FIRST Lego League
Encyclopedia
The FIRST® LEGO® League (also known by the acronym FLL) is an international competition organized by FIRST
for elementary and middle school students (ages 9–14 in the USA and Canada
, 9–16 elsewhere).
In September each year, a new challenge is announced that focuses on a different real-world topic related to the sciences. Each challenge within the competition then revolves around that theme. The robotics part of the competition revolves around designing and programming LEGO Robots
to complete tasks. The students work out solutions to the various problems they are given and then meet for regional tournaments to share their knowledge, compare ideas, and display their robots.
FIRST LEGO League is a partnership between FIRST
and the LEGO Group
. It also has a scaled-down robotics program for children ages 6–9 called Junior FIRST LEGO League
.
and completes missions on a mat or board (where the missions are set up). The robot then has two and a half minutes to complete those missions. Two members of the team are allowed at the board during a match; however, they can switch out if needed. In the case of a serious problem, such as the entire robot breaking down, the entire team is allowed at the board for as long as the problem persists. Only one robot is allowed per team at the table; otherwise the team is disqualified. Members are not permitted to bring board items from other practice tables to the board during competition.
The robot starts in an area marked as 'base'. This is a white area in the corner or to one side of the table. In base, the team members are allowed to touch the robot and start programs. If the team touches the robot while it is outside of base (a 'rescue' or 'retrieve'), the touch penalty objects are removed from play. These are mission models that are worth points without manipulation, providing an incentive to not rescue the robot. The robot is not required to return to base; some teams have completed all their missions without returning to base during the time allowed to complete the missions. In fact, in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 challenges, points were awarded if the robot was in one of two specified areas, not including base, at the end of the two and a half minute match.
FIRST LEGO League teams use LEGO Mindstorms
kits to construct their robots. The robots are programmed using one of two graphical based programming languages: NXT-G, the programming software that comes with the current kit, or Robolab, a software language built around Labview
. Each robot is only allowed to use up to four sensors total (which ones and how many depend on the year) and up to 3 motors.
Due to the large number of perfect scores in the 2007-08 season, the level of difficulty increased dramatically for the 2008-09 season. There were still a few perfect scores, so the difficulty was once again drastically increased for the 2009-10 season, in which navigation was made tough by forcing sharp twists and turns, as well as obstacles and straight driving, something that is surprisingly hard.
.
regionals. In the 2006–07 season, nearly 90,000 students on 8,846 teams from around the world competed. Each team has to compete in a local/regional qualifying tournament before advancing to the state/provincial tournaments.
The largest single-day regional qualifying tournament is hosted by First State Robotics and First State FIRST LEGO League in Wilmington, Delaware
. Taking place every January, this event holds Junior FIRST LEGO League
(Jr.FLL; grades K-3), FIRST LEGO League (FLL; grades 4–8), FIRST Tech Challenge
(FTC; grades 9–12), FIRST Robotics Competition
(FRC; grades 9–12), and robot sumo competitions under one roof at the University of Delaware's Bob Carpenter Center. Teams from Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland (among other regions) attend this tournament to make it the largest single-day FIRST event in the world.
The first place Champions Award winners from each state/provincial tournament (only if that state/provincial tournament has won the lottery to send teams) is then invited to the FLL World Festival. In 2007, 96 teams competed in the FLL World Festival in Atlanta, Georgia
on April, 27th–30th. The 2007–08 Power Puzzle FLL World Festival and the 2008–09 FLL World Festival on Climate Connections were held again in the Georgia Dome
and Georgia World Congress Center
. Starting with the 2010-11, FLL World Festival is held at the Edward Jones Dome
and America's Center
in St. Louis.
Additionally, the Champions Award winners from each state/provincial tournament may participate in one of the Open Championships
which are organized by FLL Partners. The eligibility criteria may differ.
FLL Core Awards (potentially 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place for each, based on tournament size)
Optional Awards
Special Recognition Awards
Additionally, some tournaments may offer additional awards that are not specified by FIRST. These can include:
The original robotics kit used by FLL was the RCX
Mindstorms kit, which LEGO no longer sells to the general public. In August 2006, LEGO released a new Mindstorms kit called the NXT
. In 2006 and 2007, teams using the RCX could earn "fairness bonus" points based on the fact that the RCX was less technologically advanced. However, the "fairness bonus" was discontinued for the 2008-09 season because tournament experience proved that the RCX teams were competitive and did not need it.
