Hackathon problem statements

Definition and real case examples of hackathon problem statements for your hackathon in 2026

Updated on the 9th of January 2026. 7.5 min read.

Introduction

Are you a hackathon organiser planning your next event?

We wrote this article for you to take some inspiration in writing down the problem statements to be solved by your hackathon participants, based on real use case examples.

We will provide a list of problem statements categorised by hackathon macro topic, deriving from past hackathons hosted on the Eventornado hackathon platform.

The hackathon macro topic

The hackathon macro topic is the specific field, industry, sector, area, or domain of the event.

It’s the big umbrella under which you can create several hackathon problem statements

Definition of the hackathon problem statements

A hackathon problem statement outlines the specific challenge or issue that hackathon participants need to solve.

An effective problem statement description often includes the following elements:

1. A comprehensive but concise description of the current state of the situation

2. The envisioned future state

3. The importance of addressing the problem

4. The tools or methodologies provided by the organisers to facilitate the creation of the solutions (optional)

5. Examples of possible and expected solutions (optional)

Crafting a detailed hackathon problem statement helps guide participants and sets the stage for innovative solutions.

Lastly, the hackathon problem statements are also called sub-topics, challenges, themes, tracks, or categories.

Let’s begin with the list of macro topics and their real case problem statements.

Be inspired and have a good read!

Hackathons macro topics list

1. Web3

2. Femtech

3. Healthcare

4. Data

5. Sustainability

6. Bitcoin

7. EdTech

8. Blue Economy and Oceans

9. Space

10. Energy

11. Blockchain

12. DeFi

1. Web3

Event name

AIOTI - European WEB3 Accelerator - Hackathon #2

Macro topic

This event was a collaborative mission to unlock the unexplored possibilities of WEB3 technologies, transforming innovative ideas into real-world solutions for a sustainable and efficient digital future.

Organiser

AIOTI - Alliance for IoT and Edge Computing Innovation

Problem statements

• DLT testing tools

  DLT testing tools: The "DLT Testbeds" challenge focused on benchmarking the boundaries of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) with a focus on its protocol performance and energy efficiency. This involved creating or refining frameworks to measure transaction speeds,  energy consumption, robustness and scalability. 

• Data Protection / Whistleblowing

  This subtopic focused on personal data protection and data governance as key enablers of an improved digitalized societal model.

• Wild Card/DLT-IoT-AI Convergence

  The "Wild Card / DLT-IoT-AI Convergence" challenge invited participants to break new ground by developing innovative tech solutions that harness the synergy of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), the Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI). This challenge was about exploring the intersections of these technologies to create scalable, secure, and efficient solutions for the digital future.

• Data Sharing

  This subtopic focused on data sharing as a key enabler for innovation ecosystems.

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2. Femtech

Event name

HackHERHealth

Macro topic

The HackHERHealth Hackathon was a hybrid event designed for participants to create solutions that help to close the gender health gap.

Organisers

This Femtech Innovation Hackathon was a truly collaborative event harnessing the power of industry, academia and the healthcare sector. It is organised under the Health Innovation West umbrella, sponsored by Astra Zeneca and hosted by GoCo Health Innovation City and Sahlgrenska Science Park.

Problem statements

• Improving Women’s Journey in Obesity

  Obesity presents a multifaceted challenge in women’s health, significantly impacted by life stages such as pregnancy and menopause, which bring unique hormonal changes and increase the risk of related conditions like Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). This challenge calls for innovative minds to: 

  • Address Specific Needs: Design innovative management and prevention strategies that address obesity in women, particularly focusing on those dealing with GDM and the hormonal changes of menopause.

  • Prevent Long-term Risks: Develop impactful solutions that not only manage but also prevent the escalation from GDM to Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) and address the multifaceted nature of post-menopausal obesity.

  • Empower Through Personalisation: Engineer personalised, intuitive support systems and educational tools that empower women to take control of their health during these vulnerable and pivotal life stages.

• Pregnancy and postpartum care

  Despite Sweden's advanced healthcare system, pregnant and postpartum women often face fragmented care and language barriers, leading to uncertainty and unequal access to support. We're inviting you to change this narrative through innovation: 

  • Bridge Care Gaps: Develop solutions that offer continuous and accessible support, from pregnancy through to postpartum recovery, addressing the fragmentation in the Swedish healthcare system.

  • Democratise Information: Create user-friendly digital platforms for reliable, easy-to-access information, eliminating confusion and uncertainty for pregnant women.

  • Break Language and Cultural Barriers: Innovate to overcome language and cultural barriers in pregnant women, ensuring equal access to quality care and information.

  • Replicate Doula Support: Conceptualise ways to extend the personalised care and support provided by doulas to every pregnant woman, improving both experience and outcomes.

• Diagnosis for Neurodivergent Girls

  Neurodivergent girls, particularly those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), often face overlooked symptoms and diagnostic gender biases, leaving them without the support they need. This challenge seeks to address these disparities by inviting innovators like you to: 

  • Unveiling the Invisible: Develop innovative tools or methodologies to accurately identify and diagnose ASD and ADHD in girls, who often remain under the radar due to nuanced symptoms or masking behaviours.

  • Challenging Biases: Contribute to erasing gender biases in diagnosis and support, paving the way for early and effective interventions.

  • Holistic Support: Envision comprehensive solutions that aid in managing conditions like ASD and ADHD in young women, addressing co-occurring challenges such as anxiety and depression.

• Preventing Intimate Partner Violence

  Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is not just a personal issue but a major public health challenge. Despite advancements, healthcare systems often fall short in identifying, supporting, and protecting IPV victims. Could your innovative solution revolutionise how healthcare responds to this crisis? We're seeking innovative minds to: 

  • Break New Ground: Develop groundbreaking digital tools or novel protocols that aid healthcare professionals in recognising and responding effectively to IPV.

  • Enhance Support Systems: Conceive ideas that enhance synergy and coordination between healthcare services and support networks, ensuring comprehensive care for survivors.

  • Change Lives: Your innovation could be the key to transforming healthcare strategies worldwide, offering new hope and protection to those facing IPV.

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3. Healthcare

Event name

Sahlgrenska Global Health Hackathon

Macro topic

The Sahlgrenska Global Health Hackathon brought global health innovation to the local level through a series of hackathons, connecting innovators, researchers, clinicians, entrepreneurs, and problem-solvers worldwide to tackle five focused healthcare challenges.

Organiser

Sahlgrenska Science Park

Problem statements

• Health equality

  Globally, health disparities based on gender and ethnicity continue to impact access to care and health outcomes. Women and ethnic minorities often experience higher rates of chronic diseases, limited access to preventive care, and poor maternal health outcomes. These gaps are further exacerbated by socioeconomic barriers, leading to unequal healthcare access and quality. However, advancements in personalized medicine and artificial intelligence (AI) provide transformative opportunities to close these gaps. By harnessing the power of personalized medicine, sector convergence, and data-driven insights, we can disrupt traditional models and create scalable solutions that promote health equity and empower underserved populations with better, more personalized care and treatment options.

• Co-action to F*@# Cancer

  Cancer is a leading global cause of death, with current treatments often hindered by late detection and generalized approaches. personalized medicine, which tailors treatment based on individual genetics and environmental factors, has the potential to revolutionize cancer care. By integrating data analytics, and genomics, we can develop solutions that predict cancer risk, improve early diagnosis, and personalize treatments to enhance patient outcomes and reduce the burden of cancer on global health.

• Smart, safe, and sustainable healthcare

  The healthcare sector accounts for approximately 4.4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. If it were a country, it would rank as the fifth largest emitter worldwide. Governments are striving for more efficient hospital operations, not only to cut costs but also to minimize environmental impacts and mitigate patient health risks. Hospital environments can negatively affect patients, exposing them to unfamiliar settings and increasing the risk of healthcare-associated infections. The challenge is to reimagine hospital operations, making them smarter, safer, and more sustainable for both the environment and patient outcomes, without compromising high-quality, patient-centered care.

• Forever vital

  As the global population ages, managing chronic diseases becomes increasingly critical for maintaining quality of life and reducing healthcare costs. Conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegenerative disorders require continuous monitoring and personalized interventions. By adopting a personalized approach and leveraging personalized medicine, we can develop innovative tools to better manage chronic conditions and promote healthy aging, enabling individuals to live longer, healthier lives.

