Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA DC 16 002
Apply for RFA DC 16 002
- The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Open Design Tools for Speech Signal Processing (R43/R44)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.173 Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jun 8, 2015 and posted on Jun 8, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Oct 1, 2015. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $1,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Small businesses.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Only United States small business concerns (SBCs) are eligible to submit applications for this opportunity. See announcement for full details.
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Opportunity Summary:
The grant opportunity titled "Open Design Tools for Speech Signal Processing (R43/R44)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-DC-16-002) is an NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) solicitation focused on building practical, portable tools for acoustic and speech signal processing research. The core aim is to fund small businesses that can develop a research platform combining substantial on-device computing power with reconfigurable, real-time speech enhancement capabilities that still function reliably outside the lab in real-world listening environments. In other words, the program is not just looking for another algorithm on a desktop computer; it is pushing for a deployable tool researchers can take into everyday settings while still running sophisticated speech enhancement and acoustic processing in real time.
A defining requirement of this FOA is the emphasis on open source design principles for key hardware and software components. The intent behind this is to make the resulting platform easier for the broader research community to adopt, study, modify, and improve without being locked into proprietary designs that slow down experimentation or limit replication. By keeping critical aspects open, NIH is signaling that dissemination, rapid reconfiguration, and ongoing enhancement by many groups are part of the expected impact, not an afterthought. The end goal is to enable new kinds of acoustic psychophysical research studies, including studies that go beyond what is commonly performed today because existing tools are too rigid, too closed, or not capable of operating in the environments researchers actually care about.
From an applicant standpoint, this is a discretionary grant opportunity using the SBIR R43/R44 mechanisms, which typically correspond to Phase I (feasibility/proof of concept) and Phase II (full research and development) awards. Eligible applicants are limited to United States small business concerns, and there is no cost sharing or matching requirement stated in the opportunity. The funding is tied to the NIH activity area reflected in CFDA 93.173, "Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders," which aligns the technology focus with broader needs in hearing, communication, and speech-related research domains. The estimated total funding listed for the announcement is $1,000,000, and the award ceiling is also stated as $1,000,000, indicating a relatively concentrated funding pool aimed at targeted tool-building rather than a wide spread of small awards.
Administratively, the opportunity was posted and created on June 8, 2015, with an original and current closing date of October 1, 2015, and it was archived on November 1, 2015. The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health, and the official announcement was made available through the NIH grants guide page linked in the listing. For access or linking issues, the contact route provided is the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Webmaster (FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV), which is a practical detail but also a hint that the authoritative requirements and full technical expectations live in the full FOA text rather than the summary.
Overall, the opportunity is best understood as NIH investing in an open, portable, high-performance speech/acoustic processing toolkit that can run real-time enhancement software in realistic conditions, and that is intentionally designed so other researchers can quickly reproduce it, adapt it, and extend it for advanced psychoacoustic and speech-perception experiments. The combination of portability, real-time reconfigurable processing, and open design is the main differentiator, and the expected payoff is a step change in what kinds of speech and hearing experiments can be run, where they can be run, and how quickly new experimental configurations can be shared across the research community.
FAQs: Open Design Tools for Speech Signal Processing (R43/R44) - RFA-DC-16-002
What is the title of this grant opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Open Design Tools for Speech Signal Processing (R43/R44)."
What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FOA number)?
The Funding Opportunity Number is RFA-DC-16-002.
Which agency is sponsoring this opportunity?
The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
What type of program is this (SBIR/STTR/other)?
This is an NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) solicitation.
Which grant mechanisms are used?
The solicitation uses the SBIR R43/R44 mechanisms, which typically correspond to Phase I (feasibility/proof of concept) and Phase II (full research and development).
What is the main purpose of the funding?
The core aim is to fund small businesses to develop practical, portable tools for acoustic and speech signal processing research, specifically a deployable research platform that can operate reliably outside the lab in real-world listening environments.
What kind of tool is NIH looking for (high-level description)?
NIH is looking for a research platform that combines substantial on-device computing power with reconfigurable, real-time speech enhancement and acoustic processing capabilities, designed to be used in everyday settings rather than only on a desktop in a lab.
Is the opportunity focused only on algorithms?
No. The program emphasizes a deployable tool/platform, not simply "another algorithm on a desktop computer." The intent is real-time processing in realistic conditions with a portable, practical form factor.
What does "on-device computing power" imply in this context?
It implies that the platform is expected to perform sophisticated speech enhancement and acoustic processing locally (on the device), in real time, rather than relying exclusively on off-device computing in a controlled lab setup.
What does "reconfigurable" mean for the proposed platform?
The platform is expected to support rapid reconfiguration of processing capabilities (such as real-time speech enhancement), enabling researchers to adapt experimental configurations efficiently and run different processing setups as needed.
Why is "real-world listening environments" emphasized?
The solicitation specifically pushes for tools that function reliably outside the lab, enabling research in everyday settings that researchers actually care about, where many existing tools are too rigid or not dependable.
What is a defining requirement of this FOA?
A defining requirement is the emphasis on open source design principles for key hardware and software components.
Does the FOA require open-source components?
Based on the summary provided, the FOA emphasizes open source design principles for key hardware and software components, with the intent that critical aspects are open to support adoption, study, modification, and improvement by the broader research community.
Why does NIH emphasize open design and open source principles here?
The intent is to make the resulting platform easier for the research community to adopt, study, modify, reproduce, and improve, avoiding proprietary lock-in that can slow experimentation and limit replication.
What kinds of research are these tools meant to enable?
The end goal is to enable new kinds of acoustic psychophysical research studies, including studies that go beyond what is commonly performed today because existing tools are too closed, too rigid, or not capable of operating in the environments of interest.
How does this opportunity relate to hearing and communication research?
The funding is tied to CFDA 93.173, "Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders," aligning the technology focus with broader needs in hearing, communication, and speech-related research domains.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligible applicants are limited to United States small business concerns.
Is this a discretionary grant opportunity?
Yes. The summary describes it as a discretionary grant opportunity.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No cost sharing or matching requirement is stated in the opportunity summary provided.
How much total funding is estimated for this announcement?
The estimated total funding listed is $1,000,000.
What is the award ceiling?
The award ceiling is stated as $1,000,000.
Does the summary indicate whether the funding will be spread across many awards or concentrated?
The summary notes that the estimated total funding and the award ceiling are both $1,000,000, suggesting a relatively concentrated funding pool aimed at targeted tool-building rather than a wide spread of small awards.
When was the opportunity posted and created?
It was posted and created on June 8, 2015.
What was the closing date?
The original and current closing date listed is October 1, 2015.
Is the opportunity still open?
No. It was archived on November 1, 2015, and the closing date listed is October 1, 2015.
Where is the official announcement hosted?
The official announcement was made available through the NIH grants guide page linked in the listing.
What should applicants rely on for authoritative requirements and technical expectations?
The summary indicates that the authoritative requirements and full technical expectations are in the full FOA text rather than the summary.
Who should be contacted for access or linking issues related to the announcement?
For access or linking issues, the contact route provided is the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Webmaster at FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV.
What is the key differentiator of this FOA compared with typical signal-processing research tools?
The differentiator is the combination of portability, substantial on-device computing power, real-time reconfigurable speech enhancement/acoustic processing, and open design principles intended to accelerate adoption and modification by the research community.
What is the intended impact of funding a platform like this?
The expected payoff is a step change in what kinds of speech and hearing experiments can be run, where they can be run (including everyday environments), and how quickly new experimental configurations can be shared and reproduced across the research community.
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