Pennsylvania FTC Championship Tournament

The Judges Award is given at the discretion of the judges to a team they have encountered whose unique efforts, performance or dynamics merit recognition, yet the team does not fit into any of the existing award categories. Here is what the judges had to say:

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team knows how to make the most with what they have. They came here with minimum parts, but with big hearts. Their competitive spirit really showed today. The Rocky Award goes to team 5506, the RoboOwls!

The Compass Award recognizes an adult coach or mentor who provided outstanding guidance and support for an FTC Team throughout the year. The winner of the Compass Award is determined from candidates nominated by FTC Team members, via a 40-60 second video submission, highlighting how their mentor has helped them become an outstanding Team.

The Promote Award is given to the Team that is most successful in creating a compelling message for the public designed to change our culture and celebrate science, technology, engineering and math. The FTC Public Service Announcement Video was evaluated by the Judges to determine the winner of this Award. Teams must present a thoughtful and high-quality video which appeals to the general public.

The Control Award celebrates a team that uses sensors and software to enhance the robot’s functionality on the field. This award is given to the team that demonstrates innovative thinking in the control system to solve game challenges such as autonomous operation, enhancing mechanical systems with intelligent control, or using sensors to achieve better results on the field. The control component should work consistently on the field. The team’s Engineering Notebook should contain details about the implementation of the software, sensors, and mechanical control.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team come onto the field with a plan. Their autonomous mode consistently knocked down the kcickstand and scored balls in the high goal. Their use of sensors in both autonomous and tele-operated modes left the judges wide-eyed and bushy tailed.

The Motivate Award recognizes outstanding team spirit shown though costumes and outfits, team support, and other methods of standing out and raising attention. Teams that reach out to their schools and community to raise awareness of FIRST and their FTC efforts have done so in a variety of cool and inventive methods - this winner is no exception.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team has a united spirit that goes from the seniors to the new members. Team enthusiasm is consistant throughout the ranks and permeates to the outside world. These dragons bring their fire to FIRST.

The Connect Award is a bit different than the Motivate Award. Winners of the Connect Award have done a great deal of community outreach not only to spread the word about FIRST but specifically to include engineers, scientists, and other technology professionals into their outreach efforts. This creates connections between teams, FIRST, and the professional world that can last years beyond their participation in FTC. Connect Award winners also develop and execute plans to fund their team including clear goals and objectives - including how they can give back to their community in the future.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team has a shining vision for their future. They mentor FLL teams to championships and volunteer at many events. Reaching out to other volunteers snagged them a mentor. Judges call them Teal Team 6. There is no Rhyme nor Reason not to give the Connect Award to team 8528, Rhyme Know Reason!

The Rockwell Collins Innovate Award is robot specific. It celebrates teams who come up with innovate solutions to the Game Challenge that most others have overlooked. These solutions can't just look good - they've got to work... at least most of the time. Historically, some of the most innovative breakthroughs in science and technology have come when fresh thinking is applied to a known problem. This year's Rockwell Collins Innovate Award winners demonstrated that type of thinking.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team CAD'd and 3D printed their parts, giving everything a proper place. Using modular design, their robot's pieces quickly come together. With motors smoking, they raced around, elevating themselves to the top of the field, quickly reaching their goal.

The intent of the PTC Design Award is to expand the challenge, inspiring teams to incorporate industrial design into their robots. These elements can be shown in the simplicity of the design as it applies to the tasks, the look and feel of the robot, and how the design allows us to think of robots in new ways. The Design aspects must serve a function - but they should also differentiate the robot in a unique fashion - not an easy task with a limited set of parts and game challenge.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team with their strong, robust design stands out from the others. There was a solid connection between their designs in the notebook, the CAD program, and the results on the field. With their mecanum wheels offering great manuverability, along with its smooth rising ball collector, they made the competition green with envy and "moed' through the other designs.

Every team at this event has had to think - hopefully a lot. The Think Award recognizes the team that has successfully thought, organized, and documented their journey from their starting point to their final design. The engineering notebook is the record of this journey. Just like in real life, teams that can document their process have the best chance at learning from it and improving on it.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

Their GUI provided great clarity and made it easy for the judges to understand their team's journey. With their experience, they could instruct the rest of us in the value of the tiny details. These innovative teachers have used their engineering notebook to document their robot and FIRST connections down to smallest detail.

The Inspire Award is the highest award given by FTC. The winner of the Inspire Award is automatically eligible for advancement to the next tournament level. The Inspire Award winner is the 'prototype' for what we'd like to see all teams achieve as part of the FIRST Tech Challenge. They do many of the things mentioned in the other awards. The difference is that they've tied these together in a comprehensive manner resulting in success in the competition, outreach to the community, robot design, team spirit, and engineering accomplishment. That's a tall order but we've got some great candidates for this award today.

Here is what the judges had to say about the winner:

This team truly represents the total package of FTC. In FIRST, they can often be found giving advice to other teams and helping write code. Whether they are building an app or a robot, nobody is calling the ambulance on this team for thinking outside the box.