{"341811":{"#nid":"341811","#data":{"type":"news","title":"GTRI at 75: The Georgia Tech Research Institute Celebrates 75 Years of Problem-Solving \u2013 and Looks Ahead to the Next 75 Years","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EIn 2009, the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gtri.gatech.edu\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech Research Institute\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;(GTRI), Georgia Tech\u2019s applied research organization, celebrated 75 years of solving difficult research problems for government and industry. From humble beginnings as Georgia\u2019s engineering experiment station, GTRI has grown into a $200-million enterprise with nearly 1,500 faculty and staff. GTRI\u2019s research relies on four underlying competencies developed over the course of those 75 years:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003ESensor technologies\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003ESystems engineering\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EInformation and communications technologies\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003ETest and evaluation\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis cover section of Research Horizons focuses on GTRI\u2019s present and future, and includes an interview with its director, Stephen E. Cross. A longer section on GTRI\u2019s history is available: (\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/gtresearchnews.gatech.edu\/gtri-history\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/gtresearchnews.gatech.edu\/gtri-history\/\u003C\/a\u003E).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGTRI PRESENT: A CAPABLE AND AGILE ORGANIZATION FOCUSES ON REAL-WORLD PROBLEMS\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022wp-caption-text\u0022\u003EGTRI researchers Lora Weiss and Rusty Roberts pose with examples of unmanned systems. Shown are a Dragon Eye unmanned aerial vehicle and an iRobot ATRV unmanned ground vehicle. Both have been modified by Georgia Tech. (Click for high-resolution image. Credit: Gary Meek)\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EApplied research. The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) doesn\u2019t mince words in describing its job \u2013 it\u2019s the applied research unit of the Georgia Institute of Technology. Its purpose is to use science and engineering to solve real-world problems.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn the 75 years since it opened its doors, GTRI has become the largest research unit at Georgia Tech, and one of the largest university-based research organizations in the nation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u2019re extremely proud to be Georgia Tech\u2019s applied-research arm,\u201d said Stephen E. Cross, vice president of Georgia Tech and director of GTRI. \u201cI\u2019d like to think that if the great innovator Thomas Edison were alive today, he would have created GTRI.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EYet the Georgia Tech Research Institute, Cross acknowledges, differs from the Edison approach in some critical ways. Unlike Edison\u2019s isolated invention factory, GTRI makes a point of working closely with others \u2013 especially Georgia Tech\u2019s academic colleges. It\u2019s a collaboration that fosters a research depth capable of dealing with the most challenging problems.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile numerous U.S. research universities have spun off their applied-research functions into separate organizations, Cross said, GTRI has become ever more tightly integrated with Georgia Tech\u2019s academic units. Collaboration between the academic and the applied sides has been a conscious direction for Georgia Tech since it was founded; its 1885 charter mandated an approach to technological education that would directly support the state\u2019s economic growth.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESpeaking at the GTRI 75th Anniversary Technology Symposium, Georgia Tech President G.P. \u201cBud\u201d Peterson remarked that as Georgia Tech looks ahead, \u201cclearly it\u2019s important that we continue to expand the collaboration between GTRI and the academic units. As universities are increasingly called upon to become drivers of innovation and high-end economic development, the importance of the role of GTRI and organizations like it will continue to grow.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EConsistent Growth\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Research Institute that began in 1934 as the State Engineering Experiment Station (EES) employs nearly 1,500 people today, including some 700 researchers. Of those, more than 40 GTRI faculty members also have appointments in the academic colleges and perform teaching roles along with their research.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EToday\u2019s GTRI has seven laboratories and 13 field offices located throughout the United States and in Ireland. It also has numerous facilities on the Georgia Tech campus and a secure 55-acre research facility in Cobb County north of Atlanta.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter several years of particularly strong growth, GTRI\u2019s research awards for fiscal 2009 topped $200 million, a total that is up 63 percent in the past three years. GTRI is the largest single contributor to Georgia Tech\u2019s total research budget of about $500 million.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Research Institute has hired 120 new research staff in the past year, and plans to hire an additional 100 research staff in the near term. The number of Georgia Tech graduate and undergraduate students currently working as co-op students at GTRI now stands at more than 350; it\u2019s a workforce that\u2019s an important plus for research flexibility and creativity.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI\u2019s customers include a who\u2019s who of U.S. federal agencies, U.S. and overseas corporations, U.S. allies, and state and local governments. Among GTRI\u2019s major sponsors are the Department of Defense agencies, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the state of Georgia, major U.S. defense contractors, and many other governmental and commercial entities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u2019ve shown pretty good progress for an organization that was authorized by the state legislature in 1919 but couldn\u2019t get funded until 1934 \u2013 and which started out in the basement of Georgia Tech\u2019s Old Shop Building,\u201d Cross said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECapabilities and Collaboration\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI performs research and development in dozens of areas, from radar to robotics, from electronic defense to energy, from product testing to food processing. It also provides a wide range of services, from analyzing indoor environments to teaching workplace safety.