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By Alice Herston, Harjot Multani, John G. Siy, Leonardo Torres, Kaleb Ugalde and Joel B. Ward

FAIRFIELD — Indigo Dynamics from Armijo High School has been a top performing organization in the local VEX Robotics community since the program first started at Grange Middle School. Indigo Dynamics has attended the VEX Robotics World Championship for the past three years, making this their fourth consecutive qualifying year.

The VEX Robotics World Championship, presented by the Northrop Grumman Foundation, brings together top 3 percent of robotics teams from around the world under one roof to celebrate their accomplishments and to compete.

VEX Robotics competition is not exactly what you would expect in that the robots do not battle each other. The “game” played by the robots is different every year; students have to come up with a new design each year to fit the game’s rules and standards.

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This year, VEX Robotics Competition teams compete in the 2018-19 VRC game, Turning Point, to earn a spot at the event. Teams qualify for the tournament by succeeding in local competitions and then at regional events.

In this year’s competition, VEX Robotics Turning Point, teams are challenged to score flags by shooting them with balls, as well as to flip caps to their alliance colors and place them on posts. At the end of the match, teams battle for a spot on raised parking platforms that give teams a bonus added to their score. Turning Point is also played in two periods, one 15-second autonomous period where robots move according to predetermined instructions, and a driver-control period where students take over to control their robots.

Although VEX Robotics Worlds is a great experience, it is expensive. With the costs of travel to Louisville, Kentucky, accommodations, registration fees, food and more, it adds up quickly.

The team has received financial support from the Cordelia Rotary Club, Telestar, Shiv Venkataraman and Solano County Supervisor Monica Brown, but fundraising continues through a new GoFundMe campaign. The goal is to raise $5,000.

To donate to the GoFundMe campaign for Indigo Dynamics, visit http://bit.ly/2DhUt2t. For more information about the VRC Turning Point Game, visit http://bit.ly/2Pe6sTr.

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