit our nation’s defenders and help develop a national ‘agile robotics’ industry by accelerating the pragmatic development, integration, & utilization of unmanned systems technologies for military and related homeland defense applications.  The NCDR accomplishes this by administering a nation-wide alliance of universities, technology companies, defense manufacturers, and government organizations with an interest in advanced robotics systems and enabling technologies, by fostering collaborative relationships and forging partnerships and joint ventures among alliance members, and by funding and managing technology development projects undertaken by alliance members that meet identified, otherwise unmet government needs.