Foster-Miller
Encyclopedia
Foster-Miller, Inc., is a United States
based military robotics
manufacturer, a division of the United Kingdom
's QinetiQ North America
. Its two best-known products are TALON robots and LAST Armor.
Founded and based in Waltham, Massachusetts
, it has offices in Washington, D.C.
, Albany, New York
, and near Boston. Foster-Miller became a wholly owned subsidiary of QinetiQ in 2004.
Foster-Miller has about 300 members of staff skilled in aeronautical engineering, administration, chemical engineer
ing, chemistry
, physics
, civil engineer
ing, electrical engineering, mathematics
, statistics
, mechanical engineering, metallurgy
, polymer
s, polymerization
, electromechanical engineering
.
Foster-Miller works in the fields of robotics, advanced materials, sensors, custom machinery, medical device design, biopharmaceuticals, C4ISR and transportation. It has been awarded the aerospace quality management standard AS9100
(6 January 2006) and SW-CMM Level 3
software certification (9 February 2006) and ISO 13485 for medical device design and development.
-based robotics companies, Applied Perception Inc. and Automatika Inc. for up to $9.2 million US dollars each http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/04/23/afx3639809.html. Automatika provides design, system prototyping, and product manufacturing for robotic systems. Applied Perception creates standardized perception, planning, and control software for unmanned ground vehicles. http://www.fostermiller.com/pressreleases/FMI_Buys_AandA.htm
On 8 September 2004 Foster-Miller was acquired by QinetiQ North America for $163 million US dollars. QinetiQ is an offshoot of the UK's DERA
, which is Europe
's largest science and technology company with a revenue of over $2.2 billion in the 2008 financial year. The acquisition was finalized on 9 November 2004, with Foster-Miller remaining an independent wholly owned subsidiary.
In August, 2005, QinetiQ bought Planning Systems Inc. Planning Systems Inc has some 350 employees with interest in diversified advanced technology.
s and Velcro
/Raychem (heat-shrink tubing)
molding machines. They developed ballistic nets in the 1990s and overhead/underground power line, underground piping, and nuclear steam generator maintenance robots ("guided mole").
In 2003–2004 Foster-Miller earned more than $100 million dollars.
In conjunction with Carbon Nanotechnologies, Inc. the company produces a new generation of aircraft sealants based on Single Wall Nanotube
(SWNT) technology. This contract on October 26, 2004 was worth $3,960,000 and was awarded by the Office of Naval Research
in Washington, D.C.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
based military robotics
Robotics
Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, structural disposition, manufacture and application of robots...
manufacturer, a division of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's QinetiQ North America
QinetiQ
Qinetiq is a British global defence technology company, formed from the greater part of the former UK government agency, Defence Evaluation and Research Agency , when it was split up in June 2001...
. Its two best-known products are TALON robots and LAST Armor.
Founded and based in Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, was an early center for the labor movement, and major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning,...
, it has offices in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, and near Boston. Foster-Miller became a wholly owned subsidiary of QinetiQ in 2004.
Foster-Miller has about 300 members of staff skilled in aeronautical engineering, administration, chemical engineer
Chemical engineer
In the field of engineering, a chemical engineer is the profession in which one works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of products, and deals with the design and operation of plants and equipment to perform such work...
ing, chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
ing, electrical engineering, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, statistics
Statistics
Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....
, mechanical engineering, metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
, polymer
Polymer
A polymer is a large molecule composed of repeating structural units. These subunits are typically connected by covalent chemical bonds...
s, polymerization
Polymerization
In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form three-dimensional networks or polymer chains...
, electromechanical engineering
Electromechanics
In engineering, electromechanics combines the sciences of electromagnetism, of electrical engineering and mechanics. Mechanical engineering in this context refers to the larger discipline which includes chemical engineering, and other related disciplines. Electrical engineering in this context...
.
Foster-Miller works in the fields of robotics, advanced materials, sensors, custom machinery, medical device design, biopharmaceuticals, C4ISR and transportation. It has been awarded the aerospace quality management standard AS9100
AS9100
AS9100 is a widely adopted and standardized quality management system for the aerospace industry.It was released in October, 1999, by the Society of Automotive Engineers and the European Association of Aerospace Industries....
(6 January 2006) and SW-CMM Level 3
Capability Maturity Model
The Capability Maturity Model is a development model that was created after study of data collected from organizations that contracted with the U.S. Department of Defense, who funded the research. This model became the foundation from which CMU created the Software Engineering Institute...
software certification (9 February 2006) and ISO 13485 for medical device design and development.
