In an unprecedented action that unites Brazil and Sweden, the first academic and industrial competition in the aerospace sector was created, which includes students, researchers and startups from both countries.
The idea is to select and award the best solutions to a specific problem involving multiple unmanned aircraft, which can be a few vehicles flying in formation, or even a swarm of small drones.
The competition is yet another action of Brazil-Sweden cooperation in the aerospace sector, and was created by the Swedish Center for Aerospace Research (SARC) and the Brazilian Aerospace Research and Innovation Network (BARINet, also in English). ), and has the of CISB, the Swedish-Brazilian Research and Innovation Center, which acts as a facilitator for cooperation between Industry and Academia in both countries.
The competition
It is the first time that such a competition has been held and the challenge is to make it an annual event. In this edition, there will be only one category, called open class, with teams made up of graduate students, researchers and startups.
The focus of the dispute is the presentation of scenarios in which several UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) are used cooperatively to solve a specific problem proposed by the team, such as search and rescue, logistics or emergency response, for example. At least three vehicles must be used in the project, which do not need to be identical. Military uses are allowed, as long as they are unarmed and have civil applications as well.
Presentation of projects and evaluation criteria
Thinking about costs and also the pandemic scenario still in place around the world, participation in the contest only requires sending a paper, with a maximum of five pages, describing the system and the solution, in addition to a video (with no duration limit) with a practical demonstration of the mission that the team proposes to solve, accompanied by a pitch from the project. It is important to point out that this practical part can be simplified. As they are solutions for the use of multiple vehicles, only one prototype can be built and the collaboration with others can be demonstrated virtually, in the production of the video.
“Seeing the launch of a competition at this level is essential for us to unite theory and practice and teamwork, something extremely necessary for both the industry and the academic world”, explains Alessandra Holmo, director of CISB and one of the project's ers.
The evaluating jury will be made up of indications from SARC and BARINet, coming from the academic environment, industry and other players in the aerospace sector in Brazil and Sweden, which will analyze the following points:
- Level of innovation: both the proposed solution and the technique included in its development;
- Business case: the market potential of the presented mission and its consequent solution;
- Engineering: demonstration of technical feasibility and ingenuity;
- Report: overall quality.
Awards
The winning team will receive a prize of 6 euros to cover travel expenses for team , who will be invited to travel to Brazil (if they are Swedes) or Sweden (if they are Brazilians). The trip will also include a meeting between visitors and representatives of the aerospace industry in the corresponding country.
The relevant dates for the competition are:
- 01/02 – Official launch of the competition.
- 12/03 – Demonstration of interests.
- 09/04 – Registration of the teams. Deadline for indicating participation. It should include the participants' data and a brief of the case and the solution to be presented.
- 15/09 – Submission of projects.
- 30/09 – Announcement of the winners.
- October (date to be defined) – Presentation of projects and awards.
The competition is sponsored by the Swedish defense and security company Saab. “Innovation is fundamental to the company's existence and our commitment to forward-thinking means that we always seek to act and think innovatively across all disciplines. Collaboration between academia and industry is also behind Saab's main project in Brazil, the Gripen Program. Therefore, we are very happy to be part of this initiative and to sponsor this competition”, explains Magnus Ahlström, Vice President Global Innovation at Saab.
