Design Challenges 2022 - End of Year Round up
The element14 Community supports innovators and engineers in creating inventions that can make a real impact on the way people live their lives.
Design Challenges are competitions where selected Members are given product kits to create innovative solutions for some of society's biggest problems. Click on the links below to learn more about each Design Challenge.
End of 2022 Wrap up
With 8 Design challenges either opening, closing or in the wonderful build and blog period, 2022 has been an amazing year for Design Challenges.
I want to thank all of the Winners, Finishers, Challengers and most of all, the hundreds and hundreds of applicants, we literally could not do it without you.
Our Categories
Every year we like to select our favorite blogs and winners of the year to lift them up as the team behind these competitions and show the world what we think of their work, as well as giving them the ultimate design challenge bragging rights.
This year we are celebrating three categories that have been decided by the community staff.
Design Challenge Best Project
This is staff's favorite project, the idea, the build. This might not be a winner of a challenge, but its the one that stood out to us the most.
Design Challenge Best Blog Post
This is our favorite post of the year, we feel this post is well written and a great example of what a Design Challenge blog post should be.
Best Design Challenge
This is our favorite Design Challenge to run, this one is a bit of a pat on our own back but its always the challengers that make the challenge fun!
What Design Challenges did you take part in, in 2022?
Now a look back at all of the of our fun and challenging Design Challenges from 2022, you can click on them to read some of the amazing blogs.
Save the Bees
Challengers must use the Arduino Pro Nicla Vision board + MKR1310 to combat the issues plaguing the global bee population.
This Challenge is now live!
At the Core Collaborated with Infineon
Challengers must demonstrate the use of the M0 and M4 cores on the PSoC
62S4 with ModTools Platform in their project.
Winner: To be Announced Shortly!
Summer of Sensors Challenge Collaborated with Maxim Integrated, Renesas, STMicroelectronics, Vishay
Challengers must use the various kits: In the Air Tonight Theme: ZMOD4510-EVK, TAG You’re it Theme: STEVAL-SMARTTAG1,Exploration Station Theme: SensorXplorer, and Healing Touch Theme: MikroE Bio Sensors with Arduino Uno to build a sensor specific project corresponding to its theme.
Winner: rahulkhanna's Smart Container Tracking enabled GPS Fleet Tracking, Online Thing Speak IoT web dashboard, NMEA Messaging, GPS RTK Receiver and GUI.
Misaz's VEML3328 Colour Sensors is an IoT connected air quality sensor that explored low power modes, MQTT, and JSON while using the WiFi Dongle.
osjef's IntelliLight - Adaptive Smart Bulb Controller monitors ambient light to help save eye strain and power.
milosrasic98's Elderly Health Monitoring System measures one's health through a finger reading. It logs the data and uploads to a smart device.
Twist, Turn, and Move Robotics Collaborated with TE Connectivity
Challengers must use the TE Connectors, an Arduino Uno, and Robotics Shields to build and design a mobile robot or arm that performs a specific task.
Winner: amgalbu's Rullit is a wonderful PV cell panel cleaning robot with a fun and economic method of locomotion.
Pi-Fest Collaborated with Raspberry Pi
Challengers must use the Raspberry Pi Pico and your chosen accessories in a musical or audio project. You could be center stage on our Pi-Fest livestream and on the Tour Poster.
Winner: dougw's It Came From The Synth is an electronics audio system based on the Raspberry Pi Pico that plays a medley of mystery tunes.
N-gaged Remote Monitoring Sponsored by Omega
Challengers must use Omega’s Wireless Layer N EcoSystem to create an IoT solution featuring remote monitoring, predictive maintenance, environmental management, and more.
Winner: scottiebabe's Maple Tree Telemetry successfully monitored maple trees and its environmental changes for sap collection purposes.
Just Encase Sponsored by Hammond Manufacturing
Challengers must build projects with the enclosures kit for a hazardous environment, such as extreme cold and heat or exposure to water and humidity.
Winner: milorasic98's Orb-Weaver Rover displays the best use of encasing in a project build while capturing data in a fun and fully functioning rover.
Summer of FPGA Sponsored by Digilent
Challengers put their skills to the test and built a dream application with Digilent's Cmod S7 Board.
Winner: pandoramc's Hack CPUMOD S7 is an excellent example of how to rebuild a working CPU inside an FPGA.
2022 End of Year Wrap Up Winners:
Design Challenge Best Project
This is staff's favorite project, the idea, the build. This might not be a winner of a challenge, but its the one that stood out to us the most.
This choice might not have been the most in depth project we have seen this year but the concept made all the staff laugh and smile and when we found out it was a working prototype... it had won our hearts!
I think for the first time in a few years, here is our Project of the year, that didn't win a winners prize.
Of course it has to be christophesky with their Robotic Canary air monitor, when the air turns bad, the Canary keels over!!
Read about it here... and don't get too attached to the bird!
Blog Four– In the Air Tonight, The Build 
Design Challenge Best Blog Post
This is our favorite individual post of the year, we feel this post is well written and a great example of what a Design Challenge blog post should be.
Orb-Weaver Rover by milosrasic98
This final round up features great writing, CAD Models, Video, Code, Links to other blogs and a great explination, even a custom logo for the project!
milosrasic98 really has grown as a writer and Challenger, entering multiple challenges over the past few years and excelling in all of them. This is my personal thank you for your effort on your blog posts, they really stand out!
Read it here:
Orb-Weaver Rover - Blog #5 - Rover Electronics & First Moves!!!
Best Design Challenge
This is our favorite Design Challenge to run, this one is a bit of a pat on our own back but its always the challengers that make the challenge fun!
This was a strange one, we normally do challenges with cutting edge SBCs, or crowd favorites such as Raspberry Pi or Adruino but this year, our favorite challenge was based around Enclosures.
Just Encase Design Challenge is our challenge of the year, you challengers exceeded by expectations for the amazing projects you built and the torture tests you put your kit through!
The Winners of Just Encase Design Challenge
Grand Prize Winner
milosrasic98 - OrbWeaver Rover
See Blog Post
Runner Up Winner of Just Encase Design Challenge
christopherskala—Garden Pond Monitor
That wraps up our thoughts of 2022, to those who we have mentioned, you have full permission to brag to everyone you know, and all other readers should check out the blogs listed in each section for some great reads!
Thank you to everyone who applied for a challenge and congratulations to all the winners for all of 2022!
Happy New Year
Much Love from your head of Design Challenges
e14Phil
