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TEAM 7992 FTC CASCADE EFFECT
ENGINEERING NOTEBOOK
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Table of Contents About Us………………………………………………………………………………………….3 Biographies………………………………………………………………………………………4 Engineering Development Timeline September……………………………………………………………………………….7 October………………………………………………………………………………….11 November……………………………………………………………………………....14 December……………………………………………………………………………....15 January………………………………………………………………………………….20 February………………………………………………………………………………...22 Robot Control Algorithms……………………………………………………………………..23 Service Outreach………………………………………………………………………………23 Monrovia FTC Qualifiers Reflection………………………………………………………….25 Venice FTC Qualifiers Reflection………………………………………………...................27 Bill of Materials………………………………………………………………………………...31
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About Us This year marks Lightning Robotics’ second year as a FTC competitor. We are happy to announce that our team has nearly doubled in size from the previous year and therefore we were able to be much more ambitious in our designs. This year was a year of firsts for our team, some notable events including laying the foundation of a community outreach program, holding our first large recruitment event, and seeking corporate sponsorships. Unfortunately, as of the time of this writing, our team has undergone some growing pains, we have had to establish a more stringent leadership organization as well as develop standardized policies for communication so that every member of the team is kept informed. We would like to thank Mr. Chris Vivo for his constant and wonderful mentorship throughout this process. We would also like to thank our Head of School, Mrs. Patricia Merz, and our President of School, Mr. Gordon McNeil, for supporting us in our endeavors. In addition, we would like to thank FRC Team 7135, “El Diablo”. Most of all, we would like to thank our friends and family for their unceasing support of our team. So now, we would like to share with you our journey so far, all of our successes and setbacks, and hope that you will glimpse the true potential of this team.
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Biographies Dustin Jamner: Dustin is the founding president of Lightning Robotics. He works hard at keeping the team together and working. He has designed a large part of the robot and is helpful with problems that we encounter while building it. Unfortunately, Dustin is a senior and is off to college next year. Michael Rouleau: Michael heads the robot build team and is VP of the team. He assembles the actual robot and comes up with new designs to build and test. Michael has built a lot of the robot and is adept at quick and clean assembly. Unfortunately, Michael is a senior and will be leaving us next year. Theo Evers: Theo leads the practice field build team and works with Michael on the robot. Theo has made many repairs and additions to robot and has begun assuming more leadership responsibilities from Michael and Dustin in preparation for next year. Theo is a sophomore and is looking forward to assuming the presidency next year. William (Billy) Paivine III: Billy is our chief programmer, and has been a huge asset to the team in that respect. He has, in conjunction with Buck, developed and tested a large portion of the codebase, as well as developed our motor calibration procedures. He, a junior, will be returning next year. Buck Bukaty III: Buck has worked with Billy on the autonomous period, primarily on testing and calibration. He acts as Billy’s second brain, arms, and everything else really. Being a junior, he is happy to return next year as a senior. Isaac Collins: Isaac works with design and build and is a member of the drive team. He designed portions of the robot and helps the team troubleshoot problems. He helped construct the ramp, and its many parts. In his capacity as coach, Isaac has facilitated seamless in-game communication between teams. He is a junior and will be returning to the team next year. Brian Slaughter: Brian is a member of the build team while simultaneously studying the coding process. He helps with a variety of components, from the chassis to the gearings. He is a senior and will be leaving next year. Ethan Vovan: Ethan is a member of the programming team, and is new to the Sage Hill Robotics team. He has helped on building the team website, currently under
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development, contributing a number of improvements to it. He is a freshman, and will continue to be an active member of the team for the next four years. Eric Frankel: Eric is a member of the programming team, and is a new member of the Sage Hill Robotics. He has worked on programming the autonomous and teleop of the robot, as well as the website. The vast majority of the codebase is either his work or Billy’s. He is a freshman and plans to continue to be an active member of the team for the coming years. Kimberly Wong: Kimberly is our team’s senior media manager. Besides working on the engineering notebook she also helps to manage our presence in both our school and the community. Sadly, Kimberly is a senior this year and will be leaving us, but she will be leaving her position in the competent hands of Tamara Tsubota. Tamara Tsubota: Tamara is also a team media manager. A junior, she has spent this year helping Kimberly manage the engineering notebook as well as learning how to continue and expand our outreach efforts. Daniel Shi: Daniel is a new member of the robotics team. His favorite subjects are math and science, which may explain why he comes occasionally to robotics meetings. He recently developed an interest in working and cutting with wood, and he works tirelessly on the field team. Cole Dunlap: Cole Dunlap is a returning member to the team, in his second year of both FTC and high school. His favorite subjects are the physical sciences, and he works mostly on field with Daniel Shi. He enjoys the meetings, and is excited to continue working with the team. Jacob Diaz: Jacob Diaz, a returning team member, is a junior who has dedicated many hours to this team. He works with the building and designing of the robot as well as the construction of the practice field. He quite likes robotics and will continue to work with the team in his senior year. Ethan Ackerman: Ethan is a general handyman and will soon be the website content manager. As a novice to robotics and engineering, he is currently learning as much as he can so that he may help with the robot directly in the future. Ethan is a junior and will continue robotics next year.
