Robert G Bryant is a chemical engineer who works for NASA's Langley Research Center. His work has lead to numerous patented inventions. Bryant was in charge of the team that invented Soluble Imide (LaRC-SI) the self-bonding thermoplastic that received an R&D 100 award for being one of the most significant new technical products of 1994. More recently, a device that Bryant's team invented that can act like muscle and nerves to expand and contract surfaces was named the 2006 NASA Government Invention of the Year. NASA's Macro-Fiber Composite can be attached to a structure to bend it, reduce vibrations and monitor force.