SwRI continues to develop powerful and precise antenna and signal technology tools for defense and intelligence applications. In 2024, software engineers improved collaborative signal prosecution, identifying signals by sorting and reorganizing data collected across platforms. The capability gives tactical users in the field, with limited communication systems, the ability to quickly collect and identify signals of interest. The system is operational and will soon be ready to support Department of Defense tactical operations. 

SwRI’s novel airborne ultra high frequency (UHF) direction finding (DF) antenna enables government and military users to detect and geolocate terrestrial and airborne radio frequency (RF) sources in flight. The antenna array offers wide frequency coverage, with an upper operational frequency 10 times higher than its lower operating frequency. Embedded electronics filter, amplify, mix and condition RF signals to optimize system performance, while maintaining low size, weight and power (SWaP) requirements. The novel antenna integrates onto legacy aircraft using existing radome and RF distribution infrastructure and can be deployed in ground-based mobile and fixed-site applications.

SwRI’s JUPITER Advanced Electronic Warfare System bolsters U.S. Air Force dominance over the electromagnetic spectrum with a suite of hardware and software that rapidly detects and responds to enemy radar threats. JUPITER utilizes the Modular Open System Approach, which allows easy expansion, removal or replacement of components. Sensor Open System Architecture (SOSA™) and commercial off-the-shelf products facilitate the modular design and support interoperability, while minimizing costs. 

SwRI is advancing wideband signal detection capabilities. In 2024, engineers developed automatic detection of next-generation wideband signals for COMINT operations, including 5G, spread spectrum and frequency-hopped protocols. The capability supports airborne, naval and ground missions for military and government applications. The SOSA-compliant design meets industry standards, using embedded processing on field programmable gate arrays and single board computers to minimize SWaP.

SwRI builds custom, comprehensive defense systems for the United States military and ally countries to safeguard the communications intelligence pipeline. We continue to expand our facilities and staff to support surveillance of the electromagnetic environment and arm our warfighters with advanced technology to outmaneuver adversaries and protect their battlespace.

New facilities are expanding our defense and intelligence capabilities. SwRI’s indoor Spherical Near-Field Antenna Range, built in 2024, is enhancing the Institute’s antenna measurement capabilities for government and industry clients. The 1,260-square-foot range, lined with RF and microwave foam absorbers, can finely sample the near field of an antenna, which engineers can mathematically transform into far-field measurement data. 

The new range overcomes prior limitations, servicing antennas up to 10 feet in diameter and 1,000 pounds, characterizing full 3D radiation patterns. The range includes a built-in, overhead, half-ton hoist to position large, heavy antennas.

In addition to the antenna range, SwRI built a temperature- and access-controlled lab and warehouse for defense electronics assembly and government property storage. We broke ground on the first SwRI-owned building outside of San Antonio in Warner Robins, Georgia. The $18.5 million, 33,000-square-foot facility will open in mid-2025 and support our advanced electronic warfare work for the U.S. Air Force. 

To protect assets and information, SwRI is testing nonlethal ways to impair adversaries, particularly those who have infiltrated a secure facility. We studied how a combination of dense smoke and strobe lights affected test subjects, working with psychologists to conduct behavioral analyses of the results. Using a custom-developed test chamber, we study how these distractions affect the fine and gross motor skills as well as the memory, balance and visual acuity of subjects performing representative tasks.

Thousands of active-duty personnel suffer tibial stress fractures each year, resulting in lost duty days that impact military readiness. SwRI is applying its digital twin technology, a virtual model of the human body, to develop human-in-the-loop technology to optimize rehabilitation. By reducing the load on the affected bone during recovery, this technology can help injured service members return to duty faster, ultimately improving military readiness.