Mergers/acquisitions
On 23 April 2007 Foster-Miller announced the acquisition of two PittsburghPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
-based robotics companies, Applied Perception Inc. and Automatika Inc. for up to $9.2 million US dollars each http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/04/23/afx3639809.html. Automatika provides design, system prototyping, and product manufacturing for robotic systems. Applied Perception creates standardized perception, planning, and control software for unmanned ground vehicles. http://www.fostermiller.com/pressreleases/FMI_Buys_AandA.htm
On 8 September 2004 Foster-Miller was acquired by QinetiQ North America for $163 million US dollars. QinetiQ is an offshoot of the UK's DERA
DERA
DERA may refer as an abbreviation or acronym to:*Defence Evaluation and Research Agency*Downtown Eastside Residents Association – in Vancouver, British Columbia*Direct Epitope Recognition Assay*Disaster preparedness and Emergency Response Association...
, which is Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
's largest science and technology company with a revenue of over $2.2 billion in the 2008 financial year. The acquisition was finalized on 9 November 2004, with Foster-Miller remaining an independent wholly owned subsidiary.
In August, 2005, QinetiQ bought Planning Systems Inc. Planning Systems Inc has some 350 employees with interest in diversified advanced technology.
History
It is difficult to find information relating to Foster-Miller's earliest years, but its recent performance is well documented and quite extensive. Some of the earliest developments were in jet spray dispensers in vending machineVending machine
A vending machine is a machine which dispenses items such as snacks, beverages, alcohol, cigarettes, lottery tickets, consumer products and even gold and gems to customers automatically, after the customer inserts currency or credit into the machine....
s and Velcro
Velcro
Velcro is the brand name of the first commercially marketed fabric hook-and-loop fastener, invented in 1948 by the Swiss electrical engineer George de Mestral...
/Raychem (heat-shrink tubing)
Heat-shrink tubing
Heat shrink tubing is a mechanically expanded extruded plastic tube ordinarily made of nylon or polyolefin, which shrinks when heated in an effort to return to the original relaxed diameter as when it was extruded...
molding machines. They developed ballistic nets in the 1990s and overhead/underground power line, underground piping, and nuclear steam generator maintenance robots ("guided mole").
- 1995: A computer model was created for crash testing rail equipment, this allows the company to recommend ways to improve railroad crash safety through improved designs. A 465 square meter locomotive testing facility was built in Fitchburg, MassachusettsFitchburg, MassachusettsFitchburg is the third largest city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,318 at the 2010 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private elementary and high schools.- History :...
. The facility was full scale and allowed testing of 40,000 pound (18,150 kg/18 ton) locomotiveLocomotiveA locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s. When computer design/testing is complete and the designs are tested at their Fitchburg facility they are then tested at the government locomotive testing facility at Pueblo, ColoradoPueblo, ColoradoPueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....
.
- 2001: NASA and Foster-Miller were in the process of creating a model called "integrated advanced dynamic finite element modeling" to improve aircraft seat designs during crashes. The model included the seat, its occupants, restraints, energy absorbing materials. The model was being tested against existing designs to establish its ability to analyze designs.
- Mid 2003: 20 Foster-Miller TALONFoster-Miller TALONThe Foster-Miller TALON robot is a small, tracked military robot designed for missions ranging from reconnaissance to combat. Over 3000 TALON robots have been deployed to combat theaters. -Overview:...
robotRobotA robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s were brought into IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
to be used in EOD/IOD roles. In March 2004 Foster-Miller was awarded two more contracts jointly worth around $6,000,000. The contract awarded by the Technical Support Working Group and the Joint Program Office for Robotics increased the number of TALONs in Iraq to 45 and includes providing spare parts. In September 2004 news is released of the creation of a TALON with chemical, gas, temperature, and radiation sensors. The contract was increased further to $27 Million (shipped November 5, 2004) and then on September 19, 2005 to $124 Million to produce 1200+ TALONs in their now multi-dimensional roles.
- 2003 September 8: They received a $25 million contract with the Naval Air Systems Command in Lakehurst, New JerseyLakehurst, New JerseyLakehurst is a Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 2,654.Lakehurst was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 7, 1921, from portions of Manchester Township, based on the results of a...
to develop a robotic weapons loader for aircraft; the payment included developing the units and building facilities to provide them. The contract was in conjunction with MIT Field and Space Robotics Lab to create the model of the finished product and new designs for transmissionsTransmission (mechanics)A machine consists of a power source and a power transmission system, which provides controlled application of the power. Merriam-Webster defines transmission as: an assembly of parts including the speed-changing gears and the propeller shaft by which the power is transmitted from an engine to a...
and electric motors to be able to do the jobs with little down time.
- 2003 November 14: They received a contract to build composite components to be used in building F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet fighters and Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV). The contract is to develop these new components in 5 years with funding of $4,200,000 US: "This award is a true product of government-industry collaboration, ... Under the guidance of NAVAIR engineers and our aerospace company partners, our composites team has brought forth technology which will enable an enormous reduction in labor and the number of manufacturing operations associated with the production of stiffening elements. This will enable faster production of composite stiffeners that are of consistent quality and durability, resulting in a significant cost reduction for the end product." said Jay Boyce, Senior Vice President of Foster-Miller.
