Eligibility

These are the Specific Contest Rules (“Specific Rules”) that govern participation in The Power Hop Design Challenge (“Contest”) organized by Hackster.io, an Avnet community (“Hackster”), and sponsored by Nordic Semiconductor and PCBWay (hereinafter referred to as the “Sponsors”) in relation to any individual (hereinafter referred to as an “Entrant”) who enters, attempts to enter or in any way participates or attempts to participate in this Contest.

In these Specific Rules, “we,” “our”, and “us” refer to Hackster and/or the Contest Sponsor. “You” and “yourself” refer to an Entrant. The full rules for this Contest also include the Official General Contest Rules (“General Rules”) posted at https://www.hackster.io/contest-rules and all eligibility, requirements, and judging criteria recorded in the “rules” tab of this Contest page. In the event there is a discrepancy or inconsistency between the General Rules and these Specific Rules, the Specific Rules shall control.

Contest Description:

This is a skill-based Contest brought to you by Hackster and sponsored by Nordic Semiconductor and PCBWay. The object of this Contest is to create technical resources using Nordic, Ribbit and PCBWay resources as outlined in the requirement section below. For the purposes of this Contest, each idea you submit will be called a “Proposal ” and each completed project solution you submit in the Contest will be called an “Entry”. Entrants submitting the highest quality Proposals as determined by Hackster will be awarded a project contract (“Contender”). All Entries submitted by Contenders on or before Jan 17, 2025 at 7:00 PM PT will be judged using the judging criteria below to determine the best Entry.

There will be up to three (3) Contenders awarded in this Contest. The base prize payout for this Contest will be USD $2,000 (“Based Payout”) and the bonus prize payout will be USD $1,000 + Bambu Lab A1 3D Printer (“Bonus Payout”). The Bonus Payout will be awarded to the Contender with the Best Entry as described below.

Eligibility:

You are eligible to enter if you meet the following requirements at the time of entry:

• You are at least 18 years of age, or the minimum age of majority in your place of residence at the time of entry.
• You are a citizen of and reside in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States or Vietnam.
• You have a verified Hackster user account.
• You are not involved in the execution or administration of this Contest.
• You are not a Hackster, Avnet or Nordic Semiconductor employee or an immediate family member or household member of a Hackster employee or otherwise engaged in the execution or administration of this Contest.

Submission requirements

To be eligible for judging, you must meet ALL of the following requirements unless otherwise stated:

General Requirements

• You must be registered as a participant for this Contest.
• Your Entry must be your own original work.
• Your Entry cannot have been selected as a winner in any other Hackster Contest.
• Your Entry must be a new project and not an exact duplicate of an existing project.
• Your Entry must be submitted to the Ribbit Community Hub on Hackster.io by visiting https://www.hackster.io/Ribbit/projects and clicking the "Submit a project" button.

Proposal Requirements

Note: If you choose to submit an application for free hardware, you must meet the following requirements.

• Your Proposal must be submitted via the online application form found on the Contest page’s “submit a proposal” tab.
• Your Proposal must be written in English.
• Your Proposal must include functional use of the Ribbit Frog Sensor Kit V4, the Nordic nRF9151 and nPM1300, a STEMMA QT /Qwiic connection for the sensors, a connection, a SIM card slot, an input for a solar panel, an input for a battery, a programming/option battery charging USB C connector and include a build quote from PCBway.
• Your proposal must be submitted by Jan 17, 2025 at 7:00 PM PT.

Build Requirements

• Your project Entry must be created using the Nordic nRF9151 and nPM1300.
• Your project Entry must be tested with the Ribbit Frog Sensor Kit V4
• Your project Entry must include a STEMMA QT /Qwiic connection for the sensors, a connection, a SIM card slot, an input for a solar panel, an input for a battery, and a programming/option battery charging USB C connector.

Project Documentation Requirements

• Your project must include a project name, short project description, cover image, bill of materials (BOM), full instructions, images, and relevant resource files (schematics, code, CAD).
• Your project must be written in English.
• Your project must be submitted by Mar 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT.

Judging criteria

All Contenders who successfully complete the project requirements and submit their Entry on the Contest page by the stated submission deadline will be eligible to receive a payout, subject to the acceptance and approval process described herein.

