Defence Research And Development Canada Research Articles

DO DISRUPTION, IDEATION, AND INNOVATION FEED ONE ANOTHER?

On November 21, 2022, Dr. Gitanjali Adlakha-Hutcheon, A/Chief Scientist of the Health Sciences domain at the Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) presented Do Disruption, Ideation, and Innovation Feed One Another? The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with questions from the audience and CASIS-Vancouver executives. The key points discussed were the positive and negative natures and impacts of disruption; the manner in which ideation and innovation addresses disruption; and the interdependence of disruption, ideation, and innovation within the context of emerging threats and societal resilience. Received: 2022-12-28Revised: 2023-01-04

Directional detection of simulated whale calls and ambient noise in a busy harbour

Timely information on marine mammal presence in, or near, sonar training areas can be used to minimize the risk of harming these animals. Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) has recently been investigating a variety of acoustic technologies to facilitate real-time marine mammal monitoring in high noise (including ship noise and sonar signals) environments. DRDC assessed the directional detection and localization capability of a network of sub-surface volumetric and vertical line arrays against the noisy backdrop of the busy harbour during an experiment conducted in Bedford Basin, NS. Playbacks of Southern Resident killer whale calls and North Atlantic right whale upcalls, as well as simulated calls, were transmitted. To assess variability in bearing estimates for whale calls in different frequency bands, an acoustic source was fixed at a single location for half of the experiment and dipped over the side of a boat at seven locations around the recorders during the other half. During this talk, ambient noise and environmental measurements will be presented along with acoustic localization results.

Supporting shipboard helicopter flight testing with simulation and metrics for predicting pilot workload

Shipboard helicopter operations are much more challenging and complex than land-based operations due to many factors associated with the presence of the ship. To determine those conditions in which safe operations may occur, a First of Class Flight Trial (FOCFT) is conducted for every new ship–helicopter pair. This trial results in a Ship–Helicopter Operating Limit (SHOL) envelope that is used to document operational limits for regular operations. Conducting a FOCFT is a, expensive, and time-consuming task that requires testing all aspects of operations. Modeling and simulation efforts to support shipboard helicopter operations have been ongoing internationally for many years with the intention of de-risking FOCFT and introducing efficiency into the testing process. Canada will be accepting several new ship classes into its fleet over the next two decades. In support of FOCFT for these new ships, modeling and simulation tools are being developed by the National Research Council (NRC) Canada and Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) and significant advancements have occurred in the past decade. As part of this work, NRC and DRDC now use a framework and analysis approach that is intended to standardize SHOL testing with the use of modeling and simulation. This paper introduces that framework and gives details on the modeling and simulation tools that can be used to reduce risk and increase efficiency for Canada’s upcoming FOCFTs.

CFD Aided Ship Design and Helicopter Operation

In support of Canadian industrial and defence ship design and offshore helicopter operations, a series of Ship–Helicopter Operational Limits Analysis and Simulation (SHOLAS) projects are being conducted at the National Research Council Canada (NRC) in collaboration with Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC). This study presents a brief overview of a Canadian in-house ship airwake simulation capability combining in-house high-fidelity wind-tunnel tests, full-scale sea trials, high-order computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools, and realistic engineering-oriented flight simulators. This paper reports challenges and lessons learned during the course of the study, discusses the current capabilities and limitations of the CFD tools and the infrastructure required, and evaluates the gaps and barriers in industry adoption by focusing on how they could be overcome based on our current practice. After validating the CFD results of an updated version of a simplified frigate shape (SFS2) and the real-world Canadian Patrol Frigate (CPF), which are in reasonable agreement with the available in-house wind-tunnel and sea-trial data, the developed approach was recently applied to the design of an undisclosed Canadian ship. Among other applications, CFD airwake results were used with confidence as input to produce representative airwake features in industrial high-fidelity piloted flight simulators.

