Contract Research
Over the years, Compass Technology Group created new RF measurement technologies with the help of government-funded SBIR grants. As a result, this research led to deployed measurement systems benefiting the Department of Defense (DoD) and companies in the defense industrial base.
Contract research is available for industry-specific companies, outside of government contracting. You can initiate our services in multiple ways, including:
- Sending us samples to measure (two to three-week turnaround).
- Taking an existing Compass Technology Group product or software and customizing it to your needs.
- Utilizing a concept created by our team and contracting us to develop it for your application.
- Presenting us with an issue and partnering with us to help provide a solution.
- On-site training – we bring half-day to multi-day customized training courses to your facility. We teach customized courses on electromagnetic materials design and measurements and radar cross-section reduction. These courses are a combination of lecture and laboratory instruction.
- Equipment training – we provide equipment-specific training on the various material measurement devices that we manufacture and sell.
Research and Development Work Examples:
If you want to design a new system, we use our in-house facility to create a working prototype. Compass Technology Group is skilled in microwave analysis, computational electromagnetic (CEM) modeling, mechanical design/CAD, machining, additive manufacturing, electronics breadboard, automation integration, assembly, and testing. To deem a system successful, one must build, test, and compare a prototype to modeling.
Combining analytical design with computational electromagnetic (CEM) modeling, we have applied an internally developed, Finite Difference Time Domain code to design and commercialize several unique products.
We developed this microwave NDT tool for use in confined spaces. The team did this by adapting an existing sensor into a handheld form-factor. Next, we integrated microwave analyzer electronics to use them within a low-profile aircraft exhaust system. As a result, it achieved excellent Gage R&R results for measuring non-conductive coating thickness. The accuracy of the microwave NDT tool was within one percent in a blind measurement test.
We developed a new concept in microwave nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of specialized coatings. This concept was in support of the Air Force’s requirement for in situ microwave traveling wave testing. The compact and lightweight design addressed the need for high-fidelity measurements of aircraft surface coatings in a field environment. The design was based on a wide-band probe technology that can operate over the whole 2 to 18 GHz range.
We created a manufacturing facility-based Quality Assurance (QA) tool for ascertaining and verifying electrical characteristics of a production canopy that meets government specifications. The tool addresses the need for high-fidelity measurements of defects and manufacturing variations in aircraft windows in factory and in-service environments.
The team developed a novel concept for an anechoic chamber absorber. This absorber dramatically reduced the tip diffraction effects that occurred in conventional pyramidal absorbers. The prototype manufacturing resulted in lower reflectivity and minimal diffuse scatter compared to standard 18” pyramidal foam.
