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

A -- RF TAGS PROGRAM SOL BAA 98-20 DUE 032798 POC Dr. Mark McHenry, DARPA/TTO, FAX: (703) 696-2204 WEB: http://www.darpa.mil, http://www.darpa.mil. E-MAIL: baa98-20@darpa.mil, baa98-20@darpa.mil. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Tactical Technology Office is soliciting proposals for research, development, and demonstration of low cost, miniaturized tags that can be used to covertly provide friendly situational awareness information, communicate sensor data, still video, alerts and location data using airborne MTI and SAR radar waveforms. The use of tags will greatly enhance the value of existing and planned systems such as Joint STARs, Global Hawk and others by facilitating the identification of targets in a timely manner that is fused to the target radar return. The tags will also eliminate the need for long haul SATCOM or extensive radio communications links for communication with unattended ground sensors (UGS). This BAA seeks proposals which address one or more of the following categories: A) RF Tag system enabling technologies, and B) RF Tag system integration. In addition to this Broad Agency Announcement and before submitting a proposal, prospective offerors MUST also refer to the associated Proposer Information Pamphlet (PIP) for BAA 98-20 that provides further information on the technical scope, program structure, and proposal format. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES: The DARPA RF Tags Program objectives are to develop technology to allow airborne radars (both Moving Target Indication (MTI) and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)) to communicate directly with ground devices to provide identification of friendly assets, to communicate information from ground sensors to the platform, and to correct for errors in the radar-determined location of targets. There is significant and growing national investment and reliance on airborne radar for surveillance and targeting purposes. A significant technical barrier with this class of systems is the difficulty of obtaining target identification using radar data alone. This is especially true in present and future conflicts where clear battlelines are less likely to occur and friendly, unfriendly, and neutral forces will be mixed with non-combatants. It is envisioned that RF tags will greatly enhance the utility of airborne radar systems by aiding in the identification of unfriendly targets via the timely communication and fusion of unattended ground sensors (UGS) data with the radar picture. Tags will also help to identify friendly assets by adding a unique identification (ID)to their radar return that is fused to the radar picture. Airborne radars are also being considered for targeting stationary and moving targets. A targeting mission could require location accuracies better than several meters which is difficult to achieve with radars. By combining a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver with a tag, and using the tag to transmit the tag's geographic coordinates to the platform, the location of targets within a certain distance of the tag can be determined with great accuracy. This will allow rapid, all weather targeting with a wide range of airborne radar systems. While the immediate RF Tags Program goals are to enhance the utility of airborne radars, it is envisioned that there are significant space based radar applications of this technology. Finally, a key goal of the RF Tags Program is a system with very high security. The tag signal must have low probability of detection, intercept and exploitation. While this is an inherent feature of radar responsive tags, the government desires a tag system that is secure against an adversary with detailed knowledge of all aspects (except for crypto key information) and moderate technical capability. TECHNICAL SCOPE: Two broad categories of work are envisioned under this BAA. Offerors may address any or all categories. Integrated proposals that address more than one category are encouraged, but not required. The term RF Tag system refers to either SAR or MTI tags. The categories are: A) RF Tag system enabling technologies. Innovative technological solutions are required to resolve the remaining Technical Challenges to the fulfillment of the RF Tags program objectives. Proposals should contain thorough explanations of testing and data collection efforts. Enabling technologies proposed under this BAA may ultimately be integrated into an RF Tags system. The government requires broad dissemination of the progress and results of the enabling technologies development, therefore, offerors in this category are notified that all awards will contain the requirement to participate in mandatory periodic RF Tags open reviews. B) RF Tag system integration. The DARPA vision of a prototype RF Tag system includes a SAR or MTI tag, modifications to airborne SAR or MTI radar system to allow communication with the tag, and processing of the information received from the tag. Proposals are sought for innovative system development, integration, and flight test which resolve program Technical Challenges. Proposals should contain thorough explanations of testing and data collection efforts. Maximum use of Hardware-in the-Loop simulations and