UAE
10th IEEE UAE STUDENT DAY COMPETITIONS
Academic year 2014 – 2015
Engineering Design Project (EDP) Competition
High-Jump Mechanical Gadget
General Information
This project is about designing and building a purely mechanical gadget (device) that can perform
high jumps over a barrier. The main objective is to have a gadget that is capable of jumping as high as
possible while — at the same time — landing within a designated area and in an upright position.
The gadget should be constructed without the use of any electrical component or source of power
and the device should operate indoors.
This competition is intended for freshmen and sophomore students; however, higher-level
undergraduate student can participate too. Participants are expected to be creative in their design
while at the same time conform to the design specifications outlined in this document.
A panel of judges, to be selected by the IEEE UAE Student Day Steering Committee, will fairly evaluate
the competitors on the day of the event. The rules of the competition and the judging criteria are
detailed below.
Design Constraints
1. The weight of the gadget should not exceed 1.5 KG and should not be less than 300 grams.
2. The gadget can have any shape, but it should fit into a cylinder of height 30cm and
diameter 30cm. Note that the restriction on the size limits how big the gadget can be,
but not how small it can be.
3. The gadget as a whole should jump from any place within the designated takeoff area on one
side of the barrier and land on a designated landing-area on the other side of the barrier
without leaving any parts (pieces) behind or elsewhere and without any intervention
from anyone or any other device or gadget, i.e., it should jump and land autonomously
once triggered. Triggering can be achieved either by pressing a button, pulling on a
string, etc.
4. The use of explosives, flames, ignitable gases, materials, etc. is prohibited. All other materials
are allowed.
Competition Rules
1. Each institution can submit a maximum of two gadgets to participate in this competition
2. The barrier used in the competition will be an adjustable one with heights ranging from a
few centimeters to a few meters. Alternatively, several barriers can be used for different
heights
3. For each stage, the gadget will be allowed a maximum of three trials of which the jump with
the best score will be selected and used to compare with the scores of other teams. After
each trial, the operator (a team member) can adjust the gadget if needed in preparation
for the next trial.
UAE
4. The competition will consist of two stages.
A. In the first stage, a minimal height (e.g., 40cm) of barrier will be chosen by the judges.
The teams that successfully pass this stage will be promoted to participate in the
second stage.
B. In the second stage, scores will be based on the height as well as on how perfectly the
gadget lands on the other side of the barrier. A rectangle, of a specific length and
width, will be marked. The scores will be used to decide on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd
place winners.
Judging and Scoring
For the 1st stage, it is enough for the gadget to jump over the barrier and land on the other side regardless of
whether it touches the barrier or lands upside down, etc. Needless to say, the gadget must pass over the
barrier (not under) to receive a score. As long as the gadget jumps over the barrier and lands on the other
side, it becomes eligible to participate in the next stage.
In the 2nd (final) stage, all eligible participants will be judged and scored based on how well the gadget
jumps and arrives on the other side as per the following formula:
Score = 100 *(H / MaxH) - 5*(B + P + M),
Note: A Gadget that does not pass over the barrier receives a score of zero in the particular trial.
H is the height of the barrier in meters (chosen by each team before each of the three trials in the final
stage). The maximum height the gadget can reach under any circumstances should not exceed 5.0 meters
to avoid colliding with the ceiling. MaxH is the maximum height successfully passed among all gadgets.
B = 0 if the gadget does not touch the barrier (otherwise, B = 1), P = 0 if the gadget lands in the original
upright position (otherwise, P = 1), and M is a number indicative of how far away the gadget lands outside
the marked landing area as depicted in Figure 1.
Note:
1.
2.
The gadget has to be pre-marked with the upright position. The gadget can be place anywhere
within the designated takeoff area of 300cm x 100cm.
The zone area labeled M = 0 starts after the end of the barrier. Hence, the 90cm starts where the
barrier ends. The landing area will be covered by some type of a cushion to protect the floor from
damage, which may cause gadgets to flip, bounce, etc., upon landing.
Take-Off Area
M=4
300 cm
M=0
M=1
10 cm
M=2
90 cm
90 cm
Figure 1
M=4
90 cm
M=4