Purpose:

The contest serves as an opportunity for student engineers to use their developing skills to contribute the improvement of the quality of life of rural African villagers. By using their ideas to solve real problems through the practical application of solar energy.

Contest Rules:

To be eligible to win all contestants must submit an entry form with the description of their original solar cooker design by March 1, 1999. Multiple design concepts may be entered, but only one design construction per person will be considered to win a prize.

Design Specifications:

The solar cooker must be portable and not weigh more than 15 lbs.; dimension should not exceed 4 ft in length, 3 ft in width, 2 ft in depth. It should be capable of reaching a minimum temperature of 212oF or 100oC and a maximum temperature which does not exceed 400oF or 200oC(average temp. for stove top and oven cooking) . Its design should lend itself to cooking, canning, pasteurization, and sterilization of foods and other materials.

Design Constraints:

Only materials which are readily available or are traditionally produced in remote locations of African should be used in the construction of the solar cooker (paper, reflective surfaces, wood, natural dyes, etc.). You may need to research which materials are readily available. Special attention should be given to this constraint. Cost of materials for construction should not exceed $10.00.

All design drawings and information submitted will become property of the Northern California Council of Black Professional Engineers and may be used as resource information to improve solar cookers used in Africa. The top 3 designs will be selected at the 1998 NSBE Conference and will be awarded prizes.

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Eligibility Requirements and Judging Criteria

All entrants must follow the rules of the contest, and be able to prove student status. All cookers must be constructed in accordance to the description you submit, and be available for demonstration at the Spring NSBE Conference in Anaheim, CA. The cooker should be capable of performing within the design specifications and should conform to the design constraints. Winning designs will be judged based on appearance and durability, conformance, originality, ingenuity and performance of the cooker.

Prizes:

Grand Prize: $500; Second Prize: $375; Third Prize: $125