DoD Medical Simulation and Information Sciences, Toward A Next-Generation Trauma Care Capability: Foundational Research for Autonomous, Unmanned, and Robotics Development of Medical Technologies (FORwARD) Award | W81XWH 17 MSISRP FOR

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The DoD Medical Simulation and Information Sciences, Toward A Next-Generation Trauma Care Capability: Foundational Research for Autonomous, Unmanned, and Robotics Development of Medical Technologies (FORwARD) Award is a Department of Defense research funding opportunity run through the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) under CFDA 12.420. Introduced for the first time in FY17, this award mechanism is designed specifically to fund basic, foundational research rather than near-term product development. The intent is to expand core scientific knowledge through discovery-driven work and hypothesis generation, with the expectation that these early breakthroughs will later enable practical autonomous, unmanned, and robotic medical systems capable of caring for wounded soldiers or patients, especially in settings where traditional medical teams are unavailable or severely limited.

At its core, the FORwARD Award is aimed at pushing the boundaries of what future trauma care could look like at or near the point of injury. The DoD emphasis is on exploratory, high-risk, high-reward concepts that could eventually support forward resuscitative care in operational environments, including combat and other austere or resource-constrained situations. Rather than asking for incremental improvements to existing tools, the program calls for novel ideas, plausible approaches, and advanced concept designs that could fundamentally shift how trauma care is delivered when human expertise cannot be physically present, cannot arrive quickly enough, or is spread too thin.

The opportunity is organized around two topic areas. The first, Autonomous and Unmanned Medical Capability, seeks research that helps conceptualize next-generation medical capabilities delivered with limited or absent medical personnel, or with personnel who have only basic skills. This topic invites foundational studies that could draw on biologically inspired cognitive computing models, machine learning, artificial intelligence, information sciences, and soft robotics concepts for semi-autonomous or fully autonomous resuscitation. The underlying theme is enabling systems that can assess, decide, and act in ways that support life-saving interventions in the field, potentially bridging critical gaps in time and expertise during the earliest minutes of traumatic injury.

The second topic area, Medical Robotics Research, focuses on medical robotics and real-time telepresence for trauma care across remote, dispersed, or difficult-to-access locations. A key element here is exploring the limits of machine perception and control for tele-robotic, semi-autonomous, and autonomous care. The solicitation explicitly points to exploratory research in semi-autonomous robotic surgery as an example, with the aim of improving safety and effectiveness for tele-surgical procedures in challenging environments such as multi-domain battlefield scenarios, mass casualty events, or austere geographic regions. This topic is essentially about making robotic trauma care more viable when distance, terrain, threat conditions, or logistics prevent conventional surgical teams from operating where they are needed.

From an administrative standpoint, the funding instrument types listed are grants and cooperative agreements, and eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning proposals may be submitted by a wide range of entity types unless otherwise limited by additional eligibility language in the full announcement. The opportunity was posted September 28, 2017, with an original closing date of February 5, 2018. The expected number of awards was two, and the award ceiling is listed as 0, which typically signals that applicants must consult the full solicitation details for budget constraints, allowable costs, and any programmatic caps that may be specified elsewhere rather than relying on a single posted maximum.

Overall, the FORwARD Award is best understood as an early-stage DoD investment in the scientific building blocks needed for future autonomous and robotic trauma care. It targets foundational advances in intelligent decision-making, perception, human-machine teaming, telepresence, and robotic intervention concepts, with a clear focus on operationally relevant trauma scenarios where speed, distance, and limited medical staffing are the defining constraints.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DoD Medical Simulation and Information Sciences, Toward A Next-Generation Trauma Care Capability: Foundational Research for Autonomous, Unmanned, and Robotics Development of Medical Technologies (FORwARD) Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Sep 28, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 05, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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