Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Contracts Management Office (CMO), 3701 N. Fairfax Dr., Arlington VA 22203-1714

A -- SMART MODULES SOL BAA 96-38 DUE 112296 POC E.C. Urban, DARPA/ETO, FAX: (703) 696-2206. PROGRAM OBJECTIVE AND DESCRIPTION: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting proposals for research and development of Smart Modules technologies. Approaches that provide demonstration plans are of particular interest. Specifically excluded are research efforts that primarily result in evolutionary improvements to the present state-of-the-art. The goal of this program is to develop Smart Modules that can be used to enhance military personal and/or team performance. Smart Modules are defined as miniature electronics modules that contain integrated sensing, computational, and communications or display components. Possible applications are modules that can be embedded into portable systems, modules that can form small distributed networks, or modules that can be worn on the body. The approach is to seek innovative technology ideas that offer significant added value to the current practice. Successful proposals will use novel technology to achieve substantial enhancements to equipment size, weight, performance, safety, reliability, power consumption and/or cost or offer new ways of computing, communicating, sensing, or displaying information. Strong and frequent interaction with the intended users of Smart Modules will be built into the program. This interaction is necessary to assure that the proposed functionality makes sense in an operational environment and to allow critical user feedback to influence the design and development process. Proposals should take into account the fact that this interaction along with several field demonstrations will require frequent travel. DARPA seeks innovative proposals in the following areas: (1) Module Development, and (2) System Integration. Module development should result in an end product that can be demonstrated in an application. Module developers are encouraged to cooperate with a system integrator. At least one system demonstration will occur with selected applications. Additional information on these technical areas is provided in the Areas of Interest Section of the BAA 96-38 Proposer Information Pamphlet described below. PROGRAM SCOPE: Multiple awards totalling approximately $20 million over three years are expected to be made during FY 97. Collaborative efforts/teaming and cost sharing are encouraged. The technical POC for this effort is Mr. E. C. Urban, fax: (703) 696-2206, electronic mail: eurban@darpa.mil. GENERAL INFORMATION: Proposers must obtain a pamphlet, BAA 96-38 Proposer Information Pamphlet, which provides further information on areas of interest, the submission, evaluation, and funding processes, proposal abstract formats, proposal formats, and other general information. This pamphlet may be obtained by fax, electronic mail, or mail request to the administrative contact address given below. Proposals not meeting the format described in the pamphlet may not be reviewed. In order to minimize unnecessary effort in proposal preparation and review, proposers are strongly encouraged to submit proposal abstracts in advance of full proposals. An original and five (5) copies of the proposal abstract must be submitted to DARPA/ETO, 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714 (ATTN: BAA 96-38) on or before 4:00 PM Monday, September 30, 1996. Proposal abstracts received after this time and date may not be reviewed. Upon review, DARPA will provide written feedback on the likelihood of a full proposal being selected and the time and date for submission of a full proposal. Proposers not submitting proposal abstracts must submit an original and five (5) copies of the full proposal to DARPA/ETO, 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714 (ATTN.: BAA 96-38) on or before 4:00 PM Friday November 22, 1996, in order to be considered. This notice, in conjunction with the BAA 96-38 Proposer Information Pamphlet constitutes the total BAA. No additional information is available, nor will a formal RFP or other solicitation regarding this announcement be issued. Requests for the same will be disregarded. The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received. All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Governments's needs may submit a proposal which shall be considered by DARPA. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and Minority Institutions (MI) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals, however, no portion of this BAA will be set aside for HBCU and MI participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete or severable areas of research in smart module technologies. All administrative correspondence and questions on this solicitation, including requests for information on how to submit a proposal abstract or full proposal to this BAA, should be directed to one of the administrative addresses below, e-mail or fax is preferred. DARPA intends to use electronic mail and fax for correspondence regarding BAA 96-38. Proposals and proposal abstracts may not be submitted by fax or e-mail, any so sent will be disregarded. DARPA encourages use of the World Wide Web (WWW) for retrieving the Proposal Information Pamphlet and any other related information that may subsequently be provided. EVALUATION CRITERIA: Evaluation of proposal abstracts and full proposals will be accomplished through a technical review of each proposal using the following criteria, which are listed in descending order of relative importance: (l) overall scientific and technical merit. (2) potential contribution and relevance to DARPA mission, (3) plans and capability to accomplish technology transition and commercialization, (4) offeror's capabilities and related experience, and (5) cost realism. Note: cost realism will only be significant in proposals which have significantly under or over-estimated the cost to complete their effort. The administrative addresses for this BAA are: Fax: (703) 351-8616 (Addressed to: DARPA/ETO, BAA 96-38), Electronic Mail: BAA96-38@darpa.mil, Mail: DARPA/ETO, Attn: BAA 96-38, 3701 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714. This announcement and the Proposer Information Pamphlet may be retrieved via the WWW at URL http://www.darpa.mil/ in the solicitations area. 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