Special Program Announcement for 2012 Office of Naval Research Basic Research Challenge Decentralized Online Optimization | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

This Office of Naval Research (ONR) Basic Research Challenge opportunity, titled "Decentralized Online Optimization," targets foundational research needed for the Navy's shift toward operating large, complex systems that cannot realistically be managed through a single centralized controller. The announcement frames a representative use case as a fleet of unmanned vehicles operating with limited communications in a changing environment. In these settings, individual components must make decisions independently (decentralization), while key information about the environment and system conditions is not fully known in advance and instead arrives over time (the "online" aspect, as in online algorithms). The grant is meant to push new scientific understanding and algorithmic approaches that can cope with both decentralization and uncertainty revealed sequentially.

The core objective is to develop scientific principles and algorithms for solving optimization problems where decisions must be made by multiple agents with partial, distributed information, while the data defining objectives and constraints evolves over time. ONR highlights three main thrusts researchers should address. First, proposers are expected to build rigorous mathematical frameworks that make it possible to formalize decentralized online optimization problems and to analyze, compare, and benchmark different algorithmic strategies in a principled way. Second, ONR wants the community to define a small set of canonical models that isolate the essential technical difficulties of decentralized online optimization. These are not meant to be exhaustive real-world simulations; instead, they should be simple enough for rigorous treatment while still capturing the key challenges, so that results on these models can drive broader design and analysis principles. Third, the program seeks the identification and development of promising algorithmic strategies, meaning approaches that are theoretically grounded but also relevant to Navy-like scenarios where communication is constrained, coordination is imperfect, and decisions must adapt as new information arrives.

This is positioned as a Basic Research Challenge Program, supporting basic science and engineering research in academia and industry, with an emphasis on stimulating new, high-risk basic research. While ONR will consider single-investigator submissions, the notice states a preference for collaborative groups, especially teams with demonstrated innovative research strength in mathematical and computational sciences. The overarching emphasis is on fundamental advances rather than incremental engineering, and on work that clarifies what is possible, what tradeoffs are inherent, and what algorithms and frameworks best address those tradeoffs in decentralized, online settings.

Administratively, the opportunity is a discretionary grant in the Science and Technology / Research and Development category, tied to CFDA 12.300 (Basic and Applied Scientific Research), and it does not require cost sharing or matching. The funding opportunity number is 12 SN 0006, posted February 15, 2012, with an original and current closing date of May 15, 2012, and an archive date of June 14, 2012. The eligibility category is listed as unrestricted (open to any entity type), with any specifics deferred to the main ONR broad agency announcement. A key procedural point is that applicants are instructed not to apply under the special notice itself; instead, they must submit using the application instructions and package under ONRBAA12-001, which is also where any white paper due dates and full proposal submission requirements are detailed. Late full proposals may be considered only if time and remaining funds permit. For access issues with the full announcement, the listed point of contact is Gordon Jaquith, Contract Specialist, at 703-696-7831, with grants.gov questions referenced in the contact section as well.

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