The robotics team from Glen Ames Senior Public School has qualified for the provincial championships.
Called Team X-Sighted DC, the group of 10 Grade 8 students from Glen Ames earned their ticket to the provincials at a qualifying competition held on Saturday, Dec. 14, in Whitby.
This marks the 10th straight year in a row that a Glen Ames robotics team has made it to the provincial championships in the FIRST Lego League (FLL).
The provincial championships are set for Saturday, Jan. 11, in Oshawa.
The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Lego League is an international alliance which challenges robotics students around the world to come up with solutions to real-world challenges. The theme for this year’s competition is City Shaper, and it asked students to help plan for the future of cities by creating “new, innovative solutions to help shape an optimal future, using our environment and modern-day tools and technology to make it last.”
The Glen Ames team members are Hayden H-C, Georgia B, Rachel S, Beck M, Xavier R-D, Zach W, Julia S, Anthony F, Elise D, and Luke J., and teacher-coach Luke Martin.
Team X-Sighted DC’s solution to the City Shaper challenge is Isight 360 which helps make navigating cities easier for people who are visually impaired.
The FLL judges teams on the technology behind their solution, their presentation and their teamwork.
As part of X-Sighted DC’s presentation, the students used their musical talents and also adopted roles of superheroes from the DC universe.
The Isight 360 contains a 360-degree camera, a speaker, a virtual reality headset, ultrasonic glasses and a “smart cane” that includes a touch sensor. In designing it, team members consulted with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind and tech company Slalom.
Companies supporting the Glen Ames team include Slalom, Eagle Beaver Sports and Acrylic Artisans.
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