Description: The Interdisciplinary Consulting Corporation (IC2), in partnership with OptiNav, Inc., proposes to develop advanced phased-array instrumentation and processing capabilities for aircraft engine-inlet measurements. High channel-count, high-density, reduced cost-per-channel microphone arrays, using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) piezoelectric microphones with backside contacts and advanced packaging technology, will be integrated into model-scale inlet design/build efforts to revolutionize engine-inlet phased-array measurement capabilities through increases in array density and channel count while significantly reducing the cost per channel. These measurement advances will be coupled with development of advanced array processing techniques to take full advantage of the enhanced measurement capabilities, including handling of the three-dimensional (3D) problem associated with nonuniform inlet geometries. This proposed technology is in response to the NASA SBIR 2022 Phase I solicitation subtopic A1.02 Quiet Performance – Aircraft Propulsion Noise where “improvements in propulsion noise prediction, diagnostics, and reduction are needed for subsonic and supersonic aircraft.” This work is aimed at addressing the aerospace industry’s need for technically feasible and economically viable engine-inlet array-measurement capabilities that enable required noise diagnostic capabilities including characterization of in-duct noise source spatial and temporal content.

Benefits: The proposed instrumentation technology has the potential to be usable in multiple NASA facilities as well as implemented across government-owned, industry and academic institution test facilities. Potential NASA applications include use in nonuniform inlets such as the Source Diagnostic Test (SDT) inlet and non-axisymmetric inlets such as those on the Boundary Layer Ingestion (BLI) propulsion concept and the X-59 QueSST aircraft used in the Low Boom Demonstration Project.

The technology has applications for nonuniform inlets such as DARPA's Quiet Supersonic Platform. The emerging urban air mobility (UAM) market is a key target for the proposed technology. Additional possible customers include aircraft manufacturers and engine developers for aerospace or industrial applications.