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PROPOSAL GUIDELINES

NASA Spacesuit User Interface Technologies for Students 

September 6, 2022

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Houston, TX 77058
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Team Name 

Optional Team Logo 

Academic Institution Name

Address 

Team Contact

Student Name 

Email Address 

Phone Number 

Team Members

(Please list ALL team members) 

Team Member Name --- Role 

Email Address --- Academic Year / Academic Major 

Team Member Name --- Role 

Email Address --- Academic Year / Academic Major 

Team Member Name --- Role 

Email Address --- Academic Year / Academic Major 

Team Member Name --- Role 

Email Address --- Academic Year / Academic Major 

Team Member Name --- Role 

Email Address --- Academic Year / Academic Major 

Faculty Advisor

Name 

Email Address 

Phone Number 

Faculty Advisor Signature Date 
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Table of Contents

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 4

2. Eligibility..................................................................................................................................... 4

3. Letter of Intent.......................................................................................................................... 5

4. Proposal Requirements .......................................................................................................... 5

5. Technical Section .................................................................................................................... 6

a. Abstract ................................................................................................................................. 6

b. Software and Hardware Design Description ................................................................... 6

c. Concept of Operations (CONOPS)................................................................................... 6

d. Human-in-the-loop (HITL) testing ..................................................................................... 7

e. Project Management........................................................................................................... 7

f. Technical References .......................................................................................................... 7

6. Outreach Section..................................................................................................................... 7

7. Administrative Section ............................................................................................................ 9

a. Institutional Letter of Endorsement................................................................................... 9

b. Statement of Supervising Faculty ..................................................................................... 9

c. Statement of Rights of Use ................................................................................................ 9

d. Funding and Budget Statement ...................................................................................... 10

e. Hololens2 Loan Program.................................................................................................. 11

f. Proposal Scoring Method.................................................................................................. 11

(Note: The Technical Section is limited to 10 pages. Include enough pictures within 

those 10 pages to describe your tool. If you want to submit many pictures, use an 

Appendix. Other sections and appendices will not count against your 10-page limit.)
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1. Introduction 

The Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program and the Office of 

STEM Engagement at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston are proud to host 

another year of the NASA Spacesuit User Interface Technologies for Students (NASA 

SUITS) Design Challenge. We will conduct in-person device testing onsite at Johnson 

from May 18-23, 2023. 

This document serves as a resource and reference to help all potential NASA SUITS 

participants with the requirements to enter and succeed. Included are important steps to 

the challenge and required components of an official proposal. Please also review the 

eligibility requirements for NASA SUITS at our website https://go.nasa.gov/nasasuits. 

2. Eligibility

Each prospective onsite team member must be enrolled as an undergraduate or 

graduate student or faculty member at an accredited U.S. institution of higher learning 

(community college, military academy, technical college, or university) at the time the 

proposal is submitted.

• Team members must be 18 or older before arrival in Houston.

• To attend onsite testing activities, participants must be U.S. citizens or legal 

permanent residents.

• All participants must attend the Orientation and Virtual Design Review.

• Primary team members may only participate with one team in the same 

competition.

• Experiments must be organized, designed, and operated by student team 

members.

• Each team must be accompanied by an adult age 21 or older to serving as the 

faculty advisor.

• Enrollment verification may be requested for team members.

• NASA interns involved in the design of a NASA SUITS challenge may not 

participate as a member of a team in that same cycle of the NASA SUITS 

challenge; however, they may serve as a team advisor.
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• Support team members may be comprised of university students of any level, 

faculty members, professional consultants, etc.

• If COVID-19 protocols are implemented at Johnson all participants must comply 

with those protocols to participate. 

3. Letter of Intent 

Submit a letter of intent by September 29, 2022, indicating the team’s intention to 

submit a written proposal. The optional letter of intent should follow the format below 

and be written in the body of an email. Send the email directly to NASASUITS@mail.nasa.gov. 

• Provide team contact information – this should be a student team member 

a. Sample: Doe, John (DoeJ@institution.edu) Sophomore / Software Engr 

• Provide the academic institution (community college, military academy, technical 

college, or university) your team represents. Your team should designate a lead

institution even if members come from multiple institutions. 

• State: “NASA SUITS Challenge Letter of Intent” in the subject line and body.

