FLL Team Hardship Grant Application Deadline #1

2018-07-20 @ 12:00pm

The Perot Museum has opened submissions for 2018 FIRST LEGO League INTO ORBIT Team Hardship Grants.  These Team Hardship Grants are designed to aid teams that would otherwise be unable to participate in FIRST LEGO League without some assistance.  The North Texas Region is allowed to submit one team for this grant.

Each team accepted to receive a Hardship Grant will receive funding to cover the FIRST LEGO League Registration Bundle, which includes season registration and a 2018 INTO ORBIT Field Kit.

Teams that have already paid part or all of their 2018-19 registration fee or that have received funding via other means are not eligible for this grant.

To apply, please fill out the application form by noon on Friday, July 20th.  This is the deadline for the first cycle of the grant; a second grant cycle will open on August 7th.

For questions or more information, contact Kelly Goodner at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science.

2018-07-19

UTD FLL Coaches Training Workshop

2018-09-11 @ 9:00am - 2018-09-12 @ 4:00pm, University of Texas at Dallas / SEEC

Presentation Slides:
Session 1 – Intro and Robot Build
Session 2 – Beginning Programming
Session 3a – Strategy, Chassis, Attachments
Session 3b / 4 – Intermediate Programming

This workshop is for coaches/mentors (adults) ONLY.
Cost:  $30/session, register at UTD Marketplace

Calling all FIRST LEGO League coaches, mentors, and educators! Come brush up on your knowledge & skills during the summer break and hear proven tips for improving team performance.

UT-Dallas is once again offering summer training workshops for coaches and teachers where attendees get hands-on experience building and programming LEGO Mindstorms EV3 robots.  Sessions are facilitated by Dr. Patrick Michaud, renowned FIRST coach with several world-ranked teams.

Workshops will consist of four half-day sessions on September 11-12; each session will cost $30 (thus $120 to attend all four sessions).  UTD will provide the robot materials, computers, and software to be used during the sessions.  (Lunch is not provided, but there are many on-campus options for lunch, and we have refrigerator/microwave for those who wish to bring lunch.)

Space is limited and registration is required — registrations will generally be taken on a first-come first-served basis.

Specific session topics for the FLL workshops include:

September 11 (9a-12n): Intro to FLL and Robot Build
– Introduction to FLL and season overview
– LEGO Mindstorms components
– Basic robot building concepts
– Assemble and test prototype robot

September 11 (1p-4p): Beginning FLL Programming
– Introduce Mindstorms EV3 software
– Robot navigation concepts
– Sensors for detecting lines, borders, colors
– Creating “My Blocks”

September 12 (9a-12n): Chassis, Attachments, Programming
– Review common game challenges
– Intermediate robot building principles
– Techniques for more competitive robots
– Common attachment types and features
– Intermediate programming: My Blocks, loop and sensor blocks, gyro-based navigation

September 12 (1p-4p): Programming and Tournament Prep
– Programming: line following, testing
– Tournament overview
– Tips for improving success in Core Values, Project, and Robot Design judging

To sign up for these workshops, please visit the UTD FIRST Robotics storefront at https://ezpay.utdallas.edu/C20239_ustores/web/store_main.jsp?STOREID=135, then select one of the available “FLL Coaches Training Workshops”.  Again, space is limited and registration will be generally first-come first-served.

For more information regarding the workshops, please email <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.  We look forward to seeing you at the workshops!

2018-07-14 0 Comments

FTC Clinic: Introduction to Fusion 360

2018-08-18 @ 9:00am - 4:00pm, Prince of Peace Christian School

Have you ever wanted to design 3D printed parts of your robot in Fusion 360?  Have you ever wanted to virtually assemble parts from AndyMark, REV, ServoCity, and VEX to see how they will work together?  Have you ever wanted to know exactly where to drill a hole so the parts will fit together the first time?  FTC Team 9010 and FRC Team 3802 are hosting a seminar on Fusion 360 geared specifically towards robot building and FIRST Tech Challenge.

The event will be held at Prince of Peace Christian School located at 4004 Midway Road on Saturday, August 18th from 9AM to 4PM.

More details and a registration form are at the link below:

https://goo.gl/forms/hEdsoeFPrMRXj0Bz2

Space is limited to 20 participants, so sign-up soon.

