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Other Resources

Refers to Skillset Levelling Rubric , but less general.

Discussed at 2023-05-25 Leads Meeting Minutes , and in 2023 Comp Debrief (Google Drive: 2023 Post Mortem).

Also discussed at 2023-08-17 EOT Meeting Minutes , see end of document for details specific to this.

Purpose

The reason this document exists is based on past faults.

The method and timeline of selecting comp attendees in 2023 was questioned a few times through the winter term leading up to comp. This was because:

  • Roster was decided in January, 4 months before comp

  • Comp list was discussed in 1 meeting before the Discord role was added to peoples' accounts

  • Comp list was under very little outside scrutiny and was not made obvious to the general, wider team

Reasons for the above occurring includes:

  • Lack of visibility in leads meetings - they aren’t locked to just leads, but there is low-to-no attendance of regular members, and no initiative to share meeting events with regular members

  • Lack of communication between leads about when or whether or not the travel team names were finalized

  • The # of cars was intended to be finalized early, to book enough of them. This pushed forwards the entire decision-making process, albeit unintentionally

Issues seen at competition were:

  • During competition, the team was not a fluid unit, and was instead divided into 2 main groups by role - either working on the drone directly, or working on presentation and report

    • Caused communication difficulty and felt like there was a disconnect

    • Members who did not have space in the pit were distant from the rest of the entire competition, and did not network or associate much with other teams or sponsors

    • Uneven distribution of responsibility

      • Even then, some responsibilities were not covered at competition

  • Lack of conflict management and a communications rift within the team in January led to an event in which the technical adeptness/ project scope of attendees was questioned

  • In the week leading up to comp, it was felt there was injustice in how the travel team was chosen

    • Whether or not attendees should be required to commit to spending time working on the project prior to comp (at least in the week prior to comp, when the team is spending time making fixes, flying, and preparing every day in the bay)

In future competitions, we aim to minimize these faults and provide a more justified, open method of selecting comp attendees!

Attendance

Historical

Competition Year

Notes

2021

COVID-19, no travel. Everyone who was still in Waterloo was invited to participate.

2022

8 attendees, leads with senior members.

2023

10 attendees, leads with senior members.

Proposals

Maintain count (10)

Increase count (around 15)

Cost

WARG can fully cover competition and travel costs

WARG can cover 2/3 of competition and travel costs

  • Each attendee pays $100-$200

Selection

Criteria is stricter

Criteria is looser as multiple members can cover each other

Tasks

Everyone has an important role

Overworked members

Cannot guarantee dedicated role (periods of doing nothing)

Overcrowded workspace

More diverse skillset

Higher chances of catching mistakes

Management

Easier to manage

Difficult to organize and coordinate large groups

Learning

Opportunity for newer members to learn

Networking

Easier to network with:

  • Other teams (e.g. technical discussion, spectating)

  • Sponsors and competition organizers

Media

Easier to document, edit, and post on social media

Decision Guide

Guidelines:

  • All attendees must have a defined role

    • It’s permissible to be there to learn however that role must be defined so everyone is on the same page

    • Everyone’s role needs to be clearly defined, communicated, and agreed upon by all parties

  • Finalize headcount (numbers) early, then figure out actual names later on.

    • Vehicles needs to be clarified and booked ASAP

    • Who ends up going is largely based on commitment which can vary over the course of months

  • Finalize key positions early

    • These are people who have long-term buildup of knowledge that are considered either irreplaceable.

    • Key positions include

      • Pilot(s)

        • Holds Pilot role.

        • Holds advanced license

        • Holds months of experience in flying with WARG

      • Ground station operator(s)

        • Holds meaningful experience working with pilot on flightline

        • Holds irreplacable technical experience

      • Manager(s)

        • Holds director role.

        • Has experience managing the team under high stress environments

    • Obtaining to one of these key positions will be outlined in Skillset Levelling Rubric

  • Subteam lead nomination

    • each subteam lead can nominate/select one of their team members (including themselves) to attend as a specialist for that subteam

    • this person is expected to be deeply involved in their subteam leading up to competition

    • more details to be included

  • to be continued

Selection Criteria - To be reviewed at first F23 Leads

Via 2023-08-17 EOT Meeting Minutes

Conall Kingshott R D Megan Spee to work on selection criteria post EOT S23 Leads

  • Self nomination form

  • Have leads of each subteam go through the self-nom form and select from this list

  • Will cumulate in a vote at some point if consensus cannot be reached

Decision factor

Description/example

Notes

Technical expertise (general)

Technical expertise is valued at an engineering competition. May not be as highly valued as specific project expertise, however.

Project expertise (knowledge of the specific competition)

People who have worked on the drone and associated competition elements directly (airframe design/build assembly, electronic wiring, sensor integration, etc)

Future team membership/ leadership potential

Value for newer members attending may be very high if they have interest in staying on the team for a while or taking on leadership positions in the future.

Teamwork-oriented

May include communication, responsiveness to feedback, ability to collaborate and manage conflict. Has team’s best interest in mind.

Cross-team (diverse) involvement

Someone who can perform multiple different duties (as circumstances require).

Competition Tasks:

Task/Skill

Description

Number of People

SDC Driver

  • Person can drive an SDC vehicle

SDC Trailer Driver

  • Person can drive an SDC vehicle with a trailer

Pilot

  • Highest team Pilot certification

  • Advanced RPAS pilot

  • Capable and experienced piloting the competition drone

Ground Station Operator

  • Highest team GS operator certification

  • Experience operating the GS for the competition drone

Manager

  • Ability to organize a large group of people

  • Strong communication skills

  • Adequate team role and respect to make ensure cohesion and resolve conflict

Flightline Assembly

  • Able to assemble the landing gear, props, cabin for any pre-flight assembly that is necessary

  • Strong attention to detail and experience working on the drone at flight tests

Pit Setup & Organization

  • Understands how to organize the team’s pit for a good workflow

Frame Repair

  • Understands the drone’s structural components (X-frame, landing gear) and how to repair them

Cabin Repair

  • Understands the drone’s non-structural components (cabin) and how to repair them

Harnessing

  • Able to execute repairs to the drone’s power systems (Soldering, power connectors, etc.)

Control Systems

  • Knowledge and experience working on and trouble shooting Pixhawk, GPSs, cameras, etc.

Tracking Antenna Mechanical

  • Can troubleshoot and make repairs to the tracking antenna’s mechanical systems

Tracking Antenna Controls

  • Can trouble shoot and make repairs to the tracking antenna’s control systems.

CV Air-side

  • Able to configure and troubleshoot CV air-side systems (Jetson, cameras)

CV Ground-side

  • Able to maintain and use any ground-side CV tools or scripts

Logistics

  • Check in to hotels and manage payments

  • Communicate travel and lodging plans with the travel team

  • Food?

Presentation

  • Present at the competition

  • Fine-tune presentation at competition

  • Should have been involved with the development of the presentation, and have practiced presenting it throughout the term

  • Speaks French is a plus

Report Writing

  • Ready and able to write the post-task report at the competition

  • Strong language skills, attention to detail, and understanding of the competition objectives and WARG’s outcomes

  • No labels