Date: Mar 09, 2004 Source: Company Data (
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The Department of Homeland Security confirmed today that it has selected The Right Stuff of Tahoe for a $100K grant. The northern Nevada high-tech firm will develop a new generation of computerized, secure sensors and controllers for critical infrastructure. Applications include electric power grids, networks, and pipelines that transport gas, oil, and water.
Dr. Laurence E. LaForge, President of The Right Stuff of Tahoe, is principal investigator for the project: "Crypto-Secure Remote Terminal Unit for New and Retrofit Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition". Dr. LaForge is a graduate of MIT and McGill University. He is also an adjunct professor of Computer Science and Mathematics with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. The submission responds to the Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security, in its most recent solicitation for Small Business Innovative Research, commonly known as SBIR.
"The SBIR program is extremely competitive," Dr. LaForge said, "and I am grateful for the superb collaboration of my Chief Operating Officer, Mr. James Turner. This grant enables us commercialize results from our NASA-sponsored research on interstellar spacecraft supercomputers: 'Architectures and Algorithms for Self-Healing Autonomous Spacecraft'. In addition, our work with Homeland Security will synergistically dovetail with our ongoing research in ad hoc mobile networks, sponsored by the Secretary of Defense." In early December of 2003, The Right Stuff of Tahoe signed a six-month $100K Phase 1 SBIR contract with the Air Force Research Laboratory, acting on behalf of DoD, for "Voronoi-Hamming Algorithms for Optimizing Channel Selection From the Radio Frequency Transmission Hypercube".
"Credit Mr. Myron Hecht for his contributions to the initial concept," Dr. LaForge continued. "We are furthermore privileged to tap the expertise of a recognized leader in secure industrial automation, Mr. Dale Peterson. We are also fortunate to draw on the considerable experience and proven track record of Mr. Chris Kurtz." Mr. Hecht is presently with the Aerospace Corporation, of El Segundo, California. Mr. Kurtz is President of CIS Technology, based in Reno.
The relatively new Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency (HSARPA) will administer Phase 1 SBIR's for the topic under which the grant falls: "Advanced Secure Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) and Related Distributed Control Systems". HSARPA challenged high-tech firms to develop innovative concepts for efficiently protecting infrastructure against terrorist threats, while at the same time maintaining the convenience and cost savings of remote sensors and actuators.
The Right Stuff of Tahoe answered with a proposal for a Crypto-Secure, Modular, Remote Terminal Unit (CMRTU). As described, the low-cost device "will provide both a secure gateway function and secure Internet protocols for interaction with either central monitoring station SCADA display systems, or with web-based operator interfaces".
The $100K Phase 1 grant is for a six-month period of work, with Phase 2 possibilities of up to $750K, spanning 24 months. For SBIR Phase 3, companies make the transition to commercial products with self-sustaining revenue. The Nevada SBIR Outreach Program (www.nsbdc.org) provides information and support to small businesses statewide.
The Right Stuff of Tahoe also makes and sells computer programs that create and read digital stationery, using standard inks and stock paper. Employing high-density bar codes in novel ways, the RightCardWare™ family of software prints and scans digital business cards for more than 6000 customers.
