The AERPAW Autonomous Data Mule (AADM) Challenge Launches
AERPAW has launched the AERPAW Autonomous Data Mule (AADM) challenge, the second contest in a series of student drone competitions. The goal of the challenge is to download data from four AERPAW base stations as quickly as possible using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or drone. Participants will need to design a solution to decide what data should be downloaded from which base station and when by evaluating link quality and flight trajectory data. Teams will use AERPAW’s digital twin to develop and test solutions, which will then be evaluated on the outdoor AERPAW testbed.
To learn more, visit the AADM Challenge website. Competition winners will be recognized with awards for first, second, and third place that include software-defined radios contributed by NI and cash prizes.
The NSF AERPAW platform is also organizing its third community workshop, ACW 2025, between May 27 and May 30. The workshop will focus on training researchers on how to use AERPAW to do experiments with advanced wireless systems and autonomous drones. There will be travel support for up to 40 students. Interested students should apply from this link by April 5th to be considered for travel support.
