Question 1

I am in my high school’s drone club. Can I apply?

Accepted Answer

The challenge is open to to all teams with at least one member that meets the eligibility requirement at the time of entry. Please see the official rules for the individual challenges for complete eligibility requirements. 3.1-Fastfind: UAS-Search Optimized 3.2-Lifelink: UAS Data Relay 3.3- Shields Up! Securing UAS Navigation

Question 2

Can we publicly talk about our participation?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! We encourage you to use this opportunity to publicly share your participation and any stage wins in the First Respinder UAS Triple Challenge. However, when publicizing your participation you may not use NIST’s logo or official seal, and you may not claim NIST endorsement of your technology or organization.

Question 3

As a follow up for the eligibility, are US Legal Permanent Residents eligible?"

Accepted Answer

Per the Eligibility Requirements in the Official Challenge Rules, " At the time of entry, the Official Representative (individual or team lead, in the case of a group project) must be age 18 or older and a U.S. citizen or permanent resident of the United States or its territories. In the case of a private entity, the business shall be incorporated in and maintain a place of business in the United States or its territories."

Question 4

Is there a limit to number of participants in a group?

Accepted Answer

No, but teams should be aware that travel funds have only been allocated for up to four members to attend the live test demonstration.

Question 5

May teams submit only 1, or more than 1 initial concept for Stage 1?"

Accepted Answer

Teams may only submit one concept. Teams may update their submission in the Contestant Portal up until the deadline, and be evaluated on their final submission.

Question 6

Are there any limitations on who can compete? For example, does it need to be just students or graduates or is it essentially based on qualifications?"

Accepted Answer

No, the challenge is open to all eligible contestants meeting the criteria outlined in the challenge rules under Eligibility Requirements.

Question 7

Can foreign teams participate?

Accepted Answer

Yes, as long as the team has at least one US citizen. Contestants are required to comply with the Eligibility Requirements outlined in the Official Rules.

Question 8

How are the judges for the competition technically qualified?  Will judges have significant real-world experiences in UAS design, fabrication, certification compliance, and support in commercial service?"

Accepted Answer

Judges are selected by the Director of NIST. The qualified panel of expert(s) will consist of Department of Commerce (DOC), NIST and non-DOC experts based on their UAS, public safety, and other relevant subject matter expert knowledge.

Question 9

Do I need to submit a notice of intent before I apply?

Accepted Answer

No, that is not necessary. However, we do encourage you to sign up on the Challenge website (https://uastriplechallenge.com) to receive updates about the Challenge.

Question 10

Can Contestants submit multiple proposals?

Accepted Answer

No. Each team or Contestant may submit one proposal.

Question 11

Can I compete in Stage 2 of the Challenges if I didn’t apply or win Stage 1?

Accepted Answer

No. However, you can compete in the Walk-on contest at the end of Stage 2

Question 12

I receive Federal grants or contracts. Can I still apply?

Accepted Answer

That depends. Federal grantees may not use Federal funds to develop COMPETES Act Challenge applications unless consistent with the purpose of their grant award. Federal contractors may not use Federal funds from a contract to develop COMPETES Act Challenge applications or to fund efforts in support of a COMPETES Act Challenge submission.

Question 13

If I didn’t get selected for stage 1, can I send in a proposal for the walk on stage?"

Accepted Answer

Please refer to the Official Rules for Walk-on Contestants for challenge 3.1 and 3.2 (https://www.challenge.gov/challenge/first-responder-uas-triple-challenge-fastfind/ or https://www.challenge.gov/challenge/first-responder-uas-triple-challenge-livelink/.  As stated in the rules, the Walk-on Contestants are Contestants who meet all eligibility and technical requirements that were defined in Stages 1 and 2, and have a fully compliant system, but who did not participate in Stage 1 or Stage 2: Check-in Review. Here is an excerpt from the challenge 3.1 rules:  “Walk-on Contestants will submit all materials required for the Solution Description and Video Test & Safety Evaluation stages. Upon evaluation of their submission, as defined in the Official Rules for Stages 1 and 2, Walk-on Contestants will compete in Stage 2: Video Evaluation.  Contestants are limited to those selected from entries in the Walk-on Evaluation. Walk-on Contestants are not eligible to receive prize awards associated with Stage 1 or Stage 2: Check-in Review. How To Enter Stage 2: Video Evaluation as a Walk-on Contestant: Visit the Challenge website [https://www.uastriplechallenge.com] to review the stages in the FastFind Challenge. ○ Visit Challenge.gov to review the series of stages in the FastFind Challenge. ○ Contestants will review the terms and conditions of participation and accept the terms and conditions for entry. ○ Complete the official entry form that will include information on key team members and their ability to accomplish the project. ○ Submit all required materials as instructed in “How to Enter” for the Stage 1 - Solution Description and Stage 2 - Video Test & Safety Evaluation as described in the Official Rules and challenge website. [https://www.uastriplechallenge.com]”

Question 14

If my stage 1 concept paper did not get selected, will the rights to the drone design be returned to us? Can you provide us feedback on the competitiveness of our drone design and score?"

