The EPSRC UK Robotics and Autonomous Techniques (UK-RAS) Community is happy to announce the official launch of its 2023 competitions, inviting the UK’s major schoolchildren to share their inventive robotic designs and imaginative tales with a panel of specialists, for an opportunity to win some distinctive prizes. These annual competitions, which have proved massively in style with budding authors and illustrators nationwide, at the moment are returning for the fourth yr.

The “Draw A Robotic” competitors challenges kids in Key Stage 1 (aged 5-7 years previous) to design a robotic that they’d wish to see sooner or later. Youngsters can use whichever drawing supplies they like — paper, pens, pencils, paints, crayons, and even pure supplies — to create their splendid robotic design, and the robotic might be designed to carry out any activity or job. Competitors contributors will have the ability to clarify their robotic’s features by labelling devices and options on the drawing and writing a brief design spec.

For the “As soon as Upon A Robotic” writing competitors, Key Stage 2 kids (aged 7-11 years previous), are invited to put in writing an imaginative brief story that includes any form of robotic – or robots – their creativeness can conjure! Youngsters may have as much as 800 phrases to inform their inventive robotic tales they usually can select any literary style they like. It might be a spine-tingling horror, an action-packed journey, or perhaps a light-hearted comedy.

ZOOG by Matilde Facchini, age 7 (Draw a Robotic 2022 Winner)

Plan-o-bot by Tehmina Walker, age 6 (Draw a Robotic 2021 Winner)

The 2 competitions can be judged by robotics specialists from the organising ESPRC UK-RAS Community, plus two very particular invited judges. The writing competitors can be judged this yr by award-winning creator Sharna Jackson, whose inspiring and mystifying books embrace Excessive-Rise Thriller and The Good Flip. The drawing competitors can be judged by internationally acclaimed Anglo/American creator, illustrator and artist Ted Dewan, creator of the Emmy-Award-winning animated tv collection Bing.

This yr’s unique prize packages embrace:

Draw A Robotic Competitors winner

• Thames & Kosmos Coding and Robotics equipment – contributed by competitors companion the College of Sheffield Superior Manufacturing Analysis Centre (AMRC)
• A tour of the AMRC’s Manufacturing unit 2050 in Sheffield, the UK’s first state-of-the-art manufacturing unit devoted to conducting collaborative analysis into reconfigurable digitally assisted meeting, part manufacturing and machining applied sciences
• A replica of the e-book “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”, signed by competitors decide Ted Dewan

Draw A Robotic Competitors runner-up

• 4M Inexperienced Science Photo voltaic Hybrid Energy Aqua Robotic – contributed by competitors companion the UKRI Belief Worthy Autonomous Techniques (TAS) hub
• A replica of the e-book “Prime Secret”, signed by competitors decide Ted Dewan

As soon as Upon A Robotic Competitors winner

• Lego Mindstorms Robotic Inventor equipment – contributed by competitors companion Birmingham Excessive Robotics Lab
• A tour of the Excessive Robotics Lab in Birmingham and a robotics masterclass from RobotCoders for the winner and a good friend
• Printed copy of the successful story with bespoke illustrations by illustrator and science communicator Hana Ayoob
• A replica of the books “The Good Flip” and “Black Artists Shaping the World”, signed by competitors decide Sharna Jackson

As soon as Upon A Robotic Competitors runner-up

• Maqueen Lite – micro:bit – contributed by competitors companion The Nationwide Robotarium
• A replica of the e-book “Excessive-Rise Thriller”, signed by competitors decide Sharna Jackson

For extra data, particulars of prizes, judging standards and to submit an entry, please go to https://www.ukras.org.uk/school-robot-competition/.

Each competitions are open for entry from the tenth January and can shut for submissions on the twenty third April. The winners can be introduced at a particular digital award ceremony on account of be held on twenty second June 2023.

EPSRC UK-RAS Community Chair Prof. Robert Richardson says: “We’re completely delighted to be launching these two unbelievable competitions for major schoolchildren for the fourth yr working, which provide the subsequent technology a inventive solution to have interaction with the thrilling world of robotics and automation. We are able to’t wait to see the creativeness and ingenuity that the nation’s younger authors and artists convey to those challenges, and we stay up for the very pleasing activity of judging this yr’s entries.”

The 2 inventive competitions for younger kids have been first launched in 2020 for UK Robotics Week, now the UK Competition of Robotics – a 7-day celebration of robotics and clever methods held on the finish of June. This annual celebration is hosted by the EPSRC UK Robotics and Autonomous Techniques (UK-RAS) Community, which gives tutorial management in robotics and coordinates actions at 35 companion universities throughout the UK.

tags: c-Occasions, Competitors-Problem