Kodiak RFI.pdf

Request For Information (RFI)

For

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)

Kodiak Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

December 10, 2024

1.0 Introduction

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Engineering and Technology Directorate

(ETD) is currently exploring potential partnerships for alternate use cases for the Kodiak

Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) Engineering Test Unit and spaceflight hardware. GSFC is seeking responses that describe alternate use cases that will benefit commercial, civil, and national objectives, thereby advancing domestic leadership in In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) or other capabilities requiring

LiDAR technology.

Written responses from domestic organizations including industry, academia, investors, philanthropic organizations, and other stakeholders and partners, as well as other federal agencies, state, and local governments, are encouraged. Information may be submitted by any domestic organization or individual. There is no limit to the number of responses an organization may submit to this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships.

Responses to this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships will be kept strictly confidential.

2.0 Purpose

The objective of this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships is to invite community responses on alternate use cases of the Kodiak LiDAR hardware. Potential alternate use cases may include repurposing the hardware for different clients or technology demonstrations, integrating the hardware with other hardware for commercial applications, or collaborating with other organizations for scientific and technical research.

The Kodiak LiDAR was designed for use on the On-orbit Servicing, Assembly and

Manufacturing-1 (OSAM-1) space vehicle. Kodiak consists of three enclosures: a Main

Electronics Box (MEB), Splice Box and Front End Box (FEB). This unique architecture was conceived to minimize the size, weight and power (SWaP) of the hardware exposed to the elements, allowing the design to evolve for future SWaP-constrained mission types, such as Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL) or Touch and Go (TAG) Sampling.

The MEB is the main controller for the LiDAR. It provides the 1550nm laser source and processes the return signals. The MEB includes the space vehicle interfaces for power, RS-485 serial command and telemetry.

The FEB contains the Transmitter and two Receivers. One receiver is intended for long-distance use, generating range and bearing angle information. The other receiver is intended for short-distance use, generating range and bearing angle information as well as point clouds (surface maps) of the target.

The Splice Box is a passive enclosure where fiber optics from the MEB and FEB are spliced together.

Kodiak LiDAR hardware that may be available for consideration for alternate use cases is described below.

2.1 Engineering Test Unit

The Engineering Test Unit (ETU) Kodiak LiDAR is fully assembled and has successfully completed environmental testing.

2.2 Flight Unit

The Flight Unit Kodiak LiDAR includes a number of design improvements resulting from testing the ETU. The major subassemblies of the FEB

(Transmitter and both Receivers) are fully assembled and aligned. All additional

FEB flight piece-parts are on hand. Electronics cards for the MEB are almost all fully assembled and tested. All additional MEB flight piece-parts are on hand.

3.0 Eligibility and Directions to Respond

This Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships is for US domestic entities.

Interest from international government agencies or other international entities will be addressed in direct conversations with NASA Headquarters. International inquiries should be addressed to the Point of Contact in Section 6.

4.0 Information Requested

This is a Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships. No evaluation letters or results will be issued to the respondents.

Responses should address at a high-level the following aspects of the alternate use case for Kodiak LiDAR hardware:

1. Repurpose: Describe how the NASA-developed property could be repurposed for an alternate use case. List potential modifications or adaptations to achieve a different function, improve technical performance, or develop a new application including the possible use as a test bed capability that can be further leveraged to mature ISAM or other capabilities.

2. Integration: Explain how the hardware could be integrated with existing hardware systems or infrastructure, for a ground or space-based application. Identify the sources of the other hardware and/or infrastructure for the alternate use case.

3. Advancement: Identify technological innovations or advancements that could be pursued by repurposing the property. Discuss how these advancements could contribute to the field of ISAM or promote American leadership in the space economy. Outline the potential economic, strategic, and societal benefits of the proposed use case.

4. Feasibility: Describe the challenges and uncertainties associated with the proposed use case. Identify specific risks, as well as technical, programmatic, and logistical considerations.

5. Infrastructure: Define the ground-based infrastructure needed to modify, integrate, and verify the alternate use case. Indicate if this infrastructure exists in the aerospace community and whether it is accessible.

6. Notional Readiness: Provide a notional timeline to implement the alternate use case, including key milestones and deliverables.

7. Collaboration: Identify the potential for collaboration with organizations such as industry, academia, investors, philanthropic organizations, other stakeholders and partners, as well as other federal agencies or state and local governments.

8. Resources: Provide a high-level listing of resource needs, including technical, financial, facility, and human resources, which may include the utilization of

NASA’s knowledge, workforce, lab facilities, and other ground/test facilities required to achieve the alternate use cases, without providing a specific dollar estimate.

5.0 Information for Respondents

This information is requested for planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. The release of this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships does not obligate the government to issue a future solicitation, nor does it obligate the government to invest any resources to any specific space technology topic area.

Respondents are encouraged to provide information that is not constrained by limited or restricted data rights. No Personally Identifiable Information (PII) should be submitted in response to this RFI. Respondents are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships. NASA intends to consider all data received to inform the Agency’s future planning.

Please note that NASA employees and other government agencies as well as its support contractors’ employees and/or their subcontractors working on behalf of NASA may review respondent’s submissions. NASA contractors and subcontractors are governed by non-disclosure provisions in their applicable contracts and subcontracts, which protects the confidentiality of all information reviewed. Responses to this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships will not be returned, and respondents will not be notified of the results of the review.

This Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships is for planning purposes only and shall not be considered as an obligation on the part of NASA to acquire any products or services and/or enter into any partnership agreements or any other legal implementing instrument as a result of this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR

Partnerships. NASA does not intend to award a contract, Space Act Agreement (SAA), or any other legal implementing instrument in response to Request for Information for

Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships submissions received. Nor will NASA pay for the information requested in this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships.

The information provided is entirely voluntary and will not affect the ability to propose on future opportunities.

No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of a solicitation. If a solicitation is released in the future, it will be synopsized on the Government Point of Entry website

SAM.gov. It is the responsibility of interested parties to monitor these sites regularly for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.

6.0 Points of Contact

Russell Roder

Product Development Lead (PDL) for the Kodiak LiDAR

Goddard Space Flight Center

Engineering and Technology Directorate

Nat Gill

Architect for the Kodiak LiDAR

Goddard Space Flight Center

Engineering and Technology Directorate

All questions and inquiries should be directed to the email address listed in Section 7.

7.0 Submitting Responses

Responses to this Request for Information for Kodiak LiDAR Partnerships must be submitted electronically to russell.roder@nasa.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on

01/10/2025 with a carbon copy to Odessia Becks, Contract Specialist at

Odessia.h.becks@nasa.gov

• In your response, please provide the following information:

o Name of your organization o Address of your organization o Point of contact information

• Provide the electronic copy response in one searchable, unlocked Portable

Document File (PDF) with edit permission enabled.

Comments containing references, studies, research, and other empirical data that are not widely published shall include copies or electronic links of the referenced materials.