Accepted Answer

The answers to these questions about intellectual property (IP) and specific scores can be found in the Official Challenge rules located on challenge.gov, i.e. challenge 3.1 (https://www.challenge.gov/challenge/first-responder-uas-triple-challenge-fastfind/ and 3.2https://www.challenge.gov/challenge/first-responder-uas-triple-challenge-livelink/ ).  You may also find related FAQ’s on the challenge website under FAQ-Participation/Eligibility https://www.uastriplechallenge.com/faq.

Question 15

Do you know of other funding opportunities for academic teams to compete or support drone projects?

Accepted Answer

We are not familiar with the other competitions and programs however, we understand that other federal agencies, such as FAA and NASA, have student competitions that explore UAS technology.

Question 16

Operating from within a university, our team recieves discounts on several parts/systems that we ussually integrate into our system. Some of these parts are heavily modified/customized and their "market price" can not be found through an online vendor. We do receive invoices from the suppliers - however the price quoted to us is discounted because of educational standing. Thus, we were wondering how we should go about signifying the cost of these items on our proposed build of materials - since the product is a one off and there is no "market price"."

Accepted Answer

"Please provide the current market price for the item. If the exact item is no longer available, please provide the current market price for a like item." Furthermore, donated and/or discounted hardware is allowed, but the market value of each component must be estimated and reported as if it were purchased. The list of components will be used in the hardware build sheet to ensure the UAV is compliant with the $20K hardware budget. The $30K hardware budget is in place to ensure that the prototypes created by contestants are similar in cost, that they are affordable to first responders and, in many ways, levels the playing field among contestants. If parts are custom made, the labor costs will not be included but the cost of material will be. In the list of required hardware build documentation, information regarding the materials used, volume and manufacturing process (CNC, 3D print, etc.) will be required to estimate the cost of the hardware in comparison to commercially available hardware.

Question 17

How can one operate an aircraft with an all up weight greater than 55 lbs under Part 107? It is our understanding that operating a drone weighing over 55 lbs is not one of the waivable operations.

Accepted Answer

This challenge competition does not allow aircraft that weighs 55 lbs or greater so we don’t expect contestants to obtain an FAA part 107 waiver. Contestants will be required to present adequate proof of compliance with the relevant rules and regulations for any aircraft in Challenges 3.1, 3.2 or 3.3.

Question 18

Are you able to give a public safety department affordability estimation or target price for each drone system? This is critical for UAS development design with the trade-off between capability versus UAS price?

Accepted Answer

In a NIST survey of first responders in which they were asked how much they would be willing to pay for a drone that could provide broadband communications coverage, 93% said that they would pay $30K or less. The survey is located at https://www.nist.gov/publications/survey-drone-usage-public-safety-agencies.

Question 19

Is the cost estimate for the challenge based on one UAS or a fleet?

Accepted Answer

The cost estimate is calculated and submitted by the Contestant. In other words, the Contestant's proposed approach to meet the Challenge requirements may be one of the major cost factors. Some may choose to use one UAS and others may chose to use several (e.g., a fleet).

Question 20

Does the requirement to comply with FAA laws and regulations extend to meeting ASTM standards?

Accepted Answer

The challenge requirements (and federal law) require compliance with FAA laws and regulations.  The implementation of ASTM standards are not a requirement (although they are good practice) unless specifically required by the FAA.

Question 21

Is it necessary to have a FAA Part 107 UAV certified pilot as a official team member during the submission of concept paper or we can hire the certified pilot on a service basis during the final demonstration?

Accepted Answer

The team must have an a FAA Certified Remote Pilot (under Part 107) fly the drone for all flights. This includes the final demonstration and any test flights within the U.S. National Airspace. The team does not have to have a Part 107 certified pilot during the initial proposal phase, but must have a pilot for all flights within the U.S. National Airspace. Hiring a certified pilot is acceptable.