• Infection prevention and control

  Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a rapidly growing public health crisis, leading to 700,000  deaths annually—a number projected to rise to 10 million by 2050 if left unchecked. Alarmingly,  fewer than 40% of countries have implemented effective infection prevention and control programs to tackle AMR. Additionally, healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a leading cause of illness and death globally, with 1 in 10 patients contracting an infection during medical care—often worsened by a lack of effective antibiotics. 

  The convergence of personalized medicine and artificial intelligence (AI) offers an opportunity to rethink and enhance strategies for combating these global threats. personalized medicine can personalize infection control protocols, while AI-driven tools can identify infection patterns,  predict outbreaks, and optimize antibiotic usage. These technologies are key to protecting healthcare systems, improving patient safety, and achieving global health sustainability. 

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4. Data

Event name

EMODnet Open Sea Lab 3.0 Hackathon

Macro topic

The Open Sea Lab Hackathon is a unique event that brings together data and multidisciplinary scientists, software developers, social innovators, and changemakers in Europe and around the world to harness the wealth of open-source, marine data offered by EMODnet to develop solutions to Ocean challenges.

Organiser

EMODnet

Problem statements

• Protecting and restoring marine & freshwater biodiversity

  How might we leverage EMODnet to evolve a true trans-European nature network that protects our sea areas; to restore rivers or to scale up nature-based solutions that improve the resilience of coastal communities?

  Participants will be challenged to use biology, seabed habitats and human activities data, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

• Making the blue economy carbon-neutral and circular

  How might we leverage EMODnet to eliminate or sequester greenhouse gas emissions from maritime economic activities; develop zero-carbon and low impact aquaculture; promote low-carbon, multi-purpose use of the marine and water space; or mobilise the ocean and inland water’s potential for carbon-free energy?

  Participants will be challenged to use physics and human activities data, in combination with e.g., satellite data from Copernicus Marine Service and/or other data & research infrastructures (e.g., ICOS- Centre, Lifewatch, EMBRC), and any other data deemed relevant, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

• Empowering social innovation

  How might we leverage EMODnet to inspire and support social innovation practices or participatory governance approaches that empower citizens to co-design and co-implement solutions to restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030?

  Participants will be challenged to leverage available resources (e.g., the EU Atlas of the Seas) to develop new applications that enhance users’ capabilities to respond to Ocean challenges, including promoting Ocean literacy and citizenship and/or making data more accessible to citizens (e.g., building a bot in Twitter that feeds off the Atlas of the Seas to provide user-requested updates on any specific resource published).

• Eliminating pollution of our ocean, seas and waters

  How might we leverage EMODnet to reduce microplastics and plastic litter at sea or to reduce the use and risk of chemical pesticides, through innovative solutions or improved international governance? 

  Participants will be challenged to use chemistry, physics and human activities data, interacting with EMODnet map viewer and data catalogue.

• Contributing to the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

  How might we leverage EMODnet to advance a digital knowledge system that supports international collaboration towards better understanding, monitoring, forecasting and protecting the Ocean?

  Participants will be challenged to merge data from EMODnet (including resources available for Global Stakeholders), Copernicus Marine Service, Copernicus Earth observation and/or any other data service.

• Wild card: Hack the ocean!

  How might we leverage EMODnet data for the change that you would like to see in our relationship with the Ocean?

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5. Sustainability

Event name

ROWAD Hackathon

Macro topic

Bring together entrepreneurs and startups to develop cutting-edge solutions to challenge across five categories, namely FinTech, AgriTech, EduTech, and Sustainability Tech.

Organiser

Qatar Development Bank

Problem statements

• FinTech

  Fintech startups developing new technology that seek to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services to businesses or consumers is eligible to apply.

• HealthTech

  HealthTech challenge revolves around harnessing technology to revolutionize healthcare and improve patient outcomes. Participants developing innovative solutions that address pressing healthcare issues, from enhancing patient care and remote monitoring to streamlining medical record management, Telehealth Infrastructure, Security & Privacy, Patients’ experience, etc…

• Sustainability Tech

  Sustainability Tech is dedicated to addressing environmental and sustainability issues through technological innovation. Participants creating solutions that promote eco-friendly practices, reduce carbon footprints, and contribute to a more sustainable future in Renewable energy & energy security, social sustainability, protecting global biodiversity, etc…

• AgriTech

  Agritech Sector focuses on leveraging technology to address pressing agricultural and food-related issues. Participants working on developing cutting-edge solutions that enhance efficiency, sustainability, and productivity in the agricultural sector, that involves: Digitization of food systems, Autonomous agricultural machinery, Product Quality Control and others.

• EduTech

  Edutech is centered on reimagining education through technology-driven solutions. Participants working on creating innovative tools and platforms that enhance learning experiences, bridge educational gaps, empower educators and learners through gamification, social learning, online testing, etc…

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6. Bitcoin

Event name

Build for Africa Hackathon

Macro topic

Build innovative applications and tools to solve African problems powered by Bitcoin and the Lightning network.

In partnership with the Africa Bitcoin Conference 2023, the Build for Africa Hackathon served as a launchpad for open innovation and collaborative problem-solving, where builders converged to generate novel ideas through an idea hack focused on tackling Africa-specific challenges, and accelerate their Bitcoin and Lightning projects through mentorship in contextual design and development.

Organiser

BTrust

Problem statements

• Cross-Border Settlements / Payments

  Innovative solutions to make international settlements faster, cheaper, and more accessible than before in Africa, using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Education and E-Learning

  Innovative solutions to enhance learning experiences, democratize access to education, and reshape the future of online learning in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Social / Community Impact

  Innovative solutions to drive positive social and community impact, promote financial inclusion and economic empowerment in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Media and Entertainment

  Innovative solutions to enhance content delivery, enable microtransactions, or build decentralized media platforms to revolutionize how we consume, create, and distribute content in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Business Administration Tools

  Innovative solutions for efficient accounting, revolutionizing bookkeeping, CRM and payroll systems, or reimagining inventory management in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Microtransactions and Micropayments

  Innovative solutions for handling micro digital payments and small-scale financial transactions efficiently and securely in Africa, using Bitcoin & Lightning 

• Regulatory Frameworks

  Innovative solutions to resolve critical regulatory issues, and streamline / modernize regulatory processes in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Governance and Anti-Corruption

  Innovative solutions to promote transparency, accountability, and good governance (such as decentralized voting systems, transparent supply chain tracking, or anti-corruption monitoring tools) across various sectors in Africa, using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Privacy Tech (KYC, Non-custodial Solutions)

  Innovative solutions that protect user privacy, enhance financial security, and decentralize control over personal data in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Agriculture and Food Security

  Innovative solutions to address agriculture and food security challenges, improve supply chains, traceability, and access to food resources in Africa using Bitcoin & Lightning

• Peer-to-Peer Marketplaces

  Innovative solutions to empower individuals and businesses, streamline transactions, and unlock new opportunities for economic growth in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning 

• Healthcare and Telemedicine

  Innovative solutions to improve healthcare accessibility, enhance remote medical consultations, and empower patients with secure, decentralized healthcare in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning 

• Energy and Sustainability

  Innovative solutions to optimize energy distribution, promote renewable energy adoption, or create bitcoin-based sustainability initiatives in Africa,  using Bitcoin & Lightning 

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7. EdTech

Event name

EdTech Hack 2025

Macro topic

Create visionary and sustainable ideas that can reshape the landscape of education.

Organiser

Edumus

Problem statements

• Talk more, talk better

  Across schools, workplaces, and leisure environments, learners of Estonian often face limited opportunities to practice the language in real-life contexts. Suitable tools and safe, consistent spaces for developing spoken skills are lacking, which hinders both confidence and fluency. Solutions are needed that create more chances for meaningful interaction, provide feedback, and foster motivation to speak Estonian daily, empowering learners to use the language naturally across everyday situations.

• Smart support for teachers

  Teaching Estonian as a second language often involves time-consuming manual work, including creating exercises, providing individualized feedback, and testing students. Many teachers spend significant effort on administrative and repetitive tasks, which limits their ability to focus on instruction. Digital solutions are needed that streamline material creation, feedback, and assessment, support differentiated teaching, and provide effective tools for managing multilingual classrooms, allowing teachers to dedicate more time to meaningful learning and student engagement.

