The Competition
In the first of two competition phases, participants must complete a questionnaire on a microelectronics-related topic. From February to the end of March, they can answer 20 questions on an overarching competition theme that changes each year. A special school prize will also be awarded in this phase of the competition. Along with the completed questionnaire, participants have the opportunity to apply for the second phase of the competition with their own chip idea.
Twelve teams of up to four people will then have four months in the practical phase of the competition to turn their idea into reality with the help of an FPGA development board. The necessary tools for working with the FPGA development board will be taught in advance in a three-day workshop in Hanover at the Institute for Microelectronic Systems. The FPGA development board and the associated development software will be provided to all student groups for the workshop and also for the practical phase by the IMS.
The four-member jury consisting of Dr. Helmut Bossy (BMBF), Dr.-Ing. Joachim Schneider (VDE President), Prof. Dr.-Ing. Holger Blume (Institute for Microelectronic Systems), and Dr.-Ing. Hans Heinz Zimmer (VDE Chairman of the Board) will select the winning teams after the second phase of the competition. In addition to the opportunity to present the winning projects at the annual VDE Congress and various trade fairs, cash prizes of up to €3,000 are up for grabs.
Throughout the competition, the Institute for Microelectronic Systems at Leibniz University Hannover, headed by Prof. Dr. Holger Blume, will provide scientific support to the participants.
Offer for teachers
Interested teachers can learn more about the competition and the basics of FPGA-based hardware design at a two-day teacher workshop at the Institute for Microelectronic Systems in Hanover. In addition to teaching the necessary microelectronic basics, the teacher workshop focuses on guided work with the FPGA development board and the associated development software. Participation in the teacher workshop gives teachers the opportunity to borrow an FPGA kit from 2015 onwards, enabling them to put the microelectronic topics covered in class into practice. In addition to the FPGA development boards and development software, this kit contains ready-made sample projects to enable a quick start in FPGA-based hardware design. The workshop can also be credited as continuing education.
Additional Information
Further information about INVENT a CHIP and the competition documents can be found on the VDE Homepage and on the IMS INVENT a CHIP-Onlineportal.
