Robert Bosch Corporation Sponsors Winning FIRST Team From Northville High School

    FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., March 30 The RoboStangs, a Robert
Bosch Corp. and Northville High School team, earned a first place at the FIRST
(For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Great
Lakes Regional Competition held on the campus of Eastern Michigan University.
The team also earned (together with three other teams) the third highest
single-match point total, scoring 510 points.  More than 60 teams participated
in the regional competition, and five earned first place trophies.  The
RoboStangs will go on to compete at the national competition in Orlando, Fla.,
next month.
    The RoboStangs team consists of 30 students from Northville High School
and 10 employees from Bosch with varying engineering backgrounds and
experience.  The RoboStangs competed with their robot, which stood
approximately three meters high, weighed 130 pounds, and had a towing capacity
of 300 pounds on a 15 degree incline.  Their robot was chosen in the final
round to compete with an alliance of four other robots whose skill sets were
best complemented by those of the RoboStang's robot.
    "Bosch is very proud to have been able to introduce these students to some
of the engineering skills and technology that is an integral part of our day-
to-day functions," said Reiner Emig, executive vice president of engineering
for Bosch.  "We are thrilled to have had the opportunity to contribute to such
a successful first effort, and are looking forward to the outcome of the
national competition."
    In each two-minute match, there were four robots working together to
achieve maximum points.  Throughout the competition, each team's robot was
grouped with different robots during the qualifying rounds.  The teams could
score points by doing the following:

    1. Place small black balls in either of the goals.
    2. Balance large balls on either goal
    3. Move robot into end zone
    4. Balance goal on bridge
    5. Finish match in less than 2 minutes

    The FIRST competitions are structured to help develop team building skills
and an understanding of the integrated use of technology in a whole system by
requiring the teams to make their robots work together to score points.  In
the effort to foster team spirit and good sportsmanship, this competition did
not have any elimination rounds.  All teams that could afford to register for
the national competition in Orlando, Fla., will advance to those rounds, which
will take place April 5-7, 2001.
    "When the team sat down to brainstorm the best way to do the gearing, and
ended up producing about two pages of MathCad calculations that showed the
correct gear ratio, it proved to the students that all the math they're
learning really does have a cool, practical application," said Ernie Pacsai, a
team coordinator and engineer for Bosch's Body Electrical and Electronics
Division.
    Bosch sponsored approximately 50 percent of the team's cost, which
included payment of registration fees and cost of parts to build the robot.
Additionally, Bosch volunteered the use of their Farmington Hills facilities
for the team to meet.  The team also received a significant sponsorship from
Covisint that was used to cover other expenses incurred by team members, such
as travel and accommodations for the trip to Florida.  Team members collected
additional money through donations from parents, local Northville businesses
and other fund raising activities.
    Bosch designs and produces precision automotive components and systems
sold to vehicle and powertrain manufacturers worldwide.  These include systems
and components for gasoline and diesel injection, airbag components, ABS and
conventional braking systems, telematics, as well as small motors, electrical
and electronic equipment.
    Robert Bosch Corporation, the wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Bosch
GmbH, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, is responsible for North American
operations.