OCCRA stands for the Oakland County Competitive Robotics Association. Each fall 20 teams, each from a different high school, compete with each other in Oakland County, Michigan. Every year we play a new game, which requires students to build a new robot in order to play. These robots are similar to the ones you would see in FIRST.

Focus

OCCRA is not just to keep FIRST students working during the fall (although part of the reason that OCCRA began was to give the students something to do during the long off-season period.) The main purpose of OCCRA is to create a tournament in which the students are making and building a robot by themselves. In FIRST mentors are allowed to help the students design and even build their robot. Also, teams are allowed to use heavy machinery in their construction, which results in some very high tech and very expensive robots. But in OCCRA, the designing, building, and other aspects of robot construction are solely done by the students. This gives them more responsibility in controlling their own projects from start to finish. Another regulation is a limit on students. This gives them more responsibility in controlling their own projects from start to finish. Another regulation is a limit on “heavy machinery.” Teams build these robots with simple tools, like rulers, hacksaws and cordless drills. Machines such as lathes and welders cannot be used. Teams are also not permitted to have any kind of corporate sponsorship for OCCRA, forcing students to work together in order to raise money for their robot. It also teaches students how to operate on a limited budget.

What Does it Look Like?

OCCRA is much smaller than FIRST. The robots are much simpler and competitions mostly take place in high school gymnasiums. To see what your typical OCCRA competition is like, click on the video to the right to view an OCCRA match from the 2008 game Football Frenzy.

This Year’s Game:

This year’s OCCRA game is Go 4 It! The game consists of robots playing Connect 4. The goal is to score red and blue balls into the Connect 4 grid, scoring 2 points for each ball and a bonus 4 points for 4 balls in a row. There is also a scaling end game. Come watch us play! Click here for photos of the season so far. Our tentative schedule is as follows:

Monday, September 12 – Kickoff – Oakland Schools
Saturday, October 22 – Tournament #1 – West Bloomfield High School
Thursday, October 27 – Tournament #2 – Our Lady of the Lakes
Saturday, November 5 – Diversity Tournament – Rochester Adams High School
Thursday, November 10 – Tournament #4 – Birmingham Seaholm High School
Saturday, November 19 – County Championship – Walled Lake Western High School
Wednesday, November 30 – OCCRA Banquet – Oakland Schools

OCCRA History

2015 OCCRA Foundation Award Winners!

2013 OCCRA Foundation Award Winners!

2012 OCCRA Foundation Award Winners!

2011 OCCRA Foundation Award Winners!

2010 OCCRA Foundation Award Winners!

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