Reconfigurable Environmentally Aware Computing Technology for Earth Observing Systems (7284-060), Phase I

Over the past decade, many research groups have developed reconfigurable computing systems built from Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) for on-board processing of remote sensing data. Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) proposes to exploit the run-time reconfiguration capabilities of SRAM-based FPGAs to demonstrate an innovative extension to the current state-of-the-art -- an autonomous, adaptive digital signal processor. PSI?s Reconfigurable Environmentally Aware Computing Technology (REACT) will automatically customize applications executing on a reconfigurable FPGA processing system based on external inputs. In Phase I, we will validate the REACT concept by processing images from a digital video camera with a variable-precision 2D integer wavelet transform in a Xilinx Virtex-II FPGA. Wavelet transforms enable image data compression with dynamically tunable compression ratios. Quantization of the filter coefficients will be controlled by a master state machine with inputs from a GPS receiver and PSI?s SEU Alarm, a compact sensor that monitors the surrounding environment for radiation hazards. Furthermore, PSI will develop a Phase II system design capable of performing a full-scale demonstration using hyperspectral imagery.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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