Not your typical robotics competition!

The Bell Advanced Vertical Robotics (AVR) Competition is returning for a sixth season to inspire future entrepreneurs in the fields of engineering and manufacturing. Students use hands-on, industry-standard tools to design, build, and compete against teams from around the US with the most advanced aerial robotics technology available today. Participation in the Bell AVR Competition prepares students to meet rapidly changing future workforce needs both on the ground and in the air!

2023 Season Updates

Registration – New Team Registration is $4,000 and includes one event registration and a full kit of parts needed to compete in the 2023 season. Returning Team Registration is $2,500 and includes one event registration.
Qualifying Competitions – Qualifying competitions will be held November in Arlington, TX and Grandville, MI. The Championship event will be held in the Arlington,Dallas/Ft Worth region the first weekend of December.
2023 Game – The 2022 Firefighting Challenge has been extended into the 2023 season to add new Rescue Mission challenges for the aerial and ground vehicles along with some of the Firefighting challenges which are still burning in Bell County! The 2023 Bell AVR Competition game will be revealed on August 22, 2023.

Team FAQ

View the Team FAQ to find more information about the program, competition, and kits.

Team FAQ

The 2023 Bell AVR Game

Firefighting & Rescue Challenge!

Game Reveal Coming in August

Since none of the 2022 teams were able to fully extinguish the fires -- Bell County is still burning! Our Bell County Fire Department is ready to send our fearless AVR teams back into the fray to compete in the 2023 Bell AVR Firefighting & Rescue Challenge! The game field will include some firefighting similarities to last season, but also some new and exciting rescue challenges that are sure to test even the most seasoned drone and ground-based robotics pilots. We are thrilled to offer an enhanced version of this game, and can’t wait for the full competition reveal on August 22, 2023.

While waiting for the official 2023 game to be released, your teams can keep working on the following game dynamics that will continue to be used in some manner:

Mastering your AVR Drone capability for Position-Hold flight
Using your Laser beam to extinguish fires
Identifying hot spots (in new locations) using the thermal sensor
Picking up and dropping off of water balls
Autonomous programming of the drones and support vehicles

The 2022 Game Video and Game Manual can be viewed to help new teams become familiar with the firefighting challenge last year, but all teams should expect changes in the firefighting challenges and exciting new rescue missions which will be revealed in the 2023 Game Video and Game Manual in August.

2022 Game Manual (PDF)

Gain STEM Workforce Skills

Over the course of a single season, students will have:

Built, programmed, and flown the most advanced drone available in competition robotics
Designed, 3D printed, and implemented their own robotic components
Soldered and wired on-board electronic components
Learned how industry aerospace experts code for aerial kinematics
Overcome the challenges of “in the field” systems integration
Utilized project management skills to balance development cycles of ground and aerial robots
Delivered technical presentations to compete for judged awards

2022 Season Recap

Championship Event

The Bell AVR 2022 Championship Event was held December 3, 2022 at the Bell Flight Research Center in Arlington, Texas.

Event Photography Results Awards

A Word From our Students

Watch the videos below to hear about our teams’ experience.

Keller Fusion

Team 1006B

Robowranglers

Team 1480A

Patriot Drone

Team 1027A (JROTC)

Thank You to our Sponsors!

We proudly recognize the following organizations for their partnership and appreciate their continued support of our global mission to provide educators with hands-on, student-led competition programs and educational resources to prepare future innovators for a diverse and inclusive STEM workforce.