OFFICIAL RULES & REGULATIONS

“SKYTRACK HACKATHON 2026" COMPETITION

I. OBJECTIVES & REQUIREMENTS

1. Objectives

The "SkyTrack Hackathon 2026" is organized to create an academic and technological playground for students passionate about UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), Artificial Intelligence (AI), IoT, and autonomous systems.

Through the competition, the Organizing Committee (OC) aims to bridge the gap between Universities, Students, and Technology Enterprises to promote research, development, and the practical application of UAV solutions, especially in agriculture, surveillance, logistics, and public safety. Additionally, the competition aims to:

a) Connect Academia and Industry:

• Create a practical UAV technology playground.
• Connect students, laboratories, faculty members, and UAV technology enterprises.

b) Promote UAV Research & Application:

• Encourage students to apply AI, IoT, satellite data, and autonomous technology to real-world problems.
• Enhance the capability to transform academic knowledge into highly applicable products.

c) Nurture Tech Human Resources:

• Identify and cultivate student talent in UAVs, robotics, and autonomous systems.
• Contribute to the growth of the UAV ecosystem in Vietnam.

2. Implementation Requirements

• The competition must be organized in a transparent and fair manner, ensuring both academic depth and practical applicability.
• All implementation activities must guarantee technical safety, equipment safety, and participant safety.
• The competition content must closely align with the latest development trends in UAV technology, AI, and automation.
• Strengthen academic exchanges and networking among students of universities and colleges in the Southern region.
• Enhance communication activities to spread the spirit of innovation and the practical application of technology.

II. KEY DETAILS

• Competition Name: SkyTrack Hackathon 2026
• Theme: Building and developing highly practical UAV solutions, combining the SkyTrack technology platform, Artificial Intelligence (AI), IoT, and UAV flight data.
• Timeline: From July 20, 2026 to October 9, 2026
• • Registration Period: July 20, 2026 – September 6, 2026
  • Preliminary Round: Late September 2026
  • Final Round: Early October 2026
• Venue: Thu Dau Mot University (No. 06 Tran Van On, Phu Loi Ward, Ho Chi Minh City).
• Organizers & Collaborators: Thu Dau Mot University in collaboration with SkyTrack, specialized Faculties/Institutes, and Southern UAV labs.
• Eligibility & Participants:
• • • Students from universities and colleges in the Southern region who are interested in UAVs, AI, IoT, and autonomous systems.
    • Priority is given to students majoring in: Information Technology; Control and Automation Engineering; Electrical & Electronic Engineering; Mechatronics; Agricultural Engineering; and other related engineering fields.

III. COMPETITION FORMAT & RULES

1. Competition Principles

• The competition is organized in the spirit of innovation, encouraging teams to build highly practical solutions for Vietnam's agriculture sector and solve real-world UAV problems.
• Teams must strictly comply with the following principles:
• Honesty & Integrity: Maintain academic integrity throughout the competition. Plagiarism or unauthorized use of another team's product is strictly prohibited.
• Compliance: Adhere to all rules and regulations set by the Organizing Committee.
• Safety: Ensure safety during research, testing, and product demonstration.
• Verification: Participating members must verify their student status using their academic email (.edu) or student cards/documents as requested by the Organizing Committee.

2. Competition Rounds

The competition consists of 02 official rounds:

2.1 PRELIMINARY ROUND (Simulation & Presentation)

• Format: Organized on-site in 2 phases at Thu Dau Mot University. Teams will complete the tasks directly on the SkyTrack platform.
• Key Features: Technical metrics from each team's source code will be publicly updated on a Real-time Leaderboard. After the practical simulation session, teams will present their solutions, show a demo, and answer questions from the Jury.
• Grading Criteria:
• • • 70% Quantitative Score (Automated): Results extracted directly from the system's Mission Report, evaluated based on: task completion rate, AI accuracy, and total simulated flight time.
    • 30% Qualitative Score (Jury Panel): Evaluated based on the Pitching presentation, focusing on the innovation of the solution, technical depth in building Custom Senses/Skills, and practical scalability.
• Result: The Top 10 teams with the highest aggregate scores from the 2 phases will advance to the Final Round.

2.2 FINAL ROUND (SkyTrack Bootcamp 24h)

• Format: On-site Bootcamp combined with a 24-hour continuous practical Hackathon at the SkyTrack bootcamp venue at Thu Dau Mot University.
• Key Features: Teams will receive real-world challenges, utilizing SkyTrack to optimize UAV tasks. Teams will receive mentorship from industry experts, develop their solutions, and perform simulation-to-reality (Sim-to-Real) deployment.
• Evaluation Criteria: The Final Round evaluations will focus on the teams' ability to:
• • • Build and optimize flight missions.
    • Operate UAV systems.
    • Solve real-world practical problems.
    • Collaborate as a team.
    • Demonstrate product thinking and practical scalability.
• Result: The Top 3 outstanding teams will be selected for the First, Second, and Third prizes.