2018-07-11 0 Comments

FLL 2018 Kickoff / Team Dynamics Clinic (Plano)

2018-09-08 @ 1:30pm - 4:30pm, Williams High School

Clinic slides:  Team Dynamics (PDF 251K)

This event is intended for coaches and mentors only.  Register at https://goo.gl/forms/u8XMZXTi2GuGdi993 .

We are having a Kickoff and Team Dynamics clinic on Saturday, September 8, at Williams High School in Plano 1:30pm-4:30pm.

The kickoff event is free of charge, but we ask that participants pre-register for the event so that we can communicate event details directly and have an estimate of attendance size.

What are the Kickoffs?

  • These are introductory meetings/presentations where we go over many things you’ll need to know about participating in FLL this season.
  • Generally there are at least two Kickoff sessions each season (one at or near UTD and one at FCA).  Each coach/mentor only needs to go to one, and it doesn’t matter which one.  Rookie and veteran coaches are welcome at both events.
  • These are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, especially for new coaches/mentors.
  • We will go over exactly how the events and competitions run (rules, policies, what to expect), and there will be Robot Game tables and fields set up with experts there to explain the Robot Game missions and rules.
  • It’s a great opportunity to meet the North Texas FLL community, get your questions answered in person, and figure out exactly what will be happening for us this season.

 

For more information about the event, please contact Patrick Michaud at <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu> .

2018-06-19 0 Comments

FTC 2018 Season Kickoff and Workshop (Fort Worth)

2018-09-08, Bethesda Christian School

This season the North Texas Region will be holding an official Kickoff and Workshop event on September 8th at Bethesda Christian School in Fort Worth.  The purpose of the kickoff is meet other teams and provide an overview of the FTC 2018-2019 “Rover Ruckus” season for North Texas.  The kickoff event is free of charge, but because space for the event may be limited, we’re asking coaches/teams to pre-register for the event .

Overview: Doors will open at 9:00am.  The kickoff will begin at 9:30am with a review and overview of the upcoming FTC season, including tournament structure, league play, and robot tips. At 11:00 CDT (12:00 EDT) we will watch the official game reveal video and unveil a full, official field setup complete with game elements. This will give teams an opportunity to see, feel, and touch the game to get a head start on the season.

Location and Parking: The kickoff will be held at Bethesda Christian School in Fort Worth.  Map and directions are below.

Again, please pre-register for the event so we can keep track of space requirements.

If you have any further questions, please contact Patrick Michaud at <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu> or Una Davis at <udavis@bcsfw.org>

Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you at the kickoff and throughout the upcoming season!

2018-06-16 0 Comments

FTC 2018 Season Kickoff and Workshop (Plano)

2018-09-08 @ 9:30am - 12:30pm, Williams High School

This season the North Texas Region will be holding an official Kickoff and Workshop event on September 8th from 9:30am to 12:30pm at Williams High School in Plano.  The purpose of the kickoff is meet other teams and provide an overview of the FTC 2018-2019 “Rover Ruckus” season for North Texas.  The kickoff event is free of charge, but because space for the event may be limited, we’re asking coaches/teams to pre-register for the event .

Overview: Doors will open at 9:00am.  The kickoff will begin at 9:30am with a review and overview of the upcoming FTC season, including tournament structure, league play, and robot tips. At 11:00 CDT (12:00 EDT) we will watch the official game reveal video and unveil a full, official field setup complete with game elements. This will give teams an opportunity to see, feel, and touch the game to get a head start on the season. After the field reveal we will then provide an review of the rules in Game Manual Part II and answer any initial questions teams have about the upcoming challenge and how to get started.

Location and Parking: The kickoff will be held in the Auditorium of Williams High School in Plano.  Map and directions are below.

Agenda/Topics:  League play and qualifying tournament details; common robot building systems; Android and REV Robotics control platform overview; updates, upgrades, and changes from previous sesons; resources for new teams; grants; game reveal; review of 2018 game scoring and rules; practice fields and scrimmages; questions and answers.

Anderson Powerpoles:  We will also have stations, equipment, and people on hand to help teams convert batteries and wires to use Anderson Powerpole connectors.

Battery checks: If you have any older batteries, charge them up and bring them with you, as we will also be providing “battery health checks”. These are the same checks that are performed at the World Championship, they let teams know in advance which batteries are having difficulty supplying power or holding a charge.

Again, please pre-register for the event so we can keep track of space requirements.

If you have any further questions, please contact Patrick Michaud at <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.

Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you at the kickoff and throughout the upcoming season!

