Skynet Week 5 H4D Stanford 2016
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The document outlines a project developing autonomous drones for enhanced situational awareness to prevent battlefield fatalities by identifying friendly and enemy forces. It covers customer discovery, acquisition strategies, and a variety of processes related to government contracting, including SBIR, S&T, and existing contracts for drone technology development. Key stakeholders and their roles are mentioned, along with validation of technology capabilities and the potential for commercial partnerships within military contexts.
Skynet Week 5 H4D Stanford 2016
- 1. Skynet Sam Gussman (creative generalist), Alvin Goh (hacker), Olga Musayev (project development), Kevin Mott (project manager) Liaisons/Mentors: Steve Behmer, Ryan Blake, Wayne Chen # Interviewed this week: 11 6 Users, 2 Buyers, 2 Experts, 1 Competitor # interviewed total: 54 # New Blog Followers: 1, # Total: 2 Developing autonomous drones for situational awareness. Helping prevent battlefield fatalities by pinpointing friendly and enemy positions.
- 2. Customer Discovery Hypotheses Results Actions Computer vision technology is currently capable of doing the detecting/recognition we need Interviews, research, talking to experts Partially validated. Detecting people from drone feeds can be done. Continue researching software options to see if classifying enemy/friend/civilian is possible with computer vision technology today. Acquisition: there are ‘critical paths’ available for getting our product into SOCOM Interviews, sponsor engagement Validated, multiple mechanisms for getting our product into SOCOM. We can get technology developed and into hands of users within 1 year Talk to people involved in SBIR process, understand the requirements and more detailed hurdles we need to jump through SOCOM is the preferred agency through which to buy our product Interviews, research Partially validated. If we work with RRTO or another office specifically designed to innovate, can be flexible on agencies. But SOCOM is great too Interview people at RRTO, CTTO, CTO, etc. to see if we can work with them Experiments Border control is a dual-use. Interview BP Agents None yet Validate hypothesis with more interviews Next Week:
- 3. MVP Source: Gaszczak, A., Breckon, T., & Han, J. (2011). Real-time people and vehicle detection from uav imagery. SPIE. Detections from thermal images (people) Detections from optical images (vehicles) What we have now: Envisioned product:
- 4. Hardware: DIY custom drone kit Camera (color / thermal) Software: Open-sourced firmware Drone ATAK Cursor On Target* *Schema much like JSON Androidplugin Skynet Computer Vision (openCV) Drone navigation Object detection Object recognition DJI sdk / open-sourced sdk System Architecture (draft) Android device MVP
- 5. Acquisition Fastest Routes SBIR: Develop bare idea (TRL 1) to prototype (TRL 7) Uses different pot of money (same color) required to be spent on small businesses Phase 1 feasibility study done in 6 months, phase 2 brings beyond prototype, phase 3 (not covered) is commercialization and scaling up Phase 2 can be initiated even 10yrs later, by any agency, without competition Timeline: 1 month to hear back; 2-4 months to set up contract; 6 months of funding S&T Process: Develop idea/prototype (TRL 3/4) to product (TRL 9) Uses existing capability gaps posted on fedbizops Evaluated by operators working with PM and an engineer Benefits from engaging with operators and PMs ahead of time Timeline: From close of BAA, 2 months to hear back, 4-8 months to set up contract, 2 years of funding Find existing contract: Get money to buy stuff
- 6. Deployment Timeline Comparison SBIR S&T Existing Contract 1 Year (6 months funding) Funding Expires 34 Months (2 Years funding) Max 2 Years (19 Months, 3 Weeks Funding) 6 121 102 34 2, +1 week 24
- 7. Route 1: S&T Process-- Prototype to Product BAA for existing gap White Paper White Paper White Paper S&T PM (TBD) S&T PM’s Group of Operators Other operators who talk to operators in PM’s group Bureaucracy line Other operators who talk to operators in PM’s group S&T “Council”: S&T PMs + Director Tony Davis Engineer Steve D. Proposal Contract Negotiations between business and PM: Statement of Work (COW); Contracts Data Requirements List (CDROLS) Step 1: find gap on fedbizops + submit whitepaper Step 2: All whitepapers get evaluated by operators and engineer Step 3: S&T PM brings selected white paper to “council” of PMs. They choose which projects to prioritize and fund. Step 4+5: Submit proposal and negotiate deliverables (CDROLS) and what you will do (COW) Step 0: “Free flowing” communication with operators and PM to show off product and get selected and prioritized
