Impact penetrometer for Characterizing Soil Properties Navy SBIR FY2009.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2009.1 Topic No.: N091-085 Topic Title: Impact penetrometer for Characterizing Soil Properties Proposal No.: N091-085-0602 Firm: Honeybee Robotics 460 West 34th Street New York, New York 10001 Contact: Kris Zacny Phone: (646) 459-7836 Web Site: http://www.honeybeerobotics.com Abstract: The primary objective of the proposed effort is to design an impact penetrometer system and analysis method, capable of being deployed remotely by air to a known location at controlled impact velocity, to determine near surface soil geotechnical properties in soft muddy substrates, submerged regions, and soils extending from the waterline to the exits off the beach. From these measurements we intend to infer soil cohesion, internal friction, bearing capacity and qualitative soil density (dense, medium, and loose) to depth on the order of 0.15 m (6 in) to 1 m (40 in). Generally, this depth horizon is the upper 0.15 m (6 in) determines the ability of a soil to support a vehicle's load for a limited number of passes and soil properties to about 0.4 m (12 in) need to be know to characterize soil response to multiple vehicle passes (of up to 50 vehicle passes) over the soil (Wong, 2001). In particular, 2-3 different penetrometer systems will be designed and then downselected to one based on complexity (number of sensors) and cost. Benefits: The solution developed during Phase I is an instrument that has a capability to provide a surface shear value and near-surface soil properties that the Navy can use to evaluate mobility characteristics and the maneuver corridors within the theater of operations. With the proposed modifications to meet civilian use, the resulting innovative instrument will offer significant improvements for both the Navy/Army/AirForce and civilian agricultural markets. The modifications for the civilian market could include modular attachment frames for various types of tractors and/or small "runaround" vehicles. There is a well-established commercial market for various soil testing devices such as the penetrometers, vanes, soils samplers, soil moisture/density and others. The combined unit sales volume for these devices is in the thousands per year. Nuclear soil density gauges alone have unit sales volumes of approximately 1,000 units per year. A tool with multiple capabilities offers more flexibility and reduces the need for multiple instruments. As the number of units sold increases, and the product improvements are engineered into the instrument a cheaper and more robust unit will emerge. Return