Question 22

What type of weather must the drone run in? High Wind/Rain/Smoke? etc

Accepted Answer

You will be required to operate under the natural weather conditions during the Stage 3 Live Competition (e.g., some wind or light rain).  While the Challenge is not requiring or evaluating your UAS under adverse weather conditions, First Responders prefer a UAS that is durable under adverse conditions.

Question 23

Will there be a separate requirement for cross-wind performance for VTOL?

Accepted Answer

No. While cross wind conditions will not be evaluated or simulated during the challenge, the drone must be able to handle cross winds that may arise during Stage 3 of the challenge at takeoff and landing, and during flight.

Question 24

Are there any limitations on what technology can be used as an energy source? For example, are ICE, fuel cell or battery options all on the table? Are hybrid systems such as gas or hydrogen fuel cell valid?"

Accepted Answer

All types of power sources are allowed as long as they meet FAA requirements and are implemented safely.

Question 25

Are there any restrictions on fuel-type?

Accepted Answer

There are no restrictions to fuel type as long as the fuel can be safely utilized (by the team, during storage, and the drone) during the challenge.

Question 26

Are there any requirements imposed for fuel reserve for safe flight?

Accepted Answer

There are not requirements for dedicated fuel reserves.

Question 27

Are there any restrictions on the entry of buoyant vehicles apart from the container requirements and tether restrictions?

Accepted Answer

There are no restrictions on the entry of “buoyant vehicles.” Buoyant vehicles would still need to meet all of the requirements in Challenge Rules.

Question 28

Is there a wind-velocity requirement to operate in and what are the station-keeping requirements in wind?

Accepted Answer

While there are no wind velocity requirements under which the drone must operate, the drone is expected to be able to operate in, and be evaluated under (during the Stage 3 live event), wind conditions similar to what equivalent commercial drones typically operate under.

Question 29

Is there any preference in scoring for teams with custom software/hardware abilities? i.e. avoiding the use of software packages such as ardupilot.

Accepted Answer

While there are no requirements for having custom software/hardware, the teams are encouraged to innovate as much as possible, and this will likely require some level of customization. Furthermore, since judges have certain discretions in awarding points, and since the Stage 3 Live Demonstration Event, as well as the First Responder’s Choice Award, teams should expect to be as innovative as possible in their approaches.

Question 30

Do we need to develop new concepts from the ground up or can existing design be entered.

Accepted Answer

You are free to adapt existing commercial products into your designs.

Question 31

Will we be able to keep all prototypes or does PSCR require deliverables?

Accepted Answer

NIST will not keep any of the prototypes. Contestant UAS prototypes are considered intellectual property (see Submission Rights in the Official Challenge Rules

Question 32

Is noise a consideration at all? Quieter = better?

Accepted Answer

While there is not a specific evaluation regarding noise, this consideration may be a factor in terms of "ease of use" considerations.

Question 33

Can I use technology I’ve worked on previously?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The goal is to develop an innovative solution for first responder teams, which can include work you developed prior to this competition. However, the design must adhere to the UAS Design Specification outlined in the Official Rules.

Question 34

Why is the drone liability insurance required?

Accepted Answer

Liability insurance is required for teams prior to flying your UAS for this challenge. This will insure all contestants are covered in the event of an accident during the test flights and for protection for the live demonstration contest. Proof of a teams liability insurance is required to receive prizes through Stage 2 by acquiring an insurance policy through a reputable company or proof of policy from the flight location (club, university, lab or robotics field). A liability insurance policy will be required for each submission to the final Live Demonstration event.

Question 35

Do we have to design our drone parts from scratch?

Accepted Answer

No. System designs can utilize commercially-available products in their design.

Question 36

I plan to use equipment that I have purchased previously. Do I need to document it in the design?

Accepted Answer

Yes. All parts and materials in the system, regardless of when it was made or purchased, need to be included in the Bill Of Materials (BOM).

Question 37

What do I do if I don’t have a receipt for an item (e.g., I purchased it a long time ago)?"

Accepted Answer

Please provide the current market price for the item. If the exact item is no longer available, please provide the current market price for a like item.

Question 38

If we are able to get parts from an outside source donated to us for the challenge, is this acceptable? If so, are we then allowed to name them as contributors to our project?"

Accepted Answer

Donated hardware is allowed, but estimated market value of each component must be known and reported as if it were purchased. The list of components will be used in the hardware build sheet to ensure the UAS is compliant with the $20,000 budget. There are no restrictions to listing your contributors.

Question 39

Can we put our team logo on the UAS?

Accepted Answer

You are free to design your UAS as you like. However, the NIST logo cannot be included.

Question 40

What kind of support or resources are available near the Live Demonstration Event site?

