TETRIX Robotics is a robotic kit

Robot kit

A robot kit is a special construction kit for building robots, especially autonomous mobile robots.Toy robot kits are also supplied by several companies...

 by Pitsco, Inc., intended for educational purposes and the 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...

.

Building system

The main structural TETRIX pieces are aluminum channel with a trademarked hole pattern that enables connections at multiples of 45°. The pieces are attached using bolt

Screw

A screw, or bolt, is a type of fastener characterized by a helical ridge, known as an external thread or just thread, wrapped around a cylinder. Some screw threads are designed to mate with a complementary thread, known as an internal thread, often in the form of a nut or an object that has the...

s. Other building elements include gears, wheels, motors and servo

Servomechanism

thumb|right|200px|Industrial servomotorThe grey/green cylinder is the [[Brush |brush-type]] [[DC motor]]. The black section at the bottom contains the [[Epicyclic gearing|planetary]] [[Reduction drive|reduction gear]], and the black object on top of the motor is the optical [[rotary encoder]] for...

s.

TETRIX can interface with the Lego Mindstorms 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...

 kit to allow the NXT intelligent brick to control TETRIX motors and servos. The connection is not just mechatronic, but also organizational: in the USA, LEGO Education North America is a joint venture between Pitsco, Inc. and the educational division of the LEGO Group.

Uses

FIRST Tech Challenge robots are built using the TETRIX building system and controlled by Lego Mindstorms NXT. For the 2011 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...

season, the 'minibots' were constructed using TETRIX and other materials.