Students & Robots at Berkeley Get Ready for “Battle by the Bay” Robotics Competition

Berkeley students and their robots are practicing the “Clean Sweep” game in preparation for the first “Battle by the Bay” Robotics Competition this Saturday at Berkeley. Known as the Berkeley RoboBucs, more than a dozen ninth through 12th graders are participating in the tournament, which takes place on February 20, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Berkeley. The event is open to the public, and admission is free.

More than 15 robotics teams from different schools throughout Florida will compete in the Battle by the Bay tournament in hopes of qualifying for the VEX Robotics World Championships taking place this April in Dallas, Texas. VEX Robotics includes more than 2300 teams from around the world, and approximately 300 teams will ultimately qualify to compete in the World Championships this spring.

To win the game of Clean Sweep, student-operated robots are placed on a large, square field. The object of the game is to attain a higher score than your opponent's alliance by making your robot move as many balls as possible onto the other side of the field and by "locking up" small balls in the triangular goals. A Clean Sweep game animation video can be viewed at http://www.vexforum.com/wiki/index.php/Clean_Sweep. We hope to see you on February 20!