Accepted Answer

Challenge administrative staff members and live contest site personnel will share site information with Stage 3 winners. There is a major metropolitan area within an hour drive from the live contest site.

Question 41

Is beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) allowed?

Accepted Answer

BVLOS is not allowed. All teams will be required to have a direct line of sight to their UAS at all times during all flights.

Question 42

Is a tether (a physical connection between the drone and the ground) allowed in this Challenge?

Accepted Answer

The rules state that the system shall not have any Tethers and must be free flying.

Question 43

Does the challenge have any limitations on foreign drones with specific country of origin? Just asking as federal grants do.

Accepted Answer

For Challenge 3.3, you are free to use any drone as long as the open-source component is met. For all three challenges, these limitations do not apply to us as we are not procuring any of these drones.

Question 44

Why are the contest requirements so stringent? For example, the VTOL doesn’t lend well for fixed wing drones to compete."

Accepted Answer

These restrictions are in place because, when first responders enter rural areas, there won’t likely be an open, flat space for a fixed-wing aircraft to take-off. For these challenges, as long as you are within the outlined parameters, there is nothing prohibiting a fixed-wing flight as long as your UAV can take-off in a small, confined space which is a first responder requirement.

Question 45

What would be a first responder's budget, approximately?"

Accepted Answer

A survey of first responders in 2018 / 2019 showed us the smaller the budget, the better, meaning $5k or less. 70% of first responders surveyed set a maximum budget of $20k. However, what is affordable today will look different a year from now as these budgets are scalable.

Question 46

Why is drone innovation important to first responders?

Accepted Answer

When we try to push the limits of what's currently available and technologically possible, the ideal solution may not be available today or parts may be available across a wide spectrum of manufacturers that require a great deal of integration. The simple answer is what may be commercially available today may not be the best or most cost-effective solution for first responders.

Question 47

How are first responders managing the flood of data coming in from multiple drone sensors?

Accepted Answer

There are organizations trying to come up with a solution to the information overload problem. Public safety is known to be confronted with multiple data streams that no single person can extract meaningful data or analyze. This means we must apply machine learning to condense the data and make it actionable. Being able to attack large data sets is an open problem for all machine learning and an unexplored area, but fitting that issue into this challenge and keeping it tenable is a challenge unto its own.

Question 48

How much of the flight is meant to be automated, and how much should be manually controlled? Is that something that is up to the team, or is there a minimum autonomy level that all teams must achieve?"

Accepted Answer

There is no minimum level of autonomy required and that will vary from system to system. Keep in mind we are seeking solutions that will optimize the search and rescue process so the level of autonomy should be commensurate with that objective.

Question 49

Will the RTK GPS transponder be provided by Kansas State Univeristy or NIST?

Accepted Answer

Neither NIST nor K-State will be furnishing any portion of the RTK systems required in the competition (air or ground). There are now very affordable RTK GPS system solutions on the market today.

Question 50

How will reviewers evaluate the 10% manufacturing metric for commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) solutions?

Accepted Answer

For COTS solutions, the assumption is that the quality is already fairly high. However, there are additional considerations contributing to the score for this metric, such as integration of other components to complete the solution. A COTS platform does not guarantee a 100% score for the ‘Quality of Manufacturing’ evaluation criteria.

Question 51

Are the contestants responsible for supplying the RTK-GPS?

Accepted Answer

Contestants are required to supply their own RTK-GPS, but please note that this component does not count toward the BOM total.

Question 52

What is the purpose behind including a RTK-GPS on the drone and on the ground? Are contestants expected to log the data in a particular format at a particular interval? Do contestants need to sync this data with anything else on the system?

Accepted Answer

The RTK-GPS is used for testing/tracking purposes for the test flight only and would not be part of the final product. The cost does not need to be included in the Bill of Materials (BOM), but it needs to be included within the 55 lbs. weight limit for the test flight. Contestants may control/navigate with either the standard GPS, the RTK-GPS, or a combination of both. Since the location of the UAS is needed for calculation of the distance between the UAS and the receivers on the ground, the RTK-GPS provides a redundant GPS location source. The RTK data reporting format and interval will be provided during the Stage 3 webinar.

Question 53

What grid coordinate system should teams use?

Accepted Answer

The challenge staff has the ability to convert different systems (e.g., lat/long coordinates will work). The following coordinate systems are acceptable: UTM, MGRS

Question 54

Should we anticipate finding any objects in the operating domain that may resemble a person (i.e., false positive targets)?

