SBIR Phase II: Adaptable Ad Hoc Network Architecture for Rapid Infrastructure Development in Disaster Zones

SBIR 第二阶段：用于灾区快速基础设施开发的适应性 Ad Hoc 网络架构

• 批准号: 2322049
• 负责人: Mateo Abascal
• 金额: $ 99.99万
• 依托单位: BEAMLINK, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Cooperative Agreement
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-12-01 至 2025-11-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2322049&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; II; Adaptable; Ad

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project reduces the cost and complexity of building modern cellular networks. In grave emergencies such as natural or manmade disasters, and in rural areas where infrastructure for Internet access is limited, one of the largest barriers to digital access is the cost and complexity of building cellular networks. Cellular networks are relied upon everyday by millions of Americans to communicate with others, conduct business, work together, access healthcare and information resources, and power the economy through Point of Sale (PoS) devices, utility meters and transportation infrastructure. Loss of these cellular networks constitutes a major disruption in life, an example being Hurricane Maria that struck Puerto Rico in 2017 and created a massive island-wide communications blackout that lasted several weeks. Even in normal times, the lack of high-speed Internet sets communities back. According to the U.S. Census in 2020, more than 12% of households across the nation's 50 states do not have internet access. As digital infrastructure is upgraded to 5G and even 6G, cellular base station technology is more expensive, requires expertise to configure, and widening the digital divide. This project will combat these problems. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will create new cellular base station technology (the equipment that provides cellular signals) to decentralize cellular networks and make them easier to establish. Compared to current solutions, this project will reduce the cost to set up new cellular networks, by at least an order of magnitude compared to existing networks. The technology will reduce the deployment time and enable individuals with no training to easily set up a large network, even if no infrastructure exists. The cellular infrastructure increases the reliability resulting from the use of a mesh network to communicate and transfer data between base stations. The research objectives of this project are to develop integrated digital and radiofrequency (RF) circuitry and the enclosure for a production-ready base station device reducing the cost by 2.5x and the weight by 2x. In addition, the objectives are to develop a high-performance amplifier to allow the base station to operate on any band at higher power up to 1 W peak output, implement telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) communication ability for the radio and amplifier, implement a spectrum access system, and design a phased array antenna to increase the link budget by up to 18 dBi for the mesh network.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）II期项目降低了建立现代蜂窝网络的成本和复杂性。在诸如自然或人造灾难之类的严重紧急情况下，在互联网访问基础设施的农村地区，数字通道的最大障碍之一是建立蜂窝网络的成本和复杂性。每天数百万美国人每天都依靠蜂窝网络与他人进行交流，进行业务，共同努力，访问医疗保健和信息资源，并通过销售点（POS）设备，公用事业电表和运输基础设施为经济提供动力。这些蜂窝网络的丧失构成了生活中的重大破坏，一个例子是玛丽亚飓风，在2017年袭击了波多黎各，并造成了一个巨大的岛屿范围内的通讯停电，持续了数周。即使在正常的时期，缺乏高速互联网也会恢复社区。根据2020年美国人口普查，全国50个州中有超过12％的家庭无法获得互联网。由于数字基础架构已升级到5G甚至6G，因此蜂窝基站技术更昂贵，需要配置并扩大数字鸿沟的专业知识。该项目将解决这些问题。这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第二阶段项目将创建新的蜂窝基站技术（提供蜂窝信号的设备），以使蜂窝网络分散并使其易于建立。与当前的解决方案相比，与现有网络相比，该项目将至少将建立新的蜂窝网络的成本降低至少一个数量级。 该技术将减少部署时间，即使不存在基础设施，也没有培训的个人轻松建立大型网络。细胞基础架构提高了使用网络网络在基站之间通信和传输数据所产生的可靠性。该项目的研究目标是开发集成的数字和射频电路（RF）电路，以及用于生产就绪的基础站设备的围栏，将成本降低2.5倍，重量降低了2倍。此外，目标是开发高性能放大器，以使基站在任何较高功率上以高达1 W的峰值输出在任何频段上运行，实施聋（TDD）的电信设备（TDD）的沟通能力，为无线电和娱乐器，实现频谱访问系统，并通过phaste and Natna的链接型号来实现频谱访问的链接，以提高链接的预算，以提高MYSH的链接Netfors。使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的审查标准，通过评估被认为值得支持。