FRC7594闪耀中美国际区域赛场：跨越重洋，用科技与世界对话

In the era of rapid technological development, robotics competitions have become a frontier for cultivating innovative thinking and practical abilities among teenagers. Among them, FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) attracts the attention of many outstanding teenagers around the world with its high standards and strong influence. Driven by their passion for technology, the students of the VMA team recently embarked on the journey of the international regional competition with their work FRC7594, making a stunning appearance in the two competitions held in Shanghai, China, and Minnesota, the United States, and delivering an excellent performance.

Since the establishment of the school, VMA has sent a representative team to participate in the FRC for the second time, and this is also the first time for teachers and students to participate in the regional competition in the United States. The restart plan of FRC7594, which was put on hold due to the pandemic, was finally realized in the 2024-2025 academic year. Coincidentally, VMA met its sister school MPA (Mounds Park Academy) on the competition field. Both representative teams "went all out," making the score competition extremely intense. After the competition, a series of exchange activities were carried out among the teacher and student representatives. This is also the first learning exchange among students since the two schools established a sister school cooperation relationship.

The surprise appearance of Yin Hang, a graduate of the 2019 class and a key member of the first team of FRC7594, made this trip to the United States even more memorable. It is reported that Senior Yin Hang graduated from Northwestern University in the United States with both a bachelor's and a master's degree, and now works as a Research Engineer in the working team of Professor Li Feifei (a famous Chinese-American scientist, known as the "Godmother of AI" in the industry) at Stanford University. He led the teachers and students of VMA to visit the campus of Stanford University and the laboratory where he works. The inspiration and stories of the new and old members inspired each other. The two generations of team members gathered on the campus of Stanford University, and this shining moment seemed to write the inheritance of the innovative spirit.

As the top competition with the highest level, the most spectacularness, competitiveness and influence among various global youth robotics competitions, FRC has attracted students from 80 countries and regions around the world to participate in the past 36 years. The theme of this year's competition is "REEFSCAPE", which requires participating teams to innovatively apply engineering skills to design robotic coral caregivers, transplant artificially cultivated "corals" back onto the "coral reefs", and collect "seaweed", simulating key links in the restoration of the marine ecosystem to protect the most biologically diverse habitats in the ocean.

"Putting environmental protection concepts into practice with technology and making the competition field the starting point for transforming the world." The competition concept of FRC, which is "more than just robotics", has echoed on the campus of VMA and ignited the students' enthusiasm for participation.

Under the leadership of Mr. Andy and Mr. Jason from the STEAM teaching team, in August 2024, the brand-new FRC7594 team was established. This team, which describes itself as "both ancient and brand new", divided its members with different specialties into three groups: the software group, the hardware group, and the publicity and investment promotion group, so that each participant can devote their expertise to this passion. The members uniformly received training in knowledge such as programming, mechanical design, and electrical control systems during their spare time, and everyone needs to be familiar with the operation of tools and equipment. During the preparation for the competition, Yin Hang (a 2019 graduate, currently working in a laboratory at Stanford University) and Qiu Peng (a 2020 graduate, currently studying at the University of Pennsylvania), the core members of the first FRC7594 team, specially recorded short videos to boost the morale of the brand-new team.

As the members got to know each other better gradually, the teamwork became more and more tacit. The official launch of the season in January marked the real arrival of the moment to test the team's strength: the team needed to complete the design, construction, programming, and final testing and operation of the robot within a period of 6 weeks, aiming at the annual theme task. It was precisely during this period that the members experienced pressures and challenges from different aspects, but every successful overcoming of obstacles also brought them the pleasure of "leveling up" like defeating monsters. In the end, the brand-new FRC7594 emerged from its cocoon after repeated refinement and made its debut at the Shanghai International Regional Competition, kicking off its competition journey.

Having accumulated the experience from the competition in Shanghai, teachers and students of VMA were invited to Minnesota, the United States, to participate in another round of the international regional competition. The huge competition venue was truly impressive. People of different skin colors and speaking various languages were intermingled there, and a strong international atmosphere enveloped the place. The encounter with the friendly school MPA was the biggest surprise during the competition. Thomas Xie, the technical leader of the team, recalled that FRC7594 once failed to enable the robot to perform to its full potential due to hardware malfunctions. However, the FRC3926 team from MPA joined as teammates, and the two teams complemented each other's advantages. Eventually, they successfully achieved a favorable result in the competition. A series of exchange activities carried out by the students from the two schools after the competition also enriched this trip to the United States.

In Stanford University, VMA teachers and students with Yin Hang, the senior and the youth mentor of the first team of FRC7594. Yin Hang patiently explained the current research progress and recalled that his team had encountered challenges on the competition field due to technical shortcomings in the past. Now, the achievements of the laboratory are exactly the breakthrough solutions to those previous problems. A large number of cutting-edge software and hardware applications in the world are displayed in the laboratory, which deeply impressed Ken Li, the current team captain. "We have seen many cutting-edge software and hardware applications in the field of robotics. What impressed me the most was a haptic simulation machine, which is a control handle. You can use it to touch the surfaces of different materials, and the motor connected behind the handle will transmit a sense of resistance to you." The current team members occasionally expressed their questions and ideas to Yin Hang, and sparks of thinking kept bursting out during the communication between the two generations of the team. After this visit, Alan Ma, the vice-captain, said that he had realized the importance of an international perspective and practical hands-on ability. Senior student Yin Hang was an excellent role model for him, which helped him firm up his determination to develop in the fields of robotics, artificial intelligence and so on.

According to Mr. Jason, the head of the STEAM subject group, this is the second time that VMA students have participated in the FRC since 2019. For the students, it is an important return, and for the school's ten-year history of running the school, it also has milestone significance: the students have accumulated experience in top-level competitions. In the future, the VMA STEAM subject group will continue to maintain friendly exchanges with MPA. In addition, the former members of the FRC 7594 team, who are working and studying in renowned universities such as Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania, have also set an example for the current students, inspiring more students to move towards higher career development goals.

At a time when the wave of science and technology is surging forward, as an innovative school at the forefront of international education, VMA is striving to build a learning platform for students that keeps pace with the times. In addition to the FRC, in recent years, VMA has organized students to participate in a number of world-class science and technology competitions, such as the VEX Robotics Competition and the Canadian Computing Competition (Waterloo). Currently, the science and technology clubs offered include the Makers & Innovators Club, the Robotics Club, and the Web Tech Club, among others. In March of this year, Professor You Xiaochuan, an associate professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, was invited to visit and delivered a keynote speech titled "The Development and Application Prospects of Artificial Intelligence Technology". In the middle and late May, the second Campus Science Fair will be grandly opened on campus.

Outside the campus, teachers and students can also form teams to participate in top-level events like the Maker Faire in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, or visit well-known technology companies such as iFLYTEK, Tencent, and BYD for exchanges. In the future, VMA will also offer AI-related courses to guide students to explore the field of artificial intelligence. It is believed that in the future, more young students will shine in the field of science and technology and showcase the demeanor of Chinese teenagers on the international stage.