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Cameron Hamidi: Cameron is a new recruit to the team. He has some prior experience with robotics thanks to a school seminar with Mr. Vivo. Cameron is also in charge of video scripting, filming, and production for future competition videos. As a junior, he plans to continue robotics next year. Andrew Vorrath: Andrew is a new member of the team, but has already demonstrated his consistency and dedication. He has been researching teams for this event, seeking possible alliance partners. Andrew is a junior and will be returning next year. Archmage Vivo: Some say he can explain the universe by asking a single question. All who undergo his tutelage agree that his knowledge of science and engineering is matched only by his broadsword skills. Mr. Vivo, Archmage of Physics, is a wonderful mentor with the mystical ability to guide us on the right path without giving us the solutions before we figure them out.
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Engineering Development Timeline September 9 - Kickoff! Brainstorming:
September 12 Decided on scissor lift design - Math works Decided on conveyor belt to raise balls from floor to top of ramp Issue: motor count is 4 for drive, 2 for conveyor, 2 for lift, 1 for scoop mechanism - Solution: conveyor uses 1 belt and 1 flat side September 16 Debated options for scissor lift movement - 2 rack and pinions, rack attached to bottom of lift - Issue: extends beyond robot boundaries - Lead screw
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- Issue: no concrete implementation, part fabrication Double rack and pinion: - One rack on top of motor, one on bottom - Motor turns, racks pull the ends of the scissor lift in, (push out) - Advantages: space compact, requires only 1 motor
September 19 Programming: - http://www.robotc.net/download/lego/ - Manual controls - Drive train - Tank style (L stick for L, R stick for R) Driver 1 - Lift mechanism (to raise) - Driver 2 - L stick up/down - Automatic lift/dump configs for 30, 60, 90 - Tilt mechanism (to dump) - Driver 2 - Button controlled (dump/reset sequence) - Ziptie spinner - Driver 2 - R trigger - Tube grabber - Driver 1 Trigger - Autonomous - Knock over bar - Randomly positioned - IR beacon - Ultrasonic? - Drag tubes - Find tubes Build: - Currently debating multiple lifting arm methods (scissor lift and rack and pinion lift) - Current indications leading towards rack and pinion due to complexity of scissor - One member believes to have found scissor lift solution which will be discussed next meeting (we consider this to be much more preferable if possible) Field: - Wood and PVC delivered
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Early concept sketch of our original design
September 22 Field: - All cut lines excluding the supports for the ramp were outlined in preparation to cutting September 23 Club Fair Planning: - Need to be behind a column so we can put the poster above us - Need a picture of last years robotics team on left of the table and the robot on the right - Robotic pieces on the table
Initial Design
Final Design
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September 26 Programming: - Created github repository at https://github.com/lightning-robotics - Began teaching programming team about Git Building: - Continued brainstorming potential lifting systems, currently leaning towards “scissor lift” system Field: - Waiting for Mr. Langdale to bring in cutting supplies (no specifics on when yet)
Initial designs of scissor lift
September 30 Observed scissor lift design on VEX robot - Figured out how to move scissor lift arms Calculations: requires 6 levels of arms * 2 arms/level * 2 lifts = 24 bars Art: - Finalized and printed the banner design for club fair - Began to think about how the new system for raising the scissor lift should be implemented - Gear mounted to cross beam