non-government flight assets is encouraged. Offerors must also clearly spell out the data ownership rights and responsibilities for data collection and processing. Scheduling Government owned aircraft for the testing of tags is difficult in the face of operational commitments. Proposals are sought for flight testing using non-government resources which will still yield meaningful data to prove the value of specific tag technologies and systems and to resolve Technical Challenges. If government resources are proposed, the offeror should provide detailed information on all costs, flight test availability, possible impact to the resource owner, and government points of contact affected by the use of the resources. Offerors with suitable airborne test equipment are encouraged to submit as an option the testing of third party tags or tag technology as part of their tag testing or as stand alone tests. Offerors for this option should assume that negligible modifications will be made to airborne test equipment, that the offeror will disclose to the third party all information relevant to the data processing, and that the offeror will process the data into complex images for SAR radars and/or corrected phase history data for MTI radars. Awards will require periodic closed progress reviews with the DARPA Program Manager and attendance at open reviews of enabling technologies. As indicated, DARPA's intent is to focus on a number of Technical Challenges which must be resolved prior to the demonstration of operationally useful RF tags. Proposals in any of the two categories should address one or more of the following challenges, which are listed in approximate order of priority: 1) develop tag signal modulation methods that have a high probability of tag detection, low false alarm rate, that are computationally efficient, that can be implemented with minimal impact to present and planned radar systems, that work when multiple tags are in close proximity, that are low probability of intercept/low probability of detection (LPI/LPD), and that minimize the tag signature in the original radar data; 2) reduce the tag receiver power (<30 mW) to enable months of continuous operation; 3) develop techniques to reduce the unit cost of ID only type tags (able to transmit 10 to 16 bits of ID information) to less than $300, low data rate type tags (able to transmit 100's of bits per interrogation) to less than $1000, and high data rate tags (able to transmit >50 kb/s) to less than $3000; 4) develop tag antennas, receivers and other subsystems that would enable a single tag to operate with multiple types of airborne platforms; 5) develop media access schemes that would increase the number of tags per area (1000's in a typical radar picture) that can be interrogated with minimal impact to the airborne radar; 6) develop techniques that use tags as geographic registration beacons to improve the absolute geolocation accuracy of SAR images to 3 meters, techniques which minimize the number of required registration tags and/or techniques that are applicable to multiple SAR systems; 7) conduct vulnerability tests and/or studies to verify and improve proposed tag LPI (low probability of intercept), LPD (low probability of detection), LPE (low probability of exploitation) features; 8) develop practical, scaleable, low cost methods to insure security of tag transmitted data via encryption or other methods; 9) develop methods to conduct cost efficient tag flight testing and development; 10) and, other designs, developments, or tests that would lead to significantly enhanced tag operational capability or that would enable tags to rapidly transition to operational military applications. DESIGN TESTING AND TEAMING FACILITATION: DARPA does not intend to provide operational military aircraft or other platforms as GFE for flight testing. Offerors are encouraged to explore and plan innovative ground and flight test programs for proposed technologies and systems as an option. Funding constraints may limit the number of different aircraft used for testing and the government may (during contract negotiations) combine multiple tag contractors testing with areduced number of aircraft. Offerors are encouraged to team to provide highly integrated solutions. To assist prospective offerors, a method of capabilities exchange has been set up with a link to DARPA's web site at (http://www.darpa.mil/baa/#tto). Interested parties are invited to post their technical interests and capabilities on this web site, and to identify other prospective developers with complementary expertise. For further information, offerors are directed to the PIP, which is available on the DARPA web site. PROGRAM SCOPE AND FUNDING: Multiple awards are anticipated during the third quarter of FY98. Teaming and cost sharing are encouraged. For efforts that address enabling technologies, or system integration all offerors are required to segment technical and cost proposals as follows: an initial 12-month effort followed by an option for an additional period not to exceed a total of 24 additional months beyond the base period. Offerors are directed to the PIP for further information on program scope. DARPA has budgeted approximately $4.5 M of FY98 funds and, pending Congressional approval, anticipates approximately $5.0 M of FY99 