Technology Infusion Process

The innovation-development process typically begins with the recognition of a problem or need. This may be an immediate problem/need requiring resolution or the anticipation of some future problem or need. We can think of the need both in terms of its proximity (how immediate is the problem/need and hence how soon do we need to act on it) and its criticality (how important is it and what are the consequences of not acting on it). This recognition of a problem/need leads to the initiation of research activities designed to establish a solution.

In the Earth science data domain, the types of problem that we examine typically lead to research into technology-based solutions and to exploring how our data systems can be improved, extended, or refined. In the development phase, development activities involve the application of software engineering technologies and techniques to improve the usefulness, reliability, and accessibility of Earth science data.

Much of the research funded by NASA is directed at this type of problem solving and the development of technologies to a point of a demonstrable capability (equivalent to a TRL level of 4 to 6.) However, at this point in the innovation-development process, we have only demonstrated an ability to solve the problem in a limited environment. Further effort is required to make the technology robust enough for wide-scale implementation and to address the issues associated with the distribution and adoption of new technology by the wider community. And this is where we start to transition from what are usually regarded as research and development activities into what we can label as technology infusion – the dissemination and infusion of the new technology into routine usage within the wider Earth science community.

See the report from the Process and Strategies subgoup - Technology Infusion Process Overview