Counter Uncrewed Aerial Systems (CUAS) 2027 (Urban) Test Plan Template

Blue areas contain instructional details in each section and must not be changed.

1. Physical description and footprint of the equipment being brought to the Sandbox

Instructions: The purpose of this section is to describe what you are bringing to the Sandbox so that we can determine if it is feasible to accommodate that type of equipment in the test range.

Your Application Form already includes how the technology works, and health and safety information so do not duplicate that information here.  Focus on describing the quantity and size of the major equipment you are bringing.  A detailed item by item list is not required at this time.  

PASS:    The described equipment can be reasonably accommodated within the Sandbox environment.
FAIL:      The described equipment cannot be reasonably accommodated within the Sandbox environment.

Example description.

• Two co-located model X radars mounted on a wheeled trailer.
• One model X optical and infrared camera system mounted on a tripod stand.
• Four custom radiofrequency detectors mounted on 30ft masts (supplied by Sandbox)
• User control station with monitors
• Central processing computer
• Ruggedized cabling and wiring to connect radar and camera sensors
• Model X wireless routers connecting RF sensors to user control station
• One vehicle-mounted remote weapons system, controlled from inside the vehicle, or optionally from the user control station. Canadian DND supplied 7.62mm machine gun and ammunition required.
• One interceptor drone controlled from the user control station with optional manual pilot.

Describe your major equipment items here.

You can insert a limited (<9) number of photos if desired.

2. Test objectives

Instructions: Provide a numbered short list of high-level test objectives that you intend to demonstrate/test the capabilities of the CUAS technology you are bringing to the Sandbox.
When you create your daily test schedule in the subsequent sections, each daily test item scheduled must refer to one or more of your numbered objectives here.

Example objectives (you need not use these):

• Initialize and calibrate CUAS system.
• Characterize range of sensor X against micro rotorcraft drone
• Characterize tracking accuracy of sensor X
• Determine ability of system to destroy drones moving with X radial velocity to the weapon
• Learn more about effect of effector X on drone types X and Y
• Establish vulnerability of system to rapidly manoeuvring drones
• Identify operator workload and situational awareness during multiple-drone attack

PASS:  The objectives make reasonable use of the Sandbox time and resources provided to the applicant and would demonstrate the capabilities of the system to DND/CAF.
FAIL: The objectives do not make reasonable use of the Sandbox time and resources provided to the applicant, or do not demonstrate the capabilities of the system to DND/CAF.

Table A: Test Objectives

Obj #

Objective Description

3. Night testing

Instructions: Please read the details in the Applicant Guide in the section called “Can nighttime testing be done?”
CUAS 2027 (Urban) will be conducted during daylight hours and that is the expectation with each company selected. There will be one evening (Tuesday, May 11, 2027 – TBC) of testing for those companies requesting the opportunity to participate in night trials.    Once a company is selected we are open to considering portions of their Sandbox time at night within the post-selection process and considerations in the Applicant Guide.

For the evaluating your test plan this is not a Pass/Fail item; however, to enable forward planning please indicate your level of requirement for nighttime testing below.

3.1 Is your company requesting any night testing?

3.2 If yes, please substantiate why night testing is essential, as opposed to daytime testing only.  Why can’t the results of daytime testing be inferred to how your system would perform at night?

3.3 If your request for night testing cannot be accommodated, will you still accept an invitation to the Sandbox and do your testing in the daytime only?

4. Daily Test Schedule and Pass/Fail Evaluation

For describing your proposed test plan on the provided template :

• Group your test points by test day and location:
• We expect you to do all your testing at one location before moving to another, to minimize the effort of moving between sites.
• We expect you to remain at one location for an entire day.  Moving locations and resetting within one test day will generally consume too much down time and will only be permitted by exception at Canada’s sole discretion.
• Each test point should be scheduled to last for 60 minutes before the next one commences, to permit time for coordination of all personnel and equipment between test points.
• Within one test point of 60 minutes, it may be possible to repeat the same test scenario multiple times with minor alterations incorporated, such as resetting the position, or a variation on the route flown.  Such multiple iterations within the same scenario and 60-minute block need not be shown at this point.
• For each test day/location:
• Select the desired combinations from the four “Test Point Descriptive Tables” (see next page) that best represent each test point you wish to demonstrate.
• Enter each test point into your Test Plan template, referencing your choices from these four tables in the corresponding columns of your plan.
• Test Plans will be finalized with each Participant prior to the Sandbox commencing but can evolve and be adapted during the sandbox as well, rather than being rigidly adhered to.
• If you intend to request night tests, indicate on which days you plan to conduct them in the Activity Name (e.g., Night Detection).

PASS:    A realistic test plan that clearly includes the following considerations:

• It aligns with and viably achieves the stated Test Plan objectives listed in section 2.
• It utilizes the template and time blocks as shown on the template following all instructions throughout this template without substantive modification.
• It utilizes the four “Test Point Descriptive Tables” (see next page) in combination to produce the proposed test points.
• Total duration of the plan must be no longer than 5 days and can be shorter.

FAIL:  The test plan is not considered viable to achieve as it fails one or more of the above PASS requirements and rectification with the applicant is not considered sufficiently viable.