and $2.5 M of FY00 funds for the RF Tags Program. GENERAL INFORMATION: An original and four (4) copies of each proposal must be submitted to DARPA/TTO, 3701 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714 (ATTN: BAA 98-20) no later than 4:00 p.m. EST on March 27, 1998. Proposals submitted by fax or e-mail will not be considered. Each technical proposal shall be in the format specified in the PIP. Proposals not meeting the format may not be reviewed. This CBD notice itself and the PIP constitute the total Broad Agency Announcement as contemplated by FAR 6.102(d). No additional information will be made available, and a formal RFP or other solicitation regarding this announcement will not be issued. All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit proposals which will be evaluated as received. 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 or MI participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete or severable areas of research in RF Tags and associated enabling technologies. EVALUATION AND AWARD: Proposals will not be evaluated against each other since they are not submitted in accordance with a common work statement. Evaluation of proposals submitted under Category A will be accomplished using the evaluation criteria, 1 through 7, which are listed in descending order of importance. Evaluation of proposals submitted under Category B will be accomplished using the evaluation criteria 1, 2, and 4 through 7. Evaluation criterion 3 is applicable only to Category A proposals. 1) potential utility, relevance and effectiveness of the proposed solution(s) to the program Technical Challenges addressed by the offeror; 2) overall scientific merit in relationship to the soundness and innovativeness of the technical approach; 3) offeror's commitment to transfer technology and data to RF Tags systems integrators and the degree to which technical data and/or computer software developed under the proposed contract are to be delivered to the government with unrestricted rights; 4) the offeror's commitment to validate the proposed solution through innovative testing; 5) offeror's ability to implement the proposed program as demonstrated by availability of qualified personnel, equipment and facilities, expertise relevant to the proposed solution(s); and 6) soundness of the management plan, including teaming arrangements, and the offeror's commitment to seek out and incorporate the most effective approaches and solutions for Technical Challenges; 7) proposed cost and cost realism. Note: cost realism will only be significant in proposals which have significantly under- or overestimated the cost to complete their effort. Awards are subject to availability of Government funds. Not all proposals deemed selectable will be funded. The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received. All selections for funding are subject to availability of funds and considerations of balance to the program. Awards made under this BAA are subject to the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 9.5, Organizational Conflict of Interest. All offerors and proposed subcontractors must affirmatively state whether they are supporting any DARPA technical office(s) through an active contract or subcontract. All affirmations must state which office(s) the offeror supports, and identify the prime contract number. Affirmation should be furnished at the time of proposal submission. All facts relevant to the existence or potential existence of organizational conflicts of interest, as that term is defined in the FAR 9.501, must be disclosed. The disclosure shall include a description of the action the offeror has taken, or proposes to take, to avoid, neutralize or mitigate suchconflict. It is the policy of DARPA to treat all proposals as competitive information, and to disclose their contents only for the purpose of evaluation. Technical experts from the National Security Agency (NSA), the Defense Airborne Reconnaissance Office (DARO), The Army Communications and Electronics Command (CECOM), the Air Force Rome Laboratory, and other Government agencies will assist DARPA in reviewing proposals and provide technical advice to DARPA. The Government intends to use employees from a non-Government source (SRS Technologies, Inc.) to assist as technical experts, and in administering the evaluation of the proposals. By submission of your proposal, you agree that your proposal information may be disclosed to those employees of the organization identified above for the limited purpose stated above. Selections under this BAA will be made only by Government evaluators. All requests for the PIP and administrative correspondence should be directed to one of the administrative addresses below; e-mail or fax is preferred. Due to the anticipated volume of interest and staff limitations, DARPA will not entertain questions on this BAA. The administrative addresses for BAA 98-20 are: Fax: (703) 528-4715 (Addressed to: SRS Technologies, BAA 98-20); Mail: DARPA/TTO, Attn: BAA 98-20, 3701 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714. The PIP must be obtained by accessing the World Wide Web at URL address (http://www.darpa.mil/baa/) and downloading the information for storage and/or printing. (0058)

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