Before any Base Payout is issued, Hackster and/or the Sponsor will review the submission for compliance with the Contest rules and confirm the Entry complies with the accepted Proposal. Failure to submit an acceptable Entry to meet the rules or to accept the payout terms may result in forfeiture of the prize.

Following the judging criteria outlined below, Hackster will select one Entry to receive the Bonus Payout, based on Hackster’s determination of the best submission. All decisions made by Hackster and/or the Sponsor regarding the Contest, including but not limited to eligibility, judging, and prize awards, are final and binding on all participants.

Your project will be judged according to the rubric below.

Proposal Selection

• Project Documentation - 20 points. Does the project include a detailed explanation of the plan, how the components will be used and any notes or analysis done for their solution?
• Complete BOM - 10 points
• Schematics - 10 points
• PCBA Layout - 10 points
• Did the proposal include the required interfaces? - 10 points
• Did the proposal include the required components from Nordic (nRF9151 and nPM1300 )
• Was the proposed solution creative and solve the problem in a good way? - 20 points?

Bonus

• Was an approximate power budget included? - 5 points
• Was a battery / solar panel selection included? - 5 points
• Was a plan to modify the software included? - 5 points
• Can the design fit inside the current enclosure? - 5 points

Final Judging

• Did the final report include a log of the board bring-up, verification, and testing performed? - 20 points
• Did the solution work well? - 10 points
• Was the solution fully documented so that the Ribbit team can reproduce and use the results? - 10 points

Bonus Points for Final Judging

• Did the submission test with the actual sensors, battery and solar panel proposed? - 10 points

How to enter

Step 1: Register for the Contest

• Start by creating a free account on Hackster.io (or sign-in if already a member).
• Become a verified member by completing the verification form at https://www.hackster.io/verify.

Step 2: Design Schematic and Submit the Proposal

• Design a schematic for the custom PCBA and BOM
• Go to the proposal page by clicking “Submit a proposal” and complete the proposal form.

Step 3: If your proposal is accepted, complete a board layout and quote with PCBWay

• Finalize your printed circuit board design
• Get a quote for fabrication from PCBWay
• Document your board design as a Hackster project and submit your project by clicking "review and submit project" on the Contest page.

Step 4: Receive your sensor kit and PCBA back from Fabrication

• The Contest team will review your PCBA design and upon acceptance will provide you with voucher codes to fabricate your design via our sponsor PCBWay. The fabricated boards will be mailed to you.
• The Ribbit Network team will also mail you a kit for the current Frog sensor which includes the sensors for you to test with.

Step 5: Test and Document Your Design

• Once you receive everything, fully test your design. The more testing you do, the more likely you are to win.
• Edit the project you created in step 3 above to document your design and the testing that you performed on your design.

Step 6: Submit Your Results as a Hackster Project

• Complete a final review of your project by Mar 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT to make sure it meets all the submission requirements prior to judging.

Full rules

What are the start and end dates?

Contest starts at Dec 20, 2024 at 9:00 AM PT and ends at Mar 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT and will consist of the following periods:.

• Contest entry period: Dec 20, 2024 at 9:00 AM PT through Mar 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT
• Proposal submission deadline is Jan 17, 2025 at 7:00 PM PT
• Contenders will be announced on or before Apr 11, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT.
• Entries are due on Mar 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM PT

Note: Contest end dates are at the sole discretion of Hackster and/or the contest sponsor and may be subject to change.

Can I enter?

If your participation violates ANY of the following, you may be disqualified.

• Your Entry must be your own original work.
• Your Entry cannot have been selected as a winner in any other Hackster Contest.
• Your Entry must be a new project and not an exact duplicate of an existing project.
• You must have obtained any and all consents, approvals or licenses required for you to submit your entry.
• Your Entry may not include any third party trademarks (logos, names) or copyrighted materials (music, images, video, recognizable people, code, schematics etc...) unless you have obtained permission to use the materials.
• Your Entry must comply with your employer’s gift policies.

