FTC stands for First Tech Challenge in which students are given the task to build a robot which must complete a certain set of functions based on the game that season. In this competition students learn the different functions of a robot and gain the ability to code robots. Students will be able to interact with others that share the same passion for design and building.
Judging
A big part of FTC is the judging. As well as your performance in the game itself you will be graded on how well your team presents themselves. To do this FTC requires every team to create a video and engineering portfolio. Your engineering portfolio should be less than 15 pages. It should include things like who your team is, sponsors, outreach, how your team works together, game strategy, and how your robot works. These things should be presented in a way that judges can read and understand the planning of a team and everything related to them. On the other hand, the video can be about any part of your robot and/or what your team did. You have the freedom to choose. What we recommend is that you make the video as informative as possible, including everything from outreach to your robot. The video is also an opportunity to include media as evidence of what your team had been doing. Recording videos and taking photos of the work you do throughout the time it takes you to do that work is helpful.
Building a robot is a no easy task. It requires planning beforehand, organization, and the dedication and passion to complete the task. Using the design process makes it easier to build the robot. The first step is to define the problem. In FTC this means to recognize what the game is and what the challenges will be. Find the criteria and constraints, look at the rules, and research the different ways to score points in the game. Second, is to generate concepts which in short is to come up with ideas that meet the constraint and criteria set by your team and the game. Next, comes developing a solution to the problem, or in this case design a robot that meets the criteria and constraints of the game and will be able to function well in game. Then you must construct and test the robot to see if it works. To make sure it works you have to evaluate the solution which means you should be checking that the programs works correctly, no screw are loose, etc. Finally, once your robot is done, you can bring it to the game and have the fun you've been working towards.
Outreach
Outreach is what your team does to reach out to your local community in some way related to STEM. It can be from donating money to other local teams to going to an elementary school and showcasing your robot. Your outreach should help raise awareness of FIRST programs.