New game for the 2019 robotics season is revealed; first competitive event begins Feb. 28 in Southfield.
Notre Dame Prep's FIRST Robotics team, the Killer Bees (#33), celebrated the start of their 24th season of robotics competition with a kick-off in the school's media center on Saturday, January 5. Nearly 100 people were in attendance at the meeting, which also revealed the new game challenge for the 2019 season. The game, Destination: Deep Space, is described by FIRST Robotics as follows:
In DESTINATION: DEEP SPACE, Presented by The Boeing Company, we join two competing alliances collecting samples on Planet Primus. Unpredictable terrain and weather patterns make remote robot operation essential to their mission on the planet. With only 2:30 until liftoff, the alliances must gather as many cargo pods as possible and prepare their spaceships before the next sandstorm arrives.
T–2:30: A Sandstorm limits driver visibility so robots independently follow pre- programmed instructions or are operated by human drivers via video from their HABITAT(HAB). Alliances score points by:
1. Deploying robots from HAB
2. Preparing rockets and cargo ship with hatch panels
3. Loading cargo pods into their rockets and cargo ship
T–2:15: The sandstorm clears and human operators take control of their robots. Alliances continue to score points by:
1. Preparing rockets and cargo ship with hatch panels
2. Loading more cargo pods
3. Returning the robot safely to the alliance’s HAB
0:00: Rocket liftoff
The alliance with the highest score at the end of the match wins.
FIRST Robotics also released a video to introduce the new game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mew6G_og-PI
The 42 students on the Killer Bees FIRST Robotics team now have six weeks to design, build and program a robot to meet this challenge. Their first competition, a district event, is at Southfield High School, February 28 – March 2.
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org