Robots do surgery, build cars, and assist us with our complex modern lives. This project is all about these amazing machines and learning to build and program your own robots to solve issues you face.
2024 Robotics 2 Fair Guidelines: Click to Download
Select TWO of the challenges below to demonstrate your knowledge and abilities using your programable robot. Both challenges should be run autonomously one after the other. Each challenge was modified from the 2024 AgBot Challenge. Your robot must start at least 12” from the first target. Each location (e.g. Composting Plant, Barn, etc.) must be labeled and should be no more than 8”x8”
1. Weed Wacker: Identifying and removing weeds is an important part of agriculture. Carbon Robotics has made a smart weed-wacker that uses high-resolution cameras and state-of-the-art computing to distinguish between weeds and crops in real-time called LazerWeeder. Start by labeling 4 blocks as weeds and 1 block as a crop. With the weeds being at least 5” apart, remove the 4 weeds and move them to a designated composting plant 24” away from the starting location. The crop should remain in its starting location.
1. The composting plant must be 24” away from any weeds.
2. The weeds must be at least 5” apart.
2. Hay in the Barn: Hay is at the center of most farms from feeding animals to being laid around plants to retain moisture. If it is stored properly it will last indefinitely. Have your AgBots stack 5 bales of hay in a 2D barn. Bales must start 6 inches from the barn.
1. Bales must be at least 1inch x 1 inch x 1 inch.
2. Bales must start 6 inches from the barn.
3. Repair Relay: Tractors have been in used on farms in the USA since the 1910s, and it can be devastating if the tractor that you rely on breaks down. In this challenge, you will bring 5 pieces of your broken tractor to a designated repair facility to be repaired. All 5 pieces should be brought to the facility for repair with 4 of them configured like a square on the table, all touching, and the 5th piece placed on top of the other 4. Each piece must be touching another piece.
1. Blocks must travel a minimum of 12 inches.
Show Your Skills
- Demonstrate a robot performing a simple task
- Showcase examples of robots in our daily lives
- Create a poster or display showing a problem that could be solved using robots
- Develop a display showing the steps and parts used in creating a robot
Service and Leadership
- Build a robot to pick up trash
- Create a video to teach your club about where robots are used in your community and state
- Learn how robots are changing industry and life in the U.S.
- Design and build an underwater robot to collect water samples to test for water quality
- Demonstrate your robots at a senior living facility, science club, school, or library event
- Teach a robotics workshop
- Become a junior leader or teen teacher
Entrepreneurship
- Research the influence of robotic technology on society
- Talk to local companies that use robots and discover ideas for real-life applications
- Create a robot that can fill a need in your neighborhood, school, or community and take it to market
- Consider how you can improve an existing item
Connecting with a Mentor
- Elementary, high school, or college teachers or students with an interest or expertise in robotics
- Library or museum staff
- Engineers and retired engineers from local businesses
Events
- 4-H local, regional, and state robotics competitions
- Vex Robotics Competition
- First® Robotics Competition
- First® Tech Challenge
Project Manuals & Exhibit Requirements
Youth Enrolled in Robotics 1, 2, and 3 should use The Robotics 1 with EV3 and EV3NMore ONLY if they have access to an EV3 Robotics kit. For youth looking to use the new Lego Mindstorms Inventor Kits or the SPIKE kits, please refer to the online resources listed below for guidance. For youth competing in their respective county fair, and potentially the State Fair, youth will be required to document their experience in a Robotics Notebook, and select/demonstrate TWO of the selected tasks used in the State Robotics Challenge.
- Robotics 1 with Spike Prime Activity Guide
- Robotics 2 with Spike Prime Activity Guide
- Robotics 1 with EV3
- Robotics 2 EV3 and More
- Robotics 3 EV3 and More
- Junk Drawer Level 1: Give Robots a Hand
- Junk Drawer Level 2: Robots on the Move
- Junk Drawer Level 3: Mechatronics
- Junk Drawer: Youth Notebook
Purchase the manuals above on the Shop Illinois 4-H Store.
View exhibit requirements and scoresheets on the Illinois State Fair page.
University of California 4-H project sheet
University of Wyoming 4-H project sheet
University of North Dakota 4-H project sheet
UF/IFAS Extension Florida 4-H project handout
Michigan State University Extension 4-H project sheet
University of Illinois 4-H Robotics 4-H Spark Sheets are a collaborative effort of 4-H staff, volunteers, alumni, and teens from across Illinois. A big thanks to the many contributors and reviewers!