- (+971) 2 501 55 55
- competitionsupport@adu.ac.ae
Welcome to
Our Challenge
Mubadala is soliciting proposals for innovative solutions for developing robotic systems capable of detecting and collecting debris from water surfaces.
The objective is to design, develop, and demonstrate autonomous or out-of-sight teleoperated robotic systems for collecting water debris. Multidisciplinary teams of up to ten students collaboratively address all aspects of the problem, including the mobile platform, sensors, intelligence, control, debris detection, debris and robot localization, obstacle avoidance, navigation, power management, and debris-collection mechanism.
The robots must successfully maneuver in the water to qualify before they compete to collect the most debris within a specified time window.
The competition will feature two tracks; a single team can submit proposals for one or both. The first track is the Autonomous Track, and the second is the Teleoperated Track. Teleoperated robot human controllers must be unable to see the robot directly.
All teams must participate in the Teleoperated Track but can optionally compete in the Autonomous Track.
Design, Development, and Technology Demonstration of
Sustainable Engineering Systems
Eligibility
Our Criteria
The competition is open to teams of full-time undergraduate students at accredited colleges and universities in the United Arab Emirates. Senior capstone students in multi-disciplinary teams are encouraged. Each team must contain at least one faculty supervisor affiliated with the proposing university and up to 10 students. At most 20% of the team can be graduate students. A university may submit more than one proposal.
Notice of Intent
Notice of Intent Deadline is May 15th, 2024. Teams who submit NOIs will be invited to participate in an orientation and Q&A session. NOIs are non-binding. The following information will be required or requested on the NOI submission form:
- University name
- Team name
- Students’ names, IDs, and emails
- Faculty supervisor(s) name and email
- Initial summary of the design (limited to 500 words) – Optionally accompanied by a figure
The proposal is due on June 14th, 2024. Notice of Intents and Proposals must be sent to competitionsupport@adu.ac.ae.
Schedule
2024
Program promotion & Announcement of Competition
2024
Call For Proposals (CFP) issued
2024
Notice Of Intent (NOI) to submit proposal
2024
Submission of Proposals due
2024
Virtual Student teams Presentations of their proposals
2024
Announcement of winners/participants
2024
Funding of winning proposals
2024
Winning teams start working on projects
2024
Workshop I for winning teams
2024
Critical Review I
2025
Workshop II
2025
Critical Review II
2025
Final report submission
2025
Final Team Presentations
2025
Final Competition & Announcement of final winners
Design Requirements
- The testing pool is an outdoor pool 10m x 20m in size and 1m deep. The pool will be available for testing at Abu Dhabi University five pre-announced days before the final competition date.
- The number and location of debris is unknown. Debris types include plastic bottles and soda cans. The maximum debris size is 10cm x 10cm.
- Three non-debris (e.g., weather stations) floating and fixed-location obstacles must be avoided
- Cost is a design constraint. All system components must be acquired from the allocated budget. Additional funds by the university or sponsors are not permitted.
- The robot must not be connected to the grid. It must be battery-powered.
- The design must be safe, and the electronics must be housed in waterproof containers.
- The robot must deliver the collected debris to a home location.
- Students may install electronics or cameras around the pool area.
- Connectivity (if needed) needs to be over 4G, 5G, or a team’s router and Wi-Fi. The host university’s Wi-Fi will not be available in the pool area.
- The robot must be polished and have the university branding.
- Power outlets will be provided for the participating teams in their pool-side staging area.
Stages
The competition will consist of three stages as follows:
1
- Pre-Qualification Test
This part of the challenge will be done at home institutions to ensure that the teams have a valid device able to perform the different rounds of the challenge described below successfully. The outcome of the pre-qualification tests will be presented to the sponsor’s technical team by a recorded video. It does not demonstrate surfing on the water at this stage.
2
- First-Round Challenge
This challenge will require the designed system to be capable of operating in a pool with the debris detection and capturing mechanism. Once the robot drops into the water pool, it must travel a specific distance from the launch point and back to its original location while maintaining structural integrity, stability, and speed. Suppose the robot system shows signs of poor buoyancy or watertightness, such as water reaching the electronics or batteries or producing contaminating residues in the water. In that case, the team will be disqualified from the competition.
