Judging CriteriaYou will be judged on how you have applied c reative thought to your d e s i g n .You will need to produce a 50/50 split of drawing and annotation (written descriptions) to explain w h a t a Plecticle is and h o w it will improve your l i fe .It should be eas y fo r everyone to understand what your p roduct is and how it wo r k s .

The perfect Plecticle

S T U D E N T

Challenge 1I m p roving your standard of living is something that designers are constantly trying to ach i e v e .Without knowing it you are always finding newways of working fas t e r, and thinking of new waysto do your h o m e work or i m p ress your friends. Inthis challenge you have the opport u n i t y to let y o u r imagination run wild and design a pro d u c tthat could change the way you live your l i fe. Who knows, in the future your idea could become a reality!

The ChallengeYou have been sent a package in thepost. The package mea s u res 300mm x 300mm x 300mm. Inside is a Plecticle,a device so new and innovative that assoon as you see it you will be despera t eto have it. It will improve the way y o uand your fa m i l y live your lives.

Yo u r challenge is to design this Plecticle. The onlyrestriction imposed upon you is that the Plecticle h as to fit inside the dimensions specified fo r the box .

Think about some things you find difficult to do athome. Th e y might include cooking meals, playinggames or c o m m u n i cating with people. Once youhave an idea, write down a statement of what it isand then ask yourself some questions. Fo r exa m p l e ,' A Plecticle is a device to be used by a group ofpeople. How will it be used? What will it do? Howdoes it work and what key fe a t u res activate it?'

Then put pencil to paper and begin designing,s k e t ching your i d e as first if you want to befo redeveloping one main, final idea. Every idea you havecould be the right one so make sure you writeeverything down!

Pre s e n t a t i o nOn one side of A3 paper o n l y you will need to pro d u c ea 50/50 split of drawing and annotation (writtendescriptions) to explain what your Plecticle is and how it will improve the lives of you and your fa m i l y.

Here is some help!www.audiyoungdesigner.co.ukfor hints on the design process.www.alessi.com for up-to-date designsand creations.

Vorsprung durch Te ch n i k

Ambient sounds

S T U D E N T

Challenge 2 Designers are often thought of as people who c reate new and unseen products but this is notalways the case. Many designers are asked toi m p rove upon existing technologies to create the next in a line of products. This is part i c u l a r l ytrue of the music industry. Over the last 10 years we have seen vinyl record players, cassette tapeplayers, CD players, mini disc players and MP3players. But what will come nex t ?

The ChallengeYo u r challenge is to think of animaginative and exciting design fo rp l aying and accessing music that coulda c t u a l l y become a rea l i t y in the nea rf u t u re. You will need to include the waythe music play e r will operate, how it looks and how it will be activa t e d .

Think about how music players have evolved o v e r the last 10 years and what designers have done to improve on the basic concept of playingmusic. The information you collect will help you to get inside the mind of a designer and improve y o u r thinking about your p roduct and what it must do to be a success.

Don't get too caught up in what actually a l re a d yexists. Yo u r p roduct does not have to be a small,s qu a re box with headphones. It can be whateveryou want! Also think about the way music playerso p e rate - can they be used diffe rently? What about pre s s u re, sounds, emotion? Does it have to be hand held?

Pre s e n t a t i o nOn one sheet of A3 paper o n l y, illustrate andannotate (describe in writing) your new design,showing how you developed your final idea, what it looks like and how it wo r k s .

Judging CriteriaYou will be judged on how you have taken i n s p i ration from the world around you to create something exciting and new.Yo u r design should be a series of annotated s k e t ches (pictures with written descriptions) showing the development of your design, the w a y in which the music player will work and whyit looks the way it does.Th e re should be a clear balance between s k e t ches and annotation (written descriptions).

Vorsprung durch Te ch n i k

Here is some help!www.pocketpccentral.net/mp3c/ for the latest digital technology.www.pocketcalculatorshow.comfor a history of the walkman.www.bbc.co.uk/totpwww.mp3search.ruwww.allofmp3.com to find out aboutlatest trends in music.

E n v i ro m e n t a

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Challenge 3E n v i romenta, a super h e ro, needs your help to solve one of two key world problems our p l a n e tfaces today: ozone depletion and diminishing fuel re s o u r c e s .

