Title: FFRDCs and Robotics Problems of Public Interest
Abstract: MITRE is a not-for-profit organization the operates six Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDC) aligned with different government agency sponsors. By law, FFRDCs can’t manufacture produces or compete directly with industry, but MITRE serves in the public interest to bridge government and industry to solve complex national challenges. This discussion will illuminate the unique role FFRDCs span within and across the government, and provide examples of otherwise unsolved problems in robotics and autonomy that MITRE leads. The first case study discusses Digital Copilot, a prototype information system designed to supplement information for general aviation applications. The second case study highlights justified assurance and the process to evaluate if machine learning-enabled capabilities should be designated safe for public use.
Short Bio: John B Wurts is an autonomous systems engineer at the MITRE corporation and local to Ann Arbor. John primarily supports work programs related to the Department of Defense, but has supported projects related to Federal Aviation Administration and National Science Foundation. Prior to joining MITRE, he completed his PhD from UMich – Mechanical Engineering in 2020 under Prof Tulga Ersal and Prof (Ret) Jeffery Stein. His research focuses on nonlinear optimal control with applications to parallel and GPU-enabled computations. Previously, John was an automotive engineer local to Detroit with interests in active and passive crash safety.
