Science & Technology
Science and Technology
Science and Technology
Mon, January 10, 2011
Autodesk Helps Inspire Tomorrowa?s Engineers Through FIRST Robotics Competition
SAN RAFAEL, Calif.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--For the 19th consecutive year, [ Autodesk, Inc. ] (NASDAQ:ADSK) is a sponsor of the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) program by contributing its software, mentoring resources and, for the first time, funding grants to U.S. teams. The FIRST Robotics Competition challenges high-school students to collaborate and build a working robot in just six weeks. The annual competition promotes STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills while inspiring students to be leaders in tomorrowa™s engineering workforce.
"As a longtime supporter of FRC, Autodesk is committed to helping students develop real-world skills they need to prepare themselves to solve tomorrowa™s design and engineering challenges."
aStudents around the world are hungry for opportunities to apply the math and science principles theya™ve learned to projects outside the classroom,a said Joe Astroth, Ph.D., Autodesk chief education officer. aAs a longtime supporter of FRC, Autodesk is committed to helping students develop real-world skills they need to prepare themselves to solve tomorrowa™s design and engineering challenges.a
More than 2,200teams consisting of 45,000high-school students from around the world will participate in the 2011 FRC competition. As part of the eventa™s Kit of Parts, each team will receive [ Autodesk Inventor 2011 ] software to design, visualize and simulate their robots in 3D before construction, saving valuable time and resources while exploring design alternatives. Using Autodesk Inventor also exposes students to the same tools and concepts used by the worlda™s leading engineers. As members of the [ Autodesk Education Community ], each student also receives free access to the companya™s 3D design, engineering and entertainment software and accompanying resources, including access to a virtual kit of robot parts modeled in Autodesk Inventor.
For the first time, Autodesk will sponsor 20 teams from the United States, with grants of $5,000 each, to be used for the competition registration fee. Autodesk will also honor two teams with the Autodesk Excellence in Design award at this yeara™s championship event in St. Louis, Mo., to be held April 27-30, 2011. The awarda™s 3D Design category recognizes outstanding achievement in design of the FIRST team robot using [ Autodesk Inventor ], [ AutoCAD ] or [ Autodesk SketchBook Pro ] software. The awarda™s 3D Animation category honors the FIRST team that creates the best 30-second 3D animation using [ Autodesk 3ds Max ], [ Autodesk Maya ] or [ Autodesk Softimage ] software a" the award-winning tools used by many digital artists in the media and entertainment industry. The animation must fit the aChange Their Worlda theme, while demonstrating understanding of the design process, storytelling, technical execution, creativity and aesthetics, as well as clear, concise, and compelling communication.
For more information, visit the Autodesk Education Communitya™s FIRST competition website at [ www.autodesk.com/first ].
Autodesk Education Initiatives
Autodesk supports students and educators by providing powerful design software, innovative programs and other resources designed to inspire the next generation of professionals. By supporting educators to advance design education and STEM skills, Autodesk is helping prepare students for future academic and career success. Autodesk supports schools and institutions of higher learning worldwide through substantial discounts, subscriptions, grant programs, training, curricula development and community resources. For more information about Autodesk education programs and solutions, visit [ autodesk.com/education ].
About Autodesk
Autodesk, Inc., is a leader in [ 3D design ], engineering and entertainment software. Customers across the manufacturing, architecture, building, construction, and media and entertainment industries -- including the last 15 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects -- use Autodesk software to design, visualize and simulate their ideas. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk continues to develop the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art software for global markets. For additional information about Autodesk, visit [ www.autodesk.com ].
Autodesk, AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, Inventor, Maya, SketchBook, Softimage and 3ds Max are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. Academy Award is a registered trademark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and services offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.
© 2011 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.
