UNSW STEM, Robotics &
Coding Challenge
The Highway Collapse — A massive geotechnical failure has severed a critical transport route.
Design coding, robotics, and AI solutions for rescue, logistics, safety, and recovery.
🗓️ Key Dates
All dates below are for the 2026 academic year (Term 2–Term 3)
Wednesday, 22 April 2026 — Term 2–Term 3
Friday, 25 September 2026 — End of Term 3
Tuesday, 20 October 2026
Friday, 25 September 2026 — Video + Code submission
20–21 October 2026 — Held physically at UNSW (TBC)
Monday, 9 November 2026
Three Challenges, One Mission
Choose one or combine multiple challenges
STEM Challenge
Complete the maths problem curriculum and coding lessons through the e-learning platform. Results are automatically tracked and reviewed within the system.
Coding Challenge
Research a real emergency problem, then build a rescue mission game or an AI Pose Rescue Game using MRT AI Studio and Google Teachable Machine.
Robotics Challenge
Build and program a rescue robot using the official AI Mission Kit or your own robot platform. Categories A & B use AI pose control; Category C is open to all robots.
1. What Students Can Build
What can students create?
- 🎮 Games that rescue people from the collapsed highway, deliver emergency supplies, or navigate through rubble.
- 🏗️ Simulations that manage traffic diversion, emergency shelter systems, or structural reinforcement models.
- 📱 Apps or digital tools such as SOS alert systems, safe route planners, or damage assessment dashboards.
- 🧠 AI projects using image recognition (crack detection), sound analysis (distress calls), or motion tracking (rescue signals).
- 🤖 Robots that navigate debris, detect survivors, deliver supplies, or assist in bridge/road reconstruction.
- ⚙️ Open projects using any existing robot kits that match the highway collapse rescue theme.
2. Coding Challenge Pathways
💻 Research → Design → Code → Explain
Students first research a real-world emergency problem from the Highway Collapse scenario, then turn their research into a coding project. Every project must show how coding can help with rescue, logistics, safety, or recovery.
Junior Coding Explorers
Best for: Kindergarten – Year 2
Use ScratchJr or MRT AI Studio to create a rescue story, animation, or simple game about the highway collapse emergency.
Tools: ScratchJr (official app on iPad / Android tablet) or MRT AI Studio (via eLearning platform)
Research Ideas:
- What happens when a highway collapses?
- Who can help? (rescue teams, ambulance, police)
- What needs to be moved to safety?
Project Ideas:
- A rescue story where a character helps people reach safety
- An emergency warning animation for the highway collapse
- A simple game where a character delivers medical supplies
Rescue Mission: Creative Coding
Best for: Year 3 – Year 12
Create a rescue mission game using MRT AI Studio block coding. Your game must respond to the highway collapse emergency.
Judging Groups: Junior (Y3–5) · Middle (Y6–8) · Senior (Y9–12)
Game Ideas:
- Avoid falling rocks and deliver emergency supplies to safety
- Find the safe route through a damaged highway zone
- Collect repair parts to rebuild a collapsed bridge
- Rescue stranded people before time runs out
AI Pose Rescue Game
Best for: Upper Primary – High School
Train a Google Teachable Machine Pose Classification model and use body movements to control a rescue game character in MRT AI Studio.
AI Requirement: Pose Classification only (min. 4 poses recommended)
Pose Control Ideas:
- Forward pose → move into the danger zone
- Stop pose → halt at an unstable area
- Left/Right pose → dodge falling debris
- Signal pose → send rescue alert
Safe Coding Options for Schools
Can’t use Scratch Online at your school? We provide safe, approved coding alternatives — including the MRT Scratch Web App, Windows App, and Mac App — so every student can participate without restrictions.
3. Robotics Challenge
🤖 One Mission. Three Categories.
Categories A & B use the official AI Mission Kit with AI pose recognition and Bluetooth control via MRT AI Studio. Category C is an Open Robotics category — students may use any school-approved robot platform.
AI Motion Rescue — Individual
For individual students from upper primary to high school.