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe vast majority of the Institute\u2019s work relies on four underlying competencies developed over many decades, said Tom McDermott, GTRI\u2019s director of research. They are sensor technologies, systems engineering, information and communications technologies, and test and evaluation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cYou could argue that sensor technology is our core strength,\u201d he said. \u201cGTRI probably has the broadest capability in terms of different sensing technologies of any research body in the world.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI, he explained, provides research and development in a vast array of sensor technologies. It has broad sensing capabilities that began with World War II radar research. That work led to pioneering, internationally recognized work in millimeter-wave radar technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EToday GTRI\u2019s sensor capabilities cover every bandwidth of the electromagnetic spectrum used for defense and communication, as well as chemical sensors vital to numerous defense and industry applications.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut, McDermott added, even the most advanced sensors have little utility without the other collaborating capabilities \u2013 systems engineering, information and communications technology, and test and evaluation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor example, GTRI today tackles challenging multi-sensor problems. Yet the task of fusing data from a variety of sensor sources would be next to impossible without sophisticated computing and networking. Just as important, successful design of a complex sensor-based system would be hard to achieve without systems engineering expertise. Equally useful are the advanced modeling capabilities of the test and evaluation disciplines that help guide the system-design process.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cPart of why GTRI is strong in systems engineering is because we\u2019re non-profit and independent \u2013 we can choose the best solution from a variety of options,\u201d McDermott said. \u201cAnd part of it is that we have long-time subject-matter experts who are able to grow a very broad view of problems within their technical areas over time.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnother key is the collaboration that takes place at GTRI across the disciplines, said Terry Tibbitts, director of the Electronic Systems Laboratory (ELSYS), GTRI\u2019s largest lab with roots going back to the Engineering Experiment Station\u2019s work in radar and signal processing. Tibbitts pointed to a recent high priority project that added vitally needed missile protection to the A-10 attack aircraft, an Air Force workhorse. To deal with the vulnerability, GTRI mounted an urgent effort, the A-10 Infrared Countermeasures Program. The work mobilized researchers and technicians from across the Research Institute, including ELSYS and several other GTRI labs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 200 days \u2013 a brief period by most defense-project standards \u2013 the team went from program-concept meetings to a successful flight test. Today, the entire U.S. A-10 fleet is protected by the countermeasure technology GTRI developed.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cPrograms like this one show GTRI\u2019s greatest strengths \u2013 we\u2019re small enough to move very quickly, but big enough to have the deep capabilities needed to handle an entire program for a sponsor,\u201d Tibbitts said. \u201cWe\u2019re also good at collaborating across disciplines \u2013 we know each other\u2019s strengths, and we work well together.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGisele Bennett is director of the Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory (EOSL), a major contributor to GTRI\u2019s sensor capability. She noted that GTRI\u2019s identity as a multi-disciplinary organization has been the product of many decades of effort.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cGTRI has evolved slowly and deliberately from a research institute with a narrow range of technical expertise to one that has a very broad and deep range of technical expertise,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m personally confident we can maintain our technical pre-eminence in our core areas, while also branching out by applying core expertise gained over the decades to other disciplines.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThe Economic Imperative\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELike Georgia Tech, GTRI was founded with a mandate to contribute to the economy of the state of Georgia and the surrounding region. The Research Institute pursues that critical assignment on several levels.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne effort involves direct support of the economy through research on tough challenges facing Georgia industry. To that end, GTRI has performed important research and problem-solving for many important industries, including food processing, carpet manufacturing, paper and others.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Georgia Tech Research Institute maintains an extensive on-campus facility, the Food Processing Technology Building, to support Georgia\u2019s vast poultry processing industry, among others. GTRI\u2019s support for the food industry has included many innovations, including one of the first computer-vision systems for improving quality in poultry processing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cFood processing is a very good example of where GTRI is able to take the sensor, robotics, computer-vision and manufacturing technologies that we\u2019ve developed \u2013 largely with defense funding \u2013 and apply them to an industry that\u2019s important to the economy,\u201d said GTRI director Cross.