• Language learning that is accessible and motivating for everyone

  Learning Estonian can often feel demotivating and difficult to track, while existing tools are hard to find and learners with special needs may lack equal access. Solutions are needed that help learners monitor their progress, recognize achievements, and study Estonian regardless of their background or abilities, making language learning more motivating, measurable, and inclusive for everyone.

• Other: creative solutions for supporting language learning and Estonian-language education

  Many innovative ideas for Estonian language learning and teaching do not fit into predefined categories, yet they have the potential to make education smarter, more inclusive, or more effective. This category invites creative thinkers to experiment beyond conventional boundaries and contribute unique perspectives that can shape the future of Estonian language education.

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8. Blue Economy and Oceans

Event name

Blue-Cloud Hackathon 2025

Macro topic

Design and test innovative workflows using Blue-Cloud’s Virtual Labs, Workbenches, and tools to develop solutions for ocean sustainability and the Blue Economy.

Participants gain hands-on experience applying Blue-Cloud services to address real-world marine challenges, prototype solutions, and explore opportunities for sustainable ocean use.

By engaging with real user needs and identifying areas for improvement, they help strengthen the Blue-Cloud ecosystem while advancing open, collaborative efforts for healthy and productive oceans.

Organiser

Blue-Cloud

Problem statements

• Mapping & Understanding Marine Ecosystems and Species

  How might we use collaborative science to advance the knowledge of marine ecosystems and species?

  Marine ecosystems and their diverse species play a vital role in our lives. They regulate the Earth’s climate and are a primary source of food for billions of people. They support numerous economic activities and provide livelihoods for coastal communities around the World. However, from plankton -the fabric of the Ocean-, to fisheries, our knowledge of species and ecosystems remains difficult to analyze with integrative approaches. With your help, we can hack available data to address important knowledge gaps.

• Supporting Early Warning & Response to Accidents or Natural Events

  How might we use collaborative science to advance our ability to predict risks from natural events, or to ensure a swift response to accidents at sea?

  Global change is affecting the way that species feed, move, and inhabit the marine realm. Species migrations can have an impact on human livelihoods that rely on fisheries as a source of protein for human consumption. In addition, activities at sea carry risks to human life, and to wildlife. With your help, we can evolve early warning mechanisms to anticipate a more effective response to global change.

• Tracking & Forecasting Ocean Health

  How might we use environmental indicators to understand complex phenomena affecting marine ecosystems and detect changes in their status with sufficient time to respond?

  Climate change is causing severe impacts on marine ecosystems. However, these changes are often difficult to anticipate, leading to delays in the implementation of actions that could mitigate risks and help us adapt to new conditions. With your help, we can track and anticipate changes in the health of marine ecosystems to anticipate a more effective response.

• Wild Card: Double up with EDITO!

  How might we leverage the European Digital Twin Ocean platform to address Ocean challenges?

  EDITO is the public backbone infrastructure of the European Digital Twin Ocean. This wildcard invites you to address any Ocean challenge of your choice, harnessing the resources available in the EDITO platform in combination with resources offered by Blue-Cloud. 

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9. Space

Event name

Act In Space Sweden

Macro topic

A 24-hour hackathon of fun and creativity, to engage in cross-functional teams that worked hard to solve Challenges from Space-related industries.

Participants had the chance to turn their ideas into actual concept solutions, with the potential to make a true impact on both the planet and space industry.

Organiser

Openhack

Problem statements

• Do you copy?

  Enable Space transportation missions around Earth and far beyond by proposing new key technology brick.
  Access to and returning from space require complex paths for which European space transportation solutions need continuous tracking and data relay. Today European launch services rely mainly on ground stations for tracking, communication and data relay. This induces potential lacks of visibility, lacks of availability and loss of competitiveness. Using European Satcom for covering space transportation services to Earth orbits but also to Moon and deep space will increase the availability and reliability of the service, will offer more tickets opportunities and accessible data during the transportation

  Your Mission: Propose new tech/product/service participating to the overall communication and data relay between the space transportation vehicle, the satcom(s) and the ground segment . Any medium of communication is welcome ,from radio-communications in L-band L,X- band , or Ka-band, to laser or optical communication The challenge : come with innovative technologies compatible with space transportation constraints (in volume dimension, flow of data , secured /reliable, in keeping the communication while the vehicle is rolling/ moving,..) Your added value : A Smart, low cost and adaptable technology/software to fit in the overall system Outcome of this challenge shall provide a viable solution (Profitable) with a clear market traction (Desirability) based on an existing technology (Feasibility)

• Fighting for Climate Change

  Fight for climate change with Earth Observation satellite data.
  With the smartest constellation combining radar and optical satellites, Airbus Defence and Space provides what you need - when you need it: wide coverage, fine detail, intensive monitoring, reliable and successful new collections, fresh and extensive archives, premium reactivity. To create new innovative services from Satellite imagery, Airbus Defence and Space is providing you access to the UP42 Platform.

• The Power of Earth Observation & AI.

  Leveraging the power of Earth Observation and open sources data via Artificial Intelligence.
  With the smartest constellation combining radar and optical satellites, Airbus Defence and Space provides what you need - when you need it: wide coverage, fine detail, intensive monitoring, reliable and successful new collections, fresh and extensive archives, premium reactivity. To create new innovative services from Satellite imagery, Airbus Defence and Space is providing you access to its open and free UP42 Platform .

• Invent a recyclable satellite

  Space object architecture and economical models for a conducive circular economy

  Nowadays satellites are not designed to be recycled, and there is no enabling infrastructure. As a result a progressive saturation on the most common orbits is observed (most noticeably for the polar orbits, between 700 and 1000 km), being a source of collisions generating space debris that may start chain reaction collisions. Yet, on Earth numerous circular economies are developing, from chemical batteries, to materials (plastic, steel, …) …
  
  Imagine a paradigm in which space objects would be recycled (partially or entirely). What would they look like ? Which infrastructures would be required in space and on Earth ? How could this be financed ? Depending on your expertise area, you may explore the technological distinct features or the economical aspects ... or even both !

• Invent public services for space

  Architectures for space infrastructures and economical models defining public services for space
  "The very vast majority of satellites has onboard its own propellant to feed its thrusters for orbital manoeuvers and orbit corrections, its own onboard equipments to generate and store electrical power (solar panels, batteries), to process and store data from its sensors (processors and memory banks), … All this leads to a non-optimal situation where each space object (like an explorer in the desert) has onboard all the required resources for its entire lifespan that, depending on the specifications, may reach 20 years.

  Invent a paradigm where space objects could benefit from orbital services (for example like fuel stations, wireless electrical distributions, digital cloud storage, …) What types of services would be needed and why ? What infrastructures would be required to offer such services ? How serviceable space objects would look like ?
  Envision what would be all the created chain values. You may explore the technological distinct features or the economical aspects ... or even both !

• Satellite alert ! Incoming debris

  Ability for an autonomous satellite to detect objects in its visual field, to understand the object trajectory and to engage avoidance manoeuvers. Making the satellite autonomous without a debris database using cameras & smart onboard software.

  "Provided technology : current methods for object detection on Earth, embedded hardware constraints, debris trajectory calculation methods.
  Today the satellite trajectory monitoring (with respect to collisions) is based on a debris database which is expensive and not easy to keep up to date (debris can disappear, there can be new ones, small debris (less than 1cm) are not listed, meteorites are not monitored …). Updates are often annual and therefore may not contain the latest information. Monitoring operations are complex and costly.
  It is proposed to use onboard objects detection, object type analysis, object current and projected trajectory to check for a collision course that would trigger avoidance manoeuvers. The satellite becomes intelligent."
  
  "The main challenges are : objects detection must be done all around the satellite; the satellite must learn to recognize the detected object type (debris, satellite, meteorite…); the satellite must analyze the object trajectory (speed, direction) and check for possible collision. Eventually the satellite must engage avoidance manoeuvers.
  The technology used to detect moving objects (type of cameras, sensors) must be studied. The onboard object type analysis algorithm and course prediction must be studied. If required, the avoidance manoeuvers must be studied. The studies include a description of the issues, the proposed solutions (using existing technologies, technologies that need to mature and technologies to be invented).
  A road map to develop the entire system must be assessed with recurring and non-recurring costs. The safety to cost ratio needs to be detailed."

• Make me Fly!

  Find new ideas based on Earth technologies to build the next Space generation.
  We are looking for exceptional Earth development with a clear relevance for Space that promise to have a lasting influence on our daily lives. This can be anything developped on Earth and adapted to the Space environment such as: Hardware, Industrial processes, Applications, Business models, etc...

