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U.S. DOT FY 2025 Phase I Pre-Solicitation Q&A

            

1/31/25  Update: The Pre-solicitation is now closed. Topic questions are no longer being accepted. * * *


This U.S. DOT Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Pre-solicitation Q&A Forum provides small businesses an opportunity to submit clarifying questions on the topics published in the U.S. DOT Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Phase I Pre-Solicitation. Questions will be answered by the Technical Experts/Topic Authors at the U.S. DOT Operating Administrations during this period. Questions shall be limited to improving the understanding of a particular topic's requirements and should not share proposal ideas nor proprietary information.

The U.S. DOT’s FY 2025 Pre-Solicitation period is January 3, 2025, through January 31, 2025, at 5:00 pm Eastern Time (ET). Only questions posted within this period will be responded to.

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66 results found

  1. In the documents, there are some section drawings (e.g. Fig. 15 and 16)

    What is the target size range for the dimensions of the dividers? Is there any variation?
    Specifically, we're interested in the heights and lengths of raised lane dividers.

    1 vote

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  2. Please clarify the meaning of the word "device" on Expected Outcome #3

    For 25-NH1 (PAGE 28) -- Phase 1 Outcome #3 says: "Proof of Concept paper including a testing plan to determine, at a minimum, the device’s sensitivity, validity, and reliability with a sufficient sample size for meaningful analyses...." But this is the only reference to a "device" in 25-NH1. Throughout this topic area, there are references to "software." Can you please clarify if:

    1. Is the word "device" actually a typo (i.e., should it say "software" instead) or is it intentional?

    2. IF IT IS INTENTIONAL: Does this "device" refer to either computer hardware to run the software, or potentially associated hardware devices…

    1 vote

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  3. Who is the intended end user for this device?

    As you say, there are few building contractors familiar with performing AASHTO T 363, so accelerating this test will not benefit those not currently performing it. Perhaps the cost benefit comes from reduced failures and maintenance costs? How will DOT evaluate the broad benefit from this new technology in terms of who will actually be using it.

    1 vote

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  4. Is AASHTO T 363 considered the “gold standard” that the new (faster, better, cheaper) technology will be required to correlate with?

    If not, are there other standards or processes that capture the targeted shrinkage measurement?

    1 vote

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  5. Is any hazard mitigation system that results in service and cost improvements to the operating railroad of interest?

    The description mentions a gap in identifying and managing “emerging hazards”. If this is the main goal, can you define these more clearly?

    1 vote

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  6. Who is the intended end user of this tool?

    Often transit authorities are vehicle owners and local operators perform maintenance. How does this topic differentiate between them, or is the goal to create a tool that supports the maintenance of mass transit vehicles whoever is performing it and at whatever level?

    1 vote

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  7. 1 vote

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  8. Would a solution that incorporated a non-intrusive wearable device be in scope?

    Or should the solution operate completely passively without interacting with the operator?

    1 vote

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  9. 1 vote

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  10. Are you looking for a system to only assess operator fatigue, or would it be desirable for it to also be an alerting system?

    For example- to provide alerts to either the locomotive engineer or to a supervisor when fatigue levels pass a certain threshold

    1 vote

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  11. Who is this topic intended to support as an end user?

    Is this to support police at the scene of a crash, or post-scene report generation, or all/other facets of crash scene documentation?

    1 vote

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  12. Who is the intended end user of this tool?

    How will they use this tool to perform construction and inspection tasks better in relation to utilizing MALD?

    1 vote

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  13. 1 vote

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  14. What specific 3D model formats need to be supported?

    The topic description mentions that the solution should be “agnostic to any specific authoring tool or 3D model format”. How central is IFC to this topic and should our solution be able to view file formats other than IFC?

    1 vote

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  15. Is carbon management being taken into consideration for implementing hazard mitigation technology?

    Introduce urban carbon capture modules in at risk air quality sites.

    1 vote

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  16. Could continuous monitoring through a semi-permanent installation be considered?

    Continuous monitoring may offer a value proposition compared to on-the-spot, in-person measurements performed as needed? If so, should the communication of continuously monitored data be included as part of the overall proposed system?

    1 vote

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  17. who are the intended end-users of the device and what are their needs in terms of a usable interface for secure data collection

    are the measurements of this device intended for public consumption or private data collection on behalf of rail users? what are the requirements for handling rail stress data collected by the devices securely and responsibly?

    1 vote

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  18. Who are the intended end-users for a Lidar-based tire inspection technology

    knowing the user base who are testing the tires and Lidar technology is essential to writing a proposal that meets their end goals and objectives, and fully understanding and incorporating the requirements of any regulatory framework around an application that meets their needs is absolutely necessary to its success

    1 vote

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  19. are there test sites already designated for particular examples of concrete shrinkage issues?

    it would help to have some particular examples or case studies of concrete shrinkage situations that demonstrate the issues that DoT is concerned with addressing, so that the measurement device is well-adapted to the application

    1 vote

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  20. Standards may be referenced for PII handling and application usage for this service development?

    Personally Identifiable information (PII) and Public Health information (PHI) are to follow the same protocols as LEA applications.

    As part of the LEA marketplace, shall we just reference with good intention the PHI standard or coding practice guidance?

    1 vote

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