Funding competition Research and development competition for RAI in extreme and challenging environments

UK businesses can apply for grant funding to work on robotics and artificial intelligence (RAI) technologies for extreme and challenging environments.

Competition opens: Tuesday 13 June 2017
Competition closes: Wednesday 2 August 2017 12:00pm

This competition is now closed.

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Description

Innovate UK is to invest up to £10 million in innovative projects. Competition funding is subject to business case approval by BEIS. This is to encourage and stimulate the development of robotics and artificial intelligence (RAI) technologies for application in extreme and challenging environments.

The aim of this competition is to speed up the development of RAI technologies that would be used across the off-shore energy, nuclear energy, space and deep mining applications and other extreme and challenging environments.

Proposals should clearly identify the operational scenarios for the extreme and challenging environments in which the RAI technologies would be used. Cross-cutting solutions are particularly welcomed.

This programme is one of 3 separate elements (use-inspired research hubs, collaborative R&D and demonstrator programmes) which will be delivered under the RAI Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund activity.

Funding type

Grant

Project size

Projects should range in size from total costs of £50,000 to £2 million.

Find out if you are eligible to apply

To lead a project you must:

be a UK-based business
be a business of any size
carry out your project in the UK
work alone or in collaboration with others (businesses, research base and third sector)

For all research organisations, the total level of project participation is set at a maximum of 30% of total eligible project costs. If your consortium contains more than one research organisation, this maximum will be shared between them.

Projects that we won't fund

In this competition we are not funding projects that:

are not in the competition's scope
do not clearly identify the operational scenario for extreme and challenging environments in which the technologies, techniques or system engineering developments would be used

Funding and project details

We have allocated up to £10 million to fund innovation projects in this competition.

all projects must be led by a business
all projects should involve at least one SME
your project should last between 6 and 36 months

Project costs of up to £100,000

Any project with eligible costs below £100,000 must be led by an SME.

You can run the project on your own or you can work with other businesses or research organisations.

Project costs of £100,000 or above

If you expect your eligible project costs to be more than £100,000 you must work with other organisations. At least one of these must be an SME.

Project types

The activities/work in your project could focus on technical feasibility, industrial research or experimental development.

For technical feasibility studies and industrial research, you could get:

up to 70% of your eligible project costs if you are a small business
up to 60% if you are a medium-sized business
up to 50% if you are a large business

For experimental development projects which are nearer to market, you could get:

up to 45% of your eligible project costs if you are a small business
up to 35% if you are a medium-sized business
up to 25% if you are a large business

Find out if your business fits the EU definition of an SME.

Competition scope

The aim of this competition is to encourage and stimulate the development of robotics and artificial intelligence (RAI) technologies for extreme and challenging environments.

The resulting developments should demonstrate a potential step change in system capabilities, primarily across the off-shore energy, nuclear energy, space, and deep mining sectors. Other extreme and challenging environments may also be in scope; please check with Innovate UK for other application areas.

Proposals should clearly identify the operational scenarios for extreme and challenging environments in which the RAI technologies or sub/systems would be used.

We are looking to fund projects which combine complementary disciplines, to achieve the step changes in cross-cutting system capabilities. Examples include:

new materials, for example, lightweight with improved mechanical capabilities and long life in extreme environments
improved robotic structural capabilities
novel telecommunication systems such as, long-range high throughput underwater operation
new sensor devices, for example, for low-light operation, or force and tactile sensors
miniaturised sensors, components and integrated sub-systems
improved machine vision systems
in-situ materials characterisation and inspection
novel energy-efficient and miniaturised actuators
power-energy efficient devices and systems
radiation-tolerant electronics
AI/situational awareness
mission planning and risk management
accurate navigation, localisation and mapping
systems engineering including verification and validation tools and methodologies

The involvement of end-users is encouraged.

