SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – Over 80 teams from 10 states and seven other countries will compete in the 16th annual Robofest World Championships on Saturday, May 16, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Don Ridler Field House, Lawrence Technological University, 21000 West 10 Mile Road, Southfield. Admission and parking are free.
Robofest is a competition of autonomous robots – computer-programmed to act independently and not remote-controlled – that encourages hands-on learning of science, technology, engineering, and math, known as the STEM subjects, as well as computer science. Teams compete in the junior division (grades 5-9) or senior division (grades 9-12), using a variety of computer programming languages.
Robofest originated at LTU, and this year’s competition includes more than 2,000 students from Michigan and nine other states (Ohio, Texas, Minnesota, Florida, Hawaii, California, Missouri, Indiana, and Washington) and seven other countries (Canada, Korea, China, India, South Africa and Egypt, and Ghana).
The challenge of this year’s RoboBowl game is to build an autonomous robot to detect and knock down four pins (water bottles) by bowling tennis balls. In addition, the robot has to measure the height of the black rectangle shape on the table.
The Robofest World Championships include the Exhibition category, a science fair-style competition, in which students demonstrate their imagination and creativity through robotics.
For more information on Robofest, visit www.robofest.net.
Lawrence Technological University, www.ltu.edu, is a private university founded in 1932 that offers more than 100 programs through the doctoral level in its Colleges of Architecture and Design, Arts and Sciences, Engineering, and Management. PayScale lists Lawrence Tech among the nation’s top 100 universities for the salaries of its graduates, and U.S. News and World Report lists it in the top tier of best Midwestern universities. Students benefit from small class sizes and a real-world, hands-on, “theory and practice” education with an emphasis on leadership. Activities on Lawrence Tech’s 102-acre campus include over 60 student organizations and NAIA varsity sports.
The University of Detroit Jesuit High School team RoboCubs, which took first place in the Senior Exhibition category at the Robofest Michigan Championships, is one of 25 Michigan teams that have advanced to the World Championships on May 16. Left to right are ninth-graders Luke Adams, Christian Commen, Grayson Huldin, Ian Wilson, Ben Godfrey, and Jonathon Hopkins. LTU President Virdiner Moudgil is in the back and coach/teacher Jennifer Wint is at right.
—
Eric Pope
Managing Editor, University News Bureau
Lawrence Technological University
(248) 204-2210
(313) 505-6508 (cell)
facebook.com/lawrencetechu
twitter.com/lawrencetechu