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Research Institute also provides services that directly support the state\u2019s employers and their workforce. The Occupational Safety and Health Program, located in GTRI\u2019s Human Systems Integration Division, helps businesses keep workplaces safe by complying with the requirements of the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe program offers free on-site safety consultations to smaller Georgia companies. It also teaches a large number of OSHA safety and health courses, mainly through Georgia Tech Distance Learning and Professional Education.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI plays an important role in advancing the technical knowledge of U.S. defense professionals, both in the military and in industry. Through Georgia Tech\u2019s Defense Technology Professional Education Program, engineers, scientists and faculty from GTRI and Georgia Tech\u2019s College of Engineering teach nine certificate programs and some 80 courses at eight U.S. sites, as well as via video-conferencing and online video.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThe New Company Connection\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022wp-caption-text\u0022\u003EScientific Atlanta, one of Atlanta\u0027s oldest technology companies, was purchased recently by Cisco. Engineering Experiment Station personnel helped found the company in 1952.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAn important GTRI role involves assisting the development of new high technology companies in Georgia. Its first startup was Scientific Atlanta, founded in 1952 by several EES personnel. The venture prospered, becoming internationally known for satellite Earth stations and cable TV equipment, and was acquired by Cisco Systems, Inc. in 2006.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI works with Georgia Tech\u2019s business assistance and economic development unit, the Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI\u00b2), to offer technical support for new technology companies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEI\u00b2 is widely known as home to Georgia Tech\u2019s successful startup-company accelerator, the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), which has graduated more than 120 startups since 1980. GTRI works directly with the Strategic Partners Office within EI\u00b2 to connect\u0026nbsp;companies to Georgia Tech resources and promote broadly based development initiatives in Georgia.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne result of that collaboration is the FutureMediasm initiative, directed by Renu Kulkarni, which is aimed at helping to make Georgia a global leader in the burgeoning fields of digital, social and multi media.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere\u2019s a great deal of interaction between GTRI and EI\u00b2 now,\u201d said research director McDermott. \u201cWe\u2019ve been able to work with some of the startup companies that are incubating there, and we believe there will be plenty of collaboration in the future.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Georgia Tech Research Institute also works with EI\u00b2\u2019s Industry Services division, an outreach program that provides support to Georgia manufacturers, including direct technical, engineering and other assistance. Industry Services personnel can connect companies that have specific manufacturing challenges to GTRI engineers, scientists and technicians.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENot the least of GTRI\u2019s contributions is the economic impact of the salaries of its nearly 1,500 employees, a number that includes some 700 degreed research engineers and scientists, said Tom Horton, GTRI\u2019s chief of staff and director of government relations.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy the most conservative of economic multipliers, GTRI\u2019s contribution to Georgia\u2019s economy last year was about $450 million, Horton said. That number includes the impact of salaries, as well as direct and indirect GTRI expenditures among Georgia businesses for everything from pencils and paper to computers and sophisticated research equipment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cOf course, we are a non-profit organization,\u201d Horton said. \u201cBut if it were a business, GTRI\u2019s revenues and number of employees would place us within the top 15 corporations in Georgia.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorton noted that GTRI and Georgia Tech contribute to Georgia\u2019s attractiveness as a home for national and international corporations. He cited the NCR Corporation\u2019s recent decision to move its worldwide headquarters to Duluth, Ga., and CEO Bill Nuti\u2019s comment that \u201cworking in\u0026nbsp;partnership with the world-class academic institutions in Georgia\u201d was part of the attraction.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECross argues that GTRI\u2019s unique blend of capability, commitment and organizational agility developed naturally over the decades. The Institute has dealt successfully with many challenges, and a positive mentality developed as a result.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cInterdisciplinary collaboration and the willingness to accept a tough challenge are among our greatest assets,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m proud of the people of GTRI. They can take great Georgia Tech research \u2013 some of it done here, much of it done in the colleges \u2013 bring it together and apply it to solve real world problems.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGTRI FUTURE: CALCULATED RISKS, KEY TECHNOLOGIES CHARACTERIZE THE GTRI OF THE FUTURE\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe GTRI of the future will likely look much like the GTRI of today, but with broadly expanded capabilities in cutting-edge technologies and more collaboration with Georgia Tech\u2019s academic colleges.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDuring its 75-year journey, Georgia Tech\u2019s applied-research institute has chosen its growth areas carefully. GTRI has never tried to be all things to all sponsors; it extends its research into areas that appear to offer promise \u2013 as well as the expected tough challenges.