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October 3 Parts order list: 2x W39271 TETRIX MAX Flats 288 mm $9.95 ea. 10x W39070 TETRIX MAX Flat Bars 288 mm $9.95 ea. 3X Hi-Tec Servo, model HSR-1425CR (am-2587) (andymark) $22 ea 1 set of balls 1 set of rolling goals Build: - Figured out that the ramp would be approximately 9 inches horizontally and 9.5 inches vertical. Decided based on these numbers that 3 for free moving servos. - Currently planning on making the basket 8 inches in each direction, with the components that grip the scissor lift placed below it and extending slightly over 3 inches out to the side. - Calculated that 6 sets of cross braces would be necessary for the scissor lift to attain the height needed to dump in the 120 cm goal at 60 degrees elevation. - Figured out that the ramp would be approximately 9 inches horizontally and 9.5 inches vertical. Decided based on these numbers that 3 for free moving servos. Field: - Arranged for Mr. Langdale to bring in supplies for construction on Tuesday. Planning to use everyone who can be spared on construction of the field, hopefully it can be reduced to a one or two day process. October 6 - Clubs Fair
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Brianna Cupps
Kayla Gratzer
Cameron Slater
Chace Duma
Genesis Gonzalez
Jake Choi
Gin Wang
Keng Zhang
William Leong
Eric Shi
Neal Srener
Brandon Wang
Eric Frankel
Chris Allen
Ian Huang
Nishant Chaturvedi
Alex Kim
James Wang
Henry Ficcidenti
Ethan Vovan
Dillon Graveline
October 7 Updated Parts Order List: 2x W39271 TETRIX MAX Flats 288 mm $9.95 ea. 10x W39070 TETRIX MAX Flat Bars 288 mm $9.95 ea. 1 set of balls (andymark) FTC 2015 Game Piece Sets (am-2968) $80 1 set of rolling goals FTC 2015 Rolling Goal (am-2832) $50 2X TETRIX® MAX DC Gear Motor (pitsco Product ID: W39530) $24.95ea 2X Tetrix Max Gear Pack Product ID: W31901 $89.95 Field: - Rescheduled with Mr. Langdale to have supplies in on Friday to coincide with the kids recruited from clubs fair. Build: - Ran all the leftover motors from last year, established that they are all functional. Change ramp system to use a motor and a set of gears rather that three free rotating servos. - October 28: Built the base frame for the robot. - November 4: Strengthened the body of the robot, placed the motors and motor controllers on the robot, built holding mechanisms for the battery and the nxt. Thinking about having the base of the scissor lift anchored slightly above the main frame.
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Programming: - Developed practice exercise framework for teaching code - Created a virtual robot that is controllable using preliminary API methods - Created a simple tutorial/demo to using the virtual API Build: - Finalized dimensions of basket system - Tested all motors on last years robot to see if any replacements were needed - Preparing for deconstruction with new recruits in near future Field: Final lines for the cutting were marked out. Some of the drilling holes were also marked out. Spent as of 10.31.14: Parts: $399.70 30x LEGO MINDSTORMS Perpetual CLASSROOM License = $599 Total: $998.7 Sage’s Budget: $1000 To-buy: 20 t-shirts …. 17.99 each… incorporating BULK scale = 279.8 posters = 20 display = 50
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travel expenses? = ~150 competition costs - covered initial extra parts? more than 250 aesthetics - ~100 side panels ~50 safe extra 200 Total to buy all needed: $1009.8 How do we raise ~1000 dollars? Corporate sponsorship. Which companies do we go after…. Engineering, robotic based companies. Ideas; Pimco, Broadcom, Tesla, Google, Apple, Day Software, Irvine Company, Intellicloud, Jazz Semiconductor, Michaelson Robotics, Gus Toubia, November 12 Programming: - Began API assessment and robot testing Build: - Issue: gear scissor is misaligned with the rest of the scissor lift - Possible solution: Attach the misaligned screw to a gear, which will stabilize it and give it mobility. Below are attached photos of this solution. We should investigate for a more efficient setup.