4. Proposal Requirements

• Each team must submit one electronic copy of an original proposal on the NASA 

SUITS engagement opening on the NASA STEM Gateway by November 1, 

2022.

• Each proposal must be submitted in a three-section format containing the 

required sections in the following order: Technical, Outreach Plan, and 

Administrative.

• Sections or components shall not be skipped/omitted under any circumstance.

• The Technical section shall not exceed 10 pages.

• The report body must use 12-point font.

• All information on the title page must be complete.

• Figures and tables must be labeled and referenced within the text.
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5. Technical Section 

The technical section must cover the design the team is proposing. This section must

include any information that a technical reviewer will find informative or instructive in 

understanding the aims and goals of the design. Evaluators ranking the proposal for its 

scientific merit will read only this section, so teams should address all relevant factors 

as listed below. 

a. Abstract 

The abstract is a brief (up to 300 words) summary that touches upon the elements of 

the proposed prototype design and how they relate to the requirements and 

extravehicular activity (EVA) scenario in the Mission Description. Include any planned 

testing of the design and any proposed hardware or peripheral devices your team would 

bring to onsite testing.

b. Software and Hardware Design Description 

Include a detailed description of the proposed AR application and how you plan to 

tackle each aspect of the design challenge keeping in mind the context of the EVA 

scenario as stated in the Mission Description. Write in such a way a practicing engineer 

or scientist can understand the design of the user interface (UI). Present goals along 

with a description of the expected key components of the product (e.g., system 

architecture plan, hardware concepts, network diagrams etc.). Show conceptual UI 

design ideas (portrayed via wire frames, visuals, etc.) for navigation, telemetry, rover 

controls, geology, and EVA task instructions. Also show any peripheral device mockups (e.g., external control methods, lighting methods etc.) to help the technical 

reviewers understand the full scope of the proposed product. Be sure to highlight any 

unique solutions to the listed requirements your team is considering.

c. Concept of Operations (CONOPS) 

Describe the overall high-level concept of how the UI will meet the expectations and 

requirements. Describe the system from an operational perspective (the viewpoint of 

the astronaut) to help facilitate an understanding of the system goals. Address how the 

application will assist the design evaluator (or astronaut) in each of the aspects of the 

EVA scenario during testing. A flow chart of how your design operates throughout the
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mission may be a useful visual depiction. See the Mission Description document for 

more details on this section.

d. Human-in-the-loop (HITL) testing 

Discuss any pilot, user experience, human-in-the-loop, or human factors studies 

planned. A written HITL test plan should include a testing schedule (including dates and 

times of planned testing), test protocol, possible metrics/measures, feasible subject 

pools, expected population/demographics of test subjects, and all planned safety 

measures to be used while conducting HITL tests. Include how the HITL test will inform

your team’s development plan as they prepare for the analog EVA scenario, for 

example, planning for night/low-lighting testing, outdoor testing, and network/telemetry 

connection testing. A good HITL test plan will build towards a full test of the EVA 

scenario stated in the Mission Description before test week to identify any challenges 

ahead of the final test on-site.

e. Project Management

Provide an outline of the team’s development plans with any internal key milestones. 

Use a Gantt or similar chart. If following an Agile software development plan, outline 

your scrum schedule with a proposed feature development and testing plan. Describe 

how progress will be tracked to ensure that the requirements of the EVA scenario in the 

Mission Description are met ahead of test week. Teams are strongly encouraged to 

plan time throughout their development period to test their devices in conditions close to 

that of the described EVA scenario before traveling to Johnson for test week. 

f. Technical References 

Cite referenced works in text and in a “References” section using formatting appropriate 

in a technical paper. 

6. Outreach Section 

The outreach section of the proposal includes the team's plan for disseminating the 

results of their experiment/experience to the public. Information contained in this section 

should focus on the outreach activities the team intends to implement and the target 
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audience to address. The outreach plans must be original to the team. Do not post 

original proposal documents on any social media platforms or channels.

A plan is an organized way to achieve a specific objective. Random activities, even 

good random activities, do not constitute a plan. An outreach plan should have two 

major components: 

• The plan – a description of the team’s objectives and goals; what activities are 

planned for the upcoming year; where and when the activities will take place; 

what audience is targeted, etc. 

• The activities – what will the team do when they get there? What materials will 

they refer to? What are the main points that they will make? 

For maximum point value, the plan should include the following: 

• The team’s objectives for each outreach activity. 

