Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site
Seven teams advance to finals in annual SSC Fight Tonight competition
-
Similar Topics
-
By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
With a shared commitment to fostering U.S. economic growth that benefits the American public, NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate and the Department of Commerce’s U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen collaboration in transferring federally-developed technology into the private sector, known as tech transfer.
“NASA has to invent new technology every day to carry out audacious missions like building an outpost on the Moon or looking for signs of life on the frozen moons of distant planets,” said Clayton Turner, associate administrator of the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. “That is one of our greatest strengths. And with the help of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, we’re streamlining the process of getting those inventions into the hands of the public, boosting the economy, and benefiting everyone on Earth along the way.”
The agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate and USPTO have been working together to share information and cooperate in mutual areas of interest, find ways to advance both agencies’ technology transfer missions, identify barriers to technology transfer, and coordinate initiatives to overcome those barriers. By combining expertise, both agencies are driving inclusive innovation and adoption of best practices, which will advance commercialization of the space agency’s most cutting-edge technology.
As part of the new agreement, NASA and USPTO are conducting an extensive study of technology transfer best practices across university and federal labs. The effort will increase opportunities for learning and growth in the technology transfer community.
“NASA’s Technology Transfer program and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had candid conversations with dozens of tech transfer experts about what we could do better,” said Dan Lockney, executive for NASA’s Technology Transfer program. “I can’t wait to share what we’ve learned with the entire tech transfer community nationwide. We look forward to addressing common challenges, and this paper will offer some assurance that we are on a solid, strong path to transferring technologies effectively.”
The two agencies will publish a detailed study of their findings, which will be shared at the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer’s national meeting in the spring. The effort will increase opportunities for learning and growth in the technology transfer community.
“We are excited to join NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate in publishing and sharing this insight with the larger tech transfer community, so that everyone can benefit from the successes and lessons learned from our study participants,” said Parikha Solanki, senior advisor at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. “We hope that the impact of this study will extend well beyond the paper, such that it might be a springboard for ongoing dialogue and knowledge sharing between tech transfer practitioners across institutions, ultimately for the benefit of the public at large.”
Learn more about NASA’s Technology Transfer Program:
https://go.nasa.gov/3VEZcmZ
Share
Details
Last Updated Dec 19, 2024 Related Terms
Technology Transfer Spinoffs Technology Technology Transfer & Spinoffs Explore More
5 min read NASA Mars Orbiter Spots Retired InSight Lander to Study Dust Movement
Article 3 days ago 3 min read NASA Gives The World a Brake
Article 1 week ago 3 min read An Electronic Traffic Monitor for Airports
Ground traffic management program saves passengers and airlines time while cutting fuel costs
Article 3 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover Related Topics
Technology Transfer & Spinoffs
TechPort – Find it, Build it, Share it.
Space Technology Research Grants
Solar System
View the full article
-
By NASA
1 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA’s Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy, shares highlights from the office in 2024, including key accomplishments and collaborations that support the NASA mission. Read the full report, NASA’s Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy: A Year in Review 2024
Share
Details
Last Updated Dec 18, 2024 EditorBill Keeter Related Terms
Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy (OTPS) View the full article
-
By Space Force
As the U.S. Space Force prepares to celebrate its fifth birthday, Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman reflected on the organization's remarkable journey and outlined the six core truths that shape the Guardian identity and the service’s purpose.
View the full article
-
By Space Force
Key leadership from Space Systems Command and the United States Indo-Pacific Command – U.S. Space Forces Indo-Pacific team converged Oct. 29-30, for the first-ever Space Warfighter Days conference.
View the full article
-
By NASA
Members belonging to one of three teams from Oakwood School aim their devices — armed with chocolate-coated-peanut candies — at a target during JPL’s annual Invention Challenge on Dec. 6.NASA/JPL-Caltech Teams competed with homemade devices to try to launch 50 peanut candies in 60 seconds into a target container.NASA/JPL-Caltech More points were awarded for successfully landing the candy into the highest, smallest level of the triangular Plexiglas target — not an easy task.NASA/JPL-Caltech Treats went flying through the air by the dozens at the annual Invention Challenge at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
The 25th Invention Challenge at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which welcomed more than 200 students to compete using home-built devices, was pretty sweet this year. Literally.
That’s because the challenge at the Friday, Dec. 6, competition was to construct an automated machine that would launch, within 60 seconds, 50 chocolate-coated-peanut candies over a barrier and into a triangular Plexiglas container 16 feet (5 meters) away. The mood was tense as teachers, parents, and JPL employees watched the “Peanut Candy Toss Contest” from the sidelines, some of them eating the ammunition.
Students on 21 teams from Los Angeles and Orange county middle and high schools turned to catapults, slingshots, flywheels, springs, and massive rubber bands. There was lots of PVC piping. A giant device shaped like a blue bunny shot candy out of its nose with the help of an air compressor, while other entries relied on leaf blowers and vacuums.
A team from Santa Monica High School won the 2024 Invention Challenge at JPL on Dec. 6 with a device was based on a crossbow.NASA/JPL-Caltech Some were more successful than others. Ultimately, it was an old-school design that won first place for a team from Santa Monica High School: a modified crossbow.
“I tried to come up with something that was historically tried and true,” said Steele Winterer, a senior on the team who produced the initial design. Like his teammates, Steele is in the school’s engineering program and helped build the device during class. He described the process as “nerve-wracking,” “messy,” and “disorganized,” but everyone found their role as the design was refined.
Second and third place went to teams from Oakwood School in North Hollywood, which both took a firing-line approach, using four parallel wooden devices, with one student per device firing after each other in quick succession.
Two regional Invention Challenges held at Costa Mesa High School and Augustus Hawkins High School in South L.A. last month had winnowed the field to the 21 teams invited to the final event at JPL. At the finals, three JPL-sponsored teams from out-of-state schools and two teams that included adult engineers faced off in a parallel competition. In this second competition group, retired JPL engineer Alan DeVault took first place, followed by Boston Charter School of Science coming in second, and Centaurus High School from Colorado in third.
Competing with a wooden device at the 2024 Invention Challenge, retired JPL engineer and longtime participant Alan DeVault won first place among JPL-sponsored teams, which included professionals and out-of-state students. Challenge organizer Paul MacNeal kneels at right.NASA/JPL-Caltech Held since 1998 (with a two-year break during the COVID-19 pandemic), the contest was designed by JPL mechanical engineer Paul MacNeal to inspire students to discover a love for building things and solving problems. Student teams spend months designing, constructing, and testing their devices to try to win the new challenge that MacNeal comes up with each year.
“When student teams come to the finals, they are engaged just as engineers are engaged in the work we do here at JPL,” MacNeal said. “It’s engineering for the joy of it. It’s problem-solving but it’s also team building. And it’s unique because the rules change every year. The student teams get to see JPL engineering teams compete side by side. I started this contest to show students that engineering is fun!”
The event is supported by dozens of volunteers from JPL, which is managed by Caltech in Pasadena for NASA.
News Media Contact
Melissa Pamer
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-314-4928
melissa.pamer@jpl.nasa.gov
2024-166
Share
Details
Last Updated Dec 06, 2024 Related Terms
Jet Propulsion Laboratory Explore More
5 min read NASA JPL Unveils the Dr. Edward Stone Exploration Trail
Article 5 hours ago 4 min read NASA’s C-20A Studies Extreme Weather Events
Article 2 days ago 5 min read NASA’s Europa Clipper: Millions of Miles Down, Instruments Deploying
Article 2 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
Missions
Humans in Space
Climate Change
Solar System
View the full article
-
-
Check out these Videos
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.