Assembled functional robot drive system
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November 22 Build: - Assembled our two-part scissor lift - We improved the functionality of the gatherer. We originally had an issue with the gatherer to the robot. Since it can only attach to our robot at a 45 degree angle, we began conceptualizing how to optimize the performance of our ramp. - We also spent time brainstorming the issue of gear locations on the bottom of the scissor lift. We tested a variety of gear ratios, identifying what the most ideal gear ratio would be for our robot. - Tinkered with the structure of the scissor lift to ensure that friction did not prevent the gears from working November 25 Build: - Changed the schedule of our meetings to 4 p.m. daily (originally X blocks) - Brainstormed major design changes with the lift - Combined two scissor lifts into one functional lift - Added axles to the intersections of the scissor lift bars for increased stability December 1 Build: - Flipped the arrangement of the gatherer (gatherer only attaches to the robot at a 45 degree angle, but flipping the structure optimized its ability to extend from the robot. - Added pipes to the gatherer - Extended the length of the gatherer by filing and attaching a metal sheet - Prepared to attach the HS-485HB to the robot (placed there in order to hold onto an attached graduated cylinder) - Started focusing increasingly on the structure of our forklift. We put a temporary hold on working on our scissor lift to prepare for the December 6 competition (during which we are using our forklift design.)
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December 2 Build: - Unassembled our previous HS-485HB attachment set up and decided to set each of the pieces with a mirror symmetry. - continued filing and optimizing the metal sheet of the gatherer and the ramp - We are disassembling parts of our main forklift assembly to provide more parts for the gatherer/ramp - Began observing test drives of the robot - We have been adding a series of gears and supports above the ramp/gatherer to prepare to attach zip ties to. We plan to gather the whiffle balls by utilizing our gear mechanism in such a way that we can cause zip ties to spin, pushing the balls higher onto our ramp and closer to the robot/lift. Programming: - Tested tracking system - Achieved IR tracking from the robot - Began ultrasonic code - Ongoing: Develop autonomous ConOps
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December 3 Build: - Completed the build of our modified ramp system for abbreviated competition build - Mated the ramp and lift onto the robot body Programming: - Calibrated the IR sensor - Took magnitude reading and converted into physical distances December 6 Build: - Final integration of modified ramp - Experienced over-torquing of ramp motor, resulting in a near instantaneous blowout - Did not have enough time to sufficiently correct stresses on gear system, had to modify - Changed ConOps to focus on autonomous scoring, had to sacrifice much of the manual versatility, can now only score in endgame
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Programming: - Finished and tested autonomous tracking code - Altered autonomous Conops to accommodate modified build Bill of Materials Part name Quantity TETRIX flats 2 TERTIX Resource Set 1 HiTechnic DC Motor Controller for TETRIX 4 TETRIX DC Gear Motor 2 5 TETRIX Servo controller 1 TETRIX Motor Encoder Pack 2 TETRIX Motor Shaft Hubs 5 TETRIX DC Motor Mount 37 mm 2 Zip Ties 15 Rubber Bands 30 TETRIX MAX gear pack 2 December 8 Build: - We brainstormed the remodelling of our robot’s structure in order to improve our endgame strategy by lifting balls via a rack and pinion mechanism. We are attempting to improve our functionality by creating an apparatus that carries a ball into the 120cm goal. We plan on doing so by connecting three smaller beams to a larger 16.5in beam. Our three-part rack and pinion system will function by extending upwards, pushing the ball closer to the goal. We plan on scoring our pre-set balls by lifting them with a rotating mechanism that will be attached to a servo. - In addition, we plan on implementing a sliding device on our robot. We are going to make room on the robot by removing our original gathering device, thus creating available space in the middle of the robot to add additional beams to the robot’s framework in order to increase stability. - Since the maximum height our robot can reach is 18 inches (and our primary beam is already 16.5 inches), one of our primary issues while creating the mechanism is to optimize the space that we are given. Tomorrow we are planning on removing our previous ramp so we can implement our new ideas.
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December 9 - Discussed Materials Needed: - 24 1-length U-beam - 3+? LONG U-beams - andymark field mat - We continued to brainstorm about the rack and pinion idea. The scissor lift idea is officially scrapped, as we could not find a gear ratio strong enough to support the lift. We took the scissor lift prototype apart for the parts. - We reviewed videos of the competition on sunday, and have decided to use our tactic of dragging the tubes onto the ramp to the fullest. - We designed a new base to add more support and more connections to the robot. Here is the new design: - We worked on building the tower in the center of the field so as to place the I-R beacon, but we had a large setback and could not get much done today.