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one.First or 1st may also refer to:* First , minor summit below the Schwarzhorn in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland* First , mountain in Bernese Alps in Switzerland...
for elementary and middle school students (ages 9–14 in the USA and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, 9–16 elsewhere).
In September each year, a new challenge is announced that focuses on a different real-world topic related to the sciences. Each challenge within the competition then revolves around that theme. The robotics part of the competition revolves around designing and programming LEGO Robots
Lego Mindstorms NXT
Lego Mindstorms NXT is a programmable robotics kit released by Lego in late July 2006.It replaced the first-generation Lego Mindstorms kit, which was called the Robotics Invention System. The base kit ships in two versions: the Retail Version and the Education Base Set . It comes with the NXT-G...
to complete tasks. The students work out solutions to the various problems they are given and then meet for regional tournaments to share their knowledge, compare ideas, and display their robots.
FIRST LEGO League is a partnership between FIRST
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one.First or 1st may also refer to:* First , minor summit below the Schwarzhorn in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland* First , mountain in Bernese Alps in Switzerland...
and the LEGO Group
Lego Group
The LEGO Group is a family-owned company based in Billund, Denmark, and best known for the manufacture of Lego-brand toys.The company was founded in 1932 by Ole Kirk Christiansen...
. It also has a scaled-down robotics program for children ages 6–9 called Junior FIRST LEGO League
Junior FIRST Lego League
Junior FIRST LEGO League is a non-competitive robotics program designed for children ages six to nine. It is one of the programs established by FIRST.Jr.FLL follows the same topics given to FIRST LEGO League...
.
Competition details
There are four main sections of the competition. Firstly, in the teamwork activity, students are interviewed by a panel of judges or participate in a teamwork exercise. Secondly, in the technical presentation, the students must demonstrate that the robot they built is designed appropriately for the tasks given (effective design, use of sensors, etc.). Thirdly, in the research project, the students must do a research project and give a short presentation to a panel of judges on the investigative problem-solving they completed. Finally, the students must use the robots they designed and built to autonomously complete a set of tasks on a playing field.Table performance
The robots made by the teams perform at this event. The robot is autonomousAutonomous robot
Autonomous robots are robots that can perform desired tasks in unstructured environments without continuous human guidance. Many kinds of robots have some degree of autonomy. Different robots can be autonomous in different ways...
and completes missions on a mat or board (where the missions are set up). The robot then has two and a half minutes to complete those missions. Two members of the team are allowed at the board during a match; however, they can switch out if needed. In the case of a serious problem, such as the entire robot breaking down, the entire team is allowed at the board for as long as the problem persists. Only one robot is allowed per team at the table; otherwise the team is disqualified. Members are not permitted to bring board items from other practice tables to the board during competition.
The robot starts in an area marked as 'base'. This is a white area in the corner or to one side of the table. In base, the team members are allowed to touch the robot and start programs. If the team touches the robot while it is outside of base (a 'rescue' or 'retrieve'), the touch penalty objects are removed from play. These are mission models that are worth points without manipulation, providing an incentive to not rescue the robot. The robot is not required to return to base; some teams have completed all their missions without returning to base during the time allowed to complete the missions. In fact, in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 challenges, points were awarded if the robot was in one of two specified areas, not including base, at the end of the two and a half minute match.
Lego Mindstorms
The LEGO Mindstorm series of kits contain software and hardware to create small, customizable and programmable robots. They include a programmable 'Brick' computer that controls the system, a set of modular sensors and motors, and LEGO parts from the Technics line to create the mechanical...
kits to construct their robots. The robots are programmed using one of two graphical based programming languages: NXT-G, the programming software that comes with the current kit, or Robolab, a software language built around Labview
LabVIEW
LabVIEW is a system design platform and development environment for a visual programming language from National Instruments. LabVIEW provides engineers and scientists with the tools needed to create and deploy measurement and control systems.The graphical language is named "G"...
. Each robot is only allowed to use up to four sensors total (which ones and how many depend on the year) and up to 3 motors.
Due to the large number of perfect scores in the 2007-08 season, the level of difficulty increased dramatically for the 2008-09 season. There were still a few perfect scores, so the difficulty was once again drastically increased for the 2009-10 season, in which navigation was made tough by forcing sharp twists and turns, as well as obstacles and straight driving, something that is surprisingly hard.
