Superb performances at the KNAPP RoboLeague 2018

When you hear “Follow the line”, “Find the brick” or “Don’t touch anything”, it must be time for the KNAPP RoboLeague again. For the second time, the competition for pupils in years 1 to 4 from new and general secondary schools was a huge success. The host was KNAPP Industry Solutions in Dobl, where the pupils solved tricky tasks with Lego robots they had built themselves. The preparation time, teamwork as well as all the puzzling over the task certainly paid off; from the four entrants, three teams of pupils that made the top three places were awarded prizes for their superb performances. The winning teams came from the BRG Kepler and BRG Kepler/GIPS schools.

KNAPP played host to the RoboLeague for the second time. The robotics competition for pupils from new and general secondary schools offers young people the perfect opportunity to prepare for robotics competitions such as the RoboCup Junior. BRG Kepler developed the competition as part of the Kepler robotics project. In KNAPP they found an enthusiastic partner for running the competition.

Six schools and 18 teams

Immediately after last year’s première RoboLeague, efforts were made to raise the awareness of the competition. Schools in the surrounding area and across Styria were contacted and encouraged to participate. The positive response resulted in cooperations, in training sessions for teachers and last but not least, in more participants. Finally, six schools with 18 teams made up of 52 pupils took part in the RoboLeague 2018.

Wolfgang Skrabitz, Managing Director of KNAPP Industry Solutions is delighted at the fantastic development of the competition. “As a specialist in the area of robotics and automation, the event is one of the year’s highlights for KNAPP. We’re thrilled that six schools took part in the competition this time around. It shows how much interest and excitement there is among youngsters for new technologies such as robots. The technical aspects – mechanics, electrics and programming – are combined in robotics and worked on by the teams during the competition. Special thanks go to the parents and teachers who have provided their children with a chance to get to know the technologies of the future in a playful way.”

The competition

The pupils could register for up to four competitions with the robots they had built during class and which had to comply with certain criteria. In the “Follow the line” competition, the robots navigate a line in the competition arena to a target – trying not to go off course. Then there was “Find the brick”, where the robots had to find clay bricks set up in the competition field, travel to them, touch them and then emit either an acoustic or optical signal to confirm finding the brick. In “Don’t touch anything”, the robot travels as far as possible in the competition field without touching either the edges or any obstacles. Finally, there was “Leave the labyrinth” in which the pupils had to navigate the robots as quickly as possible (and independently) through a labyrinth. The participating pupils had one hour to prepare and put the finishing touches to their robots. Following the competition, a celebration was held in the new company cafeteria in Dobl.

KNAPP RoboLeague 2019

When one competition ends, preparation for the next begins! Planning has already begun for the KNAPP RoboLeague 2019. The aim is to encourage even more pupils to take part in the competition and to promote the field of robotics in schools. The invitation to the competition will be issued in the autumn to provide teachers and pupils sufficient time to prepare. If required, training sessions for teachers will also start in the autumn to teach them more on building robots using LEGO® Mindstorms NXT or an EV3 basic set and programming using a code-based programming language. If you are interested or would like more information on the RoboLeague 2019, feel free to get in touch with us at kin.office@knapp.com.

About KNAPP Industry Solutions

KNAPP Industry Solutions is the specialist within the KNAPP group for tailor-made solutions for industry, manufacturing and distribution logistics. With scalable shuttle solutions, new technologies are available from the company that offer the industrial sector new possibilities in terms of flexibility and availability.

About the KNAPP Group

KNAPP AG, headquartered in Hart bei Graz, is a leading global provider of complete intralogistics solutions and automated storage systems, and has specialized in the core sectors pharma, fashion, retail, food retail and industry. With more than 35 sites and an export rate of 98 %, KNAPP serves customers around the world. KNAPP invests around 30 million euros in research and development. KNAPP has repeatedly put its stamp on the intralogistics sector thanks to its eye for trends and new market requirements combined with its innovative solutions.