By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
BERWICK Lodge Primary School has taken out an international robotics title in Sydney this week.
On 6 July, the eight-child team Trashformers – including two City of Casey teens – won the best robot performance section with 959 points in the Asia-Pacific championships at Macquarie University.
The team – aged 10-14 years old – was up against 20 other teams from as far afield as Brazil, the US, Canada, Turkey and Japan.
Some participants from other teams were aged up to 16.
Principal Henry Grossek said the team-members had enjoyed a week of international cultural and scientific exchange starting with a fun opening ceremony at Sydney Opera House.
In the robot performance section, the school’s winning robot was pre-programmed to collect objects from one point and transport them to designated points on a 3.75 square-metre board.
The robots operate on a mix of student-designed algorithms, and light and visual sensors.
Mr Grossek said the team got a vital edge by designing attachments on their robots that saved a precious 20 seconds.
Schools were also judged on their knowledge, their independence from coaching, and their “gracious professionalism” – including their willingness to share ideas and talk with other teams.
Around the theme of waste management, teams came up with novel ideas in the robotic solution section.
Berwick Lodge presented a conveyor-belt model that could sort plastic and other recyclables from general waste.
The idea could help divert 45 per cent of recyclable general waste clogging up landfill – mainly due to common laziness.
Participants were told they were the scientific leaders of the future, Mr Grossek said.
“Robotics is the essence of great learning experiences – looking at a scientific problem, getting a sense of teamwork and respect for each other.”
The week was further vindication for Berwick Lodge’s trail-blazing Prep-6 robotics program.
In 2014, the school won a national title partnered with fellow eastern Melbourne school Glendal Primary School. Both schools represented Australia in Pamplona, Spain, as a result.
The schools’ joint innovation to detect internal combustion hidden in trees during bushfires was featured on ABC TV at the time.
This year, the two schools have independently won international awards.
In April, Glendal Primary School took out the design and innovation award against 80 other teams aged up to 16 in the Canary Islands.
