Published and Presented

Future of Air Traffic Management. At the International Symposium Enhanced Solutions for Aircraft and Vehicle Surveillance (ESAVS) 2007 in Bonn, Germany, from March 6–7, 2007, Mr. Dominic Castaldo of the Advanced Communication, Navigation, and Surveillance Technologies Division presented “Multilateration, an Emerging All-Purpose Surveillance Technology.” The conference was hosted by the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Affairs and was the first of its kind addressing enhanced airspace surveillance, navigation technologies, and airport management systems on a worldwide level.

Volpe Center’s Rail Equipment Research. Several Volpe Center staff members presented papers in the technical sessions on rail transportation at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)/Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Joint Rail Conference in Pueblo, Colorado, from March 13–16, 2007. The papers reflect Volpe Center expertise in the areas of rail equipment crash-energy management, gage-widening, and metal fatigue of railroad joint bars. The papers are listed below and will be available in the conference proceedings (http://www.asme.org) and on the Volpe Center website http://www.volpe.dot.gov/sdd/pubs.html).

• “Performance Efficiency of a Crash Energy Management System,” by Mr. Michael Carolan, Mr. David Tyrell, and Dr. Benjamin Perlman, all of the Structures and Dynamics Division. JRCICE2007-40064.
• “Crash Energy Management Crush Zone Designs: Features, Functions, and Forms,” by Ms. Michelle Priante of the Structures and Dynamics Division and Mr. Eloy Martinez of the Federal Railroad Administration. JRCICE2007-40051.
• “Implications of the Redefined Gage-Widening Projection Parameter for the Deployable Spent Axle Gage Restraint Measurement System,” by Dr. Theodore Sussmann and Mr. John Choros, both of the Structures and Dynamics Division, and Ms. Sung Lee of the Federal Railroad Administration’s Office of Research and Development. JRCICE2007-40098.
• “Estimation of the Fatigue Life of Railroad Joint Bars,” by Mr. Brandon Talamini, Mr. Jeffrey Gordon, and Dr. David Jeong, all of the Structures and Dynamics Division. JRCICE2007-40065.
• “Prevention of Derailments Due to Concrete Tie Rail Seat Deterioration,” by Mr. John Choros,Mr. BrianMarquis, andMr.Michael N. Coltman, all of the Structures and Dynamics Division. JRCICE2007-40096.

Regulatory Impacts on Ports. For the Coast Guard’s Office of Standards Evaluation and Development, several Volpe Center staff members developed the report Estimating Economic Impacts of Regulatory Changes to U.S. Port Operations. The report describes a framework for estimating the changes to port costs, handling time, and reliability due to potential regulations imposed by the Coast Guard, as mandated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The report was a multidivisional effort, with contributions from Mr. Lee Biernbaum and Dr. Don Pickrell of the Economic and Industry Analysis Division, Mr. Walter Gazda of the Advanced Safety Technology Division, Mr. Michael Dyer and Ms. Deirdre Morrissey of the Marine Systems Division, and guidance from Ms. Anne Aylward of the Service and Operations Planning Division.

Pre-Crash Scenario Safety Systems. In conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in support of the Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety Systems initiative, under the Intelligent Transportation Systems program, Dr. Wassim Najm and Mr. John D. Smith of the Advanced Safety Technology Division published Development of Crash Imminent Test Scenarios for Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety Systems, DOT-VNTSC- NHTSA-07-01; DOT-HS 801 757. This report identifies crashimminent test scenarios for integrated vehicle-based safety systems that alert the driver of a light vehicle or a heavy truck to an impending rear-end, lane change, or run-offroad crash. http://www.itsa.org/itsa/files/pdf/IVBSS%20Crash%20Imminent%20Test%20Scenario %20Report%20-%20DOT%20HS%20810%20757.pdf

Surveillance Broadcast Technologies. In support of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Surveillance and Broadcast Services (SBS), Mr. Dominic Castaldo of the Advanced Communication, Navigation, and Surveillance Technologies Division presented “Surveillance and Broadcast Services” at “Safety in the Air,” an implementation focused event organized by Société Internationale Télécommunique Aéronautique (SITA), in San Jose, Costa Rica, from April 11–14, 2007. SITA is attempting to become the regional provider for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technologies.

Survey of Current Aircraft Flight Dynamic Models. Dr. Seamus M. McGovern of the Position, Navigation, and Timing Systems Engineering Division presented “Survey of Contemporary Aircraft Flight Dynamics Models for Use in Airspace Simulation” at the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers Defense & Security Symposium/2007 Modeling and Simulation for Military Operations II Conference in Orlando, Florida, on April 11. The paper is coauthored by Mr. Seth Cohen of the Position, Navigation, and Timing Systems Engineering Division and reviews state-of-the-art flight dynamic models, including high-fidelity, commercial, and government models.

Meeting Growing Security Needs. Ms. Karen Van Dyke of the Advanced Surveillance and Communications Division andMaj. Shawn Brennan (USAF) of the National Security Space Office presented “National PNT Architecture Study—Interim Results” at the Institute of Navigation (ION) 63rd Annual Meeting in Cambridge, Massachusetts, from April 23–25, 2007. For civilian and defense applications, the US must continue to maintain and improve the Global Positioning System (GPS) effort. The National Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) architecture project, due to present its final recommendations later this year, has been evaluating alternative combinations of global (space- and non-space-based) and regional PNT solutions, PNT augmentations, and autonomous PNT capabilities. This effort is being conducted in conjunction with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration (ASD (NII)) and the US Department of Transportation Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) to represent the military and civilian communities, respectively.

Conference Addresses Aeronautical Information Systems. Mr. Kevin Harnett of the Infrastructure Protection and Operations Division and Mr. Vince Rakauskas of CSC, a Volpe subcontractor, presented “Air Force and Civil Secure Airborne Networks Research Plans for Aircraft Data Networks (ADNs)” at the 7th Integrated Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance (ICNS) Conference in Herndon, Virginia, from May 1–3, 2007. The conference, jointly sponsored by government and industry, addresses research and development of integrated CNS technologies for advanced aeronautical digital information systems and applications supporting national and global air transportation systems. http://spacecom.grc.nasa.gov/icnsconf/docs/2007/Session_D/05-Harnett.pdf

Volpe Center Presents Research Results. The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Government/Industry Meeting brings together the leading authorities from government, industry, and academia to explore the regulation, legislation, and technical issues impacting the future, including energy conservation, the environment, and safety. In Washington, DC, from May 14–16, Volpe Center experts were asked to discuss their work relating to event data recorders and vehicle-to-vehicle frontalcollision compatibility.

• Mr. Marco daSilva of the Advanced Safety Technology Division presented “Engineering Analysis of Event Data Recorder (EDR) Data in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA’s) National Automotive Sampling System (NASS) Crashworthiness Data System (CDS) Database.”
• Dr. John Brewer of the Advanced Safety Technology Division presented “Preliminary Estimates of Benefits in Front-Front Vehicle Compatibility.”