2018-06-13 0 Comments

UTD FTC Coaches Training Workshop

2018-09-18 @ 9:00am - 2018-09-19 @ 4:30pm, University of Texas at Dallas / SEEC

This clinic is intended for coaches/mentors (adults) ONLY.
Cost:  $30/session, register at UTD Marketplace.

Calling all FIRST Tech Challenge coaches, mentors, and educators! Come brush up on your knowledge & skills and hear proven tips for improving team performance.

UT-Dallas is offering a 2-day training workshop for coaches and teachers where attendees get hands-on experience building and programming FIRST Tech Challenge Robots, including the new REV Robotics Expansion Hub controller and sensors.  Sessions are facilitated by Dr. Patrick Michaud, North Texas FTC Affiliate Partner and renowned FIRST coach with several world-ranked teams.

Workshops will consist of four half-day sessions on September 18 and 19.  Each session will cost $30 (thus $120 to attend all four sessions).  UTD will provide the robot materials, computers, and software to be used during the workshops.  (Lunch is not provided, but there are many on-campus options for lunch, and we have refrigerator/microwave for those who wish to bring lunch.)

Space is limited and registration is required — registrations will generally be taken on a first-come first-served basis.

September 18 (9a-12n): Intro to FTC and robot construction
– Introduction to FTC and season overview
– Basic components of the TETRIX/REV robotics kits
– Key robot mechanical principles
– Hands-on build of a simple competition robot

September 18 (1p-4:30p): Beginning Programming for FTC
– Introduction to control system components
– Android Studio / FTC application environment
– Basic gamepad programming for navigation
– Arm and servo programming
– Touch sensors

September 19 (9a-12n): Intermediate programming and competition prep
– FTC competition: robot game, awards
– Engineering notebooks
– Other building systems, materials, and tools
– Autonomous mode programming
– Motor encoders

September 19 (1p-4:30p): Programming and building for success
– Basic game, robot design, and alliance strategies
– (Un)Successful robot designs and devices
– Principles of leverage, gears, center of gravity
– Color sensing
– Gyro/IMU sensors
– Driver automation

Registration is available via the UTD Marketplace at https://ezpay.utdallas.edu/C20239_ustores/web/classic/store_main.jsp?STOREID=135.  Again, space is limited and registration will be generally first-come first-served.

For more information regarding the workshops, please email <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.  We look forward to seeing you at the workshops!

2018-05-22 0 Comments

UTD FTC Coaches Training Workshop

2018-07-30 @ 9:00am - 2018-07-31 @ 4:30pm, University of Texas at Dallas / SEEC

Presentation Slides:
Intro and Robot Build
Programming in OnBotJava
Wolfbot Build Guide (20180802 release)

This clinic is intended for coaches/mentors (adults) ONLY.
Cost:  $30/session, register at UTD Marketplace.

Calling all FIRST Tech Challenge coaches, mentors, and educators! Come brush up on your knowledge & skills and hear proven tips for improving team performance.

UT-Dallas is offering a 2-day training workshop for coaches and teachers where attendees get hands-on experience building and programming FIRST Tech Challenge Robots, including the new REV Robotics Expansion Hub controller and sensors.  Sessions are facilitated by Dr. Patrick Michaud, North Texas FTC Affiliate Partner and renowned FIRST coach with several world-ranked teams.

Workshops will consist of four half-day sessions on July 30 and 31.  Each session will cost $30 (thus $120 to attend all four sessions).  UTD will provide the robot materials, computers, and software to be used during the workshops.  (Lunch is not provided, but there are many on-campus options for lunch, and we have refrigerator/microwave for those who wish to bring lunch.)

Space is limited and registration is required — registrations will generally be taken on a first-come first-served basis.

July 30 (9a-12n): Intro to FTC and robot construction
– Introduction to FTC and season overview
– Basic components of the TETRIX robotics kit
– Key robot mechanical principles
– Hands-on build of a simple competition robot

July 30 (1p-4:30p): Beginning Programming for FTC
– Introduction to control system components (REV Robotics)
– Android Studio / FTC application environment
– Basic gamepad programming for navigation
– Arm and servo programming
– Touch sensors

July 31 (9a-12n): Intermediate programming and competition prep
– FTC competition: robot game, awards
– Engineering notebooks
– Other building systems, materials, and tools
– Autonomous mode programming
– Motor encoders

July 31 (1p-4:30p): Programming and building for success
– Basic game, robot design, and alliance strategies
– (Un)Successful robot designs and devices
– Principles of leverage, gears, center of gravity
– Color sensing
– Gyro/IMU sensors
– Driver automation

Registration is available via the UTD Marketplace at https://ezpay.utdallas.edu/C20239_ustores/web/classic/store_main.jsp?STOREID=135.  Again, space is limited and registration will be generally first-come first-served.

