Beeping and buzzing robotics competition comes to Central Jersey

• From March 17 to 19, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School will host 38 competing teams.
• From March 31 to April 2 at Montgomery High School will also host 38 competing teams.
• The event competitions are free and typically run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The robots are back in town.

Several Central Jersey high schools will have robotics teams building and competing in the 2017 For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Robotics Competition.

The high schools involved with FIRST Mid-Atlantic Robots include Hillsborough High School, Watchung Hills Regional High School, Bound Brook High School, Plainfield High School, Somerville High School, Bridgewater-Raritan High School, Rahway High School, Union County Vo-Tech, Immaculata High School in Somerville, Montgomery High School, Hunterdon Central Regional High School,  the Pingry School in Basking Ridge, Gill St. Bernards in Gladstone and the Central School in Somerset.

Other schools involved include North Brunswick High School, Piscataway High School, Middlesex Borough High School, St. Joseph's High School in Metuchen, West Windsor-Plainsboro north and south high schools, J.P. Stevens High School in Edison, JFK Memorial High School in Iselin, South River High School and South Plainfield High School.

There will be seven events held in New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania.

Two of the seven events will be conducted in Central Jersey. From March 17 to 19, Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School will host 38 teams and from March 31 to April 2 at Montgomery High School will also host 38 teams. The events are open to the public and are free and typically run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“The only difference between science fiction and science is timing,” said Dean Kamen, FIRST founder and president of DEKA Research & Development. “We want kids, through their FIRST experience, to realize that whatever is in their imaginations could become reality if they develop the tools — science, technology, engineering — and apply those tools into innovations to turn today’s science fiction into tomorrow’s science.”

READ: Central Jersey robotics teams score at FIRST regional meet

The competition is dubbed STEAMWORKS and will allow, for the first time, human players on the field to interact with the robots during the game. In the steam-powered challenge, the objective is to prepare an airship for flight by building steam pressure, starting rotors and climbing aboard.

Long-distance steamship races will include alliances comprised of three teams having to collect fuel for the boiler to build pressure while the ships' pilots collect and install missing gears to engage the ships' rotors. Last year, Parallel Universe from the Union County Vo-Tech in Scotch Plains was a member of the winning alliance, which included two other teams.

Towards the end of the game, the robot can climb a rope on the airship for liftoff. Based on points earned when launch time reaches zero, the team best prepared for flight wins. The competition this year has a steampunk theme.

The competition has strict rules, limited resources and time limits. Teams of students are challenged to raise funds, design a team “brand”, hone teamwork skills, and build and program robots to perform prescribed tasks against a field of competitors.

READ: FIRST Robotics and Mid-Atlantic Robotics honor Donald Bowers

FIRST has three other programs — Jr. FIRST LEGO League ages for six to eight, FIRST LEGO League for ages eight to 14, and FIRST Tech Challenge for ages 14 to 18). In 2017, FIRST Robotics Competition will reach 85,000 high school students representing approximately 3,400 teams. Teams come from nearly every state in the US, as well as many other countries. FIRST Robotics Competition teams will participate in 55 Regional Competitions, 80 District Competitions, and 10 District Championships.

In addition, approximately 800 teams will qualify to go to one of the two FIRST Championships at the end of April.

For more information on FIRST, visit www.firstinspires.org/robotics/frc. There are 120 teams in the district that covers New Jersey, Delaware and Eastern Pennsylvania. For more on FIRST Mid-Atlantic Robots go to www.midatlanticrobotics.com.

Staff Writer Nick Muscavage: 908-243-6615; ngmuscavage@gannettnj.com