What is FIRST?

FIRST stands for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.” The goal of FIRST is to inspire today’s students to become the world’s next scientists, engineers, and technical leaders. FIRST does this by bring aspiring students together to compete in robotics competitions in an environment where communication, teamwork, and leadership are key for success. With the slogan “more than robots,” FIRST encourages not only technical pursuits, but teaches business, communication, volunteerism, and leadership.

Who does FIRST impact?

While FRC is for high school students, FIRST offers the following programs for all age groups.

  • FIRST Lego League: Ages 5-16
  • FIRST Tech Challenge: Ages 12-18
  • FIRST Robotics Competition: Ages 14-18
After students graduate, many come back to their home teams to mentor other students. For more information about FIRST and its mission visit the FIRST website.

How is Peachtree Ridge Robotics involved with FIRST?

The Robo Lions have competed in FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) as team 1261 since 2004, when the team was founded. In this time, we have won 5 regionals as well as a number of other awards. In addition to FRC, the team mentors FLL teams in elementary and middle schools around our school cluster. The team also attempts to spread the message of FIRST by hosting STEM nights at an elementary school level, and participating in events around the community such as parades and football games.

FRC

What is FRC?

FRC stands for FIRST Robotics Competition. It is a robotics competition for high school age students that aims to promote communication, leadership and teamwork. The Peachtree Ridge Robo Lions compete as FRC team 1261, and have done so since our beginnings in 2004.

How does it work?

The competition season begins in January with the FRC Kickoff, a live broadcast during which the game is released to teams around the world at the same time. Teams are introduced to that season’s game, including its objectives and scoring system. From that point forward, teams have approximately six weeks to design, build, program, and test their robot for competition. At the end of the build period, teams stop making major modifications and prepare their robot for competition. Following their district events, the most successful teams advance to the District Championship. Teams that qualify there move on to the FRC World Championship, an unforgettable experience for every student who has the privilege of attending.

Building the Robot

The six-week build season is rigorous and challenging. For the first few days, teams discuss strategy and possible robot designs. From there, prototyping begins, and within the first few weeks, construction of the competition robot is underway. Most teams aim to complete their robot before the end of the build season so they have adequate time to test and refine it. The build season is intense: students work almost every day – not just after school, but on weekends as well. Enormous effort and resources go into creating the best robot possible.

Districts

Georgia currently competes in the Peachtree District within FRC’s district system. Teams typically compete in two district events, where they earn points based on qualification match performance, alliance selection, elimination rounds, and judged awards. After district events conclude, teams are ranked by total district points. The top teams advance to the Peachtree District Championship. Teams that perform well at the District Championship qualify to compete at the FRC World Championship in Houston. District event locations vary from year to year but are hosted throughout Georgia.

At Competition

At district events, teams load into their “pit” on the first day of competition. The pit serves as a home base for the team, housing their robot and tools throughout the event.Teams begin by competing in qualification matches, where they are randomly assigned to alliances of three robots and score points together. Based on match performance, teams are ranked. At the end of qualification matches, alliance selection takes place. The top eight ranked teams each select two additional teams to form alliances for the double elimination rounds. During eliminations, alliances compete in quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals to determine the event champion.

Scouting

Because success in competition often depends on alliance selection, scouting (researching other teams and analyzing performance) is extremely important. The Robo Lions’ scouting team consists of two groups: a pit scouting team and a stands scouting team. The pit scouting team speaks with teams about their robots and builds relationships at competitions. The stands scouting team uses an app designed by our team to watch matches and record gameplay data, analyzing performance to identify teams whose strategies complement our own. Our scouting team also reviews publicly available team data before each competition. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any scouting inquiries.

GA FIRST

What is Georgia FIRST?

A branch of FIRST with a “Georgia first” mindset that leads students to pursue science and technology for their college degree and career. They promote FIRST’s values of Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition through the FIRST Lego League (FLL), FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC), and FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) in Georgia.