View the 2022-2023 challenge guide: 2022 RDL Challenge Guide Bermuda Triangle

Robot Drone League

  • Combines the excitement of competition sport with science and technology
  • Provides a rigorous game, played with robots and drones
  • Students develop skills used in the technology industry
  • 75% of students involved in Robot Drone League are more likely to attend post-secondary education

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Welcome to Robot Drone League! The Robot Drone League (RDL) season runs each year from September to January and consists of a ten-minute match with a one-minute autonomous period at the start. RDL allows students to learn fundamentals skills in Computer-Aided Design (CAD), Python coding, teamwork, communication and mechanical and electrical engineering. Unlike other robotics competitions, students are to design, build and code their robots without intervention from their mentors. Students work in teams of no more than fifteen members throughout the competition season to build a robot and program a drone. A Kit of Parts may be purchased for first-year teams and consists of aircraft-grade aluminum from GoBilda, vex motor controllers, a Raspberry Pi, a Raspberry Pi Camera, a Ryze Tello Drone, a Bluetooth Logitech Controller and other essential parts to assist in completing a robot.

For more information, click here to visit our dedicated RDL website!

The 2022-2023 Challenge, “Bermuda Triangle”, released Summer 2022.

In the 2021-2022 DragonFly challenge, teams collected HydroPods, NitroPods and CarbonPods to create molecular assemblies of molecules found on Mars’ surface. Teams also traversed across the field to survey for images placed around the field in order to identify the contents of the completed image. Robots placed seismometers inside the main mountain structure and measured seismic activity. Drones delivered an Automated Underwater Vehicle (AUV) into the great methane lake, Lake Photon. At the same time, these machines had to fly over beacons, powered by ultrasonic sensors, to illuminate the team’s color. Drones also needed to deliver satellites to the appropriately colored landing pads on top of the mountains.

Robot Drone League (RDL) started 6 years ago in Boca Raton, Florida, by Dr. Scooter Willis. His team at TechGarage created and designed the robotics competition as an initiative to help serve at-risk youths in the North Miami area. Dr. Willis’ endeavors in assisting these youths paved the way for RDL.

Creativity and innovation are critical elements in advancing the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) into the future. Robot Drone League is designed to provide students with open-ended challenges that allow for creation and innovation by engaging in hands-on design, engineering and programming of interactive robots and drones. Working with robots in a collaborative game format can be a very powerful tool to engage students and enhance math and science skills through hands-on, student-centered learning. Through participation in RDL, students can develop the essential life skills of teamwork and collaboration, as well as critical thinking, project management, and communication required to become the next generation of innovators and problem-solvers in our global society.