SEPTEMBER, 2004

October 1, 1958, the official “birth” of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), was the beginning of a rich history of unique scientific and technological achievements in human space flight, aeronautics, space science, and space applications. Building on its aeronautical roots, NASA continues to conduct many types of cutting-edge aeronautics research on aerodynamics, wind shear, and other important topics using wind tunnels, flight testing, and computer simulations.

This highly-esteemed organization has recently awarded Optimal Solutions Software, LLC, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, a second phase of the only Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project in the State of Idaho in 2004. The first phase of the project began in January, 2004.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program was established by Congress in 1982 to provide increased opportunities for small businesses to participate in research and development and to pursue, or embellish existing, commercial applications of a technology. The Program stimulates high-tech innovation, and the United States gains entrepreneurial spirit as it meets its specific R&D needs.

The SBIR project that Optimal Solutions won allows the Company to add new features and capabilities to its existing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) shape deformation and design optimization software tool—Sculptor™. The new capability will enable NASA engineers who are responsible for designing complex valves and pipe fittings on pipes that transport dangerous fluids, such as liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, to achieve designs that meet strict design standards for these applications.

(THREE-D NASA VALVE PHOTO)

On October 1, 2003, Optimal Solutions Software, L.L.C., officially launched Sculptor™. This major offering to the CFD industry answers the question of how to improve CFD designs—in the most cost-effective, timely manner. This is an interactive design software program that provides capabilities to perform shape deformation and optimization in CFD design—in real time—thus, eliminating the numerous iterations inherent in the process when the designer has to manually modify the design.

Key benefits of the innovations that Sculptor™ will have as a result of this NASA SBIR project are:

 The ability to optimize complex component designs; i.e., control valves, manifolds, mixers, pipe fittings, etc. Some of these components require the deformation of several different grids while guaranteeing the same shape change in each grid. The high-level volume creation and manipulation tools will greatly simplify this process and enable the optimization of complex problems.

 Speed up the optimization to process by taking advantage of advanced parallel computers and an improved user interface and software tools.

 Allow NASA Stennis Space Center to leverage its CFD analysis capabilities to quickly troubleshoot engineering problems and produce timely solutions.

 The successful addition of evolutionary optimization algorithms to Sculptor™ will facilitate the future generation of Pareto design sets so that a broad range of optimal designs will be produced based on different and often times competing objective functions.

 Become a versatile CFD design tool for all of NASA—not just Stennis Space Center—as well as other government agencies and the commercial marketplace.

The NASA SBIR project will allow Optimal Solutions to incorporate new capabilities that will even further enhance Sculptor’s™ already rich set of tools available for arbitrary geometric shape deformation and optimization.

NASA Small Business Innovation Research projects are not new to the Optimal Solutions team. In 1998, Optimal Solutions Software, LLC, captured a DOD/Air Force SBIR for “Efficient CFD-Based Aerodynamic Shape Optimization”. This project was the application of technology to the optimization of aircraft shapes. An initial shape was provided, along with certain criteria for design optimization, such as maximizing the lift-to-drag ratio through all angles of attack. Improvements in these aircraft shapes gave them more maneuverability during flight in order to perform evasive actions.

About Optimal Solutions

Optimal Solutions, LLC, a CFD software design company has developed an interactive CFD design software program called Sculptor™ that provides capabilities to perform shape deformation and optimization in CFD design—in real time. By utilizing this unique tool, the numerous iterations inherent in the process when the designer has to manually modify the design are eliminated. The ASD Arbitrary Shape Deformation technology used by Sculptor™ automatically alters shapes that are typically very complex and hard to manipulate into designs that improve performance—without having to remesh.

Automated CFD engineering design has centered on shape optimization, which has been hindered by two major problems:

 Inadequate shape change parameterization algorithms; and  Inadequate algorithms for CFD grid modification.

Optimal Solutions’ ASD method of controlling and manipulating the shape change of any type of geometry—either CAD/CAM data or computational grids—has made a major advancement in solving these two problems.

Optimal Solutions Software, LLC, is headquartered in Idaho Falls, Idaho—within close proximity to Yellowstone National Park, the Tetons, Sun Valley, and the Rocky Mountains. The Company’s Research and Development Department is located in Provo, Utah, with associate offices in the European Union and Asia.

For more information, please visit Optimal Solutions’ Web site at www.optimalsolutions.us, or contact Mark Landon, President, by e-mail at mlandon@optimalsolutions.us, or by phone at: 208-521-4660.

Optimal Solutions Media Contact: Carolyn Harrison Director of Marketing North American Operations 208-542-9222 charrison@optimalsolutions.us