The Rock Engineering Challenge

We are incredibly grateful for the enthusiasm and talent demonstrated by all participants.

The challenge winners are Eric Schleicher, Mike Macdonald, and Justin Berger of Constructive Realities. Read more about their incredible technology here. 

The winner of the Wevolver community vote was Marcel Ochsendorf. He will be featured as part of a Wevolver article soon!

We invite engineers, entrepreneurs, inventors,  and developers to submit an idea for a part, product, or system that takes advantage of the ROCK single-board computers. 

• The first 500 valid entries will receive a ROCK board of choice worth $45 - $159.
  Simply tell us what you are working on, and we'll send you a piece of cutting-edge hardware to bring your ideas to life. 
• The most-cutting edge entry will be rewarded with a grand prize of a $50,000 partnership with electronics company OKdo to scale up their project idea. 

The challenge is now open until April 12th, 2023.

Who can enter?

The challenge is open to all OEM's, startups, research teams, and students working on innovative SBC applications. 

How to Enter?

Submit your entry via this form. You will be asked for a comprehensive idea description, details of your team, and images or video that support your idea. 

The ROCK 5B: Image credit: EuroCircuits

The ROCK SBC and CM series

Developed in collaboration between OKdo and Radxa, ROCK boards provides class-leading capabilities, hardware, and performance in a similar form factor as other popular SBC boards. 

The ROCK series offers professionals, startups, and industrial OEMs a range of single-board computers that are robust, customizable, low-power, and high-performing.

The ROCK boards are particularly suited for commercial applications that need a powerful and customizable board and the ability to scale, including but not limited to robotics, smart home devices, medical devices, automation, IoT, and environmental monitoring. 

Introducing the ROCK 5B

The powerful features of the ROCK 5B and its ability to be customizable bring substantial financial and environmental benefits during the current supply chain challenges. The ROCK 5B enables professional design engineers to leverage cutting-edge technology for developing high-volume end products.

Read more about the ROCK 5B here.

The ROCK 5B at a glance:

The ROCK 5B is the first SBC supporting up to 8Kp60 resolution tailor-made for advance multimedia applications. Image credit: OKdo.

The ROCK 4C+ at a glance:

Learn more about the ROCK 4C+ here.

The ROCK 4SE at a glance:

Learn more about the ROCK 4SE here.

The Prizes

Hardware prize

The first 500 valid entries will receive a ROCK board of choice.

Eligible submission criteria

• Clearly articulates how the project can use a customizable, industrial-grade, mass-producible SBC.

• The submitted idea is not related to the creation of weapons or illegal material.

• The entrant is located within RS Shipping limits. (Check your region here). 

Grand Prize

The winner of the OKdo Single Board Computer Challenge will enter into a partnership worth $50,000 with OKdo to develop their entry in a way that enables them to scale or improve their current model.

The partnership may be a combination of technical, design, business advice, prototype development, or other manufacturing assistance. The package will be tailored to give the winner the resources and support they need at their specific production and business stage. This includes but is not limited to:

Hands-on Support and Access to Resources:

• Support in technology selection.

• Support to design for manufacturing.

• Support to scale your production. 

• Support in providing a cost prognosis for production and prototyping.

Exposure to OKdo's Professional Network: 

• Exposure to potential customers.

• Access to experts in the community and jury.

• Global exposure in various media outlets.  

Community Winner

The Wevolver Community Winner is decided through a public poll of the finalists. The winner will receive an honorable mention at the awards ceremony and be pitched to the senior management of OKdo and its partners for a chance at establishing partnerships. Further, the winner will be interviewed for an article published on Wevolver.  

The ROCK 5B can be used to develop advanced UAVs. Image credit Chodorek et al. 

Meet the Jury

All entries to the challenge will be reviewed by the expert jury composed of engineers, business leaders, and designers. 

• Richard Curtin: SVP Innovation & Partnerships - RS Group | Co-Founder & CTO at OKdo 

• Matt Johnson: CEO of LAIIER

• Majenta Strongheart: Director, DesignLab at Supplyframe

• Rachel Gordon: Communications Manager at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory

• Chen Feng: Senior Vice President, Rockchip Electronics 

• Bram Geenen: CEO and founder of Wevolver. 

Judging Criteria

The jury will reward projects that push the boundaries of SBC application. Successful designs will meet the following submission requirements:

Uniqueness and Impact on Industry:

• Does the project address an area previously identified or underutilized?

• Does the project propose to use a ROCK board in an innovative application or use case?

Scalability:

• Is the current team and product scalable with the injection of resources?

Commercial Feasibility:

• Is there a proven business case?

• Did you already test your product or prototype with customers?

• Do you have recurring sales?

• Are you looking for finance opportunities to scale your business?

Key Dates

About the sponsor: OKdo

OKdo is a Uk-based company that delivers a unique combination of software, development support, and manufacturing services to inspire and enable customers to generate new ideas and turn them into commercial reality. They are on a global mission to deliver the imagination, creativity, and technical expertise our customers desire.