3
- Second Round Challenge
Teams who completed their first round of competition are qualified to continue to the second round. In this round, teams will compete to pick up and successfully deliver the maximum number of debris measured by the number of pieces that can be picked up and delivered to the home location. In the Autonomous Track, the robot detects the debris and obstacles and localizes itself, then proceeds to collect the maximum debris on its own before returning to the home location. In the Teleoperated Track, the robot is controlled without visual access (e.g., by remote real-time video) to do the same. Teams can compete in one of both tracks of the competition. Winners will be announced for each track separately.
Grant
Based on a review of the initial proposals received, ten winning proposals will receive AED 20,000 each in funding to realize their proposed concepts.
Prize
Winners of the competition will be awarded prizes and the possibility of continuing the development of their prototype and brining it to a higher performance stage, including the possibility of commercializing the developed robotic system.
Proposal Preparation
This section provides guidelines for preparing proposals. For proposals to be considered complete and accepted for competitive review, proposals submitted in response to this call must conform to the instructions provided in this section. The sponsors may only accept proposals that are consistent with the instructions.
General Guiding Principles
Characteristics of successful proposals are that they are technically meritorious, logical, complete, convincing, easily read, affordable, and responsive to the Call For Proposals. Thus, it is vital to keep the following general principles in mind:
- Familiarize yourself with the proposal preparation guidelines and what is required before compiling your proposal. Adhere to the proposal submission deadline.
- Propose fresh, new technologies that are highly desirable, doable, and economically viable.
- Keep the proposal as short as possible, consistent with completeness and understandability; use legible fonts, clear illustrations, and simple organization. Strive for quality and clarity of text. viable.
- Strive for realism and adequacy of the requested budget and provide all the details necessary to justify and facilitate understanding of the proposed costs.
- Proofread the proposal carefully before submission.
Proposal Preparation Instructions
The following guidelines are provided to aid the submission of a valid competitive proposal:
Create a title page that includes the following information:
- Name of institution and institution point of contact.
Include the institution’s name and the point of contact (faculty supervisor) title, title, and e-mail address. The faculty supervisor will oversee the execution of the project and have an appropriate level of authority and responsibility for the proper conduct of the project. This includes the appropriate use of funds and administrative requirements, such as submitting progress reports to the sponsors.
- Team Members/Contact Information
List each team member’s name, major of study, academic level, and email address.
- Robotic System Title
Insert your Robotic System Name/Title.
- Abstract
In no more than 200 words, briefly describe your conceptional design and its main working features and performance metrics.
- Project Budget
Include the total project budget detailed in the budget section below. There is no need to include itemized costs here.
At a minimum, the proposal should address the following sections. Relevant additions are welcome.
- Current Technology Situation/Literature Review
Summarize the proposed Robotic System and its comparison to existing technology or methods. What are the challenges of the current technology? What contributions do you think your robot brings forth?
- Technical Design (Materials and Methods)
This section will be the bulk of the proposal; proposers should detail the Robotic System design, design process, methodology, and how it will meet the mission requirements within the design envelope.
List the requirements for the Robotic System to be successful. These requirements should drive design decisions.
List Robotic System features.
Describe the team’s design methodologies (CAD, Simulations, prototypes, etc.)
Describe the electro-mechanical assemblies. Provide diagrams to show clean sketches/block models of how the major components of the Robotic System will interface.
The following specific questions should also be answered in this design description.
Weight/StabilityWhat did you do to reduce the weight of the robot? Please describe the rough budgeted mass for all the required components; include possible risks or challenges in maintaining a low total mass.
Has hardware, enclosures, and other connecting mechanicals been accounted for?
Have supporting electronics been accounted for?
Can the Robot system withstand competition conditions structurally?
Are there concerns with vibrations during operation? Please describe any challenges and possible solutions to vibrations.
Will the Robot system be stable during operation? Please describe any challenges and solutions this may have on the robot system stability.