  Outcome of this challenge shall provide a viable solution (Profitable) with a clear market traction (Desirability) based on an existing technology (Feasibility) You can use one of the following inspirational domains to start your adventure: - Earth observation and environmental monitoring - Mobility and transportation - IoT/M2M Space connectivity - Space exploration and the sustainable use of space - Agriculture, life sciences and health - Microgravity and materials research - New and sustainable technologies and services - etc...

• The truth from space

  A secured authentication server (prooving something is genuine) is used to validate an unsecured civilian GNSS signals to authenticate anywhere, anytime a physical or virtual object, eg a payment location, a place of manufacturing, a smartphone location, a computer location, computer data …

  This technology is not vulnerable to malicious attacks (spoofing...), can be used anywhere, anytime and is not costly to set-up and operate. The invention provides an authentication mark, an authentication encoding and decoding device as well as an authentication server. More info at : https://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/biblio?II=0&ND=3&adjacent=true&locale=fr_EP&FT=D&date=20180131&CC=EP&NR=3276561A1&KC=A1#
  
  The authentication server must access a database with identification data of authentication devices. A GNSS simulator must be attached to the authentication server. The authentication device must be able to receive and process GNSS data, it must have a secure processing unit with cryptographic or pseudo-random number generation functions.

• Introducing … the Helicraft carrier

  A hybrid aircraft with rotary wings is presented. This efficient set-up has minimal induced torque, good mass to power ratio and good aero performances. This can be applied to vehicles such as drones (any planet with an atmosphere), can be fitted for crane operations, ...

  This aircraft has no fuselage but only possesses a central rotation axis and blades. The central hub does not power the blades. All, or at least one of the blades (similar to a helicopter), are equipped with a propulsion system (jet engine, but preferably contra rotative propellers… similar to an aircraft). Blades generate lift when spinning. At least one blade is hollow and hosts the flight control system and the required power. The loaded blades create longitudinal forces minimizing bending and shearing forces in the blades. A payload can be attached to the central hub. More info at : https://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/biblio?II=0&ND=3&adjacent=true&locale=fr_EP&FT=D&date=20170922&CC=FR&NR=3048956A1&KC=A1#
  
  Proper location of the added masses inside the hollow blades : the flight control system, the energy storage (electric, fuel). If a fuel tank is used, then it can be placed together with the blade(s) having the propulsion system. Centrifugal forces must be taken into account in the engine feeding line. The fuel tank mass will decrease during the flight (variable mass for the blade), the longitudinal (centrifugal forces) will vary.

• Extend EGNOS over the oceans

  EGNOS is the European SBAS (Satellite-based Augmentation Systems) for aircraft navigation and is in use for 11 years

  To provide accurate positioning, EGNOS uses (40) ground reference stations (RIMS), to compare the delta between the correct position of the stations, and the position provided by the GPS. Therefore, similarly to the SBAS system, EGNOS area is constrained and limited by the presence of ground stations.
  
  The challenge is to propose an offshore solution to host additional reference stations over the oceans to extend the EGNOS system range. The solution shall offer : 1) the energy solution, 2) the required hosting equipment (2 antennas at 120m of distance, and one 30m² shelter for the equipments), 3) a solution for the stability to maintain the antennas positioning accuracy (at maximum 1 cm) and 4) the capacity to access to the site for maintenance

• Reduce the impact of aviation on climate change by 50%

  Machine learning, image recognition expertise, industrial development tool chain.

  To assess the condensation trail (contrail) formation, Sopra Steria and the participants need : high resolution satellite images with less than 30 minutes updates to detect condensation trails; traffic and flight data (latitude, longitude, altitude, type of aircraft,…) from ADS-B (Flightradar24 or other source); 3D gridded data with meteorological information (temperature, pressure, humidity). Sopra Steria will provide its machine learning expertise and the development environment to support the participants.
  
  According to IPCC, non-CO2 impact of aviation represents more than half of the direct impact of aviation on climate change. This non-CO2 impact is mainly due to the formation of cirrus clouds originating from aircraft condensation trails (contrails). These contrails are produced under specific atmospheric conditions and can be avoided simply by changing the cruising altitude. The objective is to use machine learning techniques to analyze satellite images and to assess for the existence of aircraft contrails. This output can be fed either to meteorological services providers for contrail predictions or to air navigation services providers to avoid contrails. This approach could use real data to assess the models performances. The participants can correlate this detection with traffic data and meteorological parameters.

• Build the 3D universe

  Using time and geo referenced contributions from many sources, near real time and 4D space rebuilding can be done on a dedicated video processing server through the use of a simple and low-cost system to operate.
  Data sources are numerous : image and video sensors, mobile phones, drones, autonomous vehicles, smart glasses … . By gathering images (and metadata) from many sources, different angles and time, one can find matching visual elements and reconstruct a dynamic 3D scene. The range of application is very wide, from sporting events, to concerts, crisis situation, ... 

• Add a pinch of reality to your photos!

  A connected device is enhanced with photorealistic rendering with the actual in-situ descriptors. This provides a richer and better experience for the end user. For example, this can be very useful to any navigation systems (cars, mobile phones, ...)

  Existing services use real life photos (Google, Apple, Microsoft, OpenStreetCam…) in a given environment (time of the day, seasons, weather, traffic, …). Using expected descriptors at a given position and given time, an accurate photorealistic view can be rendered and added to the image database. Descriptors can also be manually set by the user. This is especially useful for car driving. This technology has other fields of applications, for example when buying a house and seeing how it'll look like at different seasons... More info at : https://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/biblio?II=0&ND=3&adjacent=true&locale=fr_EP&FT=D&date=20190703&CC=EP&NR=3506207A1&KC=A1#
  
  The photorealistic renderer must communicate with external servers to obtain expected data at a given position (weather service, traffic prediction, …). The renderer must be configured to add moving effects to create animations between still frames. Newly created images should be added to the collection of images and stored on servers. Metadata with the image descriptors should be stored. The rights and conditions of use of existing images must be verified.

• Keep your drones on a leash

  A winch system on a carrier vehicle (earth and extraplanetary rovers, boats, ...) is proposed. The cable guarantees first that the drone can be safely pulled back to its base, it also serves as a mean to power the drone, to transfer data.
  
   

  This system is well suited to the space environment, to extra-planetary explorations and even to earth-based applications. The drone construction is simplified : mass, dimensions and its operational time usage can be much longer than regular drones. External power sources can be considered such as solar panels located onto the carrier vehicle. The carrier vehicle can accommodate several drone / winch systems.
  For planetary uses, the winch cable linear mass must be as low as possible. The winch cable ought to be resistant to traction forces. There must be no obstacles along the wich cable. The winch engine must not abruptly stop rotating as to avoid sudden increase in traction load and destabilizing effects on the drone. The operations for the separation of the drone from the carrier vehicle when taking off and the landing back onto the carrier must be carefully executed.

• Where is my rocket ?

  A simple system, not based on usual GNSS technology, is proposed to locate any vehicule equipped with the right radio-frequency emitter. The method does not require radars.

  Using message timestamping, a geo-localized ground network can estimate the location, velocity and vehicle clock offset. The method is based on pseudo-distance and pseudo-velocity estimations using well known algorithms (such as Kalman filters or least square methods). This method is cheap to operate and uses simple hardware. The bandwidth between the ground stations does not need to be large. This can be applied to a space rocket, drone, ground vehicles, any item equipped the proper RF emitter. The trajectory can be tracked in real time, it can even be fed back from the ground into the vehicle for the own onboard vehicle guidance. 

• Lost underground? Turn on the lights!

  Using Visible Light Communication (VLC), a network of emitters communicates with a central clock and compute pseudo random sequences. This cheap, easy to set-up and use positioning system does not require RF signals.

  GNSS positioning depends on satellites and is not applicable for indoor positioning (underground, warehouses, …) with poor RF signals. Creating positioning systems with ad-hoc RF method, inertial sensors, is costly and complex. The set of VLC transmitters gives a GNSS-like signal, they are connected to a central equipment with a clock for time synchronization. A receiver is configured to receive data from a set of VLC transmitters and may compute its location using pseudo-ranges. The bit rate of the navigation message is higher than 500 bits/sec.

