Last updated on April 30th, 2025 at 02:21 pm
One way to describe it might be a real-life video game — and then some.
When students, typically ages 14 to 18, take on a FIRST Robotics Competition, they are doing more than maneuvering a machine through a challenge. They’re developing problem-solving and critical-thinking skills as they design and build the robot, then testing their teamwork and decision-making abilities during the competition.
On top of the rigors of the contest, participants build real-world expertise in electronics, systems design, engineering and pneumatics — all highly sought-after skills in the manufacturing sector, especially as more companies adopt AI-based techniques.
That’s why Georgia Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing (Georgia AIM) supports robotics teams across Middle Georgia: These students are gaining real-world skills that will strengthen the workforce of tomorrow.
The teams, sponsored through the 21st Century Partnership’s Middle Georgia STEM Alliance program, compete in the FIRST Robotics Competition. This global network connects high school teams through a series of regional contests, leading to district, state and national championships.
About the Robots
Each robotics season begins in January, when teams receive their kits and detailed rules for how their robot must perform. From there, they have six weeks to prototype, design and build a robot to complete that season’s game tasks.
“It’s like with NASCAR, where they get a base car and they fine-tune it,” said Henry Blankenship, a senior at Houston County High School and a robotics team member. “You get a kit of parts that includes the tank-drive chassis, but a lot of teams use swerve drive, which has a lot of maneuverability. Then everything else you build on top of the drive base is stuff you’ve got to build from scratch.”
Robots have size limits — no larger than 28 inches by 38 inches in width and 5 feet in height — and typically weigh 120 pounds or less. They include gears, motors, pneumatics and electronics attached to a metal frame, often powered by a drive train to control the wheels. Robots can travel about 8 mph.
Georgia AIM funding helps teams purchase the base model, and teams customize from there.
Each season features specific goals that robots must complete to earn points. For example, a game might involve balls, cubes, rings, or hanging structures — all manipulated by the robot to score.
About the Competitions
As with most games, scoring points is key. At FIRST Robotics Competitions, teams remotely control their robots around a course, navigating tasks such as tossing a ball through a hoop or placing a ring on a stand. Many games also require interaction between the robot and human players — for instance, feeding them game props or launching an object to hit a target.
The competition itself is fast-paced. Six robots at a time face off in a space roughly the size of a basketball court, filled with obstacles. There’s cheering from the stands, rapid communication among team members and plenty of tension when something breaks or malfunctions.
It’s organized chaos — and that’s what makes a robotics competition even more compelling than a video game. It also gives students a head start on careers in engineering, manufacturing, and technology.
Or, they can take these skills and apply them in another direction. Many are transferrable, as Veterans High School junior Andrew Gallagher has realized.
For me, I like taking what I’ve learned in robotics and using it in other configurations,” he said. “For example, I do marching band as well, and we have instruments break, or other things break. And because of robotics, I’ve been able to come up with quick fixes or quick solutions and incorporate them into other things that aren’t just robotics.”