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UNC system researches military gear

Night vision goggles and fire-proof gear are both part of military research being conducted at UNC-system schools.

The UNC system received $36 million from the U.S. Department of Defense last year to develop technology and products that could be useful for combat, and the system is hoping to increase the funding for such research by next year.

“Our campuses are focusing on real world problems that need academic solutions,” said Kimrey Rhinehardt, the vice president for federal and military relations for the UNC system. “We are not performing science differently. We are understanding what the demands of the commands are.”

The research done within the system is an economic multiplier — the more research conducted, the more money comes in, Rhinehardt said.

At N.C. State University’s Textile Protection and Comfort Center, researchers are developing protective clothing for the military.

Researchers put Pyroman, a life-size mannequin with 122 sensors, into a chamber and engulfed him in a flash fire, said Don Thompson, the associate director of the center.

The sensors then detect where he would have received second- or third-degree burns, he said.

“We are always interested in how much heat stress and time people can work in the garments,” Thompson said.

The center also works on chemical protective clothing.

The Man-in-Simulate Test chamber is used for looking at the amount of protection clothing has against toxic materials, Thompson said.

N.C. State is the only university in the country to have a center that runs tests against chemical material, he said.

Greg Welch and Henry Fuchs lead a team of computer science researchers at UNC-CH that are collaborating with the Naval Postgraduate School on point-and–tilt cameras as part of a training system used by the Marine Corps.

The cameras are used in training to look at the physical characteristics of Marines in the field and provides information about what they are doing, Welch said.

Welch said the training system can also be used in medical training and in classrooms.

Jagdish Narayan, a materials science engineering researcher at N.C. State, is leading a research program that is working on improving night vision goggles for the military.

He said he is developing a chip with a smart sensor to be used for night vision goggles.

“You can manipulate information and respond quicker,” Narayan said.

Narayan said he also receives funding for his work from the National Science Foundation and the Army Research Office.

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu

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