element14.com, the world’s largest electronic design community, has announced the winners of its ‘IoT on Wheels’ design challenge, sponsored by STMicroelectronics. The contest demonstrates the impact of IoT-connected transportation solutions through original prototypes created by element14 community members, exemplifying the critical role technology plays in making transportation safer, smarter and more efficient. This latest design challenge from Premier Farnell, the development distributor, underscores the company’s commitment to drive innovation and be a champion for makers as they use technology to change the world for the better.

Over the course of 11 weeks, the participants focused on design, research, prototyping, coding and testing their IoT-connected transportation solutions and posted frequent blog posts throughout the process on their element14 project pages. To help build their projects, each participant received a complimentary kit from STMicroelectronics containing the STM32 Nucleo MCU development board along with a sensor expansion board, Bluetooth LE expansion board, and WiFi expansion board. The top three winners are:

Grand Prize Winner – Traffic Predictor and Auto Pilot by Dixon Selvan – A traffic scanner using sonar technology, the device saves and uploads traffic data and uses the information to help people “avoid traffic like a bat.” As part of his design, Selvan created a motorized servo rig to attach to his motorbike that holds the sonar and STM32 Nucleo board steady as he zooms through open roads.
Runner Up – Konker Connection by Douglas Wong – To make off-roading motorbiking adventures safer, Wong used the STM 32 Nucleo to monitor his GPS location, the position of his bike and the resonance sound of the gas tank to determine how much gas remains. As part of his design process, Wong used 3D printing on a curved gas tank and reverse engineered some of the Nucleo pin outs.
Third Prize – Smart Drive by Sergey Vlasov – An open, public, Big-Data project to collect "red flag warnings" like emergency breaking or crash detection that would be logged and quickly shared with other drivers in close proximity to an accident.

Dianne Kibbey, Global Head of Community and Social Media, element14 said: “We were blown away by all of the innovative designs the element14 community came up with for the ‘IoT on Wheels’ challenge and how they all showcased the integral role the Internet of Things plays in transportation. When we think about IoT, many of us just think about smart homes and wearables, but it is also playing a major role in making transportation safer and more efficient by making connected cars a reality.”

‘IoT on Wheels’ is the latest of the four design challenges held this year by the element14 community and Premier Farnell, which have all highlighted the ongoing role the community plays in driving innovation forward. The judges included element14 top member, Rachael Peterson, experts from STMicroelectronics and Loughborough University’s Wolfson School of Mechanical, Electronic, and Manufacturing Engineering.

To learn more about the ‘IoT on Wheels’ Design challenge, visit https://www.element14.com/community/community/design-challenges/iot-on-wheels