Daher Aerospace (Static Display B4), the French manufacturer of TBM turboprop singles, is highlighting at the Paris Air Show its recently launched student innovation competition, the “General Aviathon,” aimed at developing technologies that could make its aircraft more autonomous, intelligent, and connected.
The contest is conducted through Daher’s Silicon Valley-based innovation program, Armstrong by Daher, which “is tasked with accelerating our parent company’s digital transformation,” said Daher head of digital strategy Florent François, “and there is no better way than harnessing Silicon Valley’s imagination and capability for a future transformation of the TBM aircraft.”
Daher's competition challenges student teams to develop computing capabilities, artificial intelligence processes, and other software. Mentors are available to tutor students on the TBM’s operational and system aspects, as well as provide insights from the pilot and passenger perspectives, said Daher head of innovation strategy Cédric Eloy.
The winning team will receive a cash prize of $5,000 and the potential to partner with Daher in deploying their technology.
Daher listed several potential topics that could be covered in the General Aviathon, including "How can the TBM be improved with embedded artificial intelligence"; "What kind of vocal assistant could be relevant to its pilots"; "How the TBM can be given real-time computing capacity"; and "Which technologies would improve the aircraft’s performance."
Selected teams will move forward to the test and presentation phases before a final pitch and determination of the winners, to be announced at the National Business Aviation Association convention (NBAA-BACE) in October in Las Vegas.