• Artificial Intelligence for precision

  Improving the accuracy of the positioning of GNSS receivers with Machine Learning (ML).

  Multipath is a phenomena particularly present in urban environments due to signal reflections on closely spaced buildings, leading to wrong distance estimations by the GNSS receivers to the satellites transmitting the signal. The main idea of the technology patented by ESA (PCT/EP2021/052383) is to use the information already available in the GNSS receivers, to create a Machine Learning model to be used after the positioning engine in order to compensate for this error. It can be integrated in the current generation of receivers at a software level, without requiring a hardware revision. It is computationally simple and can work in standalone mode, there is no need for an internet connection.
  
  The challenge is to find a field of application where the accuracy and simplicity of the patent is of value, taking into account the environments where its use is more advantageous. Think and develop a business idea to bring it to the market. Define the business case: identify your customers, their needs and the unique selling points you can offer with this patent compared to existing solutions. What will be your revenue streams and cost structure? Carry out a simple market study.

• From space to my Life with Copernicus

  Galileo (European Navigation Satellite System) serves more than 2 billion users around the world. Copernicus (European Earth Observation Programme) offers information from satellite observations, in-situ data to understand our planet changes.

  "Galileo Open Service (OS) is free and available for timing and positioning applications. In addition to professional receivers, nearly any new mobile phone is Galileo compatible and can receive and process navigation messages that can be used in countless applications.
  Copernicus builds on a constellation of satellites that makes a huge number of daily observations - taking advantage of a global network of thousands of land, air, and marine-based sensors to create the most detailed pictures of Earth. The vast majority of data/information delivered by Copernicus is made available and accessible to any citizen, and any organisation around the world on a free, full, and open basis. This information helps to better understand how and in what way our planet may be changing, and how this might influence our daily lives. Copernicus also boosts commercial applications in many different sectors by providing full and open access to Earth observation data and added value information.
  
  The objective of this challenge is to support the development of consumer solutions such as mobile applications, wearables (smartwatches, smart glasses, fitness trackers, etc.) drones or robotics that will address major societal challenges in focus areas such as health, citizen safety and security, gaming and entertainment, sports and fitness, and tourism; leveraging the Galileo and/or Copernicus EU Space programmes.

• The Moon Race Challenge

  Contribute to the new era of the human Space Exploration by bulding a disruptive NewSpace business.
  We are in 2032, the world has radically changed. The world is now high tech, robust & reliant with massive new affordable services: 1/NewTechno: Cloud, Analytics, IoT, ALM, VR, DigitalTwin.. 2/NewProducts: New launcher, High optical resolution, Cyber resilience, Habitat, Inflatable structure.. 3/NewServices: In Space manufacturing, Robot, Debris removal, Space awareness.. Space agencies&private compagnies want to move fast ensuring an alternative in case of major issue on the Earth. Moon base settlement is the first step to demonstrate the robustness of the whole space system. We need all digital citizens to build a complete system to go to the next level. And you, what will you do for us ?

  Your mission: use multiple new techproduct/service to create massive scalable & hiighly available functions to support the Moon base settlement mission and operations. Focus only on a small proportion of the meta-sytem.. Feasability: Imagine a brand new disruptive concept. Find inspiration looking to state of the art new capabilities, ensure tecnichal capability & sustainability to serve humanity expansion in space. Draft and explain your value proposition with concrete facts, visual, prototype.. Desirability: Find a real market and customers that will be ready to invest in. This can be about B2B (agencies or private stector), B2C (any digital citizens), B2G (government)/ Alone is quickest way, together with partnership in more sustainable. Viability : Ensure the business will be profitable. Business viability is must have in less then 2 years. Great ideas ar cool, probitable ones are better! Go fast, time is running and your solution must be live less than 24h. Ready, Set, Launch!

• Solar panels are blooming

  A reversible, compact, robust and light set-up based on two layers of solar panels mobile in rotation allows to maximize the effective surface area. The system is reversible, does not consume electric power for its deployment.

  The system uses spring hinges to deploy the panels from their folded state to deployed state in a first step and a torsion spring is used to rotate (preferably by 45°) the upper plate from the lower plate in a second step. The mechanisms are simple and thus robust, for example they can easily be integrated into satellites. Torsion springs are used, they are light, compact and robust to rupture. More than two plates can be used, plates rotation can be optimized depending on the number of panels. The process can be applied to receivers, antennas and is not limited to solar panels.

• Galileo and Copernicus for a greener planet

  Galileo (European Navigation Satellite System) serves more than 2 billion users around the world. Copernicus (European Earth Observation Programme) offers information from satellite observations, in-situ data to understand our planet changes.

  Galileo Open Service (OS) is free and available for timing and positioning applications. In addition to professional receivers, nearly any new mobile phone is Galileo compatible and can receive and process navigation messages that can be used in countless applications. Copernicus builds on a constellation of satellites that makes a huge number of daily observations - taking advantage of a global network of thousands of land, air, and marine-based sensors to create the most detailed pictures of Earth. The vast majority of data/information delivered by Copernicus is made available and accessible to any citizen, and any organisation around the world on a free, full, and open basis. Many sectors of the European economy rely on Galileo precise localisation. Copernicus also boosts commercial applications in many different sectors by providing full and open access to Earth observation data and added value information.
  
  The objective of this challenge is to support the development of innovative commercial solutions that leverage the Galileo and/or Copernicus EU Space programmes to : address environmental challenges and sustainable life, to contribute to the implementation of the European Green Deal or solutions for the green transformation of our society.

• Buckle up! Engine self ignition

  A simple passive system for rocket engines ignition with limited risks of malfunctions or breakdown. There is no need for an activation energy (pyrotechnic, spark plugs, lasers...).

  Such a system is also well suited to long term storage and has reduced costs. The system is based on a highly pressurized (50 bars min) gas hydrogen tank with a valve and a rupture component (eg membrane). When the pressurized gas enters the combustion chamber, it creates a mixture with the oxidizing gas from the rocket engine already present in the chamber and provides self-ignition.

  Prevent the gas mixture in the combustion chamber from feeding back into the pressurized hydrogen gas tank (for example with one-way valves). The pressure in the hydrogen tank must be regulated to make sure the rupture component properly breaks up. An injector must be placed between the rupture component and the combustion chamber to properly control the hydrogen gas injection speed and pressure.

• Jack in the box - spontaneous structure deployment

  Articulated panels made of carbon fiber / epoxy resin on a non-planar surface at rest can be spontaneously deployed by simply using elastic deformation and curvature. Panels are then aligned using a soft link with a Kevlar wireframe.

   Setting up light deployable structures, masts, solar panels ... in space or on the moon with electric driven systems may be hazardous. A structure with spontaneous deployment is robust, reliable and has a reduced footprint and mass.

  The final shape must be compatible with a given geometric decomposition into panels. The clamping straps to maintain the structure folded must be carefully calibrated. A set-up to free the clamps must be taken into account. The deployment dynamic is not easily controllable.

• Think BIG (Space)

  Invent the next Big Thing in Space : A product/service using big tangible/intagible Space assets.
  No matter how big your spacecraft is, how efficient your payload is, or how powerfull your launcher is. Space is Hard. Sometime size matters, but here we are looking for clever "small" ideas to deploy "BIG" tangible or intagible assets in Space! - BIG Intagible Assets: such as big data, advanced analytics or AI powerfull code, etc.. - BIG Tangible assets: such as in space manufactuing, in space large assemblies, in space autonomous robotic systems, etc.. A Big business start small, what will be your first step in this bIG adventure?

  Space is moving fast. There are multiple area where you can help: - Monitor: what's happening in Space with all the new (increasing) debris in Space - Protect: the conjuntion or collision risk with advanced innovative alerting systems - Manufacture: a new structure directly in orbit, without the launch constraints - Assemble: New large assemblie in space, that you can't launch with current launchers - Assist: a crew or a any strategic asset with robotic autonomous systems. These kind of technologies are already well advanced, please consider them as a close reality. Outcome of this challenge shall provide a viable solution (Profitable) with a clear market traction (Desirability) based on an existing technology (Feasibility) Join us, and make the Future a reality!

• Take cover ! Incoming gravitional waves!

  Electromagnetic waves measurements can track atmospheric and ionospheric evolutions. These gravitational waves can be used for weather forecast, for the observation and / or predictions for earthquakes, tsunamis, ...