Technical interview
Each team has a timed interview (usually 5 to 10 minutes) with a team of judges to discuss the design and operation of their robot. Judges look for teams whose work stands out because of its innovation and/or navigational consistency. To assess innovation, the judges watch the robots work, looking for actions that impress them. They also interview team members to reveal the less obvious unique and inventive ideas. To assess navigational consistency, the judges interview the teams to learn what solid principles and best practices were used to reduce variability and errors.Project presentation
Prior to the competition, the teams complete research related to the topic of the year. For example, in 2007 the teams researched alternative energy, which included an energy audit on a building in their area and possible improvements to its existing systems. The teams then present this information during a timed presentation to the judges. This is followed up by a timed question and answer period (typically, these are 5 minutes each). The teams can use props in their presentation, such as models or PowerPointsMicrosoft PowerPoint
Microsoft PowerPoint, usually just called PowerPoint, is a non-free commercial presentation program developed by Microsoft. It is part of the Microsoft Office suite, and runs on Microsoft Windows and Apple's Mac OS X operating system...
.
Teamwork
Observation judges watch each team in action and also interview the team to discuss how the team functioned. Judges identify teams that best demonstrate enthusiasm, spirit, partnership, respect to their own teammates and others, and gracious professionalism.Events
Teams in different parts of the world have different times allotted to complete the construction of the robot, due to the varying date of qualifying tournaments. They go on to compete in FLL tournaments, similar to the FIRST Robotics CompetitionFIRST Robotics Competition
The FIRST Robotics Competition is an international high school robotics competition organized by FIRST. Each year, teams of high school students compete to build robots weighing up to , not including battery and bumpers, that can complete a task, which changes every year...
regionals. In the 2006–07 season, nearly 90,000 students on 8,846 teams from around the world competed. Each team has to compete in a local/regional qualifying tournament before advancing to the state/provincial tournaments.
The largest single-day regional qualifying tournament is hosted by First State Robotics and First State FIRST LEGO League in Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
. Taking place every January, this event holds Junior FIRST LEGO League
Junior FIRST Lego League
Junior FIRST LEGO League is a non-competitive robotics program designed for children ages six to nine. It is one of the programs established by FIRST.Jr.FLL follows the same topics given to FIRST LEGO League...
(Jr.FLL; grades K-3), FIRST LEGO League (FLL; grades 4–8), FIRST Tech Challenge
FIRST Tech Challenge
The FIRST Tech Challenge , formerly the FIRST Vex Challenge , is a mid-level robotics competition targeted toward high-school aged students. It offers the traditional challenge of a FIRST Robotics competition but with a more accessible and affordable robotics kit...
(FTC; grades 9–12), FIRST Robotics Competition
FIRST Robotics Competition
The FIRST Robotics Competition is an international high school robotics competition organized by FIRST. Each year, teams of high school students compete to build robots weighing up to , not including battery and bumpers, that can complete a task, which changes every year...
(FRC; grades 9–12), and robot sumo competitions under one roof at the University of Delaware's Bob Carpenter Center. Teams from Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland (among other regions) attend this tournament to make it the largest single-day FIRST event in the world.
The first place Champions Award winners from each state/provincial tournament (only if that state/provincial tournament has won the lottery to send teams) is then invited to the FLL World Festival. In 2007, 96 teams competed in the FLL World Festival in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
on April, 27th–30th. The 2007–08 Power Puzzle FLL World Festival and the 2008–09 FLL World Festival on Climate Connections were held again in the Georgia Dome
Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome is a domed stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west. It is primarily the home stadium for the NFL Atlanta Falcons and the NCAA Division I FCS Georgia State Panthers football team. It is owned and operated by the...
and Georgia World Congress Center
Georgia World Congress Center
The Georgia World Congress Center or GWCC is the major convention center in Atlanta. It is the fourth-largest convention center in the United States at 3.9 million ft2 and hosts more than a million visitors each year. At the time opened in 1976 the Georgia World Congress Center was the first state...
. Starting with the 2010-11, FLL World Festival is held at the Edward Jones Dome
Edward Jones Dome
The Edward Jones Dome The Edward Jones Dome The Edward Jones Dome (more formally known as the Edward Jones Dome at America's Center, and previously known as The Trans World Dome (from 1995–2001) is a multi-purpose stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, and home of the St. Louis Rams of the NFL. It was...
and America's Center
America's Center
America's Center is a convention center located in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, and is situated next to the Edward Jones Dome, the home of the National Football League's St. Louis Rams. The venue opened in 1977 as the Cervantes Convention Center, and has held major events over the years,...
in St. Louis.