She needs a super p o w e r to try and combat these problems and you will design it fo r h e r. You will be working from a specifi cation. Yo u rclient needs a product that will do several thingswith a part i c u l a r purpose. The needs of the clienta re very i m p o rt a n t .

The ChallengeDesign a device that will supplyE n v i romenta with a super p o w e r to solve one of the two problems. She needs to be able to wea r the device with comfo rt and operate it ea s i l y. She also needs to understand what is causing the problem, where it is o c c u rring and what is curre n t l y being done to solve the problem.

Yo u r response should include the following elements:evidence of re s e a r ch into environmental issuesa specifi cation fo r what Enviromenta needs fro myou and the devicea design fo r the outside shape of the devicean explanation of how the device is powered and how it wo r k s .

Design and illustrate your device, giving as muchi n formation as possible on how it works and what powers it. Enviromenta needs to know indetail how the device will solve the pro b l e m .S i m p l y saying 'point the device at the problem andit will be fixed' is not enough.

How will you use your knowledge of the pro b l e mto activate your device? Will the device re a dE n v i romenta's thoughts? Will it analyse thep roblem and then provide Enviromenta with thesolution? Will she wear it on her feet or on herhead? Think about movement, emotions, sounds…

Pre s e n t a t i o nYo u r s p e c i fi cation should be included as a bulletpoint list on one sheet of A4 paper o n l y. Yo u r d e s i g nand description of how the device works should bewritten on one sheet of A3 paper and includeevidence that you have re s e a r ched one of thee n v i ronmental problems sugg e s t e d .

Judging CriteriaYou will be judged on the originality of youridea and its relevance to the theme ofe n v i ronmental issues.You will be judged on whether you haveincluded all of the elements specified in thech a l l e n g e .Yo u r design should have a good balance ofhigh qu a l i t y s k e t ches and clear and detailedannotation (written descriptions).

Vorsprung durch Te ch n i k

Here is some help!www.environmentglobe.com for thelatest news on environmental issues.w w w. e p a . g o v / o z o n e / re s o u rc e / p u b l i c . h t m lto find out more about what's happening tothe ozone layer.

Te ch n o l o gy Po d

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Challenge 4A m u l t i - t ask vehicle is not a new concept. The NASAspace pro g ramme has developed vehicles that copewith many d i ffe rent terrains as they collect materialsand data. Back on earth, scientists use severa ld i ffe rent vehicles to study o u r planet. This is a dra i non time, money and resources. It is important thatnew vehicle developments consider how to dealwith all of these elements without harming thee n v i ronment within which they a re tra v e l l i n g .

The ChallengeYo u r challenge is to design a craft fo r at eam of six scientists that can get to anypoint in the globe while travelling atex t reme speeds. It can fly, float or t ra v e lon land (or a combination) but must notharm the environment in any w ay. T h ec raft will need to be able to withstandthe heat of the desert, the arc t i cconditions of the polar ice caps, be able

to climb the highest mountains and diveto the deepest ocean floor. The craft alsoneeds to be able to collect data aboutthese diffe rent places, plus physica lsamples, and sto re them sa fe l y.

B e fo re you start designing, consider ex i s t i n gmodes of tra n s p o rt and the types and designs ofvehicles that scientists may use. Look at how theys to re their e quipment and how they t ravel with it.

You must present designs fo r these three are as :the overall design fo r the outside of the high-speed cra ftthe internal layout fo r p as s e n g e r c o m fo rt and sto rage fa c i l i t i e sthe system fo r how the cra ft will move.

Pre s e n t a t i o nYo u r t h ree designs should fit on one sheet of A3 paper o n l y. You will also need to provide onesheet of A4 paper explaining your idea, in the form of a key o r bullet point list.

Judging CriteriaYou will be judged on how well your t h ree designs accommodate each other (how t h e y fit to g e t h e r in terms of appearance and whether it is clear how they work as a whole).How eas y the design is to follow and understand using the key o r bullet point list. How well your vehicle can cope with the conditions within which it has to opera t e .

