Captain 5506 Robo Owls, Edison High School, Philadelphia, PA
        1st Selected 5488 RoboDragons, Freire Charter School, Philadelphia, PA

The Motivate Award recognizes outstanding team spirit shown though costumes and outfits, team support, and other methods of standing out and raising attention. Teams that reach out to their schools and community to raise awareness of FIRST and their FTC efforts have done so in a variety of cool and inventive methods - this winner is no exception.  Here is what the judges had to say:This team's attitude and spirit is contagious. They could be heard cheering lououdly in the stands. These "girls" up the enthusiasm.

The Connect Award is a bit different than the Motivate Award. Winners of the Connect Award have done a great deal of community outreach not only to spread the word about FIRST but specifically to include engineers, scientists, and other technology professionals into their outreach efforts. This creates connections between teams, FIRST, and the professional world that can last years beyond their participation in FTC. Connect Award winners also develop and execute plans to fund their team including clear goals and objectives - including how they can give back to their community in the future.  Here is what the judges had to say:This team had a stellar outreach within their school. They rose to connect with their community. They rode to success spreading their word of FIRST.

The Rockwell Collins Innovate Award is robot specific. It celebrates teams who come up with innovate solutions to the Game Challenge that most others have overlooked. These solutions can't just look good - they've got to work... at least most of the time. Historically, some of the most innovative breakthroughs in science and technology have come when fresh thinking is applied to a known problem. This year's Rockwell Collins Innovate Award winners demonstrated that type of thinking. Here is what the judges had to say:

This team is a natural force that conquers innovation. You wonder if their power is mechanical or mythical. They have moved on, but they still breathe fire. 

Winner: Team 5488 RoboDragons from Philadelphia, PA

2nd Place: Team 9568 Olney Charter Trojan Robotics      3rd Place: Team 6606 Dobbins Force

We are happy that PTC has offered to sponsor the PTC Design Award. The intent of this award is to expand the challenge, inspiring teams to incorporate industrial design into their robots. These elements can be shown in the simplicity of the design as it applies to the tasks, the look and feel of the robot, and how the design allows us to think of robots in new ways. The Design aspects must serve a function - but they should also differentiate the robot in a unique fashion - not an easy task with a limited set of parts and game challenge. Here is what the judges had to say:

This team impressed the judges with this exceptionally clean and neat design. Their geared up zipties swept the balls quickly into the goals. Their effective use of PVC pipes allowed them to ROAR past the competition.

Every team at this event has had to think - hopefully a lot. The Think Award recognizes the team that has successfully thought, organized, and documented their journey from their starting point to their final design. The engineering notebook is the record of this journey. Just like in real life, teams that can document their process have the best chance at learning from it and improving on it. Here is what the judges had to say:

This team's notebook demonstrates teir design process in a well arranged manner. This diligence to detail is central to the criteria for this award. Their notebook sets the gold standard for Philly.

Winner: Team 5320 RoboLancers Gold from Philadelphia, PA

2nd Place: Team 5488 RoboDragons      3rd Place: Team 6552 N.E.R.D.S.

The Inspire Award is the highest award given by FTC. The winner of the Inspire Award is automatically eligible for advancement to the next tournament level. The Inspire Award winner is the 'prototype' for what we'd like to see all teams achieve as part of the FIRST Tech Challenge. They do many of the things mentioned in the other awards. The difference is that they've tied these together in a comprehensive manner resulting in success in the competition, outreach to the community, robot design, team spirit, and engineering accomplishment. That's a tall order but we've got some great candidates for this award today. Here is what the judges had to say:

This team's commitment to STEM in their community is amazing and awe-inspiring. They fuction like a well-oiled machine and have performed admirably on and off the field. Don't make the mistake of calling them geeks.

Winner: Team 6552 N.E.R.D.S. from Philadelphia, PA

2nd Place: Team 5320 RoboLancers Gold      3rd Place: Team 5488 RoboDragons

The Judges Award is given at the discretion of the judges to a team they have encountered whose unique efforts, performance or dynamics merit recognition, yet the team does not fit into any of the existing award categories. Here is what the judges had to say:

This team overcame a number of challenges including team size,lack of softwareand hort deadlines. They worked late into the night to get ready for this tournament. They then swooped into the competition and stole the judges hearts.

Winner: Team 5506, Robo Owls from Philadelphia, PA