• A description of the outreach audience (K-12 class or school groups, 

undergraduate research symposiums, university outreach to local schools, 

informal groups such as Boy/Girl Scouts, after school clubs, church groups).

• Specific plans for activities (strengthened by alignment to state or national 

standards will help a K-12 teacher, use of the 5E Model, or use of age/grade 

appropriate language during the activity). Leading an “Hour of Code” in a 

classroom is the optimal outreach activity.

• Letters or agreements from institutions who accept your invitation to address 

their group. 

• A press and/or social media plan. 

• A connection between curriculum/activity and NASA SUITS, a NASA Mission, 

Informatics and Subsystems team at Johnson, or the team’s code.

One emphasis of the NASA Office of STEM Engagement is a commitment to diversity. 

Therefore, teams will be evaluated for inclusion of students attending minority serving 

institutions (MSI) as participants. These teams can be a sole MSI, or they can be a 

collaboration of institutions.
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7. Administrative Section 

a. Institutional Letter of Endorsement 

This letter must be on the endorsing institution’s letterhead and must come from the 

institution(s) president, dean of college, or department chair. It indicates the team’s 

institution(s) has knowledge of the team’s interest in participating in this activity and 

endorses the team’s involvement. Failing to include a letter of endorsement from the 

institution(s) will result in a rejected proposal. 

b. Statement of Supervising Faculty 

A statement of support from a faculty member indicating a willingness to supervise and 

work with the team during all stages of the activity. There will be no consideration for 

teams working without a faculty advisor. The faculty advisor must also sign off on the 

cover of the proposal as evidence he/she has seen the proposal and approves of the 

submission. The following statement should appear on an institution letterhead and 

include the signature of the faculty advisor: 

As the faculty advisor for an experiment entitled "__________________" 

proposed by a team of higher education students from ____________ institution, 

I concur with the concepts and methods by which the students plan to conduct 

this project. I will ensure the student team members complete all project

requirements and meet deadlines in a timely manner. I understand any default 

by this team concerning any project requirements (including submission of final 

report materials) could adversely affect selection opportunities of future teams 

from their institution. 

If your team is composed of students from more than one institution, submit the above 

from the lead institution. Additionally, supply a letter of support from a faculty member 

of each participating institution acknowledging they are aware of the participation of 

their student(s).

c. Statement of Rights of Use 

These statements grant NASA, acting on behalf of the U.S. Government, rights to use 

the team’s technical data, including computer software, and design concept, in part or 

in entirety, for government purposes. NASA, acting on behalf of the U.S. Government, 

may designate for certain tasks under this engagement that software (including 
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documentation) developed for such certain designated tasks be released as "Open 

Source" (OS) software, as term is defined by the Open Source Definition promulgated 

by the Open Source Initiative on its website (see http://opensource.org/docs/osd). 

These statements are not required. However, teams with a Statement of Rights of Use 

will receive greater consideration in the proposal selection. If choosing to include these 

statements, all team members and faculty advisors must sign. The statements read as 

follows: 

As a team member for a proposal entitled “ ____________” proposed by a team 

of higher education students from ________ institution, I will and hereby do grant 

the U.S. Government a royalty-free, nonexclusive and irrevocable license to use, 

reproduce, distribute (including distribution by transmission) to the public, 

perform publicly, prepare derivative works, and display publicly, any technical 

data contained in this proposal in whole or in part and in any manner for federal 

purposes and to have or permit others to do so for federal purposes only. 

Further, with respect to all computer software designated by NASA to be 

released as open source which is first produced or delivered under this proposal 

and subsequent collaboration, if selected, shall be delivered with unlimited and 

unrestricted rights so as to permit further distribution as open source. For 

purposes of defining the rights in such computer software, “computer software” 

shall include source codes, object codes, executables, ancillary files, and any 

and all documentation related to any computer program or similar set of 

instructions delivered in association with this collaboration. As a team member 

for a proposal entitled “_________” proposed by a team of higher education 

students from _________ institution(s), I will and hereby do grant the U.S. 