Design Considerations for Lithium-Ion Battery Safety Used in Unique/Military Platforms

For current and future military and other unique applications, lithium-ion batteries (LIB) require several design considerations and improvements to meet safety requirements. An overview of the basic cell design for high power requirements and aspects of battery safety, such as, the nature of the combustion products are examined at Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) using a special facility for controlled burning of items and chemical analysis of the smoke and ash. Also, to pass requirements for a military environment, important extreme physical abuse tests, which are not part of the UN procedure are conducted to understand battery safety and failure modes. For example, nail penetration tests are relevant to EV market as well, where vehicle collisions can occur and a severe internal short-circuit may be induced. There are two versions of the nail penetration test that are typically conducted (slow and fast). The slow test uses an electric motor to push the nail into the battery and the fast test uses a nail gun. In both tests the nail is left imbedded in the cells, imposing a severe short-circuit and examples will be shown. Historically for some tests, pouch cell designs do not appear to be as safe as metal cylinder cells. This is in part because that cell design allows air to enter the cells more readily. However, it has been observed that the fire produced by a pouch cell is less intense than the flames emitted from cylindrical cells when they vent. Thus, cell/battery designs have a significant impact on a large format lithium-ion battery safety test performance. Impact tests are highly relevant to many lithium-ion battery applications, especially for future large format battery designs. The data shows that, although a battery may have passed a certain series of tests, it does not necessarily mean that it is safe to physical abuse when in the fully-charged state. It is important to understand what testing was carried out and the condition of the battery. For example, one severe test is bullet penetration, which can have a range of results depending on the cell materials and state of charge. An example of such a test at the cell level is shown in the figure below for the bullet penetration of a 4.5 Ah lithium cobalt oxide pouch cell and a 2.3 Ah lithium iron phosphate spirally wound cell. Both are fully charged lithium-ion cells that did not catch fire when penetrated, with only some frothing of the electrolyte seen in the spirally wound cell. However, when multiple cells are placed in a battery pack it will be discussed that in most circumstances they behave more hazardously. A brief history of design failures observed will also be presented. Figure 1

Transient large-scale chlorine releases in the Jack Rabbit II field tests: Rainout source data analysis from video records

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Science & Technology (DHS S&T) Chemical Security Analysis Center (CSAC), the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), Transport Canada, and Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), the Jack Rabbit II tests were designed to release liquid chlorine at ambient temperature in quantities of 5–20 T for the purpose of quantifying the behavior and hazards of catastrophic chlorine releases at scales represented by rail and truck transport vessels. In 2015, five successful field trials were conducted in which chlorine was released in quantities of 5–10 tons through a 6-inch circular breach in the tank and directed vertically downward at 1 m elevation over a concrete pad. In 2016, three additional trials were conducted with releases of 10 tons also through 6-inch circular breaches at different release orientations. A final 20 ton test was conducted in 2016. Data from the test program is available. This paper summarizes an analysis of the available data from the concrete pad including analysis of the temperature measurements above and below grade in the concrete pad. Assessment of the chlorine rainout is estimated based on temperature measurements and available video data analysis.

Seabed properties on the Chukchi Shelf observed during the 2016–-2017 canada basin acoustic propagation experiment

Previous work examined seabed geoacoustical properties near the 150 m isobath on the Chukchi shelf as observed during the 2016–2017 Canada Basin Acoustic Propagation Experiment (CANAPE) [Sagers and Ballard, JASA 144(3), 1666]. That work reported a water/sediment compressional sound speed ratio near 0.98 and a compressional sound speed gradient in the upper sediment around 6 s-1. This work extends the prior analysis by investigating additional locations throughout the larger shallow-water experimental site. Data from subbottom profile surveys, measurements from an in situ acoustic coring system and inferences made using ship-radiated noise received on Autonomous Multichannel Acoustic Recorders (AMARs) deployed by the Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) are examined to understand seabed layering and sediment properties throughout the experimental region. Particular interest is given to understanding whether geoacoustical properties on the Chukchi shelf exhibit range-dependence. [Work sponsored by ONR.] Previous work examined seabed geoacoustical properties near the 150 m isobath on the Chukchi shelf as observed during the 2016–2017 Canada Basin Acoustic Propagation Experiment (CANAPE) [Sagers and Ballard, JASA 144(3), 1666]. That work reported a water/sediment compressional sound speed ratio near 0.98 and a compressional sound speed gradient in the upper sediment around 6 s-1. This work extends the prior analysis by investigating additional locations throughout the larger shallow-water experimental site. Data from subbottom profile surveys, measurements from an in situ acoustic coring system and inferences made using ship-radiated noise received on Autonomous Multichannel Acoustic Recorders (AMARs) deployed by the Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) are examined to understand seabed layering and sediment properties throughout the experimental region. Particular interest is given to understanding whether geoacoustical properties on the Chukchi shelf exhibit range-dependence. [Work sponsored by...