- Participants: 1 student
- Kit: Official AI Mission Robot Kit
- AI — Starter Mode: Use the official sample Pose Classification model.
- AI — Challenge Mode: Train your own Pose Classification model via Google Teachable Machine for higher scores.
- Object: Move one rescue object (4.6 × 4.2 × 3.6 cm) through obstacles to the destination. May be pushed, dragged, hooked, guided, or carried.
AI Motion Rescue — Team
For school teams and group projects.
- Participants: 2–4 students
- Kit: Official AI Mission Robot Kit
- AI Requirement: Team must train its own Pose Classification model.
- Roles: AI Model Trainer · Coding Engineer · Robot Engineer · Mission Designer · Presenter
- Object: Same rescue object mission as Category A.
Open Rescue Robotics Challenge
For students and schools using their own robotics platforms.
- Participants: 1–4 students
- Robot: Any platform — micro:bit, LEGO SPIKE, LEGO EV3, Arduino, VEX, Raspberry Pi, MRT, or other school-approved robots.
- AI: Optional. Teams using AI, sensors, autonomous behaviour, or advanced control receive bonus recognition.
- Mission: Design a robot solution for the Highway Collapse rescue scenario — rescue, logistics, safety, recovery, or hazard detection.
Start from base → Move toward rescue object (4.6×4.2×3.6 cm) → Navigate obstacles → Deliver to destination zone → Complete within 3 minutes — all through AI pose recognition + Bluetooth.
🔒 Hardware Limitation (Category A & B only)
A/B robots must use only the Official AI Mission Robot Kit (MRTNODE, 2 DC motors, 1 servo, structural parts). No extra motors, sensors, or third-party parts.
Category C uses your own robot — no kit restriction!
🤖 View Official Robot Kit Details →📚 Research → Design → Build → Code → Test → Explain
Before building, investigate the highway collapse scenario. Your research becomes robot design choices: obstacle avoidance, object-moving mechanisms, pose commands, safety stops, and route strategies.
📘 Curriculum Connections: Technologies · Science · Mathematics · HASS/Geography · Health & PE · General Capabilities
4. Official Coding Platform
MRT AI Studio
MRT AI Studio is the official coding platform for this challenge. Students should use MRT AI Studio through the eLearning platform. It provides Scratch-style block coding features for animations, games, simulations, AI projects, and robot-control programs.
Scratch Online is not required.
💻 Coding (All Paths)
- MRT AI Studio (via eLearning platform)
- ScratchJr official app (iPad / Android tablet — Path A)
MRT AI Studio includes all standard Scratch block coding features plus AI/ML extensions and robot-control extensions.
🧠 AI / Machine Learning (Path C & Robotics)
- MRT AI Studio (built-in ML extensions)
- Google Teachable Machine (Pose Classification)
- TMPose2Scratch extension (built into MRT AI Studio)
⚙️ Robotics Hardware
- Official AI Mission Robot Kit
- MRTNODE / MRT AI Node Board
- MRT AI Studio (via eLearning platform)
- Bluetooth connection & Webcam
📘 Important Notes
- MRT AI Studio does not use online project storage. Students must save their project files to their own computer, school drive, OneDrive, Google Drive, or another approved storage location.
- All required project files, templates, and learning materials are included in the registered eLearning course at elearning.mrtrobotics.com.
- Mac and Windows versions of MRT AI Studio may be provided to registered schools, teams, or participants upon request — for robotics connection, Bluetooth access, or school network compatibility.
👨🏫 Helpful for Teachers
Teachers can use this challenge to support classroom learning in Digital Technologies, STEM/STEAM, Robotics, Design Thinking, the Engineering Design Process, AI introduction, Problem-solving, teamwork, and project-based learning.