December 11 Website: - Set up on GitHub pages - Researched Jekyll - Determined that Jekyll would suit our needs
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Transferred website to Jekyll Added engineering notebook to website
December 18 to January 5 - Winter Break No Classes January 7 - Beginning the process of rebuilding our robot’s base, still waiting certain parts, moved the NXT to the center of the robot in a more stable position. - More brainstorming on possible designs for a rack and pinion system that can reach 120’ goal. - Programming team working on a drive program that detects error produced by motors and corrects it, should allow the robot to drive straight consistently January 9 - Parts arrived from shipment, Team fully completed robot base January 14 - Finished lifting mechanism for the robot, rewiring robot to fit the mechanism. - Began to build dropper mechanism - Began drafting of lift axle holder
Version 1 - This iteration had numerous sizing issues and was almost entirely reworked.
Version 2 - This version was correctly sized for the axles and screws diameters, but the screws were too widely spaced and the axle hole was not yet aligned.
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Version 3-4: Version 3 was functional, but required sanding to make fit and caused more friction than was optimal. Version 4 fixed these issues by slightly increasing the diameter of these holes.
In plastic, 1-4 from left to right
January 21 - 3D printed the “Dunker” assembly - Mounted The Dunker onto the lift assembly - Tested motor control January 22 - Wired the lift system with power - Lubricated the lifting rack and pinion systems to ensure a smooth fit - Finalized mechanical build (tighten screws/motor mounts/ general inspections)
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January 23 - Recalibrated motors for new weight of “The Dunker” - Finished programming autonomous - Rigorous testing - During testing the 3D printed component holding down the axle snapped along the layer lines - Reinforced the axle lockdown system with a metal panel to ensure that it will remain stable in the competition February 10 - Updated Autonomous to update from relative positioning to absolute positioning.
February 13 - After testing autonomous we realized that more speed was necessary to complete our objective of pulling two rolling goals into the parking zone - We adjusted the gear ratio of the drive motors from 2-1 to 1-1. This gave us significantly greater speed. - Although we still have enough power to push/pull goals we now can complete our entire autonomous plan in 25 seconds instead of 32
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Service Outreach
Our team operates two service groups, much like how our club has separate build and programing teams. Our service groups each have their own primary focus, but just as there is crossover between teams, members from multiple divisions of our team participate in both groups. Our computer science education group, Hello World, Programming for the Future, focuses on community outreach through classes teaching basic programming techniques and ideas. Thus far, Hello World has used the Scratch programming system to teach introductory programming to middle school students. However, this year, we will be expanding our program through the addition of a robotics-based curriculum using Pi-Bots, robotics kits based on the Arduino microprocessor. In the modern day, understanding computer logic and coding ideas is a skill that benefits everyone. The members of “Hello World” focus on teaching students to “think like a computer” as well as inspiring interest in programming and computer science. Whether our students go on to pursue a career in computer science, other areas of STEM, or professions in the humanities, we hope that they will put their knowledge of and passion for programming to use.
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Kairos Technologies focuses on the hardware aspect of computing. According to Julious Genachowski, the Federal Communications Chairman, "100 million people [in America still do not have broadband in their homes, many of them being low-income Americans and minorities." He also says that "over half of today's jobs require technology skills, and nearly 80 percent of jobs in the next decade are projected to require digital skills." His statement shows how important understanding how to use technology is, especially at a young age. This is the inspiration for Kairos Technologies. Kairos Technologies is a Sage Hill High school service learning group, where we specialize in the refurbishing of old computers, which we donate to various schools across the Orange County area so that their students can enhance their computer skills to be successful in the future. Our mission reads as follows: “Kairos Technologies seeks to provide computers and computer education to elementary schools in the the Orange County area.” We believe that by providing underprivileged students with access to technology, we can help solve the issues brought up by Genachowski. Each time we receive donations, we will perform a military grade wipe on each computer and install a linux-based operating system, which is a more learning based program. Then, once we refurbish a critical mass of computers, we donate them to El Sol academy, a local charter school in Costa Mesa, CA.
