About IEEE Egypt GOLD

IEEE Egypt GOLD is the Inst. of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Egypt Section, Graduates Of Last Decade affinity group. IEEE Egypt GOLD is the operational partner for the FLL in Egypt. IEEE Egypt GOLD encourages the participation of young engineers in promoting the engineering community, fosters real communication between the university and the industry and enhances skills needed for better performance in the professional world. GOLD has started in Egypt since 6 years and prior to its fast and confident paces it is now the most active branch in the IEEE region 8, which includes Europe, Africa, and Asia. Visit our website to know more http://www.ieeegoldegypt.org.

About FIRST LEGO League
FIRST LEGO League (FLL) is a global program created to get children excited about science and technology. A hands-on program for ages 9 to 16 (9 to 14 in the U.S. and Canada), FLL uses Challenges based on real world scientific problems to engage children in research, problem solving, and engineering. The cornerstone of the program is its Core Values, which emphasize friendly sportsmanship, learning, and community involvement.

Each yearly Challenge has two parts, the Project and the Robot Game. Working in teams of three to ten children and guided by at least one adult coach, teams have 8 weeks to:
• Build an autonomous robot to carry out pre-designed missions in 2 minutes and 30 seconds
• Analyze, research, and invent a solution to a real world problem

The culmination of all that hard work for many teams is the participation in an FLL event – much like a high energy sporting event. Referees monitor and score the Robot Game. Judges review team presentations. An FLL event is a pumped-up environment with music and excitement that celebrates the work the children have done throughout the season.

Season Calendar
April 2010: Registration begins
July 2010: Registration ends
September 2010: Mat and setup kit delivered to teams
September, 3rd 2010: challenge details released
February 2011: Qualifiers
March 2011: Egypt finals
April 2011: World Festival

FLL Core Values
FLL Core Values The FLL Core Values are the cornerstones of the FLL program. They are among the fundamental elements that distinguish FLL from other programs of its kind. By embracing the Core Values, participants learn that friendly competition and mutual gain are not separate goals, and that helping one another is the foundation of teamwork.
• We are a team.
• We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.
• We honor the spirit of friendly competition.
• What we discover is more important than what we win.
• We share our experiences with others.
• We display Gracious Professionalism in everything we do.
• We have fun.

FLL Events
There are several types of FIRST LEGO League (FLL) events. They all offer a fun and exciting way for teams to demonstrate the results of their efforts. Awards are given at FLL events recognizing special accomplishments in areas like teamwork, research, robot design, and robot performance. More than awards, the prevailing Core Value at FLL events is, “What we learn is more important than what we win.”

Qualifying Tournaments
Qualifying Tournaments (usually called Qualifiers or Regionals) follow the same judging standards and a similar format to Championship tournaments, but have some flexibility. Teams from these tournaments advance to that region’s Championship tournament.

Championship Tournaments
Championship Tournaments abide by certain FLL standards in format, judging, awards, and overall quality. The key volunteers responsible for a Championship tournament are the FLL Operational Partners. Championships may include teams from a geographic region, province, state, country, or several countries.

Open Championship Tournaments
Open Championship Tournaments abide by the same standards as Championships, and are hosted by FLL Operational Partners. These events are not held every year, and are invitational events that choose teams from selected regions. They represent another great way for FLL teams to get together and showcase their achievements.

The FLL World Festival
The FLL World Festival, held in conjunction with the FIRST Championship, is the global celebration of FLL teams from around the world. It is the only event hosted by the FLL program. The invitational process for the World Festival includes nominated teams that demonstrate FLL Core Values as well as award winning teams from Championships around the world.

FLL Awards
The FLL Awards represent recognition of excellent achievement for teams. Regardless of what country they are from or in which Championship tournament they compete, teams are judged using this group of awards that recognize a standard of excellence for all participants.

Awards Eligibility
Award distribution is spread as equitably as possible among the teams. Therefore, a team may not win more than ONE of the following FLL Core awards: Champion’s, Robot Design, Teamwork and Project.
To ensure fairness to teams and provide equal opportunity to win an award at a Championship tournament, teams are only eligible to win an award at the first Championship tournament they attend.

Awards List
The awards at FLL events fall into three categories.

FLL Core Awards
• Champion’s Award – this award is optional for qualifying tournaments
The Champion's Award is the most prestigious award that a team can win. It celebrates the ultimate success of the FIRST mission and FLL Core Values. A champion is someone who passionately supports a cause. For FLL, our champions passionately inspire and motivate others about the excitement of science and technology, solving problems, working as a team, and demonstrating respect and Gracious Professionalism.
• Robot Design Award
Judges look for teams whose work stands out and makes them say “wow!”. Judges interview teams to learn their strategies for solving missions and their understanding of the design process. They also evaluate the robot’s mechanical design, degree of innovation, and programming effectiveness to further assess overall design quality.
The Robot Design Award may be broken down into three sub-awards: Innovative Design, Programming, and Quality Design
• Robot Performance Award
This award goes to the team whose robot is able to score the most points pursuing Challenge missions on the competition field. After each team has had a chance to run their robot for a minimum of three rounds, teams are ranked by their highest score in a single round. If two teams tie, their second highest scores are used to determine which among them has the higher ranking, and so on.
• Project Award
Judges look for teams whose quality research, innovative solutions, efforts sharing with the community and creative presentation best reflect an in-depth understanding of the various scientific disciplines and issues involved with the Project. Judges look for the team’s ability to have as many team members as possible participating in the presentation.
The Project Award may be broken down into three sub-awards: Creative Presentation, Innovative Solution, and Research Quality.
• Teamwork Award
Teamwork is critical to succeed in FLL and it is the key ingredient in any team’s success. This award is presented to the team whose members best demonstrate extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit, exceptional partnership, the utmost respect for their own teammates, and support and encouragement of fellow teams. They demonstrate confidence, energy, strong problem solving skills, and great group dynamics.

Optional Awards
• Against All Odds Award
This award goes to the team that improvises and overcomes a difficult situation while still making a respectable showing, with an attitude that shows, “We can overcome incredible odds if we never give up, no matter what!”
• Rising Star Award
At every tournament, there are teams that the judges notice and believe will soon be among the best and the brightest. The Rising Star Award recognizes a team that the judges believe stands out and that we expect great things from in future Challenges.
• Team Spirit Award
Some teams really know how to have fun. This award goes to the team that most enthusiastically demonstrates a commitment to getting others to see how accessible, fun, and rewarding science and technology can be, especially when you are part of a great team.
• Judges’ Award
During the course of competition the judges may encounter a team whose unique efforts, performance, or dynamics merit recognition. Some teams have a story that sets them apart in a unique way. Sometimes a team is so close to winning an award that the judges choose to give special recognition to the team. This award gives the judges the freedom to recognize the most remarkable teams for which a standard award does not exist.
• Local Awards
Tournaments may also offer local awards, with criteria created by the tournament organizers. Updates on such awards will be posted for each tournament.

Special Recognition Awards
• Outstanding Volunteer Award
This award honors the dedication of the volunteer(s) whose assistance and devotion helps change the lives of children in a positive way.
• Adult Coach/Mentor Award
This award goes to the coach or mentor whose wisdom, guidance, and devotion are most clearly evident in the team’s discussion with the judges.
• Young Adult Mentor Award
FLL presents this award to the young adult, high school or college mentor whose support, impact, inspiration, and guidance are most clearly evident in the team’s discussion with the judges.