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere are phrases we should outlaw as researchers, such as \u2018it can\u2019t be done\u2019 or \u2018it\u2019s never been done that way before,\u2019 \u201c said Stephen E. Cross, GTRI\u2019s director. \u201cWe should never be overly concerned about risk. We want to take calculated risks, but we should never use risk as a reason for not tackling something.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI has used its four core competencies \u2013 sensor technologies, systems engineering, information and communications technologies, and test and evaluation \u2013 to develop internationally known specialties in radar, electronic warfare, antennas and communications technologies, among numerous others.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EToday the Research Institute is bringing those core skills to bear on new areas of expertise. An active recruitment effort has brought to GTRI a cadre of new researchers who are accomplished in several critical focus areas.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe concepts of open and disruptive innovation have been useful in directing development paths, GTRI leaders explain. In open innovation, an organization uses both internal and external ideas to advance technology. Disruptive innovations are those that create unexpected change; they\u2019re often problematic because they compete with time-honored approaches, yet they present unique opportunities to a research organization.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAt GTRI, we\u2019ve found that open- and disruptive-innovation concepts are very helpful in guiding our understanding of how to recognize future opportunities \u2013 and how to pursue them,\u201d said Tom McDermott, GTRI\u2019s director of research.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe object, of course, is to expand GTRI\u2019s problem-solving capacity in a number of crucial 21st century technology arenas \u2013 which will in turn support and facilitate research throughout the Research Institute.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDigital Media\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI leadership believes that Georgia, already quite active in several media areas, can become a global leader in the exploding fields of digital, social and multi media. The FutureMediasm\u0026nbsp;Initiative, directed by former Motorola executive Renu Kulkarni, is a broad-based Georgia Tech program aimed at leveraging the efforts of Georgia universities, corporations, venture capitalists,\u0026nbsp;entrepreneurs and government to make the state a digital-media powerhouse.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech initiated an October 2009 FutureMediasm\u0026nbsp;conference in Atlanta that brought together 260 academics, officials and executives from as far away as Singapore and South Korea to discuss Georgia\u2019s media future. GTRI, the Georgia Tech Research Network Operations Center, Georgia Tech\u2019s GVU Center and the Georgia Electronic Design Center were among many Georgia Tech groups that presented scores of technology demonstrations to conference participants.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe want to create an open-innovation ecosystem that will make Georgia a global pioneer in this field,\u201d Kulkarni said, \u201cand provide a model not only for what we do in future digital media, but also in how we do it.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAutonomous Systems and Robotics\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI is pursuing a number of high stakes programs in an arena that will clearly play an extensive role in humanity\u2019s future. This work includes the Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology (MAST) program, a multi-year initiative sponsored by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory. GTRI is working with Georgia Tech\u2019s College of Computing and the College of Engineering, as well more than a dozen universities and companies, to develop small, intelligent mobile robots capable of collaboration as well as advanced locomotion.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn related work, a GTRI team is developing unmanned underwater vehicles that can function both autonomously and collaboratively to carry out a range of undersea missions. In another program, GTRI researchers are supporting development of a road map to improve the testing and evaluation of unmanned and autonomous systems, and are also investigating common control technology for unmanned systems.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EEnergy and Environment\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI investigators, collaborating with Georgia Tech\u2019s College of Engineering and the College of Sciences, are extensively involved in the fields of fuel cells, solar energy, batteries, wind turbines, supercapacitors and biofuels. The Research Institute is an active participant in Georgia\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETech\u2019s Center for Innovative Fuel Cell and Battery Technologies and its mission to help turn the fuel-cell promise into reality.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAt the fuel-cell center \u2013 directed by GTRI\u2019s Tom Fuller, who also has an appointment in the Georgia Tech School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering \u2013 GTRI researchers are addressing the systems engineering issues surrounding compact fuel cells for soldiers, as well as the larger systems needed for transportation and distributed power generation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI is also conducting a broad range of research in energy modeling, utilizing its established expertise in information technology, communications and networking. Research includes development of modeling and simulation tools that enable the evaluation of different energy strategies. Other GTRI projects are developing technologies to reduce the environmental impact of energy and water usage, and investigating the health and environmental benefits of green technologies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECyber Warfare\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAt GTRI, information operations (IO) is an area of particular focus. Researchers are pursuing a broad range of projects related to the role of intelligence technologies in national defense. This work involves close collaboration with the Georgia Tech Internet Security Center (GTISC).