Robots, one of the most talked-about disruptive innovations, are forecast to coexist with human society and transform our way of living soon – thanks to the recent robotic revolution.
The incorporation of AI and complex locomotion with advanced robotics is making youths fascinated by these automated machines and opening up new doors of opportunities for them. The result is, more and more robotic competitions are held to encourage students to hone their thought processes and design and build as functioning robots as they can.
Vex Robotics has always been at the forefront of international robotics competitions, aiming to encourage the little learners of today to become diligent researchers, roboticists, and complex problem-solvers of tomorrow.
But what is a VEX Robot, and how is VEX robotic education contributing to making the world fast-moving? To learn more, read on.
What is Vex Robotics?
Presented and organised by the REC Foundation (Robotics Education and Competition), Vex Robotics is one of the world’s leading distributors of academic and competitive robotics goods to robotic groups, schools, and universities.
The Vex Robotics Competition is the world’s biggest robotics tournament focusing on the middle and high school contestants, where 20,000+ groups from around 50 countries play in more than 1,700 contests. Every year, this thrill-filled game-based engineering challenge is held.
Students from schools to universities, with assistance from their educators, strategise, program, and make innovative automated robotic machines and compete all year round.
VEX Robotics Competition Leagues
Based on skills and age group, competitors can be categorised into three distinct leagues:
VEX V5
Replacing the VEX EDR in 2019, VEX V5 is VEX’s STEM-focused 5th generation of educational robotics system specified for middle school and high school competitors and aims to invigorate little learners with a fondness for robotics. The groups that fall into this league get the chance to take part in the VRC tournament held each year. The VRC event theme for the year 2021-2022 is Tipping Point, having the identical game, regulations, and rules for students of middle and high school competitors.
The VRC uses the VEX V5 system bundle as a standard for robotic software, hardware, and firmware compatibility. While the bundle contains all essential and adaptable components to make robotics more approachable for beginners, it also ensures unlimited design opportunities for expert future roboticists. The contending groups should employ the VEX V5 system to build robotic machines to participate in the VRC.
VEX IQ
VEX IQ league is specified for middle school and elementary school teams. They participate in VIQC (Vex IQ Challenge) – an open-ended research and robotics tournament organised each year.
The VEX IQ Challenge for the 2021-2022 session is Pitching in, an arrangement of a 6’ x 8’ configurable table field game where two robots that play in an alliance participate in Teamwork Challenge, compete for 1-minute, and aim to earn more points. Groups will also participate in the Robot Skills Challenge that will incorporate Driving Skills Matches – solely coding skill-based driver control rounds where a single autonomous robotic machine with some degree of human-like interaction capabilities will play in the field and score points.
VEX AI
It is a more advanced robotics contest devised for university and high-school robot teams. The groups can participate in the VAIC (VEX AI Competition) and take their automated robotic machines a level up!
A new robotic challenge distinct for each league is assigned each year at the regional, state, and national levels and each participating group has to program, design, and make a functioning robot at their best. The competing groups that would unfailingly exhibit outstanding mastery in the above-specified skill sets will gradually advance to the VEX Robotics World Championship arranged in April each year.
Best Programming Language for Vex IQ Robotics?
For VEX IQ robotics, the participants have a handful of programming languages to choose from:
- VEXcode VR: Built on the universal programming system VEXcode, VEXcode VR is a custom-developed Text-based Python interface or Scratch Blocks-driven block-based FREE programming tool that helps mentors engage students in STEM education while making them feel excited about robotic innovations. Now robot enthusiasts from all over the world can program their fully-functional pre-built virtual robots without really owning the machines and physically working on them. Thanks to VEXcode VR, a web-based programming tool that features a virtual 3D playground and data visualisation dashboard among many, runs just perfectly on almost all web browsers and requires no software installation.
- ModKit: ModKit is another state-of-the-art drag and drop event-based block coding platform specialised for programming Vex IQ robots. While having advanced features for pro programmers, this web-based coding tool is also effortless and approachable for little roboticists, designers, and even non-technical students – it supports easy drag and drop of code blocks to use in their workplaces. But configuring Modkit may seem a bit difficult for some users.
- ROBOTC: Are you searching for a state-of-the-art high-level coding environment to program VEX Robotics (VEX IQ and VEX Cortex EDR) without breaking your bank? ROBOTC for VEX Robotics 4.x can be your ultimate choice. Some of its top-notch features are:
- Supports all the latest Graphical Natural Language libraries. Programming fully-functional VEX Cortex and VEX IQ machines have become effortless like never before!
- The new Natural Language 2.0 editor supported by the newly released ROBOTC 2.29 version for Cortex enables users to customise and employ their own configurations and designs with ROBOTC’s latest GUI (Graphical Interface).
- Once you are licensed for VEX Robot Virtual Worlds simulator for VEX robots, you can use it and prototype your ROBOTC codes for simulation.
Use ROBOTC’s 200+ Sample Programs with comprehensive documentation, hone your programming skills, and get started with robotics right away.
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