Government a nonexclusive, nontransferable, irrevocable, paid-up license to 

practice or have practiced for or on behalf of the United States Government any 

invention described or made part of this proposal throughout the world. 

d. Funding and Budget Statement

This section should include a simple columnar layout showing expected expenditures 

associated with the proposed design such as materials, machining, operating, testing, 

shipping, etc. See Table 1 for an example. It is imperative teams anticipate all costs 
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involved and actively work to seek funding. List potential sources for funding and can 

include institutional grants, state Space Grant funds, corporate sponsors, etc. 

Table 1 NASA SUITS Cost Example

e. Hololens2 Loan Program

NASA SUITS has a limited number of Hololens2 devices we can loan to institutions. 

Please indicate your interest in a loaned device:

A) We do not require a loaned device because we either already have one, or 

plan to acquire one.

B) We need a loaned device from NASA SUITS to participate.

C) We have a device but would still like to be considered for a loan to aide in our 

development.

f. Proposal Scoring Method

A scoring rubric, provided below, with required criteria will evaluate how well a proposal 

addresses each of the following required components: technical merit, outreach plan, 

and adherence to all proposal requirements. 

Teams selected to build designs for NASA SUITS will create a first-person point of view 

video of their UIs in action along with their code, during the software design reviews 

occurring in April 2023. Teams are also required to submit a draft of a white paper 

illustrating the development of their visual informatics display system upon completion 

of the NASA SUITS challenge. 

Items Costs

Flights $4,500.00 

Hotel $2,000.00 

Ground transportation $400.00 

Operating $600.00

Miscellaneous $500.00 

Total $8,000.00 
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PROPOSAL SCORING 

RUBRIC

Lowest Score Highest Score Score Comments

DESIGN DESCRIPTION. 

✓ Describe the goals of the 

design concept and expected 

results

✓ Provide conceptual UI designs 

and innovative display 

interaction methods

✓ Tackle the following 

components of the challenge: 

egress task, navigation, 

RFID/Spectroscopy, ROVER, 

and implementation of the 

telemetry data for each of the 

assets

Total 30 points

0-7 points

The design concept 

description is 

insufficient or lacks 

clarity with respect to 

design goals and/or 

expected results. 

Proposer provides 

little to no evidence 

for an innovative UI 

design or display 

interaction 

method/technology.

At least one 

component of the 

challenge was met 

successfully. 

8-15 point

The proposed design 

concept goals and/or 

the expected results 

of the design are 

vague. Proposer 

provides minimal 

evidence for an 

innovative UI design 

or display interaction 

method/technology.

At least two 

components of the 

challenge were met 

successfully.

16-23 points

The proposed design 

concept goals and/or the 

expected results of the 

design are generally 

described. Proposer 

provides some evidence 

for an innovative UI 

design or display 

interaction 

method/technology.

At least three 

components of the 

challenge were met 

successfully.

24-30 points

The proposed design 

concept goals and results 

are clearly and concisely 

written. Proposer 

demonstrates substantial 

evidence of innovative 

display interaction 

methods/technologies with 

visuals, etc., to support 

their concept.

Most, if not all, components 

of the challenge were met 

successfully.

CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS

✓ Describe the user interface 

from an operational 

perspective (EVA astronaut)

Total 15 points

1-3 points

The proposed 

concept description of 

the user interface is 

unclear and 

insufficient from an 

operational 

perspective.

4-7points

The proposed 

concept description of 

the user interface 

contains few details 

and is difficult to 

comprehend from an 

operational 

perspective.

8-11 points

The proposed concept 

description of the user 

interface provides 

general details and 

provides a minimal or 

basic understanding of 

the concept from an 

operational perspective. 

12-15 points

The proposed concept 

description of the user 

interface is clearly and 

concisely written in full 

detail and effectively 

explains the concept from 

an operational perspective.

FEASIBILITY

✓ Concept demonstrates a 

viable solution to the technical 

need

✓ Plan describes how the 

concept would be produced

Total 10 points

0-1 points

The proposed 

concept lacks 

viability and/or fails 

to meet the technical 

need. No evidence

is provided to 

demonstrate how the 

concept would be 

produced.

2-4 points

The proposed 

concept demonstrates 

low viability and 

minor/insignificant 

contributions to the 

technical need. Little 

evidence is provided 

to demonstrate how 

the concept would be 

produced.

5-7 points

The proposed concept 

demonstrates sufficient 

viability and describes 

some contributions to the 

technical need. Minimal 

evidence is provided to 

demonstrate how the 

concept would be 

produced.

