NextGen Lab
Partnering for the Aviation System of the Future
For more than 40 years, the U.S. DOT Volpe Center has partnered with FAA, DOD, and NASA to lay the foundation for the aviation system of the future by designing, developing, and deploying solutions to existing and emerging challenges in air transportation. Our NextGen Lab serves as a critical facilitator of these partnerships, hosting a wide range of hardware, software, and networking capabilities that enable cutting-edge advancements and innovations in this area.
The U.S. DOT Volpe Center Air Traffic Management Systems team uses the NextGen Lab in support of Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), a large-scale FAA initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS).
Some of the capabilities featured in the Lab include the following.
- Direct connectivity to FAA networks and telecommunications infrastructure (FTI)
- Operational and test strings for numerous FAA-deployed systems, such as Integrated Terminal Weather System (ITWS), Traffic Flow Management Systems (TFMS), and System Wide Information Management (SWIM) Flight Data Publication Service (SFDPS)
- Modern technologies and applications for agile software development and automated testing
- Industry-standard security scanning tools and compliance with rigorous FAA cybersecurity audits
- Staff with cross-cutting expertise in areas such as systems engineering, air traffic operations, information technology, operations research, and computer science
Inside the NextGen Lab
Tools featured in the Lab include:
- Demonstration room with 4 wide-screen displays for visualizing various aviation-related capabilities developed by the U.S. DOT Volpe Center
- Secure, remote access to both physical and virtual hardware residing in the U.S. DOT Volpe Center's Data Center
- More than a dozen user workstations for software development and testing
- State-of-the-art firewall technology to protect Lab network perimeter
- Two-tiered security system access (card key and key code)