The ASME Student Mechanism Design Competition is an excellent opportunity for both undergraduate and graduate students to showcase their talents and abilities in front of respected world-renowned experts in mechanism design from academia and industry. Submissions are judged on the basis of creativity, practicality, integrity of analysis and design methodology, and quality of a fabricated prototype and a final report. Finalists will be invited to present their work at the 2008 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences (DETC 2008). Winners of the competition will be recognized at the annual Mechanisms and Robotics Luncheon at DETC 2008 and presented with awards, which in the past have included both cash and software prizes.

Eligibility and Rules
Any graduate or undergraduate registered as at least a half-time student through Spring 2008 is eligible to participate. Both individual and team projects are welcome. An individual may participate in several entries provided each submission is on a different subject.

The scope of the "mechanism" in this contest is rather broad. For the purpose of this competition, a "mechanism" is defined as:

"Any device that transmits a force or a motion in a deterministic way to perform a mechanical task. It may consist of rigid or deformable bodies connected with kinematic or flexural joints. It may be constructed of any type of materials, including smart and other active materials. It may be actuated by means of any transduction principle and employ any form of energy input. The size of the device can range from nano-scale to macro-scale."

For full set of rules and more information, visit the contest website at: http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/cjk019/SMDC.

Important Dates
Letter of intent due: April 25, 2008
Project report due: June 2, 2008
Notification to finalists: July 7, 2008
Final competition: Sessions to be scheduled August 3-6, 2008

Contact Information
Contest Coordinator:
Charles Kim, Bucknell University (charles.kim@bucknell.edu)

Undergraduate Coordinator:
Prof. Haijun Su, University of Maryland Baltimore County (haijun@umbc.edu)

Graduate Coordinator:
Phil Voglewede, University of South Carolina (VOGLEWED@engr.sc.edu)

Sponsorship Coordinator:
Mike Stanisic, University of Notre Dame (stanisic@nd.edu)