The interconnectedness of neurons in the human brain was the model in developing an advanced computer processor that can perform up to a billion computations per second.

Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts from NASA and other government agencies went into the development of a unique computer technology that "learns" as it goes. This technology is known as neural networking. A neural network is a class of computational methods that loosely imitate the function of the brain. Among the benefits of neural networks are their ability to learn from experience and to generalize from their data set. They are also fault tolerant and can exploit parallel systems for rapid processing.

By combining the funding from these SBIR contracts, Accurate Automation Corporation (AAC) of Chattanooga, Tennessee, developed the only Multiple-Instruction/Multiple-Data (MIMD) neural network processor on the market. The product is called the NNP^® and is utilized in a number of computational applications.

The NNP^® is used onboard the NASA- and U.S. Air Force-sponsored LoFLYTE^® aircraft. LoFLYTE^® has been built by AAC to demonstrate a computerized flight control system that learns as it fliesespecially important for the demands of ultra high-speed flight. LoFLYTE^® is being used to explore new flight control techniques involving neural networks, which are able to continually alter the aircraft's control laws in order to optimize flight performance and take a pilot's responses into consideration.

Over time, the neural network system could be trained to control the aircraft. The use of neural networks in flight would help pilots of future aircraft fly in quick-decision situations and help damaged aircraft land safely, even when the controls are partially disabled.