A system that helps the body absorb drugs more
effectively, technology that immerses viewers in 3-D
displays and laser beams that enhance the security of
optical communications were announced April 21 as
APL's Inventions of
the Year. The event, held in the Kossiakoff Center,
showcased technologies submitted in 2004 that were
developed by APL staff.
Top inventions in Physical Sciences and Information
Science were selected by a panel of 20 representatives from
industry and patent law based on benefit to society,
improvement over existing technology and commercial
potential. APL also presented a new award, Innovative
Contributions to the Military, which was chosen from
inventions submitted in the past five years.
Wayne Swann, APL director of technology transfer, and
Robert Pirie, former secretary of the Navy (acting),
presented plaques and cash awards to teams in the three
categories.
The award in Physical Sciences went to a
microwave/radio frequency energy-assisted drug delivery
device invented by Henry Kues and Eric Van Gieson. The two
have developed a way to increase the effectiveness of
medications while reducing negative side effects using a
handheld microwave transmitter to enhance drug
absorption.
The transmitter emits microwaves (or radio frequency)
energy that can temporarily make blood vessels more
permeable, possibly by opening gaps in the capillary walls,
resulting in quicker drug absorption. Enhanced absorption
could allow doctors to use less medication, especially when
treating areas of the body that are resistant to drug
therapy, and to better target drug delivery.
This research is especially important when dealing
with brain-related disorders because the brain is protected
by a blood barrier that allows few molecules to cross it.
Only small, fat-soluble molecules can breach the barrier,
but some of the most promising medications for neurological
disorders and brain cancer are large-molecule drugs. By
relaxing the brain's protective barrier, drug therapy could
possibly be used in place of more invasive procedures.
Sometimes standard methods of drug delivery, such as
pills taken orally, do not work. For example, peptide,
protein and DNA therapies require a delivery system that
puts medication in the blood stream rather than the
stomach, where it would probably be digested before it
could produce the desired result. Microwave-assisted drug
therapies open options for a wider range of medications in
this and similar situations.
In the category of Information Science, Jerry Krill
was recognized for his 3-D display with walkthrough and
"virtual visitation" features for command and control
centers, teleconferencing and personal communication.
Krill has created a concept for making the viewer an
interactive part of 3-D technology using liquid crystal
display goggles that could have military, medical and
gaming applications. The technology marries cutting-edge
wireless and bandwidth capabilities with next-generation
optics and displays, pulling the viewer "inside" the scene
of whatever environment or program the system is
running.
The LCD goggles include a fiber optic camera to pick
up directed images, a wireless antenna for transmitting and
receiving high data rates, partially mirrored lenses and
driver for a distant focused display imager and an earplug
millimeter wavelength transceiver and command computer with
eye-pointing menu and audio capability.
Originally designed for use on military battlefields,
the technology could improve awareness of the surrounding
environment and provide better communications between
dispersed units. It could also enhance current
two-dimensional video-conferencing.
The winner in Innovative Contributions to the Military
is an apparatus and method for providing secure
multichannel optical laser communications. Matthew Bevan,
Bradley Boone, Ann Darrin, Donald Duncan and Raymond Sova
have created a more effective and robust way to secure
optical data links using narrow multiple laser beams to
send and receive data, and microelectro-mechanical systems
technology for accurately verifying the source of the
transmission.
The very high bandwidths used by existing optical
communications networks make it hard to guarantee security,
but this new system transmits and receives data in a very
precise method that is less vulnerable to jamming or
interception. Narrow, multichannel bandwidths also allow
for independent control of each optical channel while
significantly reducing the chance that neighboring laser
communications channels or unintended sources (jammers)
could cause interference.
Innovations in the system enable the use of narrow
beams thanks to components that are cheaper and weigh less
than the ones used in current systems. The APL system is
also easily scaled to large numbers of independent
communications channels.
This new optical architecture makes secure
multisatellite, multisite terminals possible, provides more
accurate pointing of data streams from moving satellite
platforms and reduces the mass, power and volume required
to support multichannel optical communications.
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