Regional robotics contest in Batavia

How are Legos going to solve the world's transportation problems?

More than 160 children competing in a regional level of the FIRST Lego League "Smart Move" robotics contest Saturday in Batavia are working on the answer.

The contest, which features teams from 23 schools, is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Rotolo Middle School, 1501 S. Raddant Road, Batavia.

Admission is free, and spectators are welcome.

"It's really kind of neat," Batavia coach Ron Karbarowicz said. "It's a very big day."

Students age 9 to 14 have built microprocessor-controlled robots out of Lego parts this fall, and the robots have been assigned tasks.

Batavia Robotics, which formed eight years ago, is the host, and has three teams in the meet.

It is actually a double regional, so six teams will move on to state competition in January. There are 18 regionals.

The teams will put robots, some up to 16 inches tall, through their paces on a 4-by-8-foot table. They will not be allowed to touch the robot once it leaves its base to start a task, but can return it to the base for adjustments. The tasks include knocking four markers off the table - while avoiding eight warning beacons - and traversing a narrow bridge with no side railings.

Between players, coaches, parents and spectators, more than 350 people are expected to attend, Karbarowicz said.

"So it will be quite an event," he said.

The teams are judged on how successfully the robots complete the tasks in 21/2 minutes, plus reviews of their technology, project design and teamwork. They were to consider modes of transportation, and how they could be streamlined to move people, places, goods and services in the safest, most efficient way.

The aim is to increase children's appreciation for, and interest in, science and technology.

FIRST Lego League was founded by Dean Kamen, an inventor who came up with the Segway. FIRST stands for For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.