Proposals and/or project entries may NOT contain ANY of the following content:

• Content that is sexually explicit.
• Content that is unnecessarily violent or derogatory of any ethnic, racial, gender, religious, professional or age group.
• Content that is profane or pornographic.
• Content that promotes illegal drugs, firearms/weapons (or the use of any of the foregoing) or a particular political agenda.
• Content that is obscene or offensive.
• Content that defames, misrepresents or contains disparaging remarks about other people or companies.
• Content that communicates messages or images inconsistent with the positive images and/or good will to which we wish to associate.
• Content that violates any law.

We reserve the right to reject a Proposal and/or Entry, in our sole and absolute discretion, that we determine contains any of the above content.

Important note about Copyright: Your entire Entry must only include material (including hardware, source code – both open source and third party sourced, user interface, music, video or images) that you own or that you have permission from the copyright/trademark owner to use. Your Entry may not include copyrighted materials (such as source code, user interface, background music, images or video) unless you own or have permission to use the materials. Ownership is not defined as purchasing a CD at a music store for replay, if playing a copyrighted recording on your guitar or repurposing an application’s user interface – your Entry may be disqualified if copyrighted materials, including but not limited to these examples, are a part of your Entry without appropriate licensing or permissions. If you do use permissible copyrighted materials, you must include the permissions information by citing the artist/creator and license information. Note that even material released under sites such as Creative Commons, common open source code licenses, and other similar licensing may need permission or acknowledgement as per the specific license.

Can I enter this Contest as a team?

No, this Contest is open only to individual participants.

How will my Entry be potentially used?

Other than what is set forth below, we are not claiming any ownership rights to your entry. However, by submitting your Entry, you agree to ALL of the following statements:

• You grant us an irrevocable, royalty-free, worldwide right and license to: (i) use, review, assess, test and otherwise analyze your Entry and all its content in connection with this Contest; and (ii) feature your Entry and all content in connection with the marketing, sale, or promotion of this Contest (including but not limited to internal and external sales meetings, conference presentations, tradeshows, and screen shots of this contest Entry in press releases) in all media (now known or later developed).
• You agree to sign any necessary documentation that may be required for us and our designees to make use of the rights you granted above.
• You understand that after the submission deadline has passed, any idea or project that has been submitted as a Proposal or Entry to the Contest cannot be deleted or made private and will remain on the Contest page after the Contest has concluded.
• You understand and acknowledge that the Sponsor(s) may have developed or commissioned materials similar or identical to your submission and you waive any claims you may have resulting from any similarities to your Proposal and/or Entry.
• You understand that you will not receive any compensation or credit for use of your Entry, other than what is described in these full rules.

Please note that following the end of this Contest your Entry may be posted on a website selected by us for viewing by visitors to that website. We are not responsible for any unauthorized use of your Entry by visitors to this website. While we reserve these rights, we are not obligated to use your Entry for any purpose. If you do not want to grant us these rights to your Entry, please do not submit a Proposal to this Contest.

How are Contest Contenders awarded?

The decisions of Hackster and Sponsor are final and binding. Hackster and/or the Contest Sponsor hold the right to award fewer Contenders than displayed if there are not a sufficient number of eligible Proposals received. To be considered for a place as a Contender your Proposal must meet the proposal requirements above. A Proposal cannot be altered or removed from the Contest page after the submission deadline has passed.

If you are a potential Contender, we will notify you by sending a message to the e-mail address associated with your Hackster account, before or within seven (7) days following the proposal submission close date. If the notification that we send is returned as undeliverable, or you are otherwise unreachable for any reason, we may choose a new Contender.

If you are confirmed as a Contender of this Contest, the following rules apply:

• You may not designate someone else as an alternate Contender or the recipient of any resources you may receive from Hackster to complete your project Entry. If you are unable or unwilling to become a Contender, we may choose another Contender.
• You will be solely responsible for all applicable federal, state, and local taxes related to accepting any hardware or resources to complete your Entry.
• You will be entered into a legally binding agreement with Hackster and required to sign an SOW outlining the terms necessary to deliver a complete solution based on your Proposal.
• Contenders who receive free hardware and do not submit an Entry by the Entry deadline and/or submits an Entry that does not sufficiently meet the entry requirements or the minimum points required for completion, may be ineligible for future contests and competitions unless the hardware is returned. If you receive free hardware and become unable to complete an Entry, please contact us at help@hackster.io and let us know as soon as possible. We may choose to appoint and ship the hardware to another Contender.