8-10 points

The proposed concept 

demonstrates high 

viability and describes 

significant contributions to 

the technical need. Ample 

evidence is provided to 

clearly demonstrate in 

detail how the concept 

would be produced.
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EFFECTIVENESS OF THE 

PROPOSED PROJECT SCHEDULE

✓ Comprehensive project 

schedule

✓ Effective use of available 

resources

✓ Labor distribution

✓ Documents proposed 

schedule for meeting 

objectives

✓ Detailed plan to achieve each 

objective or task.

Total 5 points

0 points

The proposed project 

schedule does not 

demonstrate effective 

planning. The plan 

includes little to no 

description for 

meeting objectives 

and completing the 

task.

1-2 points

The proposed project 

schedule includes few 

details to demonstrate 

effective planning. 

The plan vaguely 

describes how to 

meet the objectives 

and complete the 

task.

3-4 points

The proposed project 

schedule includes 

minimum details to 

demonstrate effective 

planning. The plan 

minimally describes how 

the task and objectives 

will be met.

5 points

The proposed project 

schedule is highly detailed 

and effective to meet 

objectives. Describes a 

comprehensive plan that 

demonstrates how to meet 

the objectives and 

complete the task.

HUMAN-IN-THE-LOOP (HITL) 

TESTING

✓ Provide a test plan for all HITL 

testing to be conducted by the 

team

✓ Include all the requested 

components for the HITL plan:

o Schedule of proposed test 

events

o test protocol 

o possible metrics/measures

o feasible subject pools

o expected 

population/demographics 

of test subjects

o how test event evaluates 

design’s ability to meet 

challenge descriptions

✓ All HITL tests should be 

conducted safely with the use 

of proper personal protective 

equipment 

Total 10 points

1-2 points

No HITL plan 

provided, or the 

components of the 

plan are insufficient, 

unsafe, or unclear.

3-5 points

The proposed HITL 

plan includes a few of 

the components listed 

and deemed 

necessary to 

implement an 

effective and safe 

HITL test. 

6-7 points

The proposed HITL plan 

includes most but not all 

of the components listed 

and deemed necessary 

to implement an effective 

and safe HITL test.

8-10 points

The proposed HITL plan 

clearly and concisely 

describes each of the 

components listed and 

deemed necessary to 

implement an effective and 

safe HITL test. 

TECHNICAL REFERENCES

✓ Referenced works are cited in 

text and are relevant to the 

proposal

✓ A bibliography is provided.

Total 5 points

0 points

No references are 

included. 

1-2 points

1 reference is cited. 

Not formatted 

correctly. 

3-4 points

At least 1 reference is 

cited. Citation(s) and 

reference entry(ies) 

follow appropriate format.

5 points

2 or more references are 

cited. Citation(s) and 

reference entry(ies) follow 

appropriate format. 

Total Technical Score

75 points maximum
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Note: Check the NASA SUITS website for the most up-to-date activity documents http://go.nasa.gov/nasasuits.

Send questions and responses to NASA-SUITS@MAIL.NASA.GOV

PROPOSAL SCORING 

RUBRIC

Lowest Score Highest Score Score Comments

OUTREACH EVENTS

✓ Diverse list of events and 

activities planned

✓ Includes projected audience 

type and number of 

participants

✓ Detailed implementation plan

✓ Virtual outreach events are 

acceptable 

1-5 points

Only one outreach 

event is planned, or 

proposer provides no 

details of 

implementation plan, 

projected audience, 

and number of 

participants.

6-10 points

Minimum of two

outreach events are 

planned. Proposer 

provides minimal 

details of 

implementation plan, 

projected audience, 

and number of 

participants.

11-15 points

Minimum of three

outreach events are 

planned. Proposer 

provides a sufficiently 

detailed

implementation plan 

including a projected 

audience, and number 

of participants.

16-20 points

Minimum of four

outreach events are 

planned. Proposer 

provides a highly 

descriptive and 

relevant implementation 

plan including a 

projected audience, and 

number of participants.

MINORITY SERVING INSTITUTIONS

Teams containing students from a MSI

will receive special consideration for 

participation in NASA SUITS. If the 

MSI is not the lead institution a letter 

of support from faculty at the MSI 

must be provided.

0 points

The team does not 

include students from 

an MSI.

5 points

The team does contain 

students from an MSI.

Outreach Total Score

25 points maximum