Rules and Regulations

Entry Requirements

The Challenge is open to all secondary schools based in the United Kingdom. Each school may enter one vehicle per category, 1 team into PIC and 1 into Solar. We encourage schools to complete multiple projects and run a competition at the school to determine which folder and vehicle you enter into the main competition.

Your project folder, completed model vehicle and oral presentation must be designed and produced at your school.

All entries must be designed and built by a team of students aged 11 to 16 years old. Each team should consist of a minimum of 3 students and a maximum of 5. Mixed gender teams are encouraged.

Entry into the next stage of the competition will be via the submission of the project folder, deadline – Wednesday 29th February 2012. Your project folder must provide full details of your team i.e. team name, team member names and ages, supporting teacher(s) name(s) and team identity. The seven best project folders in each category will be selected to take part in a Regional Final. Regional finalists will be notified by Monday 12th March 2012.

Teams must have prepared all of the following: a project folder, a completed model vehicle and an oral presentation.

At all stages, judges will be looking for innovation and originality from teams representing schools who entered the challenge in previous years.

The Project Folder

The project folder should be no more than 15 sheets of A4 size paper (30 sides) including the cover. Teams submitting project folders over this length will be penalised. The marking criteria section of this handbook contains a suggested content for the folder. Your folder and oral presentation should include comments upon recyclability or the use of recycled materials/components within the design of your vehicle.

Your project folder must provide full details of your team i.e. team name, team member names and ages, supporting teacher(s) name(s) and team identity. Please fill in the project folder submission form when you submit your project folder, you can find the submission form here.

Only one project folder per category must be submitted by each school. With regret, we are unable to return your project folder.

The Completed Model Vehicle

Your vehicle must comply with the specifications set out in this handbook. Please note, as listed in the specifications, all electrical components must have been supplied by Rapid (www.rapidonline.com).

Teams are permitted to bring one spare vehicle which must be identical in every way to the main vehicle. The spare vehicle must be declared and will be checked by an official to confirm it is an identical vehicle to the main entry.

No major changes may be made to the physical design of the vehicle after competition day registration, although ‘tweaks’ and small adjustments are permitted.

The Oral Presentation

Each team will have 5 minutes to set up for their presentation. Your oral presentation should last a maximum of 5 minutes. Your presentation should explain your approach to the challenge and could comment, for example, on research, design ideas, choice of final design, testing and evaluation, team roles and team identity. Please see the marking criteria section for further details.

Teams wishing to use PowerPoint presentations must bring their presentation both on a CD-Rom or USB memory stick and on a laptop with sound; this equipment must be battery-powered and fully charged as mains points may not be available. Neither Toyota nor Rapid will be held responsible for presentations which, for any reason, do not work on the day. Teams must remember that only 5 minutes are available to set up for the presentation.

Competition Photography

Toyota Manufacturing UK and Rapid Electronics Ltd will be taking photographs during the competition days. This photography may be used in the media, in Toyota Technology Challenge material or in future Toyota/Rapid publicity material. If you have any objections to this, please notify us by Monday 16th April 2012. Schools are responsible for sending an authorisation sheet home to their students' parents asking for permission to allow for competition attendance, photography to be taken and the use of the photography in publicity material.

Intellectual property rights

The intellectual property rights developed or created exclusively for use in the Toyota Technology Challenge (exclusive of the PIC kit, Picaxe product, software and associated instructions) are assigned to Toyota, inclusive but not limited to trademarks, patents, design rights and copy rights.

Travel arrangements

Toyota will in the event of a participating team (i.e. up to 5 students and 1 or 2 supporting teachers dependent upon mixed or single gender team) needing to travel for more than 3.5 hours to attend the National Final competition, pay towards hotel accommodation for one night and will consider flights in lieu of mileage allowance if appropriate.

Timeline