A bill on its way to the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee delivers $16 million for defense research by UND and partner companies, much of it focused on the school's work on unmanned aerial vehicles.
Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., serves on the subcommittee that approved the bill Tuesday. In a statement, he called the UND projects funded in the bill "good for our military and good for the Red River Valley Research Corridor."
Projects funded in the bill include:
-- $4 million for UND's Center of Excellence for Defense UAV Education. That money will be used to continue research on radar systems to allow UAVs to steer clear of manned aircraft and dangerous weather systems, UND officials said.
-- $3 million for the Laserlith Corp. of Grand Forks to develop an antennae to aid high-speed communication between UAVs and their operators on the ground.
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-- $2 million to fund UND's summer helicopter training program for ROTC officers and West Point cadets.
-- $2 million for UND's Energy and Environmental Research Center to develop tactical fuels for the U.S. military.
-- $3 million for Grand Forks-based Alion Sciences and Technology Inc. to develop technologies to increase the life span and reliability of engines in army helicopters and other vehicles.
-- $2 million for NovaDigm, a company with facilities at UND's new Research and Commercialization Park, to develop vaccines to prevent staph infections, common among wounded soldiers.