Additionally, the Champions Award winners from each state/provincial tournament may participate in one of the Open Championships
FIRST LEGO League Open Championships
FIRST LEGO League Open Championships are robotics competitions held and managed by FIRST LEGO League Partners to bring FLL teams from many states, regions and countries together to complete in host cities around the world. These are the highest level of FLL competitions that are managed by...
which are organized by FLL Partners. The eligibility criteria may differ.
Awards
Awards are intended to be spread equitably among deserving teams. As such, teams are normally allowed to win only one core (judged) award. Teams can win an additional award based on their robot's performance during the robot game competition portion of the tournament. The following are FIRST's recommended awards:FLL Core Awards (potentially 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place for each, based on tournament size)
- Champion’s Award – this award is optional for qualifying tournaments
- Robot Design Award
- Robot Performance Award
- Project Award
- Teamwork Award
Optional Awards
- Against All Odds Award
- Rising Star Award
- Team Spirit Award
- Judges’ Award
- Local Awards (also see below)
Special Recognition Awards
- Outstanding Volunteer Award
- Adult Coach/Mentor Award
- Young Adult Mentor Award
Additionally, some tournaments may offer additional awards that are not specified by FIRST. These can include:
- Programming Award
- Innovative Design Award
- Research Quality Award
- Innovative Solution Award
- Creative Presentation Award
- Rookie-Team-of-the-Year Award
- Outstanding Costumes
- Good sportsmanship award
- IEEE award (money and only in some competitions)
Competition Themes
The challenges for FLL are based on several different themes:| Year | Theme | Number of Participants | Number of Teams | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | First Contact | 9,500 | 975 | It focused around a group of astronauts stranded in a space station; missions included pulling a lever to allow the astronauts into a chamber and delivering oxygen (foam balls) to different sections of the playing field. |
| 2000 | Volcanic Panic | 15,000 | 1,540 | In this challenge, robots had to complete challenges prior to the eruption of a volcano, such as rescuing a stranded scientist, barricading a village from lava rocks, deploying a gas sensor, and retrieving crates of samples, among other volcano-related tasks. |
| 2001 | Arctic Impact | 18,500 | 1,902 | Robots had to complete tasks on an Arctic themed board such as retrieving medicine barrels, and rescuing minifigure scientists from polar bears. |
| 2002 | City Sights | 27,009 | 3,001 | Robots completed tasks such as clearing rocks off a soccer field, harvesting and delivering food loops, collecting toxic barrels, activating a windmill, and other city-related tasks. |
| 2003 | Mission Mars Mission Mars Mission Mars was the 2003-04 challenge theme of FIRST Lego League. It revolved around the NASA missions to Mars with the Spirit and Opportunity rovers.-Project:... |
42,000 | 4,331 | Inspired by the year's Mars Rover mission, competing teams had to design and construct robots to solve a number of problems like removing rocks from a 'solar panel' to ensure a Mars base energy supply, collect 'soil/rock samples' from the Martian desert landscape, etc. |
| 2004 | No Limits No Limits (FIRST) No Limits is the 2004-05 FIRST Lego League challenge theme. It focused on solutions for aiding people with physical disabilities. The year's theme was introduced by the story Late for Lunch by James Patrick Kelly, which the described the life of a disabled child.-Project:Teams were tasked with... |
50,000 | 5,859 | Centered around various robotic assistant systems for disabled persons, robots demonstrate how the systems are (hopefully) able to solve the given problems in a satisfying way. |
| 2005 | Ocean Odyssey Ocean Odyssey (FIRST) Ocean Odyssey is the 2005-06 FIRST Lego League challenge theme. It centered on topics relating to the world's oceans and oceanography. The challenge was developed with the collaboration of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.-Project:Teams were... |
60,000 | 7,501 | Involved marine-themed tasks such as mapping a sunken ship, deploying a research submarine, and cleaning up a shipping spill. |
| 2006 | Nano Quest Nano Quest Nano Quest was name of the 2006-07 challenge theme of FIRST Lego League. It revolved around the emerging field of nanotechnology.-Project:Teams were tasked with identifying an application of nanotechnology, see where current research stands and creatively improve upon it... |
90,000 | 8,808 | The challenge is developing anything using nanotechnology Nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres... that improves or makes life easier from medicine to computers to the environment. |
| 2007 | Power Puzzle | 109,410 | 10,894 | The challenge is on alternative energy and features tasks such as moving power lines, fuel sources and planting trees. |
