FIRST LEGO League Oregon Champs: Announcement 2 - What to Prepare

Greetings FIRST LEGO League Oregon Championship Teams,

In this post you will find:

1. Update on the team assignments (4 MORE teams needed to volunteer to move to Sunday)
2. Core Values Posters
3. Robot Design Executive Summary
4. Notes from Head Referee Tom Mosher
5. Payments - Due January 4

1) Update on the team assignments (4 MORE teams needed to volunteer to move to Sunday)

Team assignments will be posted on www.ortop.org (on the google spreadsheet) by 5pm on Friday. At this time, I still need 4 teams who requested Saturday to switch to Sunday. If I do not have any more volunteers teams will start to be contacted by email to be notified they are to have a switched day, even if that means their whole team will not be able to attend. Our tournaments must balance at 60 teams per event, with absolutely no wiggle room.

If your team requested Sunday, you can be very confident they will be competing on Sunday. Unless your team registered for Saturday by 5:05 pm on Tuesday, I can't guarantee anything at this time.

2) Core Values Posters

Core Values Posters are required for all teams at the Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Championship Tournament. Your team should create a poster that reflects the guidelines laid out on pages 4-5 of the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge Guide. These posters will be taken into the Core Values judging room and the team should be prepared to talk about them for no longer than 1 minute after the Core Values' Challenge Activity. 

3) Robot Design Executive Summary

Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Championship Tournament Robot Design Judges will expect your 10-minute interview to begin with a concise 1-minute Robot Design Executive Summary. For advice in crafting your 1-minute presentation please see page 25 of the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge Guide. Your presentation should naturally segue into the question and answer section of your team interview.

4) Notes from Head Referee Tom Mosher

Mission Notes:

1. Per R11, the Shark and Tank (M01) can only be loosely combined. For example, after the match if the ref gently shakes the Tank, the Shark should rattle around. R11 also applies to M10 with regard to the Bee model.
2. Teams who perform the Animal Conservation mission (M03) are expected to exhibit Gracious Professionalism and to not use a non-cooperative strategy. If a team uses a strategy that intentionally prevents the other team in the match from completing this mission, the referees may submit a Core Values Observation.
3. On the Panda slider model (M07), the location of the palm tree shown in the Challenge Guide (page 23) is incorrect. The palm tree will be positioned as shown in the kit Build Instructions (Bag 3, see page 1 and 31) - the palm tree will be placed and angled away from the red axle.

Variability:

The Refrigerator (from M04) is a good example of a model that can exhibit a lot of variability. For example, operating the Refrigerator by pushing on the plunger on the North side of the model may or may not result in the door re-closing as quickly as you expect. The behavior of the door is influenced by a lot of factors, including how far and how quickly the plunger is pushed and released. Robots that use a robust method will be rewarded with more consistent results.The refrigerator door is a very simple mechanism - so a model malfunction ruling is extremely unlikely.

Additionally, teams should expect similar mats to those they encountered at the Qualifying Tournaments. These mats are being stored in a rolled configuration to prevent ripping in storage and transit. The mats will be laid flat on Friday evening after the basketball game at Liberty High School, nothing will be added to the mats to help them flatten other than gravity and smoothing by hand; as per the setup directions in the 2016/2017 Robot Game Field Setup Guide.

Storage area at the competition tables:

Teams may either bring a small table or cart with them to the competition tables for their off-Field storage, or teams may use a 3rd team member to act as a table. The 3rd team member can only hold a container for the team - they cannot act as an additional Technicians. For safety reasons, nothing may be placed on the floor in the competition area.

Smartphones and Bluetooth:

Coaches and mentors are advised against smartphone and tablet use in the Pits, Practice Tables, and the Competition area. The use of smartphones by adults must be limited to such apps as running a stopwatch, taking pictures, or emergency communication. Specifically, the use of any bluetooth-enabled Mindstorms programming application is prohibited under the "no touch" rule, unless the team members are doing the work. Violating the no-touch rule may result in team disqualification.

"We do the work" and the no-touch rule:

The ORTOP "Core Values Observation Policy" includes the following statements (with some paraphrasing):

- We do the work with guidance from our coaches "We" here means the team members, not any adults or teen mentors.

- The team adults are to serve as mentors, not implementers

- Giving team verbal directives on programming and building, or during table competition, is a violation of the "no touch" rule.

- A single flagrant violation of the "no touch" rule - including programming the robot or giving direct instructions to the team during table competition - is basis for award demotion - including disqualification.

These guidelines apply not only at the tournament - they apply during all your team activities during the entire FIRST LEGO League season. 

5) Payments - Due January 4

Payments for the Championship were updated on the website yesterday. If your team does not have a green YES, you need to complete your team's tournament payment before January 4, 2017. Submit your payment by credit card, check, or purchase order from this website. 

Best Wishes,

Loridee