  The Earth orbit is filled with thousands of satellites and constellations communicating with each other and with the ground. Radio-occultation measurements in the GNSS signals and in satellites interlinks can track atmospheric (profiles for humidity, pressure, temperature) and ionospheric evolutions (profiles for electronic density). Atmospheric and ionospheric variations can be tracked in real time. Major earthquakes, tsunamis can affect the ionosphere minutes, even hours before actually taking place.

  Real time data must be acquired and quickly processed continuously using autonomous automated systems. At least one satellite must be equipped with measurements devices. A small part of the communication bandwidth must be used for the set-up. The system accuracy will depend on the number of measurements carried out on GNSS receivers (can be ground stations, buoys...).

• Get ready against infectious diseases!

  From satellite images, areas with the highest risk of infectious diseases propagation can be established. Satellite images are analyzed to extract a disease relationship factor. This in turns is used to predict the disease time and space evolution.

  A first image with population density potentially infected by the disease is taken. Using the population density and the disease relationship factor (taking into account environmental and climate factors),where the proliferation risks is higher can be identified. This method is generic and could be applicable to all infectious diseases (malaria, cholera, ...), or respiratory diseases linked to pollution.

  Define from in situ environment a relationship factor for the disease development and its transmission. This factor may be a function of / linked to weather conditions. The more external variables are injected into the factor function, the better the prediction will be. The factor depends on the type of disease : airborne, waterborne, vectors (mosquitos...). Get information on the disease density in an area to improve predictions.

• Adopt a space debris

  We observe a progressive saturation in the most used orbits (most noticeably for the polar orbits, between 700 and 1000 km), being a source of collisions generating space debris that may start chain reaction collisions. Active cleaning projects dealing with space debris (ADR for Active Debris Removal) are appearing (such as the CleanSpace-1 ESA mission) but these projects require significant resources.
  
  Try to figure out a way for anyone (a citizen, collective associations, public or private entities, …) to contribute to a cleaning mission, either from a financial view point or by bringing its own expertise. you may consider focusing on (non exhaustive list): Fab Lab, Open Space Makers, crowdfunding, crowd sourcing, "class actions", actions led by one or more influencer community (such as Pixelwar) … The following digital means can be considered (non exhaustive list) : social networks at large (for example YouTube), blockchain and NFT (Non-Fungible Token), collaborative platforms (similar to GitHub), networking hubs linking individuals (similar to AirBnB), …

• Defy gravity, deploy your business

  Light, stable and reliable mechanical architecture for deployable structures based on tensegrity.

  Delivering structures to space is often constrained by space and weight requirements. For this reason, the use of deployable structures is common. One of the concerns raised by any deployable mechanisms is the risk of failure of the mechanical connection points or joints. The use of this patented deployable tensegrity structure (EP2828928B1) diminishes this risk as the rigid bars or struts of the structure are linked together by a continuous net of cables or tendons, in such way that the rigid bars or struts don't touch each other. The distribution of compression and tension forces allows the tensegrity structure to take and maintain its shape without any direct contact between the bars.
  
  On Earth there are contexts where tensegrity principles can deal with challenges of packing and unpacking structures, e.g. telecommunications (structures to be installed on inaccessible environments); for civil engineering and infrastructures (deployable domes, roofs, bridges) and even for artistic purposes. The challenge is to identify one of the terrestrial applications where these deployable mechanisms can meet the problem requirements. Design a realizable structure, which is easy to use and stable under the relevant environmental conditions of the application. Think how this technology stands out from existing solutions, who are your key customers and what are the key resources you need to bring it to the market? What will be your revenue streams and your costs?

• Save endangered wildlife and habitats in southern Africa

  "Innovative broadband connectivity solutions (Low Orbit satellite, …).
  High throughput, wide area networks (Software defined GSM networks (edge, ...) where outdated spectrum can be licensed."

  Force multiplying technology, that is combining several technologies to reach wider goals, is needed in conservation areas experiencing wildlife crime (and losses of endangered wildlife). Because these areas are rural and remote, then there are important challenges to connectivity - a major barrier to technology deployment.

---

10. Energy

Event name

Build-A-Thon Energy

Macro topic

Build-A-Thon Energy was a hackathon for BUILDERS, welcoming all skills to build things you can see, touch and feel - electrical and mechanical engineers and product designers.

As every hardware project needs software skills, the event also welcomed software developers, UI/UX designers, and product managers. All crazy ideas were welcome

The global power and energy landscape is in crisis. The cost of energy has been growing rapidly due to the geopolitical situation. But the whole field has been undergoing changes already before - the way energy is produced, stored and used is going through a paradigm shift. The demand for energy will only keep rising with the influx of modern technology. To keep up with the rising demand, producing more energy might seem to be the only way but saving energy is also a key factor.

Organiser

Solaride

Problem statements

• Reducing the number of cars in the campuses

  Intro
  There are currently about 450 cars per 1,000 inhabitants in Tallinn. How to create multifunctional solutions in the Tehnopol campus that would allow the maximum and variable use of the resources of the campus by different users? E.g how to make journeys greener, healthier, safer for children, exciting / educational. etc.

  There are 200 Companies, 5000 people in Tehnopol campus. How to influence them with various campaigns, systems that they can reduce carbon footprint if they use alternative transport methods. So, they know they also save their money. What data is needed for this? What sensors to apply? What boards of traffic announcements to inform drivers? How to praise non-car users? For example, count cyclists?
  
  1) Challenge description and who is affected by it.

  People drive into the campus by cars. We can make a campaign or competition, leave the car home. How do we know they did it and that the campaign/competition worked? When the campaign/competition worked, how much did we save CO2? How much has a person saved their money? How much is their health better now? How can we tell this them personally?

  2) Why is the challenge important at this time?

  This is one of the difficult problems of an unsolved. The problem of every campus is the plethora of cars. With the construction of the new building, the park area will be lost, and the parking area will be added.

  3) How would success look like? What would happen if the challenge were solved?

  People's awareness is growing, their money remains. Maybe they can sell their car now. And we have the fact that it worked.

  4) Possible/existing directions to find solutions.

  One of the software solutions is what works to count vehicles and pedestrians https://fyma.ai. They use existing camera images. Question is, how to move forward from there, how to influence people? How to implement seamless system?

• How to survive the next 3 winters in the current energy situation in private houses, apartment buildings and small industries?

  How to survive the next 3 winters in the current energy situation.

  - Private house
      - main fuse size 3 x 32 A
      - air-water heating with a heat pump
      - added hourly consumption data

  Problems: How to optimally keep the room warm and the electricity in the room? How to ensure energy security in a private house in a situation where the network does not guarantee it?

  - An apartment building
      - Main fuse: 250 A, Voltage and phases: 3 X 380 V
      - heating from district heating
      - added hourly consumption data

  Problems: How to optimally keep the room warm and the electricity in the room? How to ensure energy security in an apartment building in a situation where the network does not guarantee it?

  - Small industry
      - Voltage and phases: 3 X 20 kV, capacity: 2000 kW
      - heating existing gas boiler/oil boiler
      - added hourly consumption data

  Problems: How to optimally keep production running, so that the building is warm and the electricity is in the room? How to ensure energy security in industry in a situation where the network does not guarantee it?

• Build a power management system that provides the cheapest possible power to a household.

  You are given the tools mentioned below and also some credit that you can spend in stores.

  For simulation of a household you are given a graph of the households usual consumption pattern, however during evaluation the consumption pattern is not exactly the same. You are also given the price of electricity for the next day. The evaluation takes place over two days that in this case both last 5 minutes. Inbetween days you are given the power price information about the next day. You have 5 minutes to input the information into your machine without reprogramming the machine. (meaning you must have a way of inputting information into the microcontroller without reprogramming it, the households usual consumption must also be inputted into the controller in the beginning this way). Your battery utilization will be measured and taken into account when calculating your score. Your power draw from the grid will also be measured and the total energy cost will be calculated and taken into account. If you decide to use a solar cell in your design, a lamp emulating the sun will be placed in the view of the solar cell and will be moved during the 5 minutes that a day will take place. At some point it will be turned off to simulate night time.

