Apply: ‘Welcome To Nigeria Challenge’ by TechCircle & Hardware Things

Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) is the country’s busiest international airport, with approximately 3 million international passengers passing through each year. When arriving passengers arrive at the airport, they must pass through the doors depicted above in order to proceed to immigration. A lone sign above it reads “Welcome to Nigeria.”

Airports, particularly international ones, serve as entry points into countries, and for Nigerians – who have a large diaspora – airports such as MMIA should signal that we have returned home. With over 300 languages, a single signboard in English simply does not suffice.

About the Challenge

Create a physical interface that says “Welcome” in all Nigerian languages. As it would be displayed in Nigerian international airports or other locations, the interface should be clearly visible from a distance and may include other signals (such as audio, etc.). The product should also be capable of being updated with new languages.

The challenge will be divided into three stages: application, design, and development, each with its own set of deliverables. At the end of the challenge, the physical interface will be built and the design will be made open source for future community improvements.

Application Process

Stage One: Application (February 1 to March 1, 2021)

Participants who are interested will fill out a brief application form. Applicants may apply either individually or in groups; only one application is required. Only Nigerians, whether in or out of the country, are eligible to apply.

Applicants would be expected to include a description of their previous work and experience as part of their application by submitting documents that demonstrate those skills.

Stage Two: Design (March 21 to April 29, 2022)

Up to ten applicants will be chosen to participate in the design stage, and they will be divided into up to three teams. At least one mechanical designer and one electronic engineer will be present in each group. Each team will be expected to submit a full mechanical and electronic design for the physical interface, a Bill of Materials, and a small-scale prototype demo to the jury by the end of this stage.

The participants will be expected to meet frequently and to devote 5-10 hours per week to working on this challenge. Each team will be assigned a channel on the Hardware Things Discord server for team communication and will meet with the challenge admin once a week.

At the end of this stage, the design will be turned into a 1-minute video that will be released on YouTube for the public to vote on their favorite concept. Upon completion of this stage, each team member will receive a $100 giftcard to their preferred online store (Adafruit, Sparkfun, Amazon, etc).

Stage Three: Development (May 16 to June 24, 2022)

From the three designs submitted at the end of the previous stage, one will be chosen. During this stage, the winning design will be built locally by the team members. Workshops for building the design’s electronic and mechanical components will be provided at no cost to the team.

The design should be turned into a full-size product at the end of the development stage. The product will be unveiled at an event or exhibition that will feature all of the team members as well as the winning design’s features. The team will also complete the build documentation.

When all deliverables are completed, the team will share a $1500 prize.

Requirements

1. The mechanical part of the design should be able to be fabricated locally in Nigeria.
2. The physical interface should be visible from 10 metres away.
3. At Stage Two, each team will be given 15 languages to code into the display. Teams are not responsible for finding or transcribing any of the language texts themselves.
4. With the display on, each language should be displayed for 10 seconds.
5. The physical interface should have the ability to display words with their tonal or accent marks.
6. The device should be capable of independent power other than from the mains. This could be built into the product or an extension.

Jury

• Oo Nwoye
• K??lá Túb??sún
• Adeola Agbonyin

Judging Criteria

1. Submissions will be evaluated on their originality and creativity.
2. The design will be judged on its ease of manufacturing, particularly locally.
3. The integration of the local context into the features of the product; whether in its design, maintenance, functionality, or otherwise.
4. The ability for the design to be built upon, whether by adding new features or extending the display to mobile, will be a plus.
5. The participation of the team members in all stages will be evaluated.
6. The overall presentation of the concept, especially in video submission will be evaluated.

Rules

1. Participants agree to be bound by the decisions of the jury.
2. Participants warrant that they are eligible to participate.
3. Participants warrant that the submission is their original work and has not been in production or otherwise published or exhibited.
4. Participants warrant that neither the work nor its use infringes the intellectual property rights (whether a patent, utility model, functional design right, aesthetic design right, trademark, copyright or any other intellectual property right) of any other person.
5. Participants warrant that they are available to participate in weekly update meetings.
6. Participants agree that the final design will be made open source, with credit to all inspiration material.

How to Apply

Click here to get started.