If free hardware is included in the Contest, once hardware leaves our warehouse, there is very little we can do to help locate lost or delayed shipments. Hackster and Sponsor cannot be held liable for any shipments that do not arrive or are delayed, and are under no obligation to replace lost shipments or missing or broken parts. If you have questions regarding your shipment, please contact us at contests@hackster.io. Unless otherwise noted, all free hardware is subject to their manufacturer’s warranty and/or terms and conditions.

How are prizes awarded?

All Contenders who successfully complete a project and submit their Entry on the Contest page before the submission deadline will be awarded a cash prize. Based on the judging criteria described above, the Contest Sponsor will choose one bonus reward to give to the Entry voted the best by the Sponsor. In the event of a tie between any Entries, an additional judge will break the tie. The decisions of Hackster and/or the Sponsor are final and binding.

If you are a Contender and have successfully completed the Contest, we will notify you by sending a message to the email address provided at the time of Entry within ten (10) days following completion of judging. If the notification that we send is returned as undeliverable, or you are otherwise unreachable for any reason, we may disqualify your Entry. We may require you to sign an Affidavit of Eligibility, Liability/Publicity Release and/or a W-9 tax form or W-8 BEN tax form within 10 days of notification. If you complete a tax form, you will be issued an IRS Form 1099 the following January for the actual value of the prize. You are advised to seek independent counsel regarding the tax implications of accepting a prize. If you are a Contender and you are 18 or older, but are considered a minor in your place of legal residence, we may require your parent or legal guardian to sign all required forms on your behalf. If you do not complete the required forms as instructed and/or return the required forms within the time period listed on the notification message, we may disqualify you and select a runner-up.

If you are confirmed as a Contender of this Contest, the following rules apply:

• You may not exchange your hardware/prize for cash or any other merchandise or services. However, if for any reason an advertised prize is unavailable, we reserve the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value.
• You may not designate someone else as an alternative Contender. If you are unable or unwilling to accept your prize, we may award it to a runner up.
• You will be solely responsible for all applicable federal, state, and local taxes related to accepting the prize, if you choose to accept the prize.

Unless otherwise noted, all physical prizes are subject to their manufacturer’s warranty and/or terms and conditions.

What other conditions am I agreeing to by entering?

By entering this Contest you are agreeing to the following statements:

• You agree to abide by these full rules.
• You agree to abide by the policies outlined on Hackster’s website, including our Terms of Service, Code of Conduct and Privacy Policy.
• You agree to release and hold harmless Hackster, Sponsor and their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, employees and agents from any and all liability or any injury, loss or damage of any kind arising from or in connection with this Contest, or any prize won.
• You agree that your personal data including your name, email address, personal address, phone number, and any other personal information disclosed during the duration of this Contest may be shared with and used by Hackster and Sponsor in order to facilitate the execution of this Contest.
• You agree that Hackster’s decisions will be final and binding on all matters related to this Contest.
• You agree that, by accepting a prize, Hackster may use your proper name and state of residence online and in print, or in any other media, in connection with this Contest, without payment or compensation to you, except where prohibited by law.

What laws govern the way this Contest is executed and administered?

This Contest will be governed by the laws of the State of Arizona, USA and you consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the courts of the State of Arizona for any disputes arising out of this Contest.

What if something unexpected happens and the Contest can not run as planned?

If someone cheats, or a virus, bug, bot, catastrophic event, or any other unforeseen or unexpected event that cannot be reasonably anticipated or controlled, (also referred to as force majeure) affects the fairness and/or integrity of this Contest, we reserve the right to cancel, change or suspend this Contest. This right is reserved whether the event is due to human or technical error. If a solution cannot be found to restore the integrity of the Contest, we reserve the right to select Contenders from among all eligible Proposals received before we had to cancel, change or suspend the Contest.

If you attempt, or we have strong reason to believe that you have compromised the integrity or the legitimate operation of this Contest by cheating, hacking, creating a bot or other automated program, or by committing fraud in ANY way, we may seek damages from you to the fullest extent permitted by law. Further, we may disqualify you, and ban you from participating in any of our future Contests.

Who do I contact about this contest?

If you have any questions or comments regarding this Contest, please email us at contests@hackster.io.