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Architect Garret Finney says he found a whole new way to look at the world after he worked to create crew quarters for the International Space Station. Drawing directly on that experience, Finney founded a company to create unique, versatile recreational trailers that incorporate space habitat principles and features.
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Even on clear days, the air can be rife with particulate matter and other irritants. A NASA Dual-Use Technology partner developed and tested a coating that could break down pollutants, eliminate odors, and inhibit grime buildup. The spinoff is now being used to sanitize air in homes and to turn buildings into air purifiers.
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The Jet Propulsion Laboratory provided funding for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to develop capabilities for robotics like Rocky 7. After developing the operating system for Rocky 7, Daniel Theobald used his expertise to incorporate systems based on the NASA work into a robot that is now used to ease logistics at hospitals. The ‘bot has been dubbed “a Mars rover in a hospital,” and has created 20 new jobs for the manufacturer.
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Glenn Research Center engineer Bernard Sater spent his spare time developing a solar concentrator that would use less silicon, making solar arrays cheaper. After retiring from NASA, Sater and his son formed a company, and under a Space Act Agreement with Glenn, moved the technology toward commercialization. The business now employs 30 people thanks to its NASA partnership.
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To improve distress signal communications, NASA pioneered the Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking system. The international system known as Cospas-Sarsat, which includes a private company’s beacon and ground station technology, has resulted in the rescue of more than 30,000 people.
