Eight decades after WWII recognition, UF engineers still power defense research

This month marks 80 years since the U.S. Navy Bureau of Ordnance recognized the University of Florida for developing research that helped thwart the Nazis in World War II. 

That storied recognition launched a partnership that continues to thrive. 

With locations on UF’s main campus in Gainesville and a regional campus on Eglin Air Force Base in the Panhandle, Florida Applied Research in Engineering, known as FLARE, now provides real-world — and highly secure — research for the Department of Defense, as well as workforce development that includes Gator engineers from the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering.  

But the program’s roots date back further than 80 years. 

In 1943, at the height of the war, University of Florida researchers quietly signed a contract with the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development. Created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the agency administered federal funds to universities and industrial laboratories for military-relevant research.  

The task for UF researchers? Develop a weapons system to counter Germany’s 5000-pound V-1 autonomous flying bomb. The Nazis’ drone missile, armed with a simple autopilot system, was wreaking havoc all over Europe, and the Allies badly needed a counter-weapon. 

That contract tasked UF with conducting “theoretical studies and experimental investigations in connection with problems peculiar to special electronic devices for ordnance application.” In no small measure, UF's contract helped turn the tide of the war, according to some military historians.  

UF’s work was recognized in a presentation in May of 1946 — 80 years ago this month — with a U.S. Navy Bureau of Ordnance Naval Ordnance Development Award, presented to College of Engineering Dean Joseph Weil, UF President John Tigert and research engineers Ralph Carroll, Paul Tedder and Sam Goethe “in appreciation of exceptional service to naval ordnance development.” 

What was the innovation partly developed at UF?

 The radio proximity fuze, or VT (variable time) fuze, was a novel mechanism for detonating a munition automatically within a certain distance of its target. The fuzes were attached to the heads of anti-aircraft shells and used radio frequency technology to sense nearby aircraft. Use of VT-fuzed artillery shells against the dreaded V-1 “buzz bomb” resulted in a success rate upwards of 80%, according to a 1947 National Defense Research Committee report. 

Standard fuzing required gunners to set detonation using either time or altitude, both of which were frustratingly inaccurate and involved a fair amount of guesswork. Bringing down one plane prior to VT fuzing required 20,000 shells by some estimates. The VT fuze increased lethality by 75%, according to Naval historians. 

The five-pound devices incorporated a battery, printed circuit boards, vacuum tubes, oscillator, radio transmitter and receiver, all packed in wax and oils to protect the sensitive electronics. 

By 1944, shells fitted with the radio proximity fuze were helping win the war in Europe, prompting praise from Gen. George Patton.  

“The new shell with the funny fuze is devastating,” Patton wrote to the War Department. “I think that when all armies get this shell, we will have to devise some new method of warfare. I am glad that you all thought of it first.” 

Eighty years after receiving the award from the U.S. Navy, the collaboration between UF and the U.S. Department of Defense is alive and well.  

In fact, noted Richard Vigeant, director of FLARE and the regional campus in Shalimar, UF has “been continuously funded by the Army Research Lab and predecessor labs since 1943.” 

“We’ve consistently been under contract to grow this highly secure program area,” he said. “The relationship has continued, mostly with the Army, the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center, known as DEVCOM AC. They’ve told us that they think of us as an extended member of their team!” 

In 1943, as Vigeant tells it, when UF received the request for collaboration with the Army, the response was to immediately erect a wire fence around an area of the UF campus known as the Foundry. Access was limited to scientists with security clearances. And thus was born UF’s first secure research facility.  

Heir to that lineage is FLARE, which was founded in 2017.  

Established by UF in 1969 as the Eglin Graduate Center, and in its present facility since 1995, the Research and Engineering Education Facility — commonly known as REEF — serves as the physical campus in Shalimar. It supports engineering education and applied, advanced and secure research, as well as developing and delivering custom courses aligned with the technology focus areas of Team Eglin.  

The REEF campus and FLARE’s partnership with, and location on, Eglin Air Force Base, has uniquely positioned it as a research hub that connects military needs to academic researchers. 

The facility contributes students and warfighters to the local economy and the workforce, well-trained technicians who are prepared to apply state-of-the-art tools to the expanding needs of today’s military.  

Eighty years on, UF still supports the proximity fuze program through FLARE’s Tactical Solutions Program Area. The program focuses on reducing size, weight, power and cost (SWAP-C), protecting the technology from evolving threats and incorporating newer technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning to enhance performance. 

The “funny fuze" kindled a special relationship between UF and the Department of Defense that enhances more than defense technology developed by Gators. 

"Today, the impact of FLARE/REEF continues to extend far beyond its campus, advancing critical research, supporting Florida’s economy, strengthening national security and providing unparalleled experiential learning opportunities for students and faculty," said Warren Dixon, interim dean for the college. "This anniversary is not only a celebration of an extraordinary moment in our history, but also a reminder of how engineering research conducted at UF continues to improve lives and address some of society’s most complex challenges.”