Specific competition themes

We are particularly encouraging applications that can clearly:

identify the operational scenario in which the technological developments would be used
identify the technical risks and potential operational benefits
articulate the reusability of the technological developments in different RAI systems for extreme and challenging environments, and the corresponding market sizes
Innovate UK reserves the right to adopt a balanced portfolio approach across the challenge areas

13 June 2017: Competition opens
21 June 2017: Watch the webinar briefing event.
2 August 2017 12:00pm: Competition closes
15 September 2017: Applicants notified

Before you start

To start an application you must create an account as the lead applicant, or sign in as a representative of your organisation. Once you have an account you can track the progress of your application.

As a lead applicant:

you are responsible for collecting the information for your funding application
you can invite other organisations who will participate in the project as collaborators if your application is successful
you can invite colleagues to contribute to the application
your organisation will lead the project if your application is successful

Partner organisations can be other businesses, research organisations, public sector organisations or charities.

Please read the general guidance for applicants it will help your chances of submitting a quality application.

Research organisations

Research organisations may participate in applications as collaborators.

There are specific rules for research partners which limit the amount of involvement a research organisation may have in your project. The participation rule will be set out in the eligibility criteria for the competition.

You will not be able to submit your application if your research participation is over the stated percentage for the competition.

What we ask you

The application is split into 3 sections:

1. Project details

2. Application questions

3. Finances

1. Project details

In this section you will provide the details of your project. This section is not scored, but our assessors will use it to decide whether the project fits with the scope of the competition. If it doesn’t fit the scope then it will be immediately rejected. Within project details you will need to complete:

Application details

The title of your project, the start date and project length. This section will also list you as the lead organisation and any partner organisations you have named as collaborators. The lead applicant must complete this section.

Project summary

Describe your project and what is innovative about it. We use this section to assign experts to assess your application so we need a summary of the innovation in your project.

Public description

Describe your project in a way that you are happy to see published. Please do not include any commercially sensitive information. If your project is successful and awarded funding, Innovate UK will publish this description.

Project scope

Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. If your project is not in scope it will not be eligible for funding and will not be sent for assessment. Innovate UK will provide feedback if we decide that your project is not in scope.

2. Application questions

In this section, answers to these questions are scored by the assessors. Following assessment, you will receive feedback from the assessors for each question.

Question 1: Need or challenge

What is the business need, citizen challenge, technological challenge or market opportunity behind your innovation?

describe the main motivation for the project; the business need, the citizen-centric challenge (for urban living proposals), technological challenge or market opportunity
describe the nearest current state-of-the-art (including those near-market or in development) and its limitations
describe any work you have already done to respond to this need. For example is the project focused on developing an existing capability or building a new one?
identify the wider economic, social, environmental, cultural and/or political challenges which are influential in creating the opportunity for example, incoming regulations. Our Horizons tool can help here

Question 2: Approach and innovation

What approach will you take and where will the focus of the innovation be?

explain how you propose to respond to the need, challenge or opportunity identified
explain how it will improve on the nearest current state-of-the-art identified
indicate where the focus of the innovation will be in the project (application of existing technologies in new areas, development of new technologies for existing areas or a totally disruptive approach) and the freedom you have to operate
explain how this project fits with your current product/service lines/offerings
explain how it will make you more competitive
describe the nature of the outputs you expect from the project for example, report, demonstrator, know-how, new process, product or service design. How will these will take you closer to targeting the need, challenge or opportunity identified?

You may submit a single appendix as a PDF no more than 1MB in size to support your answer.

Question 3: Team and resources

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

describe the roles, skills and relevant experience of all members of the project team in relation to the approach you will be taking
describe the resources, equipment and facilities required for the project and how you will access them
provide details of any vital external parties, including sub-contractors, who you will need to work with to successfully carry out the project
(if collaborative) describe the current relationships between the project partners and how these will change as a result of the project
highlight any gaps in the team that will need to be filled

You may submit a single appendix as a PDF no more than 1MB in size to support your answer.

Question 4: Market awareness

What does the market you are targeting look like?