Adjacent surface effect on the flammable cloud of hydrogen and methane jets: Numerical investigation and engineering correlations

The effect of an adjacent surface on the lower flammability limit cloud extents of high pressure horizontal and vertical unignited jets of both hydrogen and methane is studied using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations performed with FLACS Hydrogen. Two jet directions (horizontal and vertical) and two surface positions (horizontal or ground, vertical or side wall) were studied: horizontal jets along a horizontal surface, vertical and horizontal jets along a vertical surface or side wall. Results for constant flow rate through a 6.35 mm round leak orifice from 101 bar, 251 bar, 401 bar, 551 bar and 701 bar compressed gas systems are presented. The effect of the surface on the flammable extents is studied systematically by positioning the jet exit release at various distances from the surface ranging from 0.029 m to 10 m. Free jets simulations were performed for comparison purposes. Our results were quantified by establishing engineering correlations that could be used to predict the flammable extent of hydrogen and methane jet releases in the presence of surfaces. These correlations were validated using experiments conducted for horizontal hydrogen jets in the vicinity of horizontal surfaces, carried out at the facilities of Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) in Val-Belair, Québec.

Arctic ambient noise measurements in support of the Northern Watch Project

During August 2012, acoustic recording systems were deployed in Barrow Strait as part of the Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Northern Watch Technology Demonstration Project. Two Starfish Sensor Cubes each with a 1-m cube of seven hydrophones operating in the frequency range of 5 - 750 Hz, and two single-hydrophone, Autonomous Multichannel Acoustic Recorders (AMAR) providing a 30-kHz signal bandwidth were deployed. The Starfish were deployed for two one-week intervals. One AMAR was deployed for two weeks partially overlapping the Starfish deployment. The second AMAR was deployed for a period of one year with recovery planned for August 2013. The observed underwater noise picture is one of high variability ranging from an extremely quiet to a noisy environment. Noise sources included: A 500-m long iceberg grounded within 500 m of one of the Starfish; a large ice island (4-5 km2) that passed within 4 km of the sensors; a small number of motoring vessels; significant wind events that caused rapid and strong variations in the noise field; and a small number of marine mammal detections. After our departure, a large number of Beluga whales were observed visually. The remaining AMAR may detect these late summer visitors.

Condition-Based Maintenance

1 Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), Centre for Security Science (CSS), National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1A 0K7 2Manufacturing andMaterials Deptartment, School of Applied Sciences, Cranfield University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL, UK 3Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA 4Bombardier Aerospace, Station Centre-ville, Montreal, QC, Canada H3C 3G9

The Russian 10 … 11: An Inconsequential Adventure?

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Additional informationNotes on contributorsStéphane LefebvreWhen written, Stéphane Lefebvre was Section Head–Strategic Analysis at the Centre for Operational Research and Analysis (CORA), Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), Ottawa. The views expressed in this article are his own and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the government of Canada or any of its departments or agencies.Holly PorteousHolly Porteous has been a Researcher with the Parliamentary Research and Information Service of the Library of Parliament, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, since 2009. Previously, she was a Senior Strategic Policy Advisor at the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) and, earlier, a Senior Analyst at the Electronic Warfare Associates of Canada. Holder of a Master's degree in Economic and Social Studies from the University of Wales in the United Kingdom, Ms. Porteous has also had experience as a journalist and as an analyst with the Directorate of Social and Economic Analysis of Canada's Department of National Defence. Her essays and reviews have appeared in numerous journals and newspapers.

Ship Motion and Wave Radar Data Fusion for Shipboard Wave Measurement

Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Atlantic has conducted many dedicated seakeeping and structural load trials on the Canadian Navy research ship CFAV Quest and on several Canadian Navy warships. Typically, wave buoys have been deployed to measure seaway wave characteristics; however, there has been an ongoing interest in evaluating shipboard wave measurement systems. These systems have some advantages over wave buoys for short-term trials and are needed for longer-term sea trials and to provide wave input data for tactical and real-time ship operator guidance systems. This paper presents some of our experiences with wave radar. In the last few years there have been significant advances in wave radar technology (systems that extract wave data from backscatter information contained in the video output of X-band navigational radar displays). Commercial "off-the-shelf" systems are now available. While there is evidence that these systems can provide reliable wave data from shore-based or stationary platform installations, it is DRDC's experience on a ship moving in waves, that wave radars can give good direction and frequency measurements but less reliable wave heights. DRDC has developed a method to improve shipboard wave height measurement through fusion of wave radar data with measured ship motion response data. This paper discusses the development of the wave data fusion process, validated through previous sea trial data, and presents the results of a recent demonstration of the approach during a sea trial conducted on CFAV Quest in November/December 2008.

