GROTON, Conn. – The Fitch Robotics Team kicked off its 2024 season this past weekend in a two day long extravaganza.

The Fitch Robotics Team, the Aluminium Falcons, have been participating in yearly robotic competitions since its founding in 2007. This past weekend, the Aluminium Falcons kicked off this year’s season at Pleasant Valley Elementary School. Over the course of several hours, they learned about their yearly game, and brainstormed how to tackle the challenge of building a robot in less than six weeks. 

At the beginning of kickoff, members of the Aluminum Falcons learned about their new yearly game through a livestream watched by thousands of fellow high school robotics teams from across the world. This game requires teams to design, engineer, collaborate, and program a brand new robot specifically made to play a competitive game in which they must control the robot they made to both compete and cooperate with other robotics teams from other high schools. This year’s game is a music themed game called “Crescendo”, in which robots would pick up and score circular pieces called “notes” on a game field for points and the aim would be to drop off and score the most points possible against a group of opponent teams on the same field.

Subsequently, members of the Aluminum Falcons learned about all of the rules and regulations behind the game. Afterwards, they’re ready to take off. Members of the team break off into groups and they design and come up with an idea for a robot which they think could take on the yearly game. After, they present their prototyped concept to the rest of the team.

“I love watching the whole process and them being student led and them prototyping and coming up with the ideas on their own. It’s really heartwarming,” said Head Coach Sherri Facas. “Even seeing the new students getting up there and having the confidence to present their ideas is really nice.” 

After the build season concludes, the competition season typically begins in March. 

“This is my first build season so I am a little anxious, but I am excited to start CADing,” said first year Robotics student and Junior, Victor Wilber, who uses CAD (computer-aided design) software as a part of being in the Design subteam.

In the 2024 competition season, the Aluminum Falcons will travel to the Waterbury District Event and the WPI District Event at Wilby High School and WPI respectively.