It’s 3011 and the world is back to square one. It’s been quite some time since the wipe out of our civilization and with that has departed any form of knowledge whatsoever. Science is on a rise and the new breed of human beings is far from re-discovering the present day conventional sources of energy. The only solution to their energy crisis is that of using stored potential energy. Put yourself in their shoes and create a machine working solely using stored mechanical energy.

Task

Teams must build a machine that works purely on the principle of stored mechanical potential energy. The system should be able to contain the maximum number of table tennis balls, take it to a given area, drop them in the specified zone and then come back to the start zone.

Cash prizes worth INR 24,000 to be won.

Download the Problem Statement.

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Last date for registration is extended to 31st December,2011

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1. Arena consists of three zones:
   • The start zone
   • The central zone
   • The drop zone
2. The start zone is separated from the central zone by a line called as starting line.
3. Dimensions of the start zone will be 300 mm x 300 mm.
4. The central zone has a length of 1500 mm and is a normal plywood track.
5. The area behind the drop line (shown in the figure) is the drop zone. It has a length of 300 mm.
6. The width of the arena will be 940 mm.
7. The drop zone will be of dimensions 340 mm x 940 mm and will have a uniform slope of angle 10 degrees.

Central Zone

1. The zone would consist of lines parallel to the length of 1500mm equidistant from each other as shown in figure 1.
2. All the lines in the arena thickness of the lines would be 10 mm.
3. The lines would be at a distance of 150 mm from each other.
4. The lines would represent the zones in which the machine starts to drop the balls.

Please note: From here on,

• the machine will be referred to the mechanical mechanism which is used to transport or contain the balls and,
• the system will be referred to the machine along with the balls.

Figure 1: Arena Top view	Figure 2: 3D arena
Figure 3: 3D arena with dimensions marked	Figure 4: Top view with dimensions marked
Figure 5: Zones marked

1. Before the start of the run, the system should fit in a box of dimensions 250 mm x 250 mm x 500 mm.
2. The balls will be standard plastic balls of diameter 40mm and weight 6 gm.
3. The system should be triggered by a single action (pushing a button, cutting a string, etc.).
4. Touching the system during the run is not allowed.
5. The system should work using only stored potential energy. Use of batteries or any other source of electrical or chemical energy is not allowed.
6. No part of the machine should separate out during the run.

1. Each participating team will be given two runs.
2. At the start of the run, teams would be given a maximum of 2 minutes to setup their bot on the arena and also insert the balls in to their machine. After these 2 minutes, the runtime will start.
3. During every run, the team must place its system on the start zone.
4. The team will be given a maximum of 3 minutes to complete the task.
5. The timer starts as soon as the team triggers the system.
6. Triggering must be activated by a single action (cutting a string, pressing a button, turning of a clock mechanism, etc.)
7. Use of readymade gear boxes is not allowed.
8. All the parts of the system must travel a minimum distance of 1000 mm on ground in the central zone before attempting to deposit the balls i.e. the all the parts of the machine should be at a distance- 1000-1500mm before attempting to drop the balls. This rule is to be strictly followed. Violation of this rule would make the score of the particular run null and void.
9. The lines on the central zone would be used to judge the accuracy of the machine. Point would be awarded according to the zone in which the machine starts to unload the balls.
10. More points would be awarded if the machine releases the balls near the central line. (Please refer to the scoring system for exact distribution of points.)
11. The balls which are being placed in or on the machine should be spherical and should not be distorted.
12. Only the balls in the drop zone at the end of the run will be counted as the number of balls deposited.
13. The timer will stop only after the last part of the machine crosses the finish line.

General Rules

1. The teams must adhere to the spirit of healthy competition.
2. Any team that is not ready at the time specified will be disqualified from the competition automatically.
3. The organizers reserve all rights to change any of the above rules as they deem fit.
4. Change in rules, if any will be highlighted on the website.
5. In case of any discrepancy decision of the judges shall be treated as final and binding on all.

Scoring

1. The task is considered to be finished when the complete system excluding the balls (machine) comes back to the starting line.
2. A maximum time of 3 minutes will be given to complete the task.
3. The timer will stop as soon as the task is finished i.e. the last part of the machine crosses the finish line.
4. The team’s score will be equal to:
   Score = a
   a=Number of balls in the drop zone at the end of the run
   In case of a tie, the score would be calculated in the following way,
   Score= (180-T) + b
   where,
   T= the total time taken to complete the task in seconds
   b= 50, if the machine starts to launch the balls in the red zone
   30, if the machine starts to launch the balls in the red zone and yellow zone
   30, if the machine starts to launch the balls in the yellow zone
   10, if the machine starts to launch the balls in the yellow zone and green zone
   10, if the machine starts to launch the balls in the green zone
   (Please refer to figure 2 for knowing more about the red, green and yellow zones.)
   

Eligibility

All students with a valid identity card of their respective educational institutes are eligible to participate.

Team Specification

A maximum of three members are allowed in a team. Students from different educational institutes are allowed to make a team.

Certificate Policy

1. The top three teams will be awarded the certificate of excellence.
2. All the teams who complete the task and deposit 3 balls would be given certificate of participation

1. Video on weight powered car
2. Video on basic design of potential energy car

The following teams have been provided with the accommodation on the basis of the abstract that has been submitted. Please note that even if you are not provided with the accommodation, you are still eligible to participate in the competition. Further additions will be made to the list.

1. 1748
2. 1820
3. 1820
4. 1777
5. 1792
6. 1769
7. 1796
8. 1771
9. 1797
10. 1143
11. 1691
12. 1727
13. 1793
14. 1737
15. 1821
16. 1815
17. 1816
18. 1813
19. 1787
20. 1784