Guide based on confidence:
Students do not need to build the same type of project. You may guide them by level:
- Lower Primary: ScratchJr / MRT AI Studio storytelling or simple rescue games
- Upper Primary: MRT AI Studio games, AI missions, simple robotics rescue tasks
- Secondary: Advanced AI Pose projects, smart safety systems, robotics engineering
Suggested Classroom Flow:
- Learn the Highway Collapse rescue scenario
- Identify a transport or safety problem
- Plan a rescue or recovery solution
- Build the code or robot
- Test and improve
- Present how the solution helps the community
Evaluation Criteria
Creativity (20 pts)
How original, imaginative, and exciting is the idea?
Problem Solving (20 pts)
How well does the project help solve the highway collapse crisis?
Coding/Engineering (20 pts)
How well is the code or robot built and programmed?
Design & Function (20 pts)
Does it work smoothly, clearly, and successfully?
Presentation (20 pts)
Can the student clearly explain the idea, process, and impact?
Bonus Points
Extra credit for strong AI integration, smart safety systems, excellent storytelling, real-world usefulness, or creative robotics design.
Preparation: eLearning Course Mapping
All courses are available on elearning.mrtrobotics.com after registration.
🤖 Robotics Challenge
All robotics courses are open:
- ScratchJr Starter Course
- Scratch Beginner / Intermediate / Game Logic
- MRT AI Studio Coding Courses
- ⭐ 451 AI Motion Rescue — Official Competition Prep
💻 Coding Challenge
All coding courses are open:
- ScratchJr Starter Course
- Scratch Beginner Course
- Scratch Intermediate Course
- Scratch Review Course
🖱️ STEM Learning Challenge
STEM Challenge course:
- Logic Mission Challenge
📐 Mathematics
Students are enrolled in their own grade-level Mathematics course.
🏆 STEM Award Criteria
The STEM Award is given to students who diligently complete both:
- 📐 Their grade-level Mathematics course
- 🧩 The Logic Mission Challenge course
✅ Important Entry Guidance
Students may participate at their own level.
Projects can be simple or advanced, digital or physical, individual or team-based, as long as they connect clearly to the yearly challenge theme.
Bonus Rule: A single registration allows a student to submit up to 2 projects across different pathways (e.g., 1 Coding + 1 Robotics). You do NOT need to choose your category during registration—just submit when you are ready!
2026 Challenge — The Highway Collapse
A massive geotechnical failure has severed a critical transport route. Students across Australia are invited to design coding, robotics, and AI solutions for rescue, logistics, safety, and recovery.
🎯 Mission & Purpose
To empower students to solve real-world problems through the all-powerful tool of coding, using engineering thinking, creativity, and teamwork to make a real impact.
Design, logic & systems thinking
Not just for fun, with purpose
Games, apps, or simulations
Just like real STEM professionals
🎨 Theme: The Highway Collapse
A massive geotechnical failure has severed a critical transport route. Students design solutions for:
Structural failure rescue\n🚑
🏛️ Host & Support
| Host | UNSW Built Environment |
| Support |
🔹 Women in Construction Project 🔹 Department of the PM&C Office for Women 🔹 MRT Robotics e-learning https://robotclass.com.au/ |
🗓️ Event Schedule
Venue: UNSW Sydney
Wednesday, 22 April 2026 (Term 2–Term 3)
Friday, 25 September 2026 (End of Term 3)
Tuesday, 20 October 2026
Friday, 25 September 2026 (Video + Code)
20–21 October 2026 (TBC)
Monday, 9 November 2026
🧪 Evaluation Criteria
Each criterion scored 1–20 points
Unique ideas & gameplay
Simplicity, logic, optimization
Clear structure & theme
Aesthetic & gameplay balance
Clear video explanation
🤖 AI Integration — Bonus points for AI use
🎖 Participation & Pricing
Individual
School Group
🏆 Awards & Prizes
All participants
⭐ How to Participate
Individual Entry
School Group Entry
🏆 Awards & Prizes
Recognising excellence at every level
All participants
Outstanding achievement
Top performers
Special prizes
🏛️ Host & Support
| Host | UNSW School of Built Environment |
| Support |
🔹 Women in Construction Project 🔹 robotclass.com.au |
AI Integration
Bonus points for creative AI integrationOpen to all K–12 students
With special encouragement for girls and students in remote areas.