• Develop a leakage detection sensor which would use leak detection wire incorporated to pipes to detect pipe leakages

  SITUATION 
  In the current energy crisis, the search of possible areas for saving has become imperative. Different solutions have been proposed to mitigate the problem, scaling from constructing zero-energy buildings to reducing indoor temperature during heating period1 . However, as winter is coming, even a wellinsulated house with indoor temperature set to minimum, requires sufficient heating. Companies providing this heat have to keep up-to-date their infrastructure, which includes maintaining and monitoring the hundreds of kilometers of pipes. Some major pipe failures (pipe bursts) can be detected due to the absence of flow and pressure, butsmaller pipe failures (different leakages on the pipe due to corrosion, welding, pipe joints etc.) without significant decrease in flow are harder to detect and therefore may eventually result in very high losses in long term. Oshino OÜ has developed an universal data acquisition module (Daxr) which helps the majority of the central heating companies in Estonia to gather the reporting process of heat energy consumption to common platform. Unfortunately, the device itself is not able to monitor the state of the pipeline, and additional external leakage detector which would help to detect, and if possible, to localize possible pipe leakages would be very beneficial to the heating companies. 

  MISSION 

  The task is to develop a leakage detection sensor which would use leak detection wire incorporated to pipes to detect, and if possible, determine the location of the pipe leakages 

  EXECUTION 

  Minimum requirements for the leak detector should be: 

  • Voltage: 3 to 3.6 V o Communication protocol: if using Daxr, then preferable is I2C

  • Isolated communication and measuring area from connection area (pipe may suffer from additional welding after the device is installed) o Detection of the leakage

  • Power consumption as per IOT devices (whole system can run on battery support)

  • Casing should be at least IP65 
    
    Additional requirements:

  • Localization of a leakage: from ±5m to ±1m 

• How to save energy in Tallinn city public lightning with smart technology?

  In Tallinn we have over 67 000 lighting points of which 30 000 led lights (45%), but only approx 5000 led lights are dimmed down at night. Street lighting electricity cost has raised over two times during this year compared to last year.

  At first, we need to ask ourselves a question- what is a real problem, we are going to solve? As at the moment it is mainly high electricity costs, we need to start with dynamic lighting control system. Today Tallinn city lighting control has a centralised control with central light sensor or astronomical timer. There is no possibility to take additional data into account (turning on and off lighting depending on weather, traffic intensity, road users, electricity price, reduction of light pollution, etc.) Tallinn´s general plan is to change all old luminaires to LED luminaires (hopefully within next 4-5 years) and install lighting point based control.

  Thanks to LEDs and smart technology, public lighting can solve mainly two challenges: Better consumption and reduced light pollution. Reducing electrical costs and light pollution is useful for everyone (and also for nature), but we should not see streetlighting control system only as a means to reducing expenses, but also as a possibility to achieve better light quality (less dazzle, more lighting balance) for humans and species.

  While managing a light intensity, it is important not to reduce citizens safety. This might mean involvement of citizens and testing on site before setting streetlights intensity levels.

  How to decide if and how much to reduce LEDs nominal power or completely turn it off? Regarding smart technologies- first step is to choose what kind of technical solutions to use and second, also important step, is choosing how to use it.

  But not only streetlighting needs smart control system, also city`s decorative and facade lighting needs it. At the moment, we have several lighting objects, where we can use dynamic and colorful solutions, but control system is different in every case and it makes it difficult to manage and also to use it.

  Also in parks and playgrounds smart conditions create intelligence to the control system and lighting could be adapted to variating environment.

  Another question, needs to be thought through is whether to use streetlights for the creation of new services (different sensors, wi-fi, street furniture, alerts etc). For example people counting sensors could help us to build appropriate control programs.We are planning to start streetlighting control system pilot projects alraedy this year and as a result of these pilots ( different systems are used in 5-6 streets) we are able to get technical description for lighting control system procurement. This event can help us to get some good ideas and to add these to our technical description and future functional lighting based control system.

• How to integrate drones into the smart city infrastructure?

  1. Describe the issue that needs to be solved. Who is affected by the issue?

  Tartu Science Park is participating in a project called Flying Forward 2020 (FF2020), funded by the Horizon2020 program, focusing on urban air mobility (UAM) and the spatial ecosystem of the 21st century (https://www.ff2020.eu).

  The buildathon team should focus on finding a service that would be feasible with current/future drone technology, incl. feasibility calculations of currently utilised service vs drone delivery potential. Two potential future application fields the project is focusing on are:

  • last mile delivery with drones (e.g. delivery of postal packages, medicine, food, etc.)

  • autonomous monitoring and predictive interventions of critical infrastructures in the city environment (e.g. rooftop surface temperature analysis, pipelines, power lines, bridges, masts, solar power stations, etc.)

  Drones are the future of Urban Air Mobility, especially in large cities. Therefore, smaller regions can be essential as a test bed for future applications. Tartu is working on building a living lab environment for testing drone services in the small city environment. Thus there will be infrastructure available soon for further developing the ideas in the living lab setting.

  1. Why now? Describe the importance of the challenge.

  Being first on the market means a lot of risks, not only to the startup team but also to the broader community. Thus, carefully considering possible aspects (research) and testing in smaller areas (validation) is needed to minimise risk and increase potential future success.

  1. What would success look like? What would happen if the challenge were solved?*

  Launching a startup will be the logical next step if the team finds a service with future potential. Tartu Science Park can offer further support after the hackathon to realise this in the business domain.

  1. Are there any possible/existing directions to find solutions?

  In addition to FF2020, several pan-European projects are parallelly focusing on UAM potential (e.g. https://aurora-uam.eu and https://airmour.eu). Thus there is a growing amount of materials available. Additionally, many drone service-related startups are already on the market (use Google search!).

  1. Share any other links to resources, background information, images and/or list of materials that will be available at the hackathon.

  https://www.ff2020.eu/project-activities/deliverables

  https://airmour.eu/deliverables

  https://aurora-uam.eu/resources-downloads

  1. How could you (possibly) support the team after the hackathon? Add a disclaimer about the ownership of the solution (if applicable).

  As Tartu Science Park is also running different incubation programs, the strongest hackathon teams will receive follow-up mentoring support and free training focusing on startup creation, investor relations and business development.

• How to improve the efficiency of traditional fireplaces using retrofit devices?

  Needs and affected segment:

  Traditional wood burning fireplaces have a typical efficiency of 10%

  Almost 90% of the heat generated during the burning of the wood is lost through the chimney by way of exhaust gases

  Additionally, the draft caused by the escaping flue gases brings in colder outdoor air, thereby reducing the household temperature

  Modern fireplaces can have efficiencies up to 75%, this is achieved by employing regulated airflow and ventilation.

  However, a significant number of people in Estonia still use traditional fireplaces as modern fireplaces can be prohibitively expensive to procure and install.

  Why now?:

  • With an increased uncertainty in energy supply chain and associated costs of energy, efficient domestic heating is the need of the hour.

  • More efficient domestic heating will help alleviate stress on the environment with reduced requirement of wood and alleviation of anthropomorphic climate change

  Possible solutions/directions:

  Modifications to traditional fireplaces are not common but inspiration can be taken from modern, high-efficiency wood and pallet-burning furnaces.

  Specifically, harnessing heat during initial wood burning, pre-heating incoming outdoor/cold air and increasing convective heat portion of heat transfer.

  List of Materials available:

  • Heat Sinks

  • Heat-gun for simulating exhaust gases

  • Firebricks

  • Polycarbonate sheets

  • Aluminum/Steel sheets/tubes

  • Pyrolytic graphite sheet

  • DC Fan (100x100mm)

  • Thermocouples

  • DC controller

  • Thermal adhesive

  • Thermal insulation (glass fiber/mineral wool)

  • Additional consumables and screws etc

• How to make autonomous vehicle charging wireless and automatic?

  1. Describe the issue that needs to be solved. Can you relate the challenge to a pain that is felt by many? Who is affected by the issue?

  Today there is no solution to charge electric vehicles automatically. While today the problem is managed by the EV owners by hassling with the wire. The real problem hits when we start talking about autonomous vehicles and we don't have the users around to plug the vehicle to the wall. This is one of the cornerstone problems to solve so autonomous vehicle can move into wider use and help to improve everyone's day to day life.

  2.  Why now? Describe the importance of the challenge.

  We are getting more and more autonomous vehicles around with no real charging solution. This problem needs to be solved now so we can build the infrastructure that supports the wider use of autonomous vehicles.

  3*) What would success look like? What would happen if the challenge is solved?*

  There's still many obstacles for autonomous vehicle to reach wide use, but solving the autonomous charging issue is bringing us one step closer for reaching wider use of autonomous vehicles.