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe cyber battlefield is of special importance. This high-priority area, involving defensive and offensive use of computers and the Internet, is a rapidly growing research area. GTRI\u2019s Center of Excellence for Emerging Information Technologies is investigating security issues involving both current and emerging digital technologies. The aim is to better protect U.S. military, government and other information systems, ensuring that the element of technology surprise remains a U.S. asset.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI is active in more than a dozen IO\/cyber-related projects sponsored by a variety of government agencies. Researchers are conducting several new initiatives to build cyber-intelligence capabilities in emerging technologies, including techniques that simulate hostile intrusion attempts into networks and other critical areas. They are also pursuing the development of enhanced security for novel architectures, and construction of a $200,000-plus IO laboratory that will support research ranging from cloud computing to converged infrastructures.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESystems Engineering Expertise\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESupporting U.S. systems engineering capabilities, in both government agencies and in industry, is a growing focus at GTRI. In fall 2009, the Research Institute helped launch a new Professional Master\u2019s Degree in Applied Systems Engineering (PMASE). This College of Engineering degree\u0026nbsp;is aimed at mid-career engineers in government and corporations who manage complex systems and want to expand their systems-engineering knowledge.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe program combines traditional teaching with group learning, distance education and face-to-face interactions, and is aimed at filling a significant gap in higher education offerings for working engineers. Graduates are expected to be proficient in methods and practices of systems engineering, and to develop awareness of cutting-edge research shaping the future of the discipline. A unique aspect of the degree is an experiential component based on pioneering work in systems analysis tools and methods developed by the Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory in the Georgia Tech School of Aerospace Engineering.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EInternational Cooperation\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGTRI is also emphasizing expanded international research partnerships and collaboration. GTRI continues to ramp up its GT-Ireland initiative, which is focused on collaboration in radio-frequency identification technology. Georgia Tech, supported by GTRI, is also involved in educational and research collaborations in France, Singapore and China.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe international strategy for Georgia Tech and GTRI involves a rapidly growing number of nations around the globe,\u201d said director Cross, who is also a Georgia Tech vice president. \u201cWe have to consider the uniqueness of each country and its goals, and we also want to consider the benefit of these affiliations to the Atlanta campus and to Georgia.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESecurity Research\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe GTRI of the future will focus its research and development efforts wherever the U.S. needs advanced investigation and innovation.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn one homeland-security field, GTRI is helping protect shipping containers, which have been long identified as an area of vulnerability that terrorists could exploit. GTRI has developed a container security device that monitors whether container doors have been opened in route by an unauthorized user, explained Gisele Bennett, director of GTRI\u2019s Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory (EOSL).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u2019ve used GTRI\u2019s sensor expertise, built up over many decades, to develop a device that works well and has been successfully tested. This technology will move into a pilot phase very soon,\u201d she said. GTRI sensor experts are also designing a wall intrusion detection system for composite containers. This research, performed in collaboration with Georgia Tech\u2019s School\u0026nbsp;of Electrical and Computer Engineering, could detect any breaching of a shipping container\u2019s walls.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022wp-caption-text\u0022\u003EGTRI researchers Kevin Massey, Vince Camp and Burt Jennings (left to right) pose with the ULTRA II test article as it was set up for evaluation at the Aberdeen Test Center in Maryland. (Click image for high-resolution version. Credit Aberdeen Test Center)\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECross noted that in one especially high priority area, GTRI is tackling the deadly problem of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in war zones around the world. For example, the ULTRA II design concept is aimed at producing military vehicles with a new type of protected personnel compartment. The concept uses a sacrificial \u201cblast wedge\u201d to absorb energy from IEDs and improve occupant safety in future light armored patrol vehicles.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn years to come as in the past, Cross added, GTRI\u2019s core research and applications will help support innovations that can aid U.S. business and economic growth.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cA large part of our future strategy,\u201d Cross said, \u201cis to take the defense technology that we create \u2013 and the problem-solving expertise we develop \u2013 and move it into other market areas to benefit commercial industry and result in more jobs here in Georgia.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"In 2009, the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), Georgia Tech\u2019s applied research organization, celebrated 75 years of solving difficult research problems for government and industry."}],"uid":"28152","created_gmt":"2014-11-05 16:35:54","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:17:26","author":"Claire Labanz","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2010-04-13T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2010-04-13T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"341711":{"id":"341711","type":"image","title":"Research Horizons - 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