SBIR-STTR Award

Augmentir's AI & AR Powered Connected Worker platform optimizes maintenance to improve readiness
Award last edited on: 11/8/2023

Sponsored Program
SBIR
Awarding Agency
DOD : AF
Total Award Amount
$799,950
Award Phase
2
Solicitation Topic Code
AF211-DCSO1
Principal Investigator
Russell Fadel

Company Information

Augmentir Inc

425 Caredean Drive
Horsham, PA 19044
   (831) 293-8037
   N/A
   www.augmentir.com
Location: Single
Congr. District: 01
County: Montgomery

Phase I

Contract Number: FA8649-20-P-0763
Start Date: 3/9/2020    Completed: 6/9/2020
Phase I year
2020
Phase I Amount
$50,000
Augmentir’s Connected Worker Platform (ACWP) is the first Artificial Intelligence-based Connected Worker Platform that helps empower service and manufacturing workers to perform their jobs with higher quality and increased productivity while driving continuous improvement across the organization. The platform provides a unique approach to authoring and running augmented, step-by-step work procedures that not only guide workers through their tasks more effectively but also enables organizations to non-intrusively capture data on how tasks are being performed. Augmentir’s embedded AI engine uses that data to develop unique insights that help organizations quickly identify where opportunities for improvement exist. From service to assembly instructions to training, certification, compliance documentation, and quality assurance, Augmentir provides transformational value across a range of industrial use cases. Using ACWP, USAF maintainers will be able to improve productivity and quality through the use of personalized, proficiency-based work procedures that guide workers with contextual information, thus improving overall worker effectiveness. It also promotes Knowledge Sharing by creating a centralized mindshare and building a knowledge-base for training and organizational improvement. Quality Assurance (QA) and Compliance checkpoints are an extremely important aspect of aviation maintenance. Our ACWP enables digital QA signoffs, data capture, and an automatically generated audit trail. Augmentir delivers more effective training with in-line and last-minute training that fills knowledge gaps and results in better retention. AI-based recommendations improve overall maintenance effectiveness. The use of ACWP drives and accelerates organization-wide continuous improvement and supports digital transformation of the organization and activities associated with maintainers’ duties and responsibilities. Use Case studies with current ACWP users, STRONGARM, BioChem and HOLT-CAT have produced extremely positive results. As an example, BioChem concluded that “Augmentir has made our complex procedures very repeatable for operators of all skill levels. As a result, our training time for new operators has been reduced by over 80%.” STRONGARM cited a direct, observable

Benefit:
“We lost a senior technician but ACWP was able to upskill a junior person to avoid missing shipments” The ACWP's AI engine, cleanses, pipelines and labels all operational data and automatically delivers the following outcomes: 1) Proficiency ratings on all tasks performed be every worker - enabling us to deliver instructions that are matched to the capability of each worker 2) Stack Ranked list of the largest capturable productivity opportunities across the organization and insights on how to capture them 3) Training Insights - identifying what training opportunities will produce the highest productivity impact. These enable the most productive workforce and one that improves over time.

Phase II

Contract Number: FA8649-21-P-1542
Start Date: 8/5/2021    Completed: 11/9/2022
Phase II year
2021
Phase II Amount
$749,950
Augmentir’s software platform will be utilized to drive innovation and readiness within the USAF’s maintenance organization. Augmentir’s software will utilize artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR) to enable Air Force maintainers to inspect, troubleshoot, and repair more efficiently. The solution will deliver improvements across several areas, including: Productivity and quality – Augmentir’s AR-based digital work instructions help to increase the accuracy and consistency of routine maintenance and inspection procedures; Knowledge sharing – Augmentir’s technology helps to centralize mindshare and build a knowledge base for training and organizational improvement; QA and compliance – Digital QA sign offs, data capture, and automatically generated audit trail documentation ensure compliance; Training and workforce development – Augmentir’s platform enables In-line and “moment of need” training, helping to fill knowledge gaps for better skills retention. Al-based recommendations can also suggest both individual and organization-wide actions to improve overall maintenance effectiveness.