Vorsprung durch Te ch n i k

Here is some help!w w w. e s t . o rg.uk fo r the latest on e n e rgy e ffi c i e n c y. w w w. h y d ro g e n c e n t ra l . c o m fo r ap o t e n t i a l l y new fuel source.w w w. c n n . c o m / 2 0 0 5 / T E C H / 0 6 / 2 3 / a n t a rc t i ca . ex p l o re r h as an article about an ex c i t i n gnew vehicle development.

A t h l e Tex

S T U D E N T

Challenge 5 It's 2012 - the year of the London Olympic Games.M a ny of the events are held outdoors and thew e a t h e r is becoming incre as i n g l y unstable, due toglobal warming.

S e c u r i t y at the Games is also very tight, which meansthat everyone has to have their bags, and themselves,s canned and ch e cked befo re they can go through toan event. Those without bags are able to use theex p ress route which the Games' organisers are tryingto encoura g e .

As well as these pra c t i cal considerations, fashion isi m p o rtant and supporters want to have a re a l l y c o o lo u t fit to wear to support their team while the rest ofthe world is watch i n g .

The ChallengeYo u r challenge is to design ano u tfit that is suitable fo r a l lw ea t h e r conditions andcould be worn by a young,outgoing support e r of theBritish athletics tea m .Co n s i d e r the diffe re n tconditions that spectato rsm ay have to encounterwhile sitting outside as wellas their p e rsonal needs,s u ch as comfo rt, mobilityand personal hygiene.I n v e s t i gate curre n tdevelopments in tex t i l et e chnologies and how itis thought they will havedeveloped furt h e r b y 2 0 1 2 .

Pre s e n t a t i o nYo u r final design fo r this multi-purpose outfit should be produced onone side of A4 (minimum) or one sideof A3 (maximum) paper. You shouldinclude both front and back views of your o u t fit, as well as a writtendescription of how it will function

and re fe rences to the Smart, Fu t u re or Te ch n ot extiles that will be used.

Judging CriteriaYou will be judged on the originality of yourdesign and how well it would appeal to the young, outgoing target audience.You will be judged on the evidence of yourinvestigation into textile technologies and the o v e rall presentation of your wo r k .

Vorsprung durch Te ch n i k

Here is some help!www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/design/textiles/fabricsrev5.shtmlfo r e d u cational information on Smart Tex t i l e shttp://artschool.newport.ac.uk/smartclothes/wearablefutures_keynote.html shows great images of wearable techno textiles.

H e ro l i c i o u s !

S T U D E N T

Challenge 6

It is often very hard to find a snack food that is bothh e a l t h y and tas t y, or that looks interesting enoughto make you want to eat it. One way that people tryand encourage us to buy t h e i r p roducts is to use afamous person to support them and tell the publicthat they e n j oy eating them. But who would youchoose and what would they e a t ?

Think about your favourite role models and what itis that you part i c u l a r l y like about them. Also thinkabout the diffe rent types of things that make themspecial and stand out from the crowd. Is it an itemof clothing, their h a i r style, or a part i c u l a r c o l o u rt h e y wear? What are they famous fo r and how

could this be re flected in the sort of food they e a t ?You then need to think about the current snackfoods that are available and investigate which arethe most nutritious and tas t y. Look at thei n g redients they use and think which of thesewould be most suitable fo r y o u r own role model.The important thing about snack foods is that theya re tas t y and give you an energy boost but containi m p o rtant nutritional re qu i rements necessary fo rp a rt of a balanced diet.

The ChallengeYour challenge is to design a snackfood that could reflect the work andpersonality of your role model. Thesnack food should be nutritious andtasty and the packaging should beexciting and interesting. It shouldinstantly remind you of the role model you have chosen. Make sureyou think about the particularingredients you would include in thesnack bar as well as the packaging,which needs to appeal to your currentconsumers, who are a young,outgoing target audience.

Pre s e n t a t i o nYo u r design should be produced on one side of A 4(minimum) or one side of A3 (maximum) paper. Itshould include a design fo r the packaging andshape of your chosen healthy s n a ck food as well asa written description of the ingredients. It shouldalso include a re fe rence to your chosen role modeland an explanation of how the product re fl e c t st h e i r work and personality.

Judging CriteriaThe originality of your design and how well it re flects your chosen role model.Evidence of investigation into nutritional values.An innovative and eye-ca t ching design.

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