Epiphany Catholic School FIRST LEGO League Team Eaglebots # 8192

Congratulations Team!   The qualifier event in Ocala was fun and exciting for all. Although not advancing to Regionals, the team did very well and made their coaches and parents very proud.  Great job team.        See the scores here.

Welcome to the 2019/2020 season of FIRST LEGO League.  We welcome back our veteran members and the newcomers as well.  This season's theme is City Shaper.

This year the FIRST LEGO League Challenge website has been greatly improved and most of the information needed is easily available there.  Most documents will require a PDF reader or video player.  Most current browsers include these functions.
 
Be sure to watch the kick-off video for a detailed look at the challenge.

Overview:  The LEGO League Challenge consists of three elements.  Teams will receive scores on each element according to the scoring rubrics.  

1.  Core Values

We express the FIRST philosophies of Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition through our Core Values:
  
    1.  DISCOVERY:  We explore new skills and ideas.
    2.  INNOVATION:  We use creativity and persistence to solve problems.
    3.  IMPACT:  We apply what we learn to improve our world.
    4.  INCLUSION:  We respect each other and embrace our differences.
    5.  TEAMWORK:  We are stronger when we work together.
    6.  FUN:  We enjoy and celebrate what we do!

The team will develop team building exercises throughout the season and use them to practice their core values.
   


2.  The Project  
    The project this season is City Shaper.  The team is to identify a problem with a building or public space in our community. They will then design a solution to the problem.  This may involve interviewing experts, doing other research, and possibly performing experiments to test their solution.  Then they will share their solution with others.


3.  The Robot Game
    The team designs, builds, and programs an autonomous robot from Lego parts to compete with other teams in completing a series of missions.  All team members need to read the complete Game Guide to learn the details of the game.  This element will require the following tasks:

     1.  Build table for testing and practice.  This 4' x 8' table will hold the field mat where the robot operates.  We will be reusing the table from last year.

    2.  Build the Mission Models from kits, to be placed on the field mat.  The Mission Model kits and field mat come in the Field Kit.  Some of the Mission Models will be fastened to the table, others will not.  Refer to Game Guide, page 11,  for details on setting the models on the field mat.

    3.  Once the Mission Models are on the field mat, develop a strategy for completing the missions.  The strategy will dictate the capabilities, and therefore the design, of the robot.  

    4.  Using the parts in the LEGO Mindstorm EV3 Robot Kit, and additional LEGO pieces if needed, design a robot capable of completing some or all of the missions.  Missions require the robot to perform some specified tasks with the Mission Models.  See the EV3 User Guide to learn more about the Mindstorm system.

    4.  Build the designed robot.  This is a dynamic process that involves design, building, testing, and modifying the robot.  Be sure to read the description of each Field Model mission in the Challenge guide in order to design the robot to perform the mission.  Modifications can be made to the robot during the match, however the robot must have returned to the home position and the clock is still running during the modification.  Readily interchangeable tools might be one strategy.  Be sure to keep up with the updates that correct, explain, clarify, or modify the Challenge rules.  NEW THIS SEASON, a Robot Design Executive Summary will be required.  Also, at the competitions, there will no longer be a table in the Robot Judging room to demonstrate the robot.  The team will need to present the features of the robot to the judges without the demonstration.

    5.  Using the LEGO EV3 programming language, write a program to instruct the robot to complete the mission tasks.  The program can be written on a separate Windows or OSX computer for convenience then downloaded to the robot's processor for running.  The home version of the programming software for the external computer can be downloaded from the Lego site.  To learn more about the programming language, see the Tutorial page.

    6.  Load, test, and debug the program in the robot.  Debugging may also involve changing the design or construction of the robot.

    7.  Transport the team and robot to compete with other teams in a tournament.  Tournament will include judging on all three elements.   The team will make a 5 minute presentation about the project, which may include visual aids or performances (singing, dancing, skit, etc.) by the team.   They will also be judged on the Core Values and their robot design.  Robot competitions will include at least 3 matches lasting 2 1/2 minutes each.  


Additional Resources:

Registration Overview  (Instructions for completing registration)

Youth Registration System Guide

Consent and Release Agreement (English)

Consent and Release Agreement (Spanish)

Northeast Florida Season Handbook

Renaissance Jax Northeast Florida Region-Specific Documents

Northeast Florida Event Schedule

Event Guide

Core Values Tutorials

Crane Mission Guidance

Murphy Station

Spectator Flyer

Team Information Sheet

Robot Design Executive Summary Template

Team Deliverables (includes check list for events)

11/2/2019