A total of ten teams of pupils gathered on Tuesday, 23 April 2024, in the sports hall of Geldern Vocational College in the district of Kleve for one of the 23 local rounds of the 2024 zdi robotics competition. The two top-placed teams qualified for one of the five regional heats. There, they will compete against the winning teams from the other local competitions for a place in the North Rhine-Westphalia final on 22 June 2024 in Mülheim/Ruhr.
The 2024 zdi robotics competition centres on the theme of smart cities. Participants must solve symbolic tasks laid out on a game mat, such as positioning sensors for a smart city dashboard, transporting timber for micro-housing, or operating a hydrogen-powered bus. zdi stands for ‘Future through Innovation’ and is a joint initiative by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia to promote young talent in science and technology. Since 2012, Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences has been the organiser of the zdi Centre for the Kleve district.
The ‘Krabbentechniker’ team from Horkesgath Grammar School in Krefeld has won the local round of the zdi robotics competition in Geldern. With a commanding performance, the eight pupils prevailed over Team Marienschule 2 from the Bischöfliche Marienschule in Mönchengladbach. Third place went to Team Gaesdonck Robos from the Collegium Augustinianum Gaesdonck in Goch.
Whilst all the teams kept their cool whilst tackling their tasks across the three rounds, the tension amongst the participants was palpable as the prize-giving ceremony approached. After all, everyone had been closely following the scores and was eagerly awaiting the final result. When second and third place were announced, it didn’t take long for the Krabbentechniker to burst into cheers.
But it wasn’t just the participating teams who demonstrated their talent and knowledge in Geldern. To ensure everything was conducted fairly and properly, pupils from the Technical Gymnasium for Engineering Sciences at the vocational college volunteered to act as referees.
Here are the rankings of the participating teams at Geldern Vocational College in the district of Kleve:
- Team Krabbentechniker, Horkesgath Grammar School, Krefeld
- Team Marienschule 2, Bischöfliche Marienschule, Mönchengladbach
- Team Gaesdonck Robos, Collegium Augustinianum Gaesdonck, Goch
- Team Horkis, Horkesgath Grammar School, Krefeld
- Team Marienschule 1, Bischöfliche Marienschule, Mönchengladbach
- Team Gaesdonck Robots, Collegium Augustinianum Gaesdonck, Goch
- Team Aspel II, Aspel Grammar School, Rees
- Team Emmerob1, Emmerich Municipal Comprehensive School
- Team AVG Robots, Andreas Vesalius Grammar School, Wesel
- Team Die Player, Aspel Grammar School, Rees
Contact person
Phyllis Ndugire, M.Sc.
, Centre for Research, Innovation and Transfer (ZFIT) at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences; Project
Co-ordinator for Central STEM Funding and the zdi Centre in Kleve.
Tel.: +49 (0) 2821 806 73-9655
Email: zdi-kleve@hochschule-rhein-waal.de
