Some folks here in Central Florida are
already enjoying robotics as a hobby, and you can too!
We are looking for folks who enjoy, or think
they might enjoy, robotics as a hobby, as a fun way of learning about science,
engineering and technology, or even as a possible career.
Florida’s FIRST Vex Championship and Orlando’s FIRST Lego League
Tournament – Dec 16th, 2006:
The Florida Vex Championship Tournament, and
the Central Florida Regional FLL Tournament will be held together on Saturday
12-16-06, at Lake Highland Preparatory School’s Middle School Campus, located
at the intersection of Mills Ave & East Woodward Street in Orlando. Opening Ceremonies are scheduled for 9 AM,
and the event will run until at least 4 PM.
Public spectators are welcome.
Please drop by and see the cool robots our young people have built and
programmed for these exciting events.
Two Fun Robots: A Professionally-Built Robot and a Kid-Built (Mindstorms/FLL) Robot:

Activities & Goals:
-Mentoring FIRST
Robotics teams, such as FIRST
Team # 665, based at Oak Ridge High School, Orlando.
-Coaching FIRST Lego League (FLL) teams. One of our coaches won the Outstanding Coach
Award at our Regional FLL Tournament.
-Getting more of the public involved in
robotics as a hobby, and inspire others to get excited about science and
technology.
-Encouraging, mentoring & creating new FIRST Lego League (FLL), FIRST Robotics, and VEX Robotics teams to form.
-Creating a regular forum for people to
share their robotic creations and ideas, and learn from others.
-Building robots and robotics kits, for
example, the robotics kits available from Parallax,
like the BOE-Bot.
-Fostering a sense of community among
like-minded individuals.
FIRST Lego League Robotics Team Members
and Robot:

FIRST Robotics Team 1902’s Robot:


Sample from the FLL Comic Book:


What is FIRST Lego
League (FLL)?
An international
program created through a partnership between FIRST and the LEGO Group
Ø
INSPIRES children, ages 9 to 14, to participate in
science and technology
Ø
ENGAGES kids in playful and meaningful learning
Ø
PROVIDES a fun, creative, hands-on learning
experience
Ø
CHALLENGES kids to solve real-world problems using
robotics
Ø
TEACHES children to experiment and overcome
obstacles
Ø
BUILDS self-esteem and confidence
Our robotics team members work hard, learn a lot about science and technology, and how they can contribute to creating a better world. The children, parents and coaches all have a great time during the season, including at our tournaments.
Vex Robot Assembling Puzzle Pieces During a Competition:


BOE-Bot Educational Robotics Kit:

Omnidirectional Robot with Three Omniwheels:

There is already a lot going on in robotics in this region:
-University of Central Florida’s Robotics Lab is developing
autonomous vehicle technology that will one day save lives.
Here are some award-winning UCF Robotics teams:
-University of Southern Florida’s Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue,
CRASAR, in Tampa.
-NASA does a lot of robotics
research.
-Lockheed
Martin and other technology companies are developing mobile robotic
systems, such as the MULE
robotic vehicle.
-FIRST Robotics Teams in the Orlando area:
-If you, your group, or someone you know,
should be mentioned or linked from here, please let me know.
Prototype Robotic Helicopter:

If
you are interested in robotics, or just want to learn more, then please join us
at our discussion group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/orlandorobotics/ and contact me via email or telephone. Please put “Orlando Robotics” in the subject
line of your email.
Come join us and let’s build cool
robots. Let’s talk at our discussion
group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/orlandorobotics/
Thanks,
Kevin and Friends
Kevin Hines
Email: KevinHines@aol.com
Cell Telephone: 540-819-8020
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