Name: Eric Heinlein Date: Initial - ftc.flfirst.org

Name: Eric Heinlein Date: Initial:

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Notebook Summary Page

As a relatively new team, we have had our fair share of struggles this year.

However, we have been able to overcome these struggles through perseverance

and ingenuity. Team 9207 has grown tremendously, both in size and capability,

this year. Here are some of our highlights:

We obtained a sponsorship from Unify, a global communications software

and services company (Page 12)

We attended the FTC Kickoff event at the FAU Tech Runway (1)

We finally settled on our design with treads for the drive train and an

extending arm with a claw on the end of it (Pages 21-27)

We made regular visits to the St. Joan of Arc Catholic School FLL team as

part of our community outreach (Page 6)

We worked on our flying drone which was shown off at our club booth for

the school’s open house (Page 36)

We came up with an idea for a claw for our robot’s arm (Page 39) We

redesigned it to be 3D printed (Pages 42-43) Final design (Page 54)

We ended up scrapping our claw right before competition as it was

ineffective and cumbersome. We replaced it with a metal hook which is

able to do accomplish much more during competition matches. (Pages 58-

61)

We had our first league competition day where we won the FTC Think

award! (Page 60)


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Table of Contents

Team 9207 – Skynet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Team Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Outreach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Team Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Team Moderator and Mentors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Business Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2015-2016 Budget Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

FTC Team 9207 Sponsorship Contract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Sponsorship Reply Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Competition Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Design/Engineering Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Meeting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20


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Team Summary

Team 9207 was founded last year as the team of the Robotics Club at St. John

Paul II Academy. Alfred (Hopkins) Kennemer was one of the primary instigators

of the club’s creation, and he has taken up the mantle of club president this year.

He has eagerly stepped up to the challenge, and it has truly been a challenge. We

lost a couple of experienced seniors last year, but we have made up for it with a

great increase in membership this year. Our diverse team has come together in

an amazing way throughout our journey of the robot creation process. Different

ages and levels of experience have combined to form a fascinating environment

of both mentoring and learning. We have high hopes for this year’s team and for

the future of Team 9207, Skynet.

Our team at the FAU Tech

Runway on competition day


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Outreach

The expansion of FIRST Robotics programs and our team are key goals for us.

Many members have reached out to friends and classmates to join, recruiting

new members who have made crucial contributions to the club. Not only do we

want to increase membership in our club, we want to foster the growth of FIRST

programs and robotics as a field. We have worked on our outreach program this

year in order to encourage younger students to try robotics and learn about it.

We have worked at St. Joan of Arc Catholic School, a local elementary and middle

school, which has recently started an FLL club. About once a month, a few of us

visit their meetings, help them with their Lego robotics designs, and impart

knowledge about the work that we do. We hope that our experience and

enthusiasm will spark the interest of those young engineers who might enter the

field of robotics and become future members of our team.

On Halloween, Saint John Paul II Academy invites underprivileged children from

the Florence Fuller Child Development Center to come and trick or treat at the

school. We set up a station with volunteers for our robotics club where the

children were excited to see our robot and drone in action.

Over the summer, some of our members plan to participate as counselors in

FIRST summer camps at the FAU Tech Garage and Runway. Hopkins did this last

summer with FLL children; he really enjoyed it and gained some good leadership

experience from it.


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Team Members

Brandon Babey- Brandon is a freshman at SJPII. He has been involved in robotics

since middle school because he loves building projects. He also loves to play golf

and flow ride. Brandon is part of the team’s mechanical engineering team; he

helps assemble the robot once the design is decided on. His favorite thing about

robotics is collaborating as a team to get things done and compete against other

teams.

Stephen Brower- Stephen is a sophomore at SJPII. He is one of the lead

engineers in Team 9207, and he is also involved in student government and

lacrosse. His interest in engineering started as a kid playing with Legos. He joined

robotics because he loves being able to take his ideas and make them come

alive. His favorite part about the club is being able to solve problems using his

imagination and his own two hands. In the future, he plans to participate in other

robotics activities and become a mechanical engineer.

