U.S. DOT FY 2026 Phase I Pre-Solicitation Q&A
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90 results found
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Focus Area 1 describes a “Trusted Intermediary” built on voluntary industry data.
Focus Area 1 describes a “Trusted Intermediary” built on voluntary industry data. In Phase I, does the DOT expect the architecture to include a functional voluntary consent and data-contribution mechanism, or is a design specification of how such a mechanism would work sufficient?
1 vote -
Would DOT consider a topic on hardware-level cargo authentication technology for trailers and rail containers?
Would DOT consider a topic on hardware-level cargo authentication technology for trailers and rail containers? Cargo theft is a multi-hundred million dollar problem in the US and the CORCA bill identified a gap in physical security at the asset level. More advanced authentication locks that operate 100% offline have no current representation in the SBIR portfolio.
1 vote -
Temporary work-zone congestion
Does topic 26-FH1 consider temporary work-zone congestion caused by roadway maintenance or robotic maintenance operations to be an acceptable Phase I use case for demonstrating Edge-AI/V2X congestion prediction and mitigation?
1 vote1 comment · 26-FH1: Edge AI-V2X Integrated Practical Solutions for Congestion Prevention and Mitigation · Admin → -
mobile autonomous aerial sensing platform
Would a mobile autonomous aerial sensing platform be considered an acceptable emerging data source if the proposed system’s main deliverable is an Edge-AI/V2X congestion advisory architecture that detects work-zone or incident-related congestion and delivers location-specific advisories to affected road users and traffic management operators?
1 vote1 comment · 26-FH1: Edge AI-V2X Integrated Practical Solutions for Congestion Prevention and Mitigation · Admin → -
Autonomous vehicle-deployed aerial robotic inspection
Would an autonomous vehicle-deployed aerial robotic inspection module be considered responsive if it performs multi-sensor catch-basin inspection without grate removal and produces AI-based condition assessments, or is the solution required to use a fixed vehicle-mounted boom?
2 votes -
Phase I Desired Outcomes specify “a proof-of-concept system design” and “an initial prototype design"
Phase I Desired Outcomes specify “a proof-of-concept system design” and “an initial prototype design”. Does the Phase I evaluation require a functional software prototype with running code producing outputs, or is a detailed system design document with a limited simulation scenario (no live data feeds) acceptable as the Phase I prototype?
1 vote -
For the Desired Outcome “Commercial and Implementation Readiness Assessment"
For the Desired Outcome “Commercial and Implementation Readiness Assessment”, what constitutes the minimum acceptable evidence of a commercialisation pathway — a Letter of Interest from a single state DOT or logistics partner, or are commitments from multiple stakeholders expected at Phase I?
1 vote -
For Technical Parameter TP-4 (federated learning)
For Technical Parameter TP-4 (federated learning): does Phase I require a live multi-party FL deployment involving distinct legal entities sharing model updates, or is a simulated federation — two data partitions on the same infrastructure representing separate jurisdictions — sufficient as a Phase I architecture demonstration?
1 vote -
For the 80% baseline accuracy threshold stated in the Phase I objective
For the 80% baseline accuracy threshold stated in the Phase I objective: is this evaluated against a historical archived dataset, or must the system demonstrate 80% on a live real-time data feed during the Phase I period of performance?
2 votes -
Technical Parameter TP-1 requires deploying “low-power edge AI devices at strategic freight bottlenecks.
Technical Parameter TP-1 requires deploying “low-power edge AI devices at strategic freight bottlenecks.” For Phase I, is a benchtop hardware prototype or hardware-in-the-loop simulation of the edge device sufficient to demonstrate technical feasibility, or does Phase I require actual field deployment at a freight interchange?
1 vote -
For Technical Parameter TP-3 (synthetic data generation), does the DOT expect the generator to produce freight-domain-specific
For Technical Parameter TP-3 (synthetic data generation), does the DOT expect the generator to produce freight-domain-specific synthetic trajectories and delay events, or is general-purpose tabular synthetic data augmentation acceptable as a Phase I implementation of this capability?
1 vote -
26-FT1, Agency Facing Decision Support
For Topic 26-FT1, is an agency-facing decision-support or scenario-planning component considered responsive if it directly supports improved traveler-facing Complete Trip outcomes?
2 votes -
26-FH1: Is a formal agency partnership required for Phase I?
Is it sufficient to identify candidate state or local transportation agencies and document a plan for engagement, with a formal partnership established at the start of Phase II?
1 vote1 comment · 26-FH1: Edge AI-V2X Integrated Practical Solutions for Congestion Prevention and Mitigation · Admin → -
1 vote
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Would a cell phone application to detect driver impairment fit under the 26-OS1 topic?
We are developing a mobile application designed to help assess potential driver impairment (drunk, fatigued, etc.) through a verbal assessment test. The app allows users to securely sign in and answer a series of questions intended to gauge cognitive and verbal indicators of impairment. Based on the user’s responses, the application provides feedback indicating whether the results suggest possible impairment or not.
1 vote -
26-FH1
Does Phase I require physical edge hardware such as an RSU or roadside compute unit as part of the testbed, or is a high-fidelity software simulation environment acceptable as the primary validation platform, provided the system architecture is explicitly designed for transition to physical hardware in Phase II?
1 vote1 comment · 26-FH1: Edge AI-V2X Integrated Practical Solutions for Congestion Prevention and Mitigation · Admin → -
Does a fixed roadside sensor system that detects a specific vehicle-borne mechanical hazard and triggers a real-time driver alert intended t
Roadside sensor system using edge-deployed AI to detect a vehicle-borne ignition hazard before pavement contact and alert downstream drivers in under one second. Target deployment: a western freight corridor with no parallel route and a documented history of multi-week closures from vehicle-generated ignition events.
3 votes -
1 vote
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External or Internal Surface Temperature
Does the solicitation require the coating to indicate temperature thresholds corresponding to internal package temperatures, or is external surface temperature indication sufficient for compliance purposes?"
1 vote -
Access to battery terminals?
Does the proposed solution need to address discharge of batteries where the terminals are damaged, corroded, or otherwise inaccessible, or is the scope limited to batteries with intact and accessible terminal connections?
2 votes1 comment · 26-PH1: Increase End-of-Life Battery Safety and Recovery of Rare Earth Minerals · Admin →
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