Design requirements for the Paper Bike Challenge change each year. Student teams benchmark against previous years to learn about key considerations but they need to address new requirements without relying on precedents.

Teams build a variety of different vehicles in response to the challenge each year. Some designs fare better than others. Students learn firsthand -- by driving their own creations -- where critical failure points may be common.

Stanford students in the course pose for a group photo after the Paper Bike contest. The teams encounter the challenges of team-based design while working on an unusual task with a two-week schedule.