Success Stories
UAV-based Lightning Research
Despite considerable research in the field of atmospheric science, the mechanism of lightning initiation inside thunderstorm clouds is not fully understood. In 2009, DARPA initiated the NIMBUS program, which sought ideas to study lightning processes and obtain a better understanding of the phenomenon. QFS's concept was to incorporate electric potential sensors and data acquisition units into a small, cheap UAV that would fly into storms on autopilot or guided from a safe location on the ground. The low cost nature of the system means... Read more »
Airborne EM Sensing Pods
The US Dept. of Defense has an ongoing need to detect and locate hand-held signal emitters such as radios, walkie-talkies and cellphones from airborne platforms. Currently available systems can identify the direction signals are coming from, but locating the signal source generally requires measurements from multiple locations, resulting in high costs and operational challenges. QFS developed, built and tested a variety of sensing “pods” that can be mounted on aircraft and are capable of locating the source of a signal with only one measurement...Read more »
Electrostatic Sensor
If you've ever gotten a "zap" from a metal doorknob on a dry day, you've experienced electrostatic discharge (ESD). This type of electric charge is created by movement and friction and even a small discharge can trigger explosions. This problem is of particular concern to NASA, given the large amounts of explosive fuel involved in many of its operations... Working with Kennedy Space Center, QFS developed an electrostatic sensing system under SBIR funding. The system is configurable into a wearable modality to detect hazards near workers, a fixed version for mounting at entry points to screen workers entering manufacturing “clean rooms” to make sure they are not carrying electronics-killing charges,... Read More »