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Monrovia FTC Qualifier - December 7, 2014 Pre-Competition This was our first competition of the year, and only our second competition as a team. We had been working on our robot fervently for the last two weeks: fine tuning working components and fixing new problems as they came up. Our programming team was hard at work on our robot’s autonomous portion. During our testing and development, we had run into a great dilemma: our ramp system for scoring balls in the rolling goals was not successful. We were left with a choice between working on what might have been a fruitless attempt at fixing our ramp, or ditching the ramp and remaining unable to score balls. However, we were not entirely at a loss. Our robot was extremely sturdy and we still had one method of scoring left to us: a set of grabbers on the front of the robot designed to drag rolling goals. We quickly devised a new strategy for our teleop phase. Our plan was to take advantage of these servo-powered grippers to support our allies by supplying them with goals for most of the game and, during endgame, drag all three goals up the ramp with our robot. Additionally, we felt confident in our autonomous program, which was designed to move a goal into the parking zone from either starting location. Seeding Rounds As the autonomous portion of the first game began, both of our robots began to move forward. Then, the robots intercepted each other, with caused our alliance partner’s robot to drive into a wall while ours reversed onto the ramp, hanging off dangerously. At this point, the teleop phase began. Due to a miscommunication between our team and our alliance partners, we were holding the incorrect controllers, which lead to a great deal of confusion. Our alliance partner accidentally drove our robot partially off the ramp. It got stuck and was unable to drive for the rest of the match. When we communicated with our alliance partner for our second match of the day, the Assemblers, we were surprised to discover that they could not pick up any balls either. Their robot did not have an autonomous program, which allowed us to start from the ramp once again and circumvent our less reliable parking zone program. We realized that our previous support strategy during teleop was not going work, so we worked to devise the plan that would benefit our teams the most. Little did we know, this strategy would win us the event. Rather than worry about scoring balls, we focused entirely on dragging the empty rolling goals up the ramp. As everyone began to realize the effectiveness of our strategy, the MC of the competition, announced “This could very well be the defining strategy of the game”. When we came back to the scoreboards, we
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found that we had rocketed from near the bottom of the rankings all the way to 2nd place. Our win streak continued, since our new strategy allowed us to synergize with the vast majority of common designs. We won our other matches the same way we had won the second. We lost only one other game, when our robot was disabled during an autonomous collision. At one point during the day, we held rank #1 and we ended the seeding rounds in the top 10 teams. At this point we began to negotiate with the number one team, Alpha-Genesis and another team, the Quantum Potentials, as potential alliance partners in the finals. However, while those teams both had autonomous periods from the ramp, none of us had a solid autonomous period from the ground. We resolved to fix our unreliable parking zone routine. Our porgrammers worked furiously on the robot, fine tuning and calibrating. Meanwhile, the alliance draft loomed nearer. 5 minutes before the ceremony, we were satisfied. We had a reliable autonomous period from the ground. The Finals We joined forces with the two teams we had talked with earlier, Alpha-Genesis, the only team undefeated in seeding, and Quantum Potentials, the highest scorer of the day. We swept the semi-finals and finals, not losing a single game. We could feel the buzz in the air after each round. Our competition was formidable, but with each win, we thought “maybe we can do this.” and believed it just a little bit more. During the awards ceremony, our team was second place for the inspire award. Alpha-Genesis won the Inspire Award and Quantum Potentials placed third, a full sweep of the podium for our alliance. Our Impact This was only our second competition as a team. last year, our robot performed quite poorly, so we had a lot to prove to ourselves and the other teams. At Monrovia, we were able to stand out, working well with our alliance partners, aiding a number of teams with their autonomous programs, and scoring extremely reliably in the teleop portion.