Specify the markets (domestic and/or international) you will be targeting in the project and any other potential markets.

For the target markets, describe:

the size of the target markets for the project outcomes, backed up by appropriate references where available
the structure and dynamics of the market such as customer segmentation, together with predicted growth rates within clear timeframes
the main supply/value chains and business models in operation and any barriers to entry
the current UK position in targeting this market

For highly innovative projects, where the market may be unexplored, explain:

what the route to market could or might be
what its size might be
how the project will seek to explore the market potential

For other markets, briefly describe the size and main features

Question 5: Outcomes and route to market

How do you propose to grow your business and increase your productivity into the long term as a result of the project?

describe your current position in the markets and supply/value chains outlined for example, if you will be extending or establishing your market position
describe your target customers and/or end-users, and the value proposition to them (why would they use/buy it?)
describe your route to market
tell us how you are going to profit from the innovation (increased revenues or cost reduction)
explain how the innovation will impact your productivity and growth in the short and long-term
describe how you will protect and exploit the outputs of the project for example, through know-how, patenting, designs, changes to business model
outline your strategy for targeting the other markets identified during or after the project
for any research organisation activity in the project, outline your plans to disseminate project research outputs over a reasonable timescale
if you expect to use the results generated from the project in further research activities, describe how you will do this

Question 6: Wider impacts

What impact might this project have outside the project team?

Identify, and where possible measure, the economic benefits from the project to those outside the project (customers, others in the supply chain, broader industry and the UK economy) such as productivity increases and import substitution.

Identify, and where possible measure, any expected social impacts, either positive or negative, for example:

quality of life
social inclusion/exclusion
jobs (safeguarded, created, changed, displaced)
education
public empowerment
health and safety
regulations
diversity
any expected impact on government priorities

Identify, and where possible measure, any expected environmental impacts, either positive or negative.

Identify any expected regional impacts of the project.

Question 7: Project management

How will you manage the project effectively?

outline the main work packages of the project, indicating the relevant research category and lead partner assigned to each, and the total cost of each one
describe your approach to project management, identifying any major tools and mechanisms that will be used to ensure a successful project outcome. Highlight your approach to managing the most innovative aspects of the project
outline the management reporting lines
outline your project plan in sufficient detail to identify any links or dependencies between work packages or milestones

You may upload a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix in PDF format no more than 1MB in size.

Question 8: Risks

What are the main risks for this project?

identify the main risks and uncertainties of the project, including the technical, commercial, managerial and environmental risks. Highlight the most significant ones, providing a risk register if appropriate
explain how these risks will be mitigated
list any project inputs on the critical route to completion such as resources, expertise or data sets
is the output likely to be subject to regulatory requirements, certification, ethical or other similar issues? If so how will you manage this?

You may upload a risk register as an appendix in PDF format no more than 1MB in size.

Question 9: Additionality

Describe the impact that an injection of public funding would have on this project.

tell us if this project could go ahead in any form without public funding and if so, the difference the public funding would make such as faster to market, more partners or reduced risk
describe the likely impact of the project on the business of the partners involved
tell us why you are not able to wholly fund the project from your own resources or other forms of private-sector funding (what would happen if the application is unsuccessful)
explain how this project would change the nature of research and development activity the partners would undertake, and related spend

Question 10: Costs and value for money

How much will the project cost and how does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer?

justify the total project cost and the grant being requested in terms of the project goals
explain how the partners will finance their contributions to the project
explain how this project represents value for money for you and the taxpayer. How does it compare to what you would spend your money on otherwise?
justify the balance of costs and grant across the project partners
justify any sub-contractor costs and why they are critical to the project

Finances

The finances section asks each organisation to complete project costs, organisational details and funding details for each organisation in your project. For full details on what costs you can claim please see our project costs guidance.

Background and further information

If you want help to find a project partner, contact the Knowledge Transfer Network.

If you need more information, contact the competition helpline on 0300 321 4357 or email us at support@innovateuk.gov.uk.

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