LEGO robots once again took over the shared Durham College (DC) and University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) campus on January 16, as the institutions co-hosted the annual FIRST LEGO League’s (FLL) Ontario East Provincial Championships. FIRST is an acronym that means For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.

Nearly 400 students; more than 1,000 parents, siblings and coaches; and 200 volunteers, judges and referees gathered at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre for the competition.

“As a college that prides itself on innovation, it is inspiring to watch some of Ontario’s brightest young minds enjoy using science and technology to analyze current challenges, develop novel solutions and bring their ideas to life using modern machinery and robotics,” said Don Lovisa, president, DC. “Once again, we were pleased to welcome competitors and their families to our shared campus to participate in this fun-filled competition.”

The event encouraged students between the ages of nine and 14 to apply math and science concepts to research, design, build and program autonomous robots using LEGO Mindstorms software. In addition, it showcased the 2015 FLL project mission titled TRASH TREK. The mission challenged students to evaluate trash from collection, to sorting, to smart production and reuse. After choosing a piece of trash as their focus, competitors identified a problem with the way it is currently handled,  found out what was being done to solve the problem and designed an innovative solution of their own, which they presented to the judges.

“The shared campus of the University of Ontario Institute of Technology and Durham College is an ideal venue for a competition, which encourages critical thinking and inspires young students to push the boundaries of innovation,” said President Tim McTiernan, UOIT. “We are proud to support creative ways of learning by co-hosting the FLL competition each year.”

At the end of a day filled with tough and thrilling competition, team Ctrl-Z from Bayview Glen School in Toronto was crowned the winner and awarded the opportunity to compete in a choice of five international championships taking place this spring in Arkansas, Australia, California, the Philippines and Spain.

“We always have a great time when we bring the FLL tournament to DC and UOIT,” said Dave Ellis, director, FIRST LEGO League Ontario. “The Ontario East Provincial Championship is a key part of the overall season each year; we really appreciate the support offered by both academic institutions as we work to foster a love of science, technology, engineering and math concepts.”

Awards list

Champions Award	Team Name
Champions Award 1st Place Champions Award 2nd Place Champions Award 3rd Place	Bayview Glen High Tech Comet Warriors

Playoff Award	High Tech
Gracious Professionalism Teamwork Inspiration	The Garment Grabbers GAB Legenz Robobic Quintet
Robot Performance Award	Maniacs mechanics
Strategy and Innovation	WASD
Programming	Sibling Rivalry
Mechanical Design	Intelligent Robo
Presentation	Sixers
Innovative Solution	Richland Huskies
Research	UTS FOREV3R
Judges Award	Les Popcorns!
Rising Star Award	Adam Beck Quark

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information about FLL, please visit http://www.firstroboticscanada.org/.