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Venice FTC Qualifier - January 24, 2015 The Beginning We arrived at Venice High School at 7:30 am and immediately set up in the pit. Although we had improved our design significantly since our last competition, we knew that all of the other teams had had time to prepare as well. The competition would be much more formidable this time. We quickly passed inspection and proceeded to talking with the other teams. We had a good meetings with Rock and Roll, Kings and Queens, ANCroid, and a few other teams. During this time Eric, our primary software developer at this event, was working on testing our autonomous on the practice field. During this period he discovered that some of the code was now inoperable, due to issues with motor calibration and a disastrous misreading of the rules that led our chief programmer to believe that rolling goals could be scored on the ramp during autonomous. Because we were in the first game of the day, we had to resort to a much more basic program. The Games We suffered several setbacks during our first game. Our autonomous was inoperable due to a coding typo and when we tried to raise our lift during the endgame, tension on the dump motor cable pulled it out of the motor controller. We quickly rushed to secure the wiring on our dump motor. In the second game, our dump went much more smoothly. For one of the first times in our team’s short history, a complex mechanism worked exactly as intended. The lift extended steadily upwards and deposited our preloaded ball cleanly into the center goal, to a roar of applause. Our third game we implemented a simple linear autonomous and agreed to let our allies begin on the ramp. As autonomous began, our ally’s robot rolled down to the end of the ramp and promptly stopped working for the rest of the game. This impeded our normal game plan greatly as it prevented us from getting our robot or most of the rolling goals up the ramp. With clever maneuvering, our drive team was able to put a single rolling goal onto the ramp in an attempt to salvage the game. However, it was not nearly enough to win. Our fourth alliance partner could not score balls in tubes, and had no autonomous beyond the ubiquitous straight line. During the teleop of this game, we grabbed two goals and pushed them to the top of the ramp. As we positioned for our endgame strategy, our ally attempted to push the final goal up the ramp. However, they unfortunately lost control of their robot, which barreled up the ramp at full speed and
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knocked a goal off of the ramp. While we once again scored cleanly in the high goal, the massive penalties our alliance suffered resulted in a game loss. In our fifth game, we were allied with Marlbots. During pre-game planning, we determined that they had a better mechanism for scoring in the center goal, so we agreed to act as backup in case they experienced some sort of mechanical difficulties. Instead of scoring the ball in endgame, we focused on our strategy of scoring the rolling goals and our robot on the ramp. Marlbots successfully scored in the high goal, and not only did we successfully place all 3 rolling goals and our robot on the ramp, we also were able to make room for Marlbots, leading to an extremely successful round and a clear victory. Our natural inter-team communication and our robots’ synergy greatly impressed Marlbots. As alliance draft negotiations began, Marlbots, at the time in 5th place, told us that we were their most prefered alliance partner. However, as we were ranked fourteenth, they determined they would pick Rock and Roll Robots first and hope to get us with their second pick. The Alliance Draft Although Marlbots were ranked fifth, there was word that the fourth alliance captaincy would open up due to alliances within the top four teams. Midway through the negotiations period, the judges announced that their was an error in the rankings, and that Marlbots were actually fourth. We were ecstatic that the team who had expressed such keen interest in an alliance had become an alliance captain. However, less than five minutes before the ceremony started, the judges made a second announcement and revoked their previous change. Marlbots was once again in fifth. However, we were still hopeful that they would be an alliance captain. As was rumored, the top team, Thavma, picked the second ranked team, Aluminati, as their first partner. Next, the mike passed to Heat it up and Keep It Cool, now second ranked alliance captain. We were shocked when they picked Marlbots as their first partner. Few other teams in the finals had expressed great interest in us as alliance partners, so with Marlbots unable to form an alliance, we could do nothing but watch intently as the selection continued. As the mike was passed from captain to captain, we noticed Marlbots in animated discussion with the captain of Heat it up and Keep it Cool, as they went down a team list, crossing them off one by one. Although it was not clear what they were debating, we could only hope that they were arguing for our inclusion. Miraculously, this appeared to be the case as we had the pleasure of graciously accepting their second alliance offer. Without Marlbots and our amazing seeding game, we might not have made it into the finals. The Finals Much like at Monrovia, we excelled during the semi-finals and finals. Our alliance only lost a single game, and it was one in which we did not participate. While other
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alliances did quite well, none of them could top our consistency and well-matched partners. Our Impact This event solidified our status as a successful team, both internally and externally. It proved to us that our win at Monrovia was not a fluke and put us among a minority of teams that had won two qualifiers this season.
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Bill of Materials:
-Zip Ties -ABS filament (green and black) -Rustoleum grey spray paint -1/4" wood panels -insulated 16 gauge copper wire (red and black) -solder -steel sheet
