Last week we briefly introduced the company VEX and its products. Today let's talk about its robotics competitions!
VEX competitions differ from LEGO's. Because of the LEGO platform's limitations, LEGO competitions mostly revolve around products like LEGO MINDSTORMS and WeDo.
As we mentioned last week, VEX products fall into three main categories covering low, mid, and high levels, so of course there are competitions at different levels too!
The robotics competitions run by VEX are the largest in the world and have the most participants worldwide, with students from elementary school through university. Every year, 24,000 teams from more than 60 countries take part. Through pre-competition preparation, live competition and exchange, process documentation, and showcasing results, the competitions greatly boost students' initiative in learning STEM, and the process of forming teams and working together builds their teamwork and leadership skills.
The competitions are divided into five categories based on product features. Here is a brief introduction:
VEX IQ Challenge: for elementary and middle school students, using VEX IQ equipment. The field is similar in size to WRO and FLL, with autonomous and driver-controlled modes, testing teamwork.
In addition, VEX IQ has become the designated platform for the Robotics event in the Juniors category of WorldSkills. So by using VEX IQ you also have a chance to compete in WorldSkills and represent Taiwan abroad as a national team member!
VEX Robotics Competition: for middle and high school students, using VEX EDR/V5 equipment. The field is larger, with autonomous and driver-controlled modes as well, testing teamwork. The competition format is close to FTC.
VEX U: for college and university students, using VEX EDR/V5 and the VEX PRO series. It's similar to VRC (VEX Robotics Competition) but harder, with two robots per team and more complex tasks.
VEX AI Competition: a new competition mode this season, using the same platform as VEX U together with the new VEX GPS, VEX AI, and VEX Link technologies. 4 robots, 2 minutes, 0 drivers, with the robots making and executing all decisions on their own. It suits high school or college students with a solid foundation. It's still in preparation and is expected to officially launch in the new season.
In Taiwan, the main events are currently the VEX IQ Challenge and the VEX Robotics Competition, and the much-anticipated VEX AI Competition will be held too! We hope everyone will join us in competing!
2019 VEX IQ Challenge in Taiwan
2019 VEX IQ Challenge in Taiwan
2019 VEX IQ Challenge in Taiwan