For more information regarding the workshops, please email <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.  We look forward to seeing you at the workshops!

2018-05-22 0 Comments

UTD/BCS FLL Coaches Advanced Programming Workshop

2018-07-18 @ 9:00am - 2:30pm, Bethesda Christian School

A new ADVANCED FLL Programming Workshop in Fort Worth!

This workshop is for coaches/mentors (adults) ONLY.
This workshop is at Bethesda Christian School in Fort Worth.
Cost:  $45, register at UTD Marketplace

Calling all FIRST LEGO League coaches, mentors, and educators! By popular demand, UT-Dallas and Bethesda Christian School are offering a 1-day workshop on Advanced FLL Programming. This is a “hands on” workshop were attendees will get experience in advanced programming techniques for FIRST LEGO League. Topics will likely include master sequencer programs, stall detection and efficient stops, line squaring, and other advanced navigation and manipulation techniques.

Prior to attending this workshop, attendees should already be familiar with EV3 Mindstorms programming (including My Blocks and sensor programming) and the FIRST LEGO League competition.

This workshop will take place on July 18 2018 from 9:00am to 2:30pm at the Bethesda Christian School campus in Fort Worth. The cost for the workshop is $45. We will provide laptops and pre-built robots to be used during the session exercises. Lunch will be provided for all participants.

A more detailed list of topics for this workshop will be forthcoming.

Space for this workshop is limited and registration is required.

For more information regarding the workshops, please email <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.  We look forward to seeing you at the workshops!

 

 

 

2018-05-15 0 Comments

UTD FLL Coaches Training Workshop

2018-08-01 @ 9:00am - 2018-08-02 @ 4:00pm, University of Texas at Dallas / SEEC

Presentation Slides:
Session 1 – Intro and Robot Build
Session 2 – Beginning Programming
Session 3a – Strategy, Chassis, Attachments
Session 3b / 4 – Intermediate Programming

This workshop is for coaches/mentors (adults) ONLY.
Cost:  $30/session, register at UTD Marketplace

Calling all FIRST LEGO League coaches, mentors, and educators! Come brush up on your knowledge & skills during the summer break and hear proven tips for improving team performance.

UT-Dallas is once again offering summer training workshops for coaches and teachers where attendees get hands-on experience building and programming LEGO Mindstorms EV3 robots.  Sessions are facilitated by Dr. Patrick Michaud, renowned FIRST coach with several world-ranked teams.

Workshops will consist of four half-day sessions on August 1-2; each session will cost $30 (thus $120 to attend all four sessions).  UTD will provide the robot materials, computers, and software to be used during the sessions.  (Lunch is not provided, but there are many on-campus options for lunch, and we have refrigerator/microwave for those who wish to bring lunch.)

Space is limited and registration is required — registrations will generally be taken on a first-come first-served basis.

Specific session topics for the FLL workshops include:

August 1 (9a-12n): Intro to FLL and Robot Build
– Introduction to FLL and season overview
– LEGO Mindstorms components
– Basic robot building concepts
– Assemble and test prototype robot

August 1 (1p-4p): Beginning FLL Programming
– Introduce Mindstorms EV3 software
– Robot navigation concepts
– Sensors for detecting lines, borders, colors
– Creating “My Blocks”

August 2 (9a-12n): Chassis, Attachments, Programming
– Review common game challenges
– Intermediate robot building principles
– Techniques for more competitive robots
– Common attachment types and features
– Intermediate programming: My Blocks, loop and sensor blocks, gyro-based navigation

August 2 (1p-4p): Programming and Tournament Prep
– Programming: line following, testing
– Tournament overview
– Tips for improving success in Core Values, Project, and Robot Design judging

To sign up for these workshops, please visit the UTD FIRST Robotics storefront at https://ezpay.utdallas.edu/C20239_ustores/web/store_main.jsp?STOREID=135, then select one of the available “FLL Coaches Training Workshops”.  Again, space is limited and registration will be generally first-come first-served.

For more information regarding the workshops, please email <patrick.michaud@utdallas.edu>.  We look forward to seeing you at the workshops!

2018-05-15 0 Comments