- 8. Route 2: SBIR- Small Business Innovation Research SBIR Topic Area Proposal Proposal Proposal SBIR PM Sean M. SBIR PM’s Group of Operators (all components) Other operators who talk to operators in PM’s group Other operators who talk to operators in PM’s group Engineers Proposal Contract for Phase 1 Feasibility study Step 1: find idea on SBIR topic area Step 2: SBIR PM reaches out to whoever submitted topic; they evaluate Step 3: SBIR PM brings selected white paper to “council” of PMs. Step 4+5: Phase 1 feasibility study. If successful, can go to phase 2 Step 0: “Free flowing” communication with operators and PMs to influence process SBIR Council: S&T Director Tony Davis + PMs Get to phase 2 sole source... at any point... with any agency
- 9. Route 3: Find existing contract Step 1: Find company that has existing contract with any agency Step 2: Contract with company Step 3: Get money through Military Interdepartmental Purchase Request Ex. Stanford contracts with company which contracts with DIUX which lets SOCOM give us $10k for development.
- 10. Mission Model Canvas - Fly autonomously on route - Object detection, recognition, classification - Identifying and tracking friendlies, enemies, civilians - Integration with ATAK - SOF (green beret, ranger, SEALS) - SOCOM, RRTO, CTTSO, JCTD, CTO - Programmable drone manufacturers (eg: Solo) - ATAK Program - Neurala (or other computer vision firm) -Stanford Computer Vision Lab Tactical operators - SOF (SF, Ranger, SEALS, MARSOC/Recon, drone operators) Private sector and academic partners (Neurala, drone manufacturer, Stanford lab) ATAK Program Manager SOCOM Small UAV S&T/Acquisition Program Managers Dual Use: Border Patrol - Keep track of friendly, potential hostile and neutral actors/equipment automatically - New contracts and revenue streams - Opportunities for tech development -Added value to current program/technology -Cost effective, agile and quick method of filling capability gaps - Low-cost detection of movement and people at border -Improved situational awareness for small units in combat -reduce workload for tactical operators and feed-monitoring operators -decrease strain on other traditional aerial assets Options: 1). S&T Process 2). SBIR Process 3). Find existing contract (short term funding) Fixed: - Equipment - drones, development toolkits - Software design & engineering Variable: - Costs of maintenance, updates, and training -Demonstrate utility- gain support from senior personnel -Show opportunities for new revenue streams -Add utility to current program of record to increase adoption -Provide low cost product with new capability filling gap Saboteur - competition within SOCOM PMs Beneficiaries Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs Buy-In/Support Deployment Value PropositionKey Activities Key Resources Key Partners - Programmable Drone - Computer vision SDK (preferably neurala) - ATAK API + source code __= New
- 11. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas - Image recognition software applied on video feed - Aerial perspective Customer Jobs Monitor the border for suspicious activity - border area is too large, unable to ensure full coverage - Impossible to look at the whole border 24/7 Border Patrol Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers - Quickly respond to suspicious activity - Survey more area without needing more men - utilize low-cost drone swarm to increase border coverage - distributed autonomous drones ensure high refresh rate across the whole border Products & Services Drone with visual recognition software
- 12. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas - Knowing the locations of friends/enemies/civilians - Reduced ambiguity - autonomous assessment of aerial perspectives and video feed Customer Jobs Shoot bad guys without getting shot - Cognitive overload from existing tools -Manpower losses - Hassle of systems not communicating SOF Elements (combat) Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers -Increased situational awareness on the battlefield - Reconnaissance of inaccessible places - Integrate with current systems that soldiers are familiar with - Frees up another soldier Products & Services Situationally aware drone with visual interface
- 13. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas - Automatic patrol - Facial Recognition of people identified in vicinity - Automatic threat detection to flag security threats Customer Jobs Force protection Day-to-day security patrols are manpower intensive Difficult to be always aware of surroundings SOF Elements (non-combat) Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers - Reliable 24/7 Security Awareness - Knowing who lives around you, and who doesn’t - Ability to respond quickly to threats - Swarms of drones can replace patrol units -24/7 situation awareness of surroundings Products & Services Situationally aware autonomous drones
