The objective of this competition is to score as many points as possible by maneuvering through the course while popping balloons.

1. Any Northwestern undergraduate student is welcome to enter the competition.
2. There is a financial incentive to any team that includes at least one freshman.
3. Each team member must have an active e-mail account.
4. Team applications and final proposals must be received by 11:59pm on Monday, December 3, 2001 (email k-akbar@northwestern.edu).
5. Proposals will be returned by Friday, December 8, 2001.
6. A maximum number of 30 teams may participate.
7. There will be three design milestones:
   • 1st Milestone, February 2002: First design and safety review.
   • 2nd Milestone, April 2002: Final design safety proposals must be approved on or before this date.
   • 3rd Milestone, May 2002: Competition Day

1. One agent is allowed per team. The agent can break into a maximum of three components as described below.
2. The agent must be autonomous (e.g. no external controls).
3. The agent must completely fit inside of a 12"x12"x12" measuring box at the start of each match.
4. Each component is allowed to expand (at most) to 36"x36"x36" during a match.
5. The weight of the agent must not exceed 20 lbs.
6. Agents are allowed to break into a maximum of three components only after the start of a match provided that the following applies: only one starting mechanism can activate the agent at the start of a race.
7. Any detachable element of the agent, such as weights and props, counts as one of the three maximum units that the agent can separate into.
8. The agent will be checked, in terms of size, weight, etc., during the registration. After registration, additional modifications will be allowed only if the resulting agent does not violate any of the rules set down in this section. The head judge must be notified of any additional modifications after the initial inspection.
9. No part of the agent is allowed to leave the confines of the course.
10. No emissions are allowed except those normally associated with electric motors.
11. No explosives are allowed.
12. No pressurized tanks are allowed.
13. No flames are allowed.
14. No projectiles are allowed.
15. No live animals are allowed.
16. The agent must not damage the course in any way. This includes damaging switches, puncturing any surfaces of the course with screws, nails or staples (except for balloons), or gluing anything to any party of the course. Unintentional damage to the course not listed above may lead to disqualification at the discretion of the judges.
17. The device used to pop the balloons may consist of a push pin or a needle not to exceed 2" in length. Any other designs must be approved by the Executive Committee.
18. All designs are subject to a safety review by the Executive Committee. The final design and safety review must be concluded by the second milestone.

1. The course is approximately 19' long and 11' wide, constructed of wood and PVC pipes. The inner diameter of the PVC pipe is 11 ½".
2. The agent must start within the 3' by 1' starting box.
3. A 20° ramp leads into the water.
4. The balloons are anywhere from 6" to 12" in diameter.
5. Balloons are attached to the course with masking tape on land and by a string in the water.

1. The competition will be a double-elimination tournament.
2. Each agent will have a chance to run the course individually once before the tournament begins. The score and final distance from the start will be recorded and used to rank the teams before the tournament begins.
3. The teams will be seeded in the tournament bracket according to their practice-round scores. In the first round, the top seed will compete against the last seed, the second seed vs. the second-to-last, etc. Teams that do not participate in the preliminary round will be seeded according to their registration time.
4. If there is an uneven number of teams, the top seed will be given a bye for the first round. More byes may have to be given if the number of teams is not a power of two.
5. Each match will last 3 minutes. At the discretion of the judges, matches can be stopped early.
6. If a failure of the course occurs during a match, the match will stop immediately and a rematch will be conducted at the conclusion of the ongoing round. Both teams will start with zero points.

1. Points are awarded for each popped balloon as follows:
   • Yellow Balloons: 10 points
   • Blue Balloons: 15 points
   • Green Balloons: 25 points
2. The team with the greatest number of points at the end of the match wins. In the event that the two teams are tied at the end of 3 minutes, the agent that weighs the least wins.
3. If the judges deem the two teams to have popped a balloon simultaneously, the points will be awarded to both teams.
4. Balloons loosened during a match remain in play. No points are awarded for merely dislodging a balloon.

1. Each team will have 1 minute to set up its agent prior to the start of each match.
2. Three judges will direct the competition, consisting of a head judge and two judges that each track the points of a designated team.
3. The head judge signals the start of each match.
4. Each team will be allowed one false start for each match. Two false starts in one match will result in disqualification from that match.
5. Team members are not allowed to touch their agent after activating it until the match is officially declared over by the judges.
6. The agent may start anywhere within the white starting box.
7. Protests must be lodged immediately following the conclusion of the match and before the judge's decision is made.
8. All judges' decisions are final.

1. Each team will be reimbursed up to $400 (See #9). This will be paid back in reimbursement installments at the milestones.
2. To complete the milestone, each team must show the exec board that it has made significant progress toward the completion of its goal. The three milestone dates and reimbursement amounts are as follows:
   • 1st Milestone, February 2002 = $100
   • 2nd Milestone, April 2002 = $100
   • 3rd Milestone (Competition Day), May 2002 = $200 or ($250 with freshmen)
3. The actual receipts must be turned in to receive the reimbursements. No photocopies will be accepted. The team member who made the purchase for each receipt must sign and print his/her name on the receipt.
4. Each receipt will be reviewed for its validity.
5. For each milestone, the teams will only receive reimbursements up to the amount indicated above (#2). For the 1st and 2nd milestones, if a team submits receipts that are over the reimbursement amount, the remaining amount (after deducting the reimbursement amount) will be reimbursed at the next milestone.
6. If a team wishes to make a purchase of more than the allowed milestone amount, and cannot wait to get reimbursed, they should contact the exec board and we will provide immediate assistance on a case-by-case basis.
7. Receipts that are over 90 days old CANNOT be reimbursed. If a team has receipts that will be 90 days old (or older) by the next milestone, the team should contact the exec board immediately.
8. For teams that will be using the machine shop, $120 will be automatically deducted from the team's budget at the last milestone (Competition day).
9. In order to encourage more freshman participation, we will offer as a bonus an additional $50 towards the 3rd milestone to any team that has at least one freshman member.
10. Prize money will be as follows:
    • 1st Prize: MINIMUM $3000 (depending on corporate sponsorship)
    • 2nd Prize: $1500
    • 3rd Prize: $750
    • Most Innovative Design: $50
    • Other consolation prizes to be announced

Machine shop access is neither guaranteed nor necessarily easy to come by. Access to the machine shop will be granted only to teams that have completed the standard machine shop training session (dates and times TBA). The cost to use the machine shop, $120/team, will be deducted from the team budget. The Design Competition Executive Board reserves the right to further deduct from the team budget for failure to comply with the machine shop rules and guidelines.

It is possible to earn up to two 399 credits. Each team needs to find a professor who is willing to oversee this project and grant the 399 credit(s). Professors may require regular meetings and/or reports, and a final report. Please consult your department's policies and regulations for using 399 credits towards your degree. Please see the exec board if you have any difficulties.

The team applications and design proposals must be received by 11:59pm on Monday, December 3, 2001 (email k-akbar@northwestern.edu) and should include the following:

1. Cover Page
   • Team Name
   • Team Member Information (Name, E-mail, Address, Phone Number, and Year)
   • Team Contact (1 member only)
   • Faculty Advisor
2. Content
   • Strategy
   • Budget
   • Timeline
   • Drawings/Diagram