Bowled Over!, released on 10 September 2011, is the 2011-12 robotics competition for FIRST Tech Challenge

FIRST Tech Challenge

The FIRST Tech Challenge , formerly the FIRST Vex Challenge , is a mid-level robotics competition targeted toward high-school aged students. It offers the traditional challenge of a FIRST Robotics competition but with a more accessible and affordable robotics kit...

. Two alliances compete to score racquetballs into alliance-colored scoring goals. The name refers to two bowling balls on the field used for scoring points.

Alliances

In each match, the four teams competing are organized into red and blue alliances. The members of an alliance compete together to earn points.

Autonomous period

The first thirty seconds of play is the autonomous period, in which the robot acts autonomously

Autonomous robot

Autonomous robots are robots that can perform desired tasks in unstructured environments without continuous human guidance. Many kinds of robots have some degree of autonomy. Different robots can be autonomous in different ways...

.

Driver-controlled period

The Driver-controlled period is a 2 minute period following the autonomous period in which the robot is controlled by human drivers.

End game

The last thirty seconds of the driver-controlled period is called the End Game. Additional points can be earned in this period if an alliance can push their bowling ball into their home zone.