AFRL, SPEAR explore hearing protection and communication for NASCAR

  • Published
  • By John Schutte
  • 711th Human Performance Wing
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE --  Nestled in the Tennessee Valley, Bristol Motor Speedway accommodates 160,000 fans and 43 racecars, boasting "the world's fastest half-mile." 

The speedway is nicknamed "Thunder Valley" for a reason; it's one of the noisiest tracks on the NASCAR circuit, and it recently proved an ideal backdrop for the Air Force Research Laboratory's 711th Human Performance Wing to explore new warfighter hearing protection technology. 

Air Force Technology Transfer officials met with SPEAR Labs, LLC, representatives at Bristol on August 21, 2009 to discuss technologies being developed under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement between SPEAR Labs and the 711 HPW's Human Effectiveness Directorate.

Ms. Cynthia Gonsalves, Office of the Secretary of Defense/Office of Technology Transition director, and Mr. Augustine Vu, Air Force Small Business Innovation Research program manager, met with Mr. John Thornton, co-owner of SPEAR Labs, a small business that is developing communication and hearing protection technologies for improved situation awareness for the modern warfighter.
 
Ms. Gonsalves, who also oversees the DoD Technology Transfer program, believes collaborative technology development efforts such as these make good economic sense and bolster both private and military research efforts. 

"It was a pleasure to meet the folks from SPEAR Labs," Ms. Gonsalves said. "They certainly appear dedicated to providing a quality product."
 
At Bristol, SPEAR Labs highlighted commercial applications of technologies developed for the Air Force under the CRADA. These next generation technologies--which incorporate Active Noise Reduction as well as deep-insert custom-molded hearing protection and communication applications--will not only benefit the warfighter, but will have various commercial applications, including motorsports, Mr. Thornton said.
 
Air Force and SPEAR researchers want to see if the technology that was successfully developed for battlefield hearing protection and communications can work for NASCAR drivers who also operate in extremely noisy conditions.
 
"Forty cars were rolling by and I could barely hear them," said Ms. Gonsalves, who wore an earlier version of the technology. "However, I could hear the radio conversations clearly and distinctly." 

Beyond racing and military applications, the technology may also have excellent potential in the first responder community such as medical evacuation applications, according to SPEAR Labs. 

"Small companies, like SPEAR Labs, have worked very hard to collaborate with the Air Force through Technology Transfer mechanisms," Mr. Vu said. "Ideally, these relationships also could be leveraged and tied more closely to the SBIR/STTR programs, ultimately speeding the transition of technologies into the hands of the warfighter." 

"Innovative small companies like SPEAR can move very fast in the research-and-development cycle and deliver outstanding products for the Warfighter," added Mr. John Hall, a research audiologist in the 711 HPW's Warfighter Interface Division, Battlespace Acoustics Branch, who set up the CRADA with SPEAR to investigate new helmet-mounted noise reduction technologies. "Plus, their experience with NASCAR enables another perspective on working in hazardous noise environments."
 
SPEAR Labs works with industrial, motorsports, aviation, and aerospace customers to develop, prototype, test and manufacture highly ruggedized equipment. Mr. Thornton also owns Racing Radios, a leading developer for two-way communications in the racing industry, providing equipment and support for drivers, teams, and NASCAR officials. 

Ms. Gonsalves and Mr. Vu also met Lt. Gen. Larry D. James, Commander, 14th Air Force (Air Forces Strategic), Air Force Space Command, and Commander, Joint Functional Component Command for Space, U.S. Strategic Command, who was attending as part of the Air Force sponsorship of NASCAR; and Mr. Reed Sorenson, driver of the Air Force sponsored car, and his crew. 

--Mr. Brian Patrick also contributed to this story