Q and A
We occasionally receive questions seeking clarification on the rules and mechanics of the Challenge. As we do, we will post the questions and our responses here.
When I submit an idea to the Challenge, do I lose all intellectual property rights? That is, does the U.S. DOT "own" the idea?
ANSWER
Section 8 of the rules states:
Each Contestant grants to the U.S. DOT and others acting on behalf of the U.S. DOT, a royalty-free non-exclusive worldwide license to use, copy for use, perform publicly, and display publicly all parts of the Submission for the purposes of the Challenge until one year after the announcement of winners. This license includes posting or linking to the Submission on the official U.S. DOT website and making it available for use by the public.
This is the ONLY claim that the U.S. DOT is making on your idea—we need to be able to use it to publicize the Challenge and possibly create a research agenda based on it. This has no other effect on your ownership of the idea.
However, we cannot guarantee that your idea will be protected from others' use, and cannot give legal advice in this regard. If you have concerns regarding intellectual property rights in your idea, we recommend that you confer with an expert in the area prior to submission.
Is there any potential liability for mentioning a private company by name in my submission?
ANSWER
We have no rules against mentioning companies by name, however, we cannot guarantee how any company will react and cannot give legal advice in this regard. For the purposes of the Challenge, we are interested in thinking broadly about applications and encourage participants to describe their application(s) in that fashion. For example, “A prominent North America-based vehicle manufacturer” or “Several-thousand acre controlled access theme/amusement park” are descriptions that encourage expansive thinking.
I do not like public speaking, yet I would still like to share my ideas for innovation. Can I participate in the Challenge without having to orally present my ideas?
ANSWER
Yes. If an awardee would prefer not to present his or her idea orally, we can certainly accommodate that interest by finding another way to share their idea with conference-goers, perhaps using a handout, a poster, or a video.
QUESTION
Please describe the Challenge in terms of traditional research grants/agreements:
- What information on budget and team qualifications is required?
- How much funding is available to support work under the Challenge? (Maximum budget?)
- How long can that work proceed? (Period of performance?)
- What must be produced as a result of the work? (Deliverables?)
ANSWER
The Challenge is an opportunity to share new, practical ideas for using DSRC. It is not a way to win funding to conduct research. Unlike traditional research proposals, submissions to the Challenge do not need to include statements of required budget, team qualifications, work schedule, or deliverables.
We require that submissions “explain the process by which the [submitted] Concept would be implemented” (see the submission requirements). However, we have no guidelines for the resources that would be involved in this hypothetical process, and we are not offering to fund it.