  4. Are there any possible/existing directions to find solutions.

  There are different automated charging concept out there, but looks like nobody have found a robust and well working solution.

  5. Share any other resources, background information.

  We can share some basic hardware and electronics to support up the build.

• How to utilize excess heat that comes from steel hardening?

  1) Describe the issue that needs to be solved. Can you relate the challenge to a pain that is felt by many? Who is affected by the issue?

  Steel hardening is a process that requires a lot of energy (heat). Large portion of used energy is excess heat and is usually vented to outside air.

  At the moment there is no good method to utilize this excess heat. The same issue is faced by factories who do for example thermal treatment of wood, powdercoating, surface coatings, forging.

  2) Why now? Describe the importance of the challenge.*

  With the price of natural gas rising, it is more important than before to maximize the energy we are getting from burning gas.

  3) What would success look like? What would happen if the challenge is solved?**

  Excess heat is no longer vented outside. Value is created from the waste heat

  4) Are there any possible/existing directions to find solutions.*

  Using the excess heat to heat the offices – not practical in the summertime

  5) Share any other resources, background information.*

  The hot air from furnaces has high concentration of salts and therefore it is highly corrosive. The air must be thoroughly filtered before releasing it into atmosphere or sent to heat exchangers.

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11. Blockchain

Event name

Blockchain Hackathon

Macro topic

The hackathon aimed to build the future of Web 3.0 and discover which applications potentiate the use of blockchain technologies.

From decentralized finance to NFT, from DAO to decentralized applications, the hackathon aimed to explore how blockchain at the interplay of artificial intelligence will revolutionize fields such as industry, finance, and even the services and cities of the future.

Organiser

Bwcon

Problem statements

• Smart Cities

  Renewable Energy Distribution and Management for Sustainable Municipalities 

  Problem Description:  

  Municipalities currently rely heavily on non-renewable energy sources to power their infrastructure, resulting in increased CO2 emissions and contributing to climate change. Despite the presence of locally produced renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, and hydro energy, they are not effectively harnessed and utilized, leading to missed opportunities for sustainability. The challenge is to develop an innovative solution that can manage and distribute these renewable energy sources effectively to reduce dependence on non-renewable sources and lower CO2 emissions in municipalities. This can lead to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly approach to energy management and distribution in municipalities. 

  The challenges that need to be addressed in this context are: 

   — to identify the location, or the range of actors involved, so that the generation of electricity from renewable sources corresponds to the consumption in place and time 

   — to design a system to measure and account for the electricity generated and consumed. 

  Objective:  

  Develop an innovative solution that effectively manages and distributes locally produced renewable energy sources in municipalities to reduce dependence on non-renewable sources and lower CO2 emissions. The solution should be scalable, cost-effective, and able to generate revenue for the municipality, while also providing real-time monitoring and control capabilities for energy production and consumption. 

• Predictive Maintenance

  Challenge:  

  Developing a blockchain-based predictive maintenance system for industrial equipment 

  Problem statement:  

  Industries face significant losses due to unscheduled downtimes of their equipment. Predictive maintenance techniques have been developed to mitigate such losses by predicting equipment failures before they occur. However, these techniques require accurate data to provide reliable predictions. The data is typically generated by sensors and other monitoring systems installed on the equipment. The data collected is usually stored in a centralized database, which raises concerns about data security and privacy. Moreover, different stakeholders such as equipment manufacturers, equipment operators, maintenance service providers, and insurers need to access this data. Ensuring data integrity, security, and privacy, while enabling multiple stakeholders to access it, is a significant challenge. 

  Objective:  

  Develop a blockchain-based predictive maintenance system that enables secure and privacy-preserving sharing of equipment data between stakeholders to improve the accuracy of predictions. 

• Sustainability reporting in supply chain

  Transparent and Accurate Sustainability Reporting in Supply Chains  

  Problem Description:  

  Supply chains are complex networks of companies and organizations that work together to create and deliver goods and services. Ensuring that these supply chains operate sustainably is becoming increasingly important for businesses, consumers, and regulators. However, reporting on sustainability in supply chains is challenging due to a lack of transparency, accuracy, standardization, and credibility. This can lead to negative impacts on the environment, society, and the economy, as well as reputational and compliance risks for companies. 

  Blockchain technology has the potential to address these challenges by providing a secure, transparent, and immutable platform for collecting, verifying, and sharing sustainability data across the entire supply chain. By using blockchain, stakeholders in the supply chain can share data in real-time, without the need for intermediaries, while ensuring the privacy and protection of sensitive information.  

  Objective:  

  Develop a blockchain-based solution that enables transparent, accurate, and standardized sustainability reporting in supply chains, addressing the challenges of visibility, data accuracy and completeness, standardization, and credibility. The solution should leverage blockchain technology to provide a secure and immutable platform for collecting, verifying, and sharing sustainability data across t

• NFTs in further education

  Enable and improve the use of digital certificates and credentials in the educational landscape 

  Problem Description:  

  The current education landscape lacks a secure and tamper-proof system for verifying and recognizing learners' achievements. Traditional academic certificates and credentials are often difficult to verify and are not always recognized by employers. Furthermore, the current system does not enable learners to showcase their practical skills and experience, which are increasingly sought after by employers. Therefore, there is a need for a secure and decentralized system that can recognize learners' achievements and provide verifiable credentials that are recognized by educational institutions and employers alike. 

  Objective:  

  Develop a user-friendly blockchain solution that leverages the benefits of NFTs to enable and improve the use of digital certificates and credentials in the educational landscape.  

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12. DeFi

Event name

MXNB Hackathon

Macro topic

This four-week global online challenge empowers builders to reimagine the future of finance by creating and launching real-world payment and DeFi apps powered by MXNB, the leading Mexican peso stablecoin, and Bitso’s Business API suite.

Organiser

Bitso

Problem statements

• Payments

  Across Mexico and Latin America, payment systems remain fragmented, expensive, and slow, especially for cross-border transactions, remittances, and everyday digital payments. Individuals, creators, freelancers, and businesses often face high fees, delayed settlements, and currency instability that limit financial inclusion and economic participation. The emergence of MXNB, the first Mexican peso stablecoin on Arbitrum, creates a unique opportunity to rethink how payments work in a decentralized world. By leveraging stable, low-cost blockchain infrastructure and modern payment rails, builders can design seamless, real-world payment experiences that enable instant settlement, local value preservation, and scalable financial flows, unlocking more accessible, efficient, and inclusive payments for the next billion users.

• DeFi

  Despite the rapid growth of decentralized finance, most DeFi products remain denominated in volatile or foreign currencies, limiting their accessibility and relevance for users in Mexico and across Latin America. This disconnect creates barriers to adoption, financial planning, and real-world utility, particularly for individuals and organizations that operate primarily in local currencies. MXNB introduces the stability of the Mexican peso into the open DeFi ecosystem, unlocking new possibilities for transparent, accessible, and locally meaningful financial infrastructure. By building peso-denominated DeFi primitives and platforms, ranging from lending and savings to insurance, payroll, and real-world asset protocols, builders can bridge traditional finance and decentralized systems, enabling more inclusive, trustworthy, and practical financial services designed for everyday use, one peso at a time.

• Open build on Arbitrum

  While blockchain innovation continues to accelerate, many promising onchain ideas are constrained by high transaction costs, limited scalability, or rigid thematic boundaries. Builders exploring new primitives, tools, and experiences often need flexible, performant infrastructure that allows experimentation without friction. Arbitrum’s scalable, secure, and low-fee environment removes these barriers, enabling developers to freely explore a wide range of use cases, from infrastructure and developer tools to DAOs, NFTs, games, and experimental applications. This open track invites builders to push the boundaries of what’s possible onchain, fostering creativity and innovation beyond predefined use cases and empowering the next generation of decentralized applications.

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Conclusion

Defining the problem statements for your hackathon can be a complex task.

As they say: “trash in, trash out”: if you provide a vague problem statement description there’s a high chance you will receive hackathon ideas and solutions that will not be aligned with your hackathon purpose.

The problem statement description must not be too long to avoid discouraging the idea proposals, but also can’t be too short, preventing the participants from receiving key information to work on.

We can help you write your hackathon problem statements, providing the perfect description, deriving from our past hackathon experience.

Get in touch today to talk about it.