Four weeks into a FIRST Robotics Competition season, most robots are still in development. But at Kettering University, they were already operating in matches.
On Saturday, February 7, teams from Michigan and Indiana brought Kitbot, Everybot, and Robot in 3 Days (Ri3D) designs to the university’s Robotics Center for a mid-build competition, moving and developing systems from isolated testing into live match conditions.
Rather than waiting for official tournaments, teams evaluated scoring, control, and defensive interaction against active opponents, exposing performance limitations and informing redesign decisions.
Understanding This Year’s Game
This year’s game, REBUILT, emphasizes decision-making as much as mechanical capability. Alliances coordinate autonomous routines, respond to shifting scoring opportunities, and determine in seconds whether to collect, defend, or prepare for climbing.
A robot that performs reliably on its own may struggle once visibility narrows and partners share space. Simpler systems may outperform complex ones if they remain dependable, and alliance timing often determines whether scoring attempts count. Success depends on strategy, communication, and reliability under pressure, making early match play essential to understanding the game.
Throughout the day, robots continued to evolve. Teams refined control strategies, adjusted mechanisms between matches, and altered match approach as they encountered defensive pressure and field congestion.
Systems that performed consistently in isolation behaved differently in traffic. Mechanisms stalled. Operators compensated. And by the end of the event, many teams had already revised portions of their designs.
A Learning Tool Beyond the Building
The competition was broadcast live through the FUN Robotics Network and later published on its YouTube channel. The stream generated more than 15,000 total views, with live viewership increasing 58 percent compared to 2025.
“The Kitbot stream was a big success,” said Tyler Olds of the FUN Robotics Network. “Many teams watched to get an early look at scouting, and a short clip of Team 7211 Hollywood breaking the field has already reached about 50,000 views across platforms.”
Designing for the Real Game
Five teams participated in the event:
Team 9455 DinoMights — Hartland, Michigan
Team 7211 Hollywood — Holly, Michigan
Team RI3D@PNW — Hammond, Indiana
Team 10606 Foley Flare — Madison Heights, Michigan
Team 7197 Mountie Mega Bot — Jackson, Michigan
Team 7211 Hollywood and Team 10606 Foley Flare finished as event champions.
Why Early Competition Matters
Practice environments cannot fully reproduce match pressure, defensive interaction, or real-time decision-making.
By hosting the mid-build event, Kettering University enabled an earlier engineering cycle: build, evaluate, and refine, weeks before official events.
The outcome is not only improved robot performance, but also stronger preparation and a clearer understanding of how engineering concepts operate in real conditions.
