Does the focus of the research paper need to be on a single technology development (e.g., an antenna or specific algorithms) that contributes to the overall scenario, or should it present a platform that offers an end-to-end solution for the given scenario? In other words, is the paper intended to be a technical paper focusing on a specific component and its technical details at a micro level, or should it be a framework paper that covers various components interacting to provide a solution to the stated scenario?

The Official Rules notes that the paper should describe research/technology in a field that could be applied to and improve effective of a UAS in a public safety scenario such as those described in the Operational Use Case section. The key is the public safety use case. The paper could focus on one single component described on a micro level, but if your research covers a collection of components comprising a platform, we are certainly open to a paper describing more than one component. In this stage, we are not requiring the description of an entire UAS concept that will be then followed exactly when built in Stage 2. Our intention in Stage 1 is to incorporate new or existing UAS components while reducing the potential barrier of participation for an individual with research not currently applied to UAS, and who may either be overwhelmed with or not currently thinking about entering the UAS ecosystem. Regardless of what you choose to cover in your paper, we highly encourage you to thoroughly read Stage 1’s paper requirements and evaluation criteria in the Official Rules as well as the Stage 1 Guidance Document.