- 14. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas - Access into SOCOM acquisitions - building company’s presence in military Customer Jobs Make more money Build customer relationships - Difficult to get large contracts, technology still maturing, only have limited consumer market share Commercial Partners Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers -New revenue stream -Potential long term partnership - Contracts with military, willing and eager to adopt new technology (early adopters) even if tech is not fully matured Products & Services Partnership / contract
- 15. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas - Integrating drone camera feed enhanced with image recognition - augmenting ATAK interface with image processing Customer Jobs Manage ATAK System under cost - Proprietary technology that does not talk to other tech - low adoption rate, ‘fancy new toy’ that’s not used much ATAK Project Manager Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers -Increased value to ATAK program - Easy integration with ATAK - Promote culture of open- source - improving receptiveness to ATAK Products & Services Autonomous drone with live video feed integrated with ATAK
- 16. SkyNet: Value Proposition Canvas -Image recognition software first of its kind in the military - tool could potentially be applied across platforms (as a software plugin) Customer Jobs Manage Programs Fill gaps - Tech is new and recognition of potential enemy may trigger blowback - new technology always too expensive, sometimes they don’t get used after purchasing SOCOM Small UAS PM Gains Pains Gain Creators Pain Relievers - Provides new tool that existing programs don’t provide - Potential to scale -Retain man-in-the-loop, test software during training stateside and slowly scale to overseas. - Maintain low costs by utilizing COTS, consistently engage user feedback at all stages of development. Products & Services COTS Drone with visual recognition software
- 17. Backup Slides: Acquisition Process
- 18. Saboteurs + Other Dangers Project Manager for Personal Reconnaissance Devices There is a jurisdictional fight between the PMs for Personal Reconnaissance Devices and Small UAV Projects Raven Program Small fixed wing reconnaissance drones, the Raven chief amongst them, stand to lose both funding a prestige Ourselves Any misclassification of a civilian that leads to injury is likely to completely derail the project. ‘Personal’ saboteurs This week we learned about an angry secretary who almost killed a project’s funding.
- 19. Tactical Beneficiary Archetype Special Forces - they enter an area for few months and live with locals for a while, train them, advise them on combat. Drone Operators - they pilot and monitor drone feeds to conduct targeted air strikes and protect troops on mission Rangers - they enter a specific area, conduct a raid, and exit. JTAC - responsible for calling and targeting air support. Sergeant of the Guard (SOG) - they are responsible for force protection.
- 20. Value Proposition Brief Problem Existing solutions Our solution Identify and locate hostile and neutral actors/equipment Plot on a map Drop enemy icons on JCR/BFT Soldier awareness Real-time updates/tracking of persons of interest through computer vision Special Forces monitoring of allied force High level drone feed fed to SF, but limited 2-way communication. ATAK may show locations of allied force Drone extends communication networks and allow audio and video communication Monitors locations of allied force to prevent airstrike casualties Collateral Damage Soldiers mark out potential CD on maps Ground force commander's’ judgement Drone operator in the US runs algorithm to determine CD from potential airstrike Drone uses existing database to mark civilian buildings on ATAK map; Drone identifies potential civilians and marks location in ATAK using Computer Vision Fratricide, especially when calling in airstrikes and artillery ATAK, GPS in radios, 9-line call format, strobe lights on uniforms: all identify friendly locations Low-flying drone detects friendly locations and conveys to JTAC and pilot. Could also run algorithms determining risk of fratricide; AR shows soldiers locations of friendlies Force protection duties (guard) are manpower intensive Patrols and Soldiers at static positions are a staple in force protection duties Autonomous drone would circle compound and recognize dangers. Can form fleet of autonomous drones to complement patrol duties