The 12th World Congress was held in Louisville, Kentucky, USA from April 24th to 30th, 2019. The new competition for the 2019-2020 season was announced on May 1, and the shipment of game elements has finally started in Japan.
What is VEX Robotics?
VEX is a STEM teaching material born in the United States.
It was developed with the aim of fostering the [independence] needed for the next generation of life through robotics.
VEX competitions VEX competitions
are divided into three categories.
– VEX IQ Challenge (abbreviation: VIQC) for 4th grade to 2nd grade of
junior high school – VEX Robotics Competition (abbreviation: VRC) for 1st grade to 3rd grade of high school
– VEX of unlimited age for college students U (abbreviation: VEXU)
Below is a quote from the press release
The 12th World Congress was held in Louisville, Kentucky, USA from April 24th to 30th, 2019. The new competition for the 2019-2020 season was announced on May 1, and the shipment of game elements has finally started in Japan.
VEX Robotics gives children an early interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), stimulates them from curiosity before they become weak in science and mathematics engineering, and develops leaders who will lead the next generation. It is an educational program.
During the 2018-2019 season, approximately 2,500 events were registered and held in more than 60 countries.
The competition includes [VEX IQ Challenge] for 4th grade to 2nd grade of elementary school, [VEX Robotics Competition] for 6th grade to 3rd grade of high school, and [VEX U] for university students.
About VEX Robotics:
VEX is a STEM teaching material born in the United States. It was developed with the aim of fostering the [independence] needed for the next generation of life through robotics.
Students repeatedly learn and learn the same engineering design and problem-solving processes as rocket engineers, brain surgeons, and other inventors. And by cultivating an interest in science and mathematics engineering from an early stage, you can stimulate your curiosity and experience more [independent learning] before you feel weak.
VEX consists of four elements: hardware, software, curriculum, and competitions, and it goes beyond selling high-performance robots. Students and students will experience and acquire social skills such as teamwork, leadership, communication skills, globalism, project execution skills, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking by participating in sports-like competitions.
VEX competitions:
VEX competitions are divided into three categories.
– VEX IQ Challenge (abbreviation: VIQC) for 4th grade to 2nd grade of
junior high school – VEX Robotics Competition (abbreviation: VRC) for 1st grade to 3rd grade of high school
– VEX of unlimited age for college students U (abbreviation: VEXU) Most
new semesters outside of Japan begin in September. In addition, middle school in the United States starts from the sixth grade of elementary school in Japan, and the grades are different for each country, so participants participate based on the age at the world competition held at the end of April every year. Select the category you want to do.
Increasing teams each year:
VEX-registered events (competitions, practice games, leagues, workshops) during the 2018-2019 season have been registered and held approximately 2,500 times worldwide. This means that the number of events held has increased 1.47 times compared to the 2017-2018 season. In addition, the number of teams continues to increase year by year, and the number of teams currently registered for competition in the world is 24,000.
In Japan, VIQC was held once and VRC was held twice during the 2017-2018 season. In the 2018-2019 season, VIQC was held 5 times and VRC was held 3 times. Two of these workshops were held, and the other six events were international matches in which overseas teams also participated. Among them, the teams selected for the World Championships at the end of April 2019 were 3 VIQC teams and 3 VRC teams.
2019-2020 Competition Theme:
VIQC’s competition theme is [Square Doorway].
The competition method is the same every season, and there are three types of competition. The first is the [Teamwork Challenge], in which the two teams work together to aim for a high score. Each team consists of two people and operates one robot in the first half and the second half in 60 seconds.
One robot of each team is operated on the field, and you can get a high score by cooperating with the alliance (team of the other team who cooperates). The second is [Driving Skills Challenge]. Each team competes for robot performance and controller operation skills.
As with the [Teamwork Challenge], the driver operates in the first half and the second half. And the third is [Programming Skills Challenge]. Compete for points by operating completely autonomously for 60 seconds. It cannot be operated by the driver.
The same competition field (122cm x 244cm) is used each season, and the game elements installed in the field are updated with new ones.
This season, there are three platforms, 35 balls with a diameter of 7.6 cm and seven cubes with three colors of 17.8 cm square. There are two ways to put a lot of balls on the cube or put them in the cube to compete for points.
You can also get even higher scores by moving the cube on which the ball is placed to the scoring zones and platforms provided on each side.
The number of participating teams is increasing in Japan as well. Since it is a teaching material that fosters independence from the beginning, it is said that coaching such as programming and robot production is not necessary. Instructors and teachers just give them space and time, and students make new discoveries and move up.
Please check this out for details.
And the competition theme of VRC and VEXU is [Tower Takeover].
The competition lasts two minutes each season. The 3.7m square competition field is divided into two teams, a red and a blue team, and competes in two alliances. It is a competition to score higher points than the opponent’s alliance by putting the cube in the goal or placing the cube in the installed tower. There are a total of 66 cubes of 22 orange, green, and purple colors on the field. In addition to the five neutral towers, there is also one tower dedicated to the Alliance team. Only a fixed alliance team supports the alliance tower. There are goal zones dedicated to the alliance on all sides, and like the dedicated tower, only the designated alliance team can use it. The size of the cube is 14 cm on each side. Each cube placed in the goal zone is 1 point, but in reality, the score fluctuates depending on the color of the cube of the same color that fits in the tower, so you do not know the victory or defeat until the end.
For the first 15 seconds of each match, you will autonomously earn points in your zone. Alliances that earn more points in those 15 seconds will receive 6 points in the final score and 2 bonus cubes that can be used effectively during the remaining 1 minute and 45 minutes of the match. I can do it.
It will be the most exciting competition of all time, keeping an eye on it to the end. VRC participating teams are being recruited from time to time. How about incorporating it into club activities in junior high school and high school, and local club activities?
Please see here for the details of the competition.
Introduced school (as of June 2019):
American School in Japan
Kanagawa Prefectural Kawasaki Technical High School
Kawasaki International School
Christian Academy in Japan
KAIS International School Tokyo
Saga Prefectural Arita Technical High School
Saga Prefectural Saga Technical High School School
Saga Prefectural Shioda Technical High School
Sun Mall International School
Sacred Heart International School
St Mary’s International School
Tokyo Institute of Technology Science and Technology High School
Nagoya International School
Nishimachi International School
British School in Tokyo
Yokohama International School
In addition, there are many study schools and garage teams.