IMechE UAS Challenge 2020

SAM IS ....
ARPAS-UK supports IMechE UAS Challenge 2020

The Institute of Mechanical Engineering has run an international UAS Challenge since 2014. Teams of undergraduates from all over the world take part in the Challenge. They undertake a full design and build cycle of a UAS with specific mission objectives. The Challenge bridges the gap between academia and industry in developing applied UAS-related activities, providing the perfect opportunity to strengthen links with industry, other universities and enhance employment opportunities for graduates in the aerospace sector.

 

ARPAS-UK was a recently founded Trade Association when the Challenge first began, while the IMechE was founded in early 1847, 172 years ago.

 

We are delighted to be supporting the Challenge 2020 and will be offering one year’s free membership to the leading UK University and its participating students.

In 2019 there were 32 entrants, from 26 universities, from 6 countries with the Pakistan National University of Science & Technology Air Works Team Beta becoming the Grand Champions.

 

Gavin Wishart, ARPAS-UK Chairman and IMechE member, commented: “The event offers students a path into the UAS industry, an industry ARPAS-UK supports. We believe in supporting the students of today as they will be the developers of tomorrow.”

 

For more information on the Challenge: https://www.arpas.uk/imeche-uas-challenge-2019/

 

 

KEY DATES

Calendar dates

  • Registration open: 16 September 2019
  • Registration close: 30 October 2019
  • Welcome seminar/webinar: 8 November 2019.

Document submission deadlines

  • Concept Paper submission: 29 November 2019
  • Preliminary Design Review (PDR): 24 January 2020
  • Photo Release Form and Eligibility Criteria: 1 March 2020
  • Critical Design Review (CDR): 13 March 2020
  • FRR Video submission: 22 May 2020
  • FRR Interview: 29 May 2020.

Note: To submit the above documents, you must upload it to your personal G:Drive folder. To gain access to your G:Drive folder, please submit your team G:Mail address to [email protected]. Document submission by email will not not accepted.

Competition dates

  • Final event, the Fly-off: 17-20 June 2020
SAM IS ....
IMechE UAS Challenge: COVID-19 update

Due to the challenging environment presented by COVID-19 and in line with current Government restrictions on social interaction and group gatherings, it is with enormous regret that the IMechE has taken the difficult decision to cancel the UAS (Unmanned Aircraft) Challenge ‘fly off’ event on 17-20 June 2020, at the BMFA site in Buckminster.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank teams, volunteers and sponsors for all the efforts that has been invested in the 2020 competition. We appreciate that months of team work have already been invested in the competition and admire the hard work and dedication that has gone into the innovation and design of the UAS. The UAS Challenge organising committee is currently consulting with teams and considering possible ways in which we can recognise the work that has been completed to date by still awarding a number of the prizes.

While the IMechE UAS Challenge have cancelled the physical event they are keen to arrange parts of the competition online (the Dragons Den presentations and submission of posters). As yet they haven’t yet decided how it will be managed, they are just in the middle of discussing options with teams to understand what suits them better.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank teams, volunteers and sponsors for all the efforts that have been invested in the 2020 competition. We look forward to welcoming teams back in 2021!

If you have any questions regarding this announcement, please feel free to get in touch directly at [email protected].

 

31st March 2020

IMechE UAS Challenge

SAM IS ....
IMechE UAS Challenge 2020

Key Calendar dates

  • Registration open: 16 September 2019
  • Registration close: 30 October 2019
  • Welcome seminar/webinar: 8 November 2019

 

Launched six years ago, UAS Challenge provides an educational platform to university teams to learn practical aerospace engineering skills, enhance employability opportunity in the sector and develop soft skills such as team working, leadership, commercial skills as well as technical competence.

Since its launch over 1000 students from UK and International universities participated in the competition and many have been recruited by industry partners into full time roles following their graduation.

“The UAS Challenge is an excellent introduction to the design and development process used by industry to create safe and high-performance aircraft. It will challenge your team working skills and test your approach to innovation. You will have the opportunity to demonstrate your creation in an exciting fly-off at the stunning location of the UAS test airfield in Wales. Have fun and gain some very valuable experience for your future engineering career.”
Lambert Dopping-Hepenstal, Head Judge, UAS Challenge

New features of the competition

For the 2020 competition, teams will see a few significant changes to the rules:

  • Change to mission and payload, encouraging new designs
  • Introduction of packaging box and modular assembly challenge
  • Measure of fuel/power consumption and efficiency introduced, with power logger.

“The IMechE UAS Challenge has consistently delivered a complex real world scenario in order to test and develop university students competing and provide unique recruitment opportunities for industry. The competition continues to grow for the 2020 with the refinement of the aid mission, introduction of aircraft performance monitoring and an increase to two flight lines.
“The IMechE has focused in on STEM engagement for the last two years of the competition and continues grow its STEM outreach on an international scale. The competition’s presence and accessibility to all
universities around the world, makes it a pioneer of aerospace engineering, taking input from academia and industry to evolve as required to meet the needs of the future engineering sector. The preparations are well underway for 2020 and we look forward to the biggest turn out for the UAS Challenge yet.”
Alex Robbins, UAS Challenge Project Manager

This year, for the first time, the UAS Challenge will be hosting a welcome seminar in November, where teams, volunteers, sponsors and organisers will meet to discuss the project lifecycle, project deliverables and what targets you should achieve win the Grand Champion title of the UAS Challenge.

STEM outreach programme

The UAS Challenge provides a unique opportunity to promote STEM careers to young people. Students have the opportunity to not only to witness practical engineering being demonstrated, but also the chance to speak to engineers from many different backgrounds and stages of their career.

“Seeing the enthusiasm with which the university teams interacted with the visiting students this year was fantastic. Having the students hear about engineering from people so passionate, and seeing from this event how science,  technology, engineering and maths can be applied to help solve the worlds’ problems is an invaluable inspiration to encourage young people to follow a career in engineering.”
Jon Tayler, UAS Challenge STEM Leader 

In 2019, 120 local students took part in the event onsite. Alongside talking with the university teams and seeing the air systems fly, the students were invited to participate in practical engineering workshops intended to spark an interest in following a career in engineering.

The STEM Outreach Programme aims to build up on 2019’s success for the 2020 event.

Where and when does the Challenge take place?

The UAS Challenge returns to Snowdonia Aerospace Centre in Llanbedr, Wales  from 17 June to 20 June 2020. The venue is ideal in its layout, facilities and structure as well as its appeal as a well-known drone test centre.
IMechE UAS Challenge Poster_Final small

How do I get involved?

To find out more about volunteering at, supporting sponsoring or participating in the competition visit www.imeche.org/uaschallenge or email [email protected].

To advertise the Challenge at your university, download our poster (pdf 1.4MB).

Sponsoring the Challenge

The 2019 Challenge was sponsored by industry partners such as GKN Aerospace, Bombardier, the Welsh Government and Gwynedd Council as well as QinetiQ, Raytheon and Frazer-Nash Consultancy.