Accepted Answer

No, anything that resembles a person will be intentionally placed by challenge staff. However, deer and other live animals may be present within the forest area. Safety personnel will be present but will be outside of the search area. Challenge staff will clearly identify safety personnel and search grid boundaries.

Question 55

How many “lost people” will be placed in the search area? How fast will they move? How will they be positioned?

Accepted Answer

Between 3-10 people will be in the search area. Targets may be moving but in a slow, small radius. One will be horizontal (i.e., incapacitated), and one will be partially thermally obscured.

Question 56

Will the forest be dense or sparse?

Accepted Answer

The competition area is mostly a dense forest with very few sparse areas.

Question 57

For real-time video, which direction should the camera be facing?

Accepted Answer

On the UAS, if the camera is fixed, contestants should face the camera in the “forward” direction relative to the direction in which the drone will be flying most of the time.

Question 58

For the Stage 2 Bill of Materials submission, what do you recommend for UAS and other components we already own?"

Accepted Answer

Regardless of whether you already own a component, all paid amounts of used components must be listed on the Bill of Materials. Please provide the current market price for the item or a like item, whether it's donated, discounted to you or custom made. See a simliar question under the FAQ tab for "All Challenges - UAS" on this website.

Question 59

What is loiter for challenge 3.1 and can you define it?

Accepted Answer

Loiter is the ability of the drone to fly over a small region on the ground while maintaining a certain distance and altitude relative to a defined position in the air. This is akin to a circular orbit within a defined airspace.

Question 60

What happens in the event of a tie in Challenge 3.1 FastFind or 3.2 LifeLink?

Accepted Answer

In the event of a tie between contestants, the judges will review the evaluations of the contestant submissions to assess if there is a means based on the evaluation data to differentiate the submissions to break the tie. Please reference the Official Rules under the Judging Panel section in the Terms & Conditions for a complete description.

Question 61

Why is an RTK GPS required for the Stage 3 Live Demonstration?

Accepted Answer

An RTK GPS is required for the stage 3 live event to accurately mark the UAS position and provide scores for several criterion. The GPS conditions at the live event may cause interference.The cost of the RTK GPS does not count against the cost limit requirement or score for the "weight" requirement. Competitors may choose any RTK GPS device.

Question 62

Can we get clarification on the signal elements to be used on the UAS for judging as it pertains to challenges 3.1 and 3.2 criteria? Will we be judged on a scenario where the environment will have no 4G signal and all systems, such as video transmission and telemetry, are done exclusively on RF signals? Or, will we always have some kind of 4G signal access? Or, will it be both?"

Accepted Answer

Although there may be some cellular coverage available at the competition location, the intent of the use case is for the UAS to be able to operate in a cellular denied area. As such, any telemetry, video or other data required for the operation of the UAS needs to be transmitted from the UAS to the operator without dependence on an existing external network for backhaul.  Therefore, for Challenges 3.1 and 3.2, we will not allow the use of cellular signals (such as 3G, 4G, 5G, etc.) to meet the requirements for your UAS solution. You will need to rely exclusively on RF or microwave  equipment that you provide. To explain further, both “use cases” are based on a cellular denied environment because first responders often operate in remote areas without cellular connectivity. Search & Rescue operations and first responder equipment cannot currently connect to cellular networks, outside of a few exceptions. If there was cellular connectivity available today, the problems of these challenges would’ve already been solved. For example, if cellular was available for Challenge 3.1, then lost hikers could make a phone call to request help and, if cellular was available for Challenge 3.2, then deploying a drone to connect devices would not be needed because the cellular network would connect the devices. We encourage you to review the “Use Case”, Wireless Transceiver and Payload Server requirements in the Official Rules for Challenge 3.2.  For Challenge 3.1, please review the “Use Case”.

Question 63

For FastFind challenge 3.1, do we get a dataset or a peek at the environment where UAS will be deployed to help find missing persons?"

Accepted Answer

The location of the live event is near the MSU campus in Starkville, MS and has access to a great variety of topography and foliage. The total search area will not exceed 1200’ x 2400’. Maximum height of trees in this forest is approximately 30’, and the composition of the forest is predominately pine. Each contestant should design a solution that can deploy the system, perform the search and return the UAS to the launch area within an hour or less.

Question 64

Did you also see the recent advances in acoustic listening devices to hear and evaluate sounds to identify lost people shouts, cries and banging through artificial intelligence?"

Accepted Answer

The primary goal of Challenge 3.1 is to detect and communicate the location of missing hikers. The lost hikers may be incapacitated and/or have degraded ability to communicate, so any proposed sensor solution would need to be capable of finding a stationary and relatively quiet person.

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