Biomechanical Assessment Of Canadian Military Soft Armor Systems

Due to the nature of the threat from Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), the pattern and probability of injury has changed for both mounted and dismounted military personnel. This work was performed for the Soldier System Integration Group at Defense Research and Development Canada (DRDC)-Toronto in support of the Counter Improvised Explosive Device (C-IED) Technical Demonstration Project (TDP). PURPOSE: 1) To quantitatively assess three different designs of military soft armour systems that provide the same level of ballistic protection, yet differ in stiffness, bulk and weight; 2) To compare subjective data from soldiers' preferences with electromyography (EMG) and range of motion (ROM) data. METHODS: Eight male Canadian Armed Forces personnel participated in this investigation. Surface EMG data were recorded from eight muscles on the subjects' dominant side including: the Biceps (bilaterally), Triceps, Anterior Deltoid, Pectoralis Major, Trapezius, External Oblique (bilaterally). Upper body kinematics were recorded using seven MTx inertial motion sensors (Xsens, Netherlands) placed on the head, the C7 spinous process, the sacrum (L5/S1), as well as the upper and lower arms (bilaterally). Muscle activity and joint range of motion were assessed for a total of three different soft armour systems across a battery of upper body & trunk range of motion tasks. In addition soldiers were asked to complete a questionnaire at the end of test session, requiring them to rank each of the armour systems from best to worst in terms of overall maneuverability. RESULTS: Results from this investigation indicate that this approach of combining EMG concurrently with ROM is able to provide an objective biomechanical assessment of personal protective equipment. The EMG and ROM objective measures were all positively correlated to soldiers' subjective responses using a Spearman's Ranked Correlation Test. These correlations were particularly strong for the shoulder region ROM tasks (RS =1.0 for all three comparisons). CONCLUSION: Results indicate that less stiff, less bulky, and lighter systems are deemed superior for dynamic tasks, whereas, stiffer, bulkier, and heavier systems may have advantages for static holding tasks. Research Funded by DRDC-Toronto.

8.4.2 Exploring Concurrent Activities: Using State Machines to Understand Net‐Enabled Operations

AbstractThe Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Centre for Operational Research and Analysis (CORA) is developing capability engineering analysis tools to help build and assess architectures to support net‐enabled operations. This paper describes research into State‐Machine (SM) models to simulate job workflows that are typically done serially using the Task, Process, Exploit and Disseminate (TPED) cycle or concurrently using the Task, Post, Process, Use (TPPU) cycle.Classical behavioural models cannot simulate TPPU beyond simple cases due to all the possible permutations in the job flow. SM models overcome this by storing the status of activities and products and then using them in the next time step as inputs to change the status through an action or an output. The SM approach shifts the modeling perspective to an instant in time so the interrelationships of concurrent activity can be simulated in more detail than is feasible for classical architecture models. Sample results and analysis tools for the current SM model are presented.

The Case of Donald Keyser and Taiwan's National Security Bureau

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Additional informationNotes on contributorsStéphane LefebvreStéphane Lefebvre is Section Head—Strategic Analysis at the Centre for Operational Research and Analysis (CORA), Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), Ottawa, Canada. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not reflect the official position of the government of Canada or any of its departments and agencies.

Management of bioburden with a burn gel that targets nociceptors

To assess the effectiveness of RescuDerm, an amorphous, water-soluble burn gel in controlling Pseudomonas aeruginosa growth in rat full-thickness wounds contaminated with 10(3), 10(5) or 10(7) CFU/g tissue. Wounds were treated daily for 72 hours with a placebo gel, a 5% w/w mafenide acetate gel (MAF), or with four modalities of RescuDerm application. All RescuDerm treatments were equally effective within 24 hours in preventing further Pseudomonas aeruginosa growth in wounds contaminated with 10(3) CFU/g tissue. Pseudomonas aeruginosa levels remained at or below this baseline count for 72 hours in all but one of the RescuDerm treatments. The bioburdens in MAF-treated wounds were negligible, averaging 0.14 +/- 0.09 log10 CFU/g tissue. While RescuDerm and MAF remained bacteriostatic in wounds contaminated with 10(5) CFU/g tissue, this property disappeared at higher bioburdens. RescuDerm can be used for the management of cutaneous injuries sustained in environments deemed marginally or moderately contaminated. Heavily contaminated wounds would require irrigation prior to application to reduce their bioburden below 10(5) CFU/g tissue.

