A robotics programme to inspire young people

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December 2013 News

FIRST (for inspiration and recognition of science and technology) is an international organisation that aims to instill an appreciation of science and technology in young people; and the FIRST Lego League (FLL) is a robotics programme aimed at nine to 16 year olds. The aim is to generate an interest in mathematics and science through the use of educational robotics. The building blocks are Lego. Competing against other teams, participants research and solve a real-world problem, present their research and solutions, and build an autonomous robot using engineering concepts. Bringing robotics technology to students in disadvantaged communities can have a profound impact at every level. There is also a Junior FLL targeting children from six to nine years.

The SAIMC has been supporting the FLL in South Africa over a number of years. This has been through a purpose-built trailer to take Lego kits around the country so that under-privileged children can also participate. In 2009, an all-black team of primary school children won locally and came second in the international competition in Europe. For the 2013-2014 season, there are 180 FLL teams and 30 Junior FLL teams competing in seven regional tournaments in South Africa. Three teams will travel to the USA to compete against the world’s best.

Once these primary school children outgrow the FLL they need a bigger challenge to keep them interested in engineering, and there is a gap for children in grades 10 to 12, who form the main feeder group for universities offering engineering studies. The FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is a natural progression for these learners. Teams are responsible for designing, building and programming their robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. The robot kit is programmed using a variety of languages. Teams are required to develop strategy and build robots based on sound engineering principles.

Currently, Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) is the operational partner for FLL. However, to introduce FTC as a follow-up robotics programme, sponsors are urgently needed. An outlay of R100 000 is needed per year for operational costs, with an additional amount of R25 000 per team. At least 12 teams are needed to get the first FTC tournament going. The planned implementation schedule for FTC began in November 2013 and will culminate in the first tournaments in July 2014.

Currently, financial support has been received from IIG Group, while North West University has agreed to buy six robotics sets to support the teams. SAIMC is proud to announce that it will also be sponsoring R100 000 toward this competition, so the operating costs are now covered. However, the R25 000 sponsorship for the teams is still needed. This includes the costs of a robot base set with Mindstorm controller, robot resource set, software, training in LabView and RobotC, field setup kit, tournament participation fee and team T-Shirts. SAIMC appeals to industry stakeholders to assist with sponsoring the balance of the funds needed as well as with advisory and planning committees.

For more information contact Johannes de Vries, Tshwane University of Technology, +27 (0)83 679 2015, [email protected], www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/ftc

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A robotics programme to inspire young people

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