Overview:

The objective of the Imagine Cup 2010 - Accessibility Local Innovation Award contest is to design a technology solution that assists people with Vision Difficulties and Impairments.

Students from across India are encouraged to think about how technology can help Visually Impaired people:

  • Explore the virtual world of the internet?
  • Explore the physical world?
  • Explore the professional world?

Partners:

Eligibility Criteria:

This contest is open to students legally residing in India and meeting the Eligibility Criteria mentioned below:

  • You are 16 years of age or older; and
  • You are actively enrolled as a student during the Contest Period at an accredited educational institution that grants high-school or college/university (or equivalent) degrees; and
  • You are not an employee or intern of Microsoft Corporation, or an employee of a Microsoft subsidiary; and
  • You are not involved in any part of the execution or administration of this Contest; and
  • You are not an immediate family member of (parent, sibling, spouse, child) or household member of a Microsoft employee, an employee of a Microsoft subsidiary, or a person involved in any part of the administration and execution of this Contest
  • A Team may consist of up to four (4) eligible students. It is recommended, but not required, that the Team have one (1) mentor in addition to the student Team members. Limit one (1) mentor per Team.

Detailed Terms & Conditions are now available here. 

Registration Information:

Registration is now open at http://tinyurl.com/icindia-alia10.   

Deliverables & Timelines:

Round A (12th Jan 2010, 11:59 PM IST):

  • An initial “concept” document (maximum 5 pages long, Size <= 10 MB), submitted as an electronic file in the .doc, .docx, or .pdf format using the prescribed template.
  • An initial digital storyboard of usage scenarios (Size <= 30 MB), in Microsoft PowerPoint or other standard image display format (jpeg, gif, etc) or created in Microsoft Expression Studio.
  • All deliverables should be submitted at the Skydrive location that your team provided during registration. Remember to grant viewing permissions to icindia@live.com

Round B (7th March 2010, 11:59 PM IST):

  • A final “concept” document (maximum 5 pages long, Size <= 10 MB) , submitted as an electronic file in the .doc, .docx, or .pdf format using the prescribed template.
  • A final digital storyboard of usage scenarios (Size <= 30 MB), in Microsoft PowerPoint or other standard image display format (jpeg, gif, etc) or created in Microsoft Expression Studio.
  • A working solution prototype. A short video demo (< 5 minutes) would also help.
  • All deliverables should be submitted at the Skydrive location that your team provided during registration. Remember to grant viewing permissions to icindia@live.com

Contest National Finals (expected to be held in April 2010):

  • Selected teams will be expected to present the working software application before a set of judges at a specified location. 

Judging Criteria:

Round A:

At the conclusion of the "Round A" Entry period on 12th Jan 2010 (11:59 PM IST), all eligible entries received will be reviewed by a panel of qualified judges based on the judging criteria (with percentage weights) set forth below to determine a maximum of twenty five (25) of the top Teams that will advance to compete in Round B of the Competition.

  • 25% - Problem Definition: For this criterion, we only focus on the problem challenged, not on the solution created to solve this problem. How well does the project adhere to the Contest Theme?
  • 50% - Solution Design & Innovation: Is the technology solution completely innovative or does it rely on an existing concept/technology? Has relevant Microsoft technology been chosen? Does the technology solution impact a large number of people very broadly, or impact a smaller number of people very deeply? To which degree does the technology solution actually solve the current problem?
  • 25% - Business Viability: Is the technology solution technically and economically viable? Is this technology solution only theoretical or does it have a realistic application for commercial purposes? (Not necessarily here and now, but eventually in the future and/or for certain markets).

Round B:

At the conclusion of the "Round B" Entry period on 7th March 2010 (11:59 PM IST), all eligible entries received will be reviewed by a panel of qualified judges based on the judging criteria (with percentage weights) set forth below. The top 2 teams will be invited for the Contest National Finals and the next 2 teams will be awarded consolation prizes.

  • 20% - Problem Definition: For this criterion, we only focus on the problem challenged, not on the solution created to solve this problem. How well does the project adhere to the Contest Theme?
  • 20% - Solution Design & Innovation: Is the technology solution completely innovative or does it rely on an existing concept/technology? Has relevant Microsoft technology been chosen? Does the technology solution impact a large number of people very broadly, or impact a smaller number of people very deeply? To which degree does the technology solution actually solve the current problem?
  • 20% - Technical Architecture & User Experience: Is the system architecture broken down into logical chunks and modules? Is the project technically open to some evolution? Is it only made with a monolithic bloc or does it present interfaces enabling extensions (SDKs or APIs)? To which degree are the HMI (Human Machine Interfaces) intuitive, ergonomic and user friendly? Does the application leverage the presence of fresh and updated data?
  • 20% - Business Viability: Is the application technically and economically viable? Is this solution only theoretical or does it have a realistic application for commercial purposes? (Not necessarily here and now, but eventually in the future and/or for certain markets).
  • 20% - Presentation: The judges will be looking for submissions that provide background and context to the project, explain why the problem is an interesting one, and highlight how the system works.

Contest National Finals:

The teams invited for the Contest National Finals (expected to be held in April 2010) will be reviewed by a panel of qualified judges based on the judging criteria (with percentage weights) set forth below:

  • 20% - Problem Definition: For this criterion, we only focus on the problem challenged, not on the solution created to solve this problem. How well does the project adhere to the Contest Theme?
  • 20% - Solution Design & Innovation: Is the technology solution completely innovative or does it rely on an existing concept/technology? Has relevant Microsoft technology been chosen? Does the technology solution impact a large number of people very broadly, or impact a smaller number of people very deeply? To which degree does the technology solution actually solve the current problem?
  • 20% - Technical Architecture & User Experience: Is the system architecture broken down into logical chunks and modules? Is the project technically open to some evolution? Is it only made with a monolithic bloc or does it present interfaces enabling extensions (SDKs or APIs)? To which degree are the HMI (Human Machine Interfaces) intuitive, ergonomic and user friendly? Does the application leverage the presence of fresh and updated data?
  • 20% - Business Viability: Is the application technically and economically viable? Is this solution only theoretical or does it have a realistic application for commercial purposes? (Not necessarily here and now, but eventually in the future and/or for certain markets).
  • 20% - Presentation: The judges will be looking for oral presentations that provide background and context to the project, explain why the problem is an interesting one, highlight how the system works, and include an insightful demonstration. Teams will also be evaluated on their ability to take questions from the judging panel.

Prizes:

  • 1st Prize: INR 60,000
  • 2nd Prize: INR 40,000
  • Consolation Prizes (for 2 teams): INR 20,000 per team