- 2004 January: A section of Foster-Miller called LAST Armor worked with Sioux Manufacturing, and Velcro USA, Inc. to manufacture a ceramicCeramicA ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
door armor for the US MarinesUnited States Marine CorpsThe United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. This armor was designed for Humvees to protect against EODEODEOD may refer to:* Explosive Ordnance Disposal, the disposal of bombs* End Of Day, a financial markets term* Evolve Or Die, A Political Party, started in Montana, with the beliefs that humanity must move forward or die out...
s, IEDImprovised explosive deviceAn improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
s, and small arms. The armor when damaged could be detached from the proprietary Velcro hook fastener system and using the tools included in the repair pack would allow new panels to be easily attached. This means that soldiers in the field do not need any tools, cutting, welding, and drilling to repair their vehicles.
- 2004: Foster-Miller was working on the StingrayStingrayThe stingrays are a group of rays, which are cartilaginous fishes related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes, and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae , Plesiobatidae , Urolophidae , Urotrygonidae , Dasyatidae , Potamotrygonidae The...
boat trapping net, the net carried by a helicopterHelicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
would be carried over its target and dropped. The target vessel would then be entangled in the falling net damaging the boats motor(s). The net was originally in development for the United States Coast GuardUnited States Coast GuardThe United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
. In May however they were awarded a contract to work with Metal Storm to design and develop ship based defenses to counteract sea-skimming cruise missiles, small fast attack suicide bombing boats. The system, termed "Thunder and Lightning", uses Metal Storms concentrated bullet weapons fire ("thunder") with Foster-Millers Stingray incapacitating nets ("lightning"). http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/feature/story/0,13026,1261135,00.html
In 2003–2004 Foster-Miller earned more than $100 million dollars.
- 2004 May: NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
awarded Foster-Miller with the Turning Goals into Reality award an award for "the most significant accomplishments in FY 2003 contributing towards NASA’s goals and objectives in aerospace technology.". Foster-Miller gained the award for its proprietary development of ultrasonic tape lamination (UTL(TM)). Using this method in conjunction with Northrop GrummanNorthrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
, Alliant Tech Systems (ATK), NASA Langley Research CenterLangley Research CenterLangley Research Center is the oldest of NASA's field centers, located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It directly borders Poquoson, Virginia and Langley Air Force Base...
, and NASA Marshall Space Flight CenterMarshall Space Flight CenterThe George C. Marshall Space Flight Center is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center. The largest center of NASA, MSFC's first mission was developing the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo moon program...
they created a compositeComposite materialComposite materials, often shortened to composites or called composition materials, are engineered or naturally occurring materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties which remain separate and distinct at the macroscopic or...
cryotank. The ultrasonicUltrasoundUltrasound is cyclic sound pressure with a frequency greater than the upper limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is thus not separated from "normal" sound based on differences in physical properties, only the fact that humans cannot hear it. Although this limit varies from person to person, it is...
technique allows composite parts to be manufactured that are equal to autoclaving components, which is expensive for large parts. Foster-Miller believe that this technique will be instrumental in the development of composite fuel tanks for NASA's next generation of reusable launch vehicle (RLV)Reusable launch systemA reusable launch system is a launch system which is capable of launching a launch vehicle into space more than once. This contrasts with expendable launch systems, where each launch vehicle is launched once and then discarded.No true orbital reusable launch system is currently in use. The...
.
In conjunction with Carbon Nanotechnologies, Inc. the company produces a new generation of aircraft sealants based on Single Wall Nanotube
Carbon nanotube
Carbon nanotubes are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material...
(SWNT) technology. This contract on October 26, 2004 was worth $3,960,000 and was awarded by the Office of Naval Research
Office of Naval Research
The Office of Naval Research , headquartered in Arlington, Virginia , is the office within the United States Department of the Navy that coordinates, executes, and promotes the science and technology programs of the U.S...
in Washington, D.C.
- At the end of 2003 the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)Federal Railroad AdministrationThe Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...
was trying to expand its abilities for crash testing locomotives and their fire safety standards. Foster-Miller were given a $9,000,000 US contract to perform testing at their facilities at Fitchburg. At the start of 2006 an additional $1.5 million dollars from federal transportation appropriations funds is awarded. This was given for "Advanced Freight Locomotive Research" including advanced sensors, safety, and hazard research.
External links
- http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2004/03/01/daily12.html - NASA Grant.
- http://www.foster-miller.com - Main Website.
- http://www.QinetiQ.com - Parent Company.
- http://sbir.gsfc.nasa.gov/SBIR/abstracts/01-2.html - Improved Crashworthy Aircraft Seat Design.
- http://www.tmcnet.com/scripts/print-page.aspx?PagePrint=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tmcnet.com%2Fusubmit%2F2004%2Fmay%2F1040809.htm - shipboard weapons systems.
- http://www.armedforces-int.com/categories/armored-vehicle-armor/last-armor.asp - More information on the ceramic armor mentioned in history.
- http://www.plansys.com - Planning Systems Inc.