Are there concerns with the payload performing its’ task in water? If applicable, how will your sensor overcome localization inaccuracies and the oscillations from water waves?
Why did you design the robot size to be what it is?
Is your design sustainable? How so?
How did you power your robot?
How does your robot get charged?
How long does your robot work before it has to be recharged?
How did you protect the robot electronics from water damage?
How does your robot communicate with other computers/controllers?
How do you localize the robot?
How do you detect the locations of debris and obstacles?
How do you guide the robot to complete its task?
If teleoperated, how did you reduce latency?
If autonomous, how did you train your robot?
- Schedule
Outline the significant steps to produce the Robotic System; include desired completion dates for each major milestone. This may be an excellent section to list the potential risks and challenges to meeting the design requirements within the allotted timeframe.
- Project Management
Describe how the project will be managed and how various activities/logistics will be coordinated. Briefly describe the roles and responsibilities each team member will have throughout the challenge.
- Budget
Provide a parts list of all major components; this includes sensors, actuators, controllers, significant electronics, training and testing data, etc. Small, low-cost items may be lumped together. Include estimated costs for tooling and other labor charges incurred through external labs, shops, etc.
It would be helpful to to tabulate a clear budget. Include all items, the cost of each item in Dirhams, and the item’s justification.
Please note that ambiguous amounts without explanation may reduce proposal acceptability. Requested domestic travel should include purpose, the number of trips, etc. Forging travel cannot be funded.
- Business plan & market potential
Describe how the developed Robotic System will be sustained beyond the funding period. There should be a clear plan for the development, implementation, production and commercialization of the proposed robot system.
Include any relevant code, diagrams, pictures, sketches, or other Supplemental information that do not fit well within the proposal body.
Proposals Review
To be competitive for selection, proposals must fully satisfy the evaluation criteria. Characteristics of successful proposals are that they are technically meritorious, logical, complete, convincing, easily read, affordable, and responsive to the guidelines mentioned above. A review Panel will carefully review the proposals received. The Panel of Reviewers will be asked to recommend supporting or declining each proposal. Proposal reviews will be conducted according to review criteria as follows:
- Merit (40% of score)
What is the merit of the proposed Robot system? How innovative and important is the Robot system? To what extent does the proposed Robot system explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? How well conceived and organized is the proposed effort?
- Project Management and Team Qualification (20% of score)
Description of how the project will be managed. How well is the management of the project is described, and how appropriate is the management, coordination, logistics, and oversight of the proposed efforts? How effective is the proposed plan in realizing the proposed project outcomes? How clear and appropriate are the proposed activities and anticipated accomplishments according to a well-defined program schedule? How well qualified is the team to conduct the project?
- Budget and Justification (20% of score)
The proposed budget should be adequate, appropriate, reasonable, realistic, and demonstrate the effective use of funds in alignment with the proposed project. The budget should contain sufficient cost details and supporting information to facilitate evaluation.
- Market Potential (20% of score)
Plan how the developed Robot system will be sustained beyond the funding period. How will the plan be implemented to produce and commercialize the proposed robot system?
Deliverables for Finalist Teams
Teams who are selected to attend the competition will be required to:
- Submit a 10-15 page written technical report electronically.
- Submit the pre-qualification video demo and pass the test.
- Prepare a technical poster for the final competition and a 15-minute oral PowerPoint presentation, with an additional 10 minutes of Q&A at the final competition.
- Participate in the competition with a fully functioning prototype to complete both challenges.
Competition Scoring - Total points: 100
The scoring of the competition will be based on three main tests:
Deliverable | Description | Maximum Score |
|---|---|---|
Pre-qualification test |
| Pass/Fail |
Final team report | Final technical report covers the details of the designed prototype, associated systems, design specification achieved, and anticipated performance | 25 |
Final team presentation | Final team presentation which will be delivered by the team during the competition | 25 |
First round of tests | Demonstrate successful operation of the designed prototype in water by conducting required maneuver | Pass/Fail |
Second round tests | Collect the maximum number of debris pieces in a fixed period of time | 50 |
Total | 100 | |