After a nearly three-year pandemic pause, VEX Robotics is returning to UA Little Rock. On Saturday, January 28th, UA Little Rock Emerging Analytics Center will host “Winter in the Rock,” a VEX Robotics Competition of 20 middle school teams and 32 high school teams. Over 200 students will compete in the REC Foundation’s VEX Competition, which is the largest and fastest-growing robotics engineering platform. VEX consists of the following programs: the VEX IQ Challenge (Elementary & Middle School), the VEX Robotics Competition (Middle School & High School), and VEX U (College/University).
VEX Robotics is the perfect combination of STEM education. Combining mechanical engineering, computer programming, engineering design, and teamwork. All of these help increase student interest in technology and related careers.
In this year’s game, teams work together to build and program a robot to attain a higher score than the opposing alliance by scoring discs in goals, owning Rollers, and covering field tiles at the end of the match. Teams compete with an alliance partner in a series of two-minute matches consisting of a 15-second autonomous period (no driver input) and one minute 45 seconds of 2V2 driver control period.
The competition’s overall winner will advance to the state championships in March.