Decoupled modelling and controller design for the hybrid autonomous underwater vehicle: MACO

Researchers at the University of Victoria have developed a hybrid autonomous underwater vehicle named MACO capable of 3-D station keeping and manoeuvring without forward velocity. This makes it suitable to perform many of the tasks traditionally accomplished by remotely-piloted underwater vehicles. Once operational, MACO was used in a Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) feasibility study for using AUVs to support rapid deployment of acoustic element arrays. The AUV was required to stop and hover, while triggering a low frequency sound source. The performance of MACO during these sea trials is presented as the conclusion to this discussion.

Novel Wound Dressing Could Protect Burn Victims against Pathogens

A wound dressing containing polyurethane and a hydrated polymer (hydrogel) controls the type of infections that often accompany serious skin burns, according to Lucie Martineau of Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), who presented her findings during the poster session, “Antibacterial Testing in Animal Models,” at the 45th Interscience Conference of Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) meeting in Washington, D.C., last December. The easy-to-apply dressing may one day become a means for treating burn victims on battlefields, she says.

Geoacoustic Parameter Extraction Using Reverberation Data From the 2000 Boundary Characterization Experiment on the Malta Plateau

This paper presents some new results from measurements of seafloor reverberation and pulse spreading using horizontal and vertical line arrays. The principal objective of this paper is to extract useful geoacoustic and bottom-scattering parameters that apply over a large ocean area. Analysis is presented on reverberation data from the 2000 Boundary Characterization Experiment performed jointly with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Undersea Research Center (NURC), Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) of Pennsylvania State University, Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), and Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). Sources were SUS charges and coherent pulses. The receivers were horizontal arrays used monostatically. Data were analyzed in bands from 80 to 4000 Hz. Highlights of the reverberant returns are discussed. The experiment site is the Malta Plateau area south of Sicily, a relatively flat heavily sedimented area, but with a rocky ridge to the east. An original aspect of this paper is the design and implementation of a new automated inverse method using towed-array data to accomplish that goal. For each data set, a multiple-step simulated annealing (SA) algorithm is used together with the Generic Sonar Model (GSM). After automatically adjusting bottom loss and scattering strength, good agreement is achieved between the diffuse reverberation data and model predictions in relatively flat areas. Model/data differences are generally correlated with bottom-scattering features. Since reverberation from SUS charges typically lasts 10-40 s or more, extracted parameters apply over wide areas. Independent acoustic measurements provided a basis for a comparison with extracted values. Local bottom-loss and backscattering measurements were made by Holland in these areas. Additionally, chirp-sonar measurements were analyzed by Turgut. A comparison of geoacoustic models obtained with their methods and with this one was quite good. Comparing transmission loss (TL) predicted with Turgut's local inverse method and TL predicted with the method presented here gave answers that were usually within 3 dB of each other. Typical two-way time spreads of 0.25 s were seen at a range of 7.5 km, with normalized peak correlations of 0.5, and which were fairly consistent with predictions made using the inverse results

Passive Standoff Detection of SF6 at a Distance of 5.7 km by Differential Fourier Transform Infrared Radiometry

Recent results are presented on the passive detection, identification, and quantification of a vapor cloud of SF6 measured at a horizontal standoff distance of 5.7 km using a dual-beam interferometer optimized for background signal suppression. The measurements were performed at Defense Research and Development Canada (DRDC)-Valcartier during a number of recent open-air experiments. The measurement approach is based on the differential passive standoff detection method that has been developed by DRDC Valcartier during the past few years. This work represents the first such measurement reported in the open literature for a standoff distance as large as 5.7 km. These results clearly demonstrate the capability of the differential radiometry approach to the detection, identification, and quantification of chemical vapor clouds located at long distances from the sensor.