Young robotics students learn to work under pressure

During the two and a half minutes of a round of competition at the FIRST Lego League tournament at Oregon State University's Kelley Engineering Center this weekend, it wasn't enough for teams to get their robots to execute a number of pre-programmed tasks. The teams also had to swap out the various tool attachments necessary for those tasks.
The teams were allowed to have two students next to the competition space to swap out the parts. Those students worked with the speed and intensity you might associate with a NASCAR pit crew swapping out tires on a race car.
Oregon State University’s Robotics Club hosted the tournament on campus Saturday and Sunday. The event was a qualifying tournament for regional Lego robotics competitions that are aimed at students in grades four through eight. This year, the tasks students are supposed to program their robot to do have a space theme.