IV. TEAMS & EQUIPMENT REGULATIONS

1. Team Regulations

• Each team must consist of 03 to 05 members.
• Members must be from the same school.
• Each team may have a maximum of 01 faculty advisor/mentor for technical guidance (advisors can only guide and are not allowed to compete or do tasks on behalf of the students).
• Each student can only participate in 01 team.

2. Equipment and Platform Regulations

• All competition submissions must be built and run on the SkyTrack platform.
• UAV equipment must belong to the consumer/academic category for research and educational purposes. It is strictly prohibited to use military-grade equipment or professional industrial UAVs that exceed the scope of the regulations.
• Contestants must disclose hardware configuration specifications and software codes when requested.

REFERENCE UAV CONFIGURATION SPECIFICATIONS

Below are the 02 recommended hardware configurations for the competition:

Configuration 1 – Mini Basic

Configuration 2 –Mini Pro

V. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & SAFETY REGULATIONS

1. Intellectual Property (IP)

• Completed missions/products developed on the SkyTrack platform within the framework of the competition will be stored and operated via the SkyTrack system.
• Ownership of the creation accounts and the content developed by the teams will be determined in accordance with the platform's terms of service and the competition regulations.
• The Organizing Committee reserves the right to use images, videos, and competition-related information for media and communication purposes.
• Teams that use their developed products (missions) in activities that violate legal regulations will be disqualified from the competition.

2. Safety Regulations

• Teams must strictly adhere to all safety protocols during UAV testing and operation.
• The use of equipment or structural designs that pose potential hazards to participants is strictly prohibited.
• The Organizing Committee reserves the right to terminate a team's run/session immediately if any safety hazard arises.

VI. INCIDENT HANDLING & APPEAL PROCEDURES

Technical incident handling and grading appeal procedures are strictly enforced to ensure fairness and objectivity throughout the competition.

1. Incident Classification and Resolution Principles

To ensure objectivity during operations on the SkyTrack platform and with physical equipment, incidents are classified as follows:

1.1 System Issues (Objective Errors):

• • Description: Issues arising from the Organizer's infrastructure, such as Cloud Simulation disconnections, Gazebo server errors, SkyTrack platform software failures, or hardware defects in the Organizer-provided UAVs (during the Final Round).
  • Resolution: Teams have the right to request a temporary pause and a penalty-free re-run. The Organizing Committee will restore the environment to its initial state to ensure fairness.

1.2 Team-Side Issues (Subjective Errors):

• • Description: Issues including source code bugs, mission logic errors, incorrect battery consumption calculation, or entering restricted areas (No-fly zones).
  • Resolution: Teams must take full responsibility. Results will be recorded based on the final data extracted from the Mission Report. Cases where the drone crashes or ceases operations due to coding errors will be marked as a "failed" attempt for that run.

2. Re-run Conditions and Process

• A re-run will only be considered if the incident occurs within the first 1/3 of the run duration and is confirmed to be an issue caused by the Organizer's technical infrastructure.
• The decision to grant a re-run falls under the authority of the Technical Committee and the Jury, based on system logs.

3. Appeal Process

• Basis for Appeal: Teams shall use the automatically generated Mission Report from the SkyTrack system to cross-reference with the results published on the Dashboard.
• Appeal Deadline: Appeals must be submitted in writing (or via the official technical channel of the competition) within 15 minutes after the run results are displayed. Beyond this deadline, the results will be deemed final and unalterable.
• Appeal Fee: The Organizing Committee may require a symbolic fee (if necessary) to prevent groundless appeals. This fee will be fully refunded if the team's appeal is determined to be valid.

4. Final Decisions

• In any technical or scoring disputes where the Mission Report cannot provide clear resolution, the decision of the Jury and the Organizing Committee is final.
• The Organizing Committee reserves the right to modify the competition format or request all teams to perform their runs on a backup map if a widespread system issue is detected that impacts the overall results.

VII. PRIZE STRUCTURE

• 01 First Prize: 20,000,000 VND + Certificate from the Organizing Committee
• 01 Second Prize: 15,000,000 VND + Certificate from the Organizing Committee
• 01 Third Prize: 10,000,000 VND + Certificate from the Organizing Committee

VIII. BOARD OF JUDGES (JURY)

The Jury panel includes professional representatives from the following fields:

• Representative of the SkyTrack Platform Technology.
• School Board / Training Department of Thu Dau Mot University.
• Lecturers specializing in Engineering and Information Technology.
• Independent experts in UAVs, AI, and Robotics.
• Industry experts representing high-tech agricultural enterprises.