| 2008 | Climate Connections Climate Connections Climate Connections was the 2008-09 FIRST Lego League competition. Its theme was understanding of the effects of climate and climate change.-Project:... |
12,944 | The challenge focuses on the Earth's past, present, and future climate. Students must research a climate problem occurring in their area, find a solution, then share it. They also have to research another area which has the same problem as their area. Featured moving balls, bicycles, computers, setting up levees, etc. | |
| 2009 | Smart Move Smart Move (FIRST) Smart Move is the name of the 2009-10 FIRST Lego League challenge, released September 3, 2009. It is centered around transport and how to make new and more efficient forms.-Project:... |
14,725 | The challenge centers around efficient transportation and teams are to solve a particular problem with the mode of transportation that they have chosen. The robot game includes activating access markers, collecting loops, toggling a lever to move a truck, avoid warning beacons, parking at one of two specified locations, etc. | |
| 2010 | Body Forward Body Forward Body Forward is the 2010-11 FIRST Lego League competition. The project and missions revolve around biomedical engineering.-Project:Teams were tasked with identifying a problem that can occur in the human body and creating an inventive solution... |
16,762 | Explore the cutting-edge world of biomedical engineering to discover innovative ways to repair injuries, overcome genetic predispositions, and maximize the body's potential, with the intended purpose of leading happier and healthier lives. The robot game includes moving bionic eyes to the upper body, separating red and white blood cells, opening a door, and more. | |
| 2011 | Food Factor Food Factor Food Factor is the FIRST Lego League competition for 2011-12; released on September 2. It focuses on food safety and methods to prevent contamination.This is the first year that the name of the challenge theme of FLL is different from Jr.FLL... |
The 2011 challenge focused on improving the quality of food by finding ways to prevent food contamination. The missions included removing bacteria, delivering food, and refrigeration. |
Recent developments
Lego Mindstorms
The LEGO Mindstorm series of kits contain software and hardware to create small, customizable and programmable robots. They include a programmable 'Brick' computer that controls the system, a set of modular sensors and motors, and LEGO parts from the Technics line to create the mechanical...
Mindstorms kit, which LEGO no longer sells to the general public. In August 2006, LEGO released a new Mindstorms kit called the NXT
Lego Mindstorms NXT
Lego Mindstorms NXT is a programmable robotics kit released by Lego in late July 2006.It replaced the first-generation Lego Mindstorms kit, which was called the Robotics Invention System. The base kit ships in two versions: the Retail Version and the Education Base Set . It comes with the NXT-G...
. In 2006 and 2007, teams using the RCX could earn "fairness bonus" points based on the fact that the RCX was less technologically advanced. However, the "fairness bonus" was discontinued for the 2008-09 season because tournament experience proved that the RCX teams were competitive and did not need it.
See also
- FIRST LEGO League Open ChampionshipsFIRST LEGO League Open ChampionshipsFIRST LEGO League Open Championships are robotics competitions held and managed by FIRST LEGO League Partners to bring FLL teams from many states, regions and countries together to complete in host cities around the world. These are the highest level of FLL competitions that are managed by...
- Junior FIRST LEGO LeagueJunior FIRST Lego LeagueJunior FIRST LEGO League is a non-competitive robotics program designed for children ages six to nine. It is one of the programs established by FIRST.Jr.FLL follows the same topics given to FIRST LEGO League...
- RoboCup JuniorRoboCup JuniorRoboCup Junior is a division of RoboCup, a not-for-profit robotics organisation. It focuses on education and aims to introduce the larger goals of the RoboCup project to primary and secondary school aged children...
- Lego Robotics
- FIRST Tech ChallengeFIRST Tech ChallengeThe FIRST Tech Challenge , formerly the FIRST Vex Challenge , is a mid-level robotics competition targeted toward high-school aged students. It offers the traditional challenge of a FIRST Robotics competition but with a more accessible and affordable robotics kit...
- RobofestRobofestRobofest is a competition for 5-12 graders. It is similar to FIRST Lego League , but while FLL limits the student's robots to Lego Mindstorms robots, Robofest allows the student to use any robotics system in some of the events. Also, in FLL students are only allowed to use parts manufactured by...
- Adventist Robotics LeagueAdventist Robotics LeagueThe Adventist Robotics League is an operational partner of the FIRST Lego League serving the school and constituents of the Seventh-day Adventist school system and their constituents. The same rules are applied as in the FIRST Lego League. Due to the religious beliefs of the affiliated church the...