Technology Title
AI-Powered Robotic Maintenance Repair and Overhaul
Tech Focus Area
Energy Environmental Health and Safety
Abstract
Maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) of weapon systems, including aircraft, ships, vehicles, and submarines, remain among the most complex and labor-intensive operations in the Department of Defense. Fleet readiness is constrained by manual paint, corrosion-control, and inspection processes that rely on a shrinking skilled workforce. Surface preparation, coating, and inspection are often performed separately, creating multiple handoffs, long queues, and high manpower requirements. These workflows are slow, ergonomically demanding, and prone to variability, resulting in rework, extended maintenance timelines, higher sustainment costs, and reduced fleet availability.
Traditional robotic automation has failed to scale in these high-variability DoD environments because it relies on offline programming and part-specific teaching. GrayMatter Robotics (GMR) addresses this challenge through its AI-driven Scan–Plan–Act–Verify framework, which enables geometry-agnostic, adaptive automation without preprogramming. Scanning captures the geometry of any part; planning incorporates operator input and process preferences to generate optimal toolpaths; execution drives robotic sanding, blasting, spraying, or inspection with precision; and verification embeds inline quality checks for continuous feedback.
Building on this core framework, GMR delivers a suite of modular turnkey systems tailored to surface preparation, coating, and inspection:
- Scan&Sand™ standardizes surface finishes through adaptive force-controlled sanding.
- Scan&Blast™ integrates geometry-aware blasting and inline verification to ensure safe, consistent coating removal.
- Scan&Spray™ achieves uniform coatings via 3D localization, conformal path planning, and real-time quality monitoring.
- Autonomous Inspection combines multi-modal sensing and edge AI to deliver decision-quality metrology at production speed.
Together, these systems form a closed-loop, air-gapped robotic workflow that streamlines depot operations. Beyond automation, GMR’s ecosystem of software and services ensures reliable deployment and sustained operational excellence:
- GMR-Guardian™ continuously monitors robotic cells for disruptions such as improper debris removal or tool misloads, adapting in real time to maintain uptime.
- GMR-ProcessPro™ optimizes process parameters across materials to extract maximum operational value.
- GMR-Insights™ transforms cell-level data into actionable intelligence on utilization and performance.
- GMR-Care™ provides 24×7 remote and onsite support to ensure sustained reliability and customer success.
GrayMatter Robotics (GMR) transforms DoD sustainment by uniting sanding, blasting, coating, and inspection in a single intelligent robotic ecosystem. The TRL-9 technology proven across 50+ deployed cells and 30 million square feet enhances safety, ensures full traceability, and scales from components to full aircraft or ships, reducing costs and boosting fleet readiness through AI-driven autonomy.
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