Description: This SBIR project focuses on design, fabrication, and testing of textile based strain sensors to measure the health of structural softgoods elements. In Phase I Paragon iterated through dozens of sensor configurations and down-selected to a single embroidered configuration with exceptional linear and cyclical trends. The Phase II effort will include further iteration of the down-selected design configuration to optimize for repeatability and manufacturability. Iteration and testing will utilize a dead-weight system to inform further configurations and include long duration testing of at least 1 month. Phase II will integrate conductive traces directly into the webbing to minimize wiring needed across a structure. The SWISS Phase II effort will develop a software and electronics interface to multiplex an array of sensors, giving simple usable data output. Paragon will design and build a subscale inflatable test article, deploy the SWISS sensors on the article, and test/evaluate the system in a relevant environment of plain-woven restraint lines under constant load over a multi-week evaluation. The culminating test will utilize optical tracking to evaluate the sensor performance. Deliverables will include the actual test article for NASA evaluation and a single-strand sensor, as well as the detailed reports therein.

Benefits: Space industry applications include inflatable structures, space suits, robotic systems, and crew and cargo restraint systems. Inflatable habitats: NASA and commercial companies are working towards “Lunar permanence” and increased inhabited space habitats in the next decade. This entails significant development and deployment of inflatable structures in space and on the moon, for example. Paragon’s SWISS technology is well positioned to play a critical role in ensuring the safety of these habitats..

Our technology could make a large impact in a host of applications including the lifting and rigging industry, high-altitude balloons, safety harnesses, parachutes, machinery/bulk transport, and even automobile seatbelts. This proposal goes into greater detail regarding the size of market, the potential for each application and the path forward.