Sofia Covelli- Sofia is a junior at SJPII. She joined robotics because her father is

one of our mentors and because she is good friends with Marisa, our team

treasurer. Her role in the club is in public relations. Her other hobbies include

painting and reading comics. Sofia’s future plans are to study abroad and go into

the field of psychology.

Jared Dawson- Jared is a senior at SJPII. He joined the robotics club because he

thinks that robots are cool and that making them would be interesting. Some of

his other hobbies include soccer and reading anime. One of his favorite parts of

robotics is the thrill of competition and, hopefully, victory.


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Rob Evans- Rob is a sophomore at SJPII. He joined robotics club because a few

friends of his invited him and because he has always enjoyed building things. He

currently serves the role of club spirit manager. Not only limited to spirit, Rob

loves to help design the robot and create strategies for the competitions. He

enjoys bringing enthusiasm to the club and motivating other members.

Pablo Falcon- Pablo is a sophomore at SJPII. His interest in robotics began with

Legos as a child. He thought that robotics would be like Legos on steroids, so he

decided to join the team. He is new to the club, but he is learning more and more

each week. He really enjoys the sense of friendship and bonding within the team.

Ethan Gable- Ethan is a senior at SJPII. He is the man in charge of all wiring and

electronics, and he joined robotics because it is great preparation for his future

career in engineering. Ethan is disappointed in the lack of robot fighting or battle

bots in the club. His favorite aspect of robotics is the great communication

between teammates as we collaborate and compromise. He plans on majoring in

aerospace engineering in college next year.

Eric Heinlein- Eric is a senior at SJPII. He was invited to join the team as the

author of the engineering journal this year. His other activities include swimming,

Model United Nations, and skating. Eric’s favorite part of robotics is the close

bonds formed with fellow students and teammates. He plans to major in

computer engineering at college next year.

Alfred (Hopkins) Kennemer- Hopkins is a junior at SJPII. He was the primary

founder of the robotics club at the school, and this year he is serving as club

president. Although taking up the mantle of leadership proved challenging, he

has greatly helped mentor and guide the team throughout the robot design

process. Other activities Hopkins enjoys include swimming and hunting. He would

like to work in some sort of engineering career in the future.


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Marisa McKesey- Marisa is a junior at SJPII. She joined the club because it is her

aspiration to become a chemical engineer. Her role this year was that of finance

manager/treasurer. Other than robotics, Marisa is involved in soccer, track and

field, and volunteer work with disabled children. In the future, she dreams of

creating a medication that can cure disabled children.

Frankie Olearczyk- Frankie is a junior at SJPII. He is one of the mechanical

engineers of the team, and he is also involved in cross country running. He

decided to join the robotics club when Chris reached out to him and he has

enjoyed it ever since. He has had lots of fun as well as learning a lot.

Chris Schiavino- Chris is a sophomore at SJPII and one of the founding members

of the team. This year, he worked as the team videographer. He also enjoys

tennis and mountain biking. In the future, Chris plans to pursue a profession in

the STEM fields. His favorite part about the club is the fun times we have working

together at weekly meetings and seeing our progress as we work.

Scott Webb- Scott is a junior at SJPII. He is one of the two programmers for our

team, specializing in the autonomous segment of software. He joined robotics

because of his interest in electronics and programming. In his free time, he is

studying to get his private pilot’s license. Scott would like to work in the

computer science or engineering fields in the future.


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Team Moderator and Mentors

Mr. Stebbins- Mr. Stebbins is an English teacher and alumni at SJPII. He teaches

freshman English classes and AP English for seniors. He has also generously

offered his guidance and classroom to the robotics team as the club moderator.

Mr. Covelli- Mr. Covelli is one of our team mentors. In the past, he has served in

the military and police force. He also has a background of engineering and

robotics experience throughout his career. We are so glad to have his sound

advice and motivational speeches at almost every meeting.

Mr. Marciales- Mr. Marciales is our other team mentor. He is an electrical

engineer and currently works at Atmel, a designer and manufacturer of

semiconductors. He has also worked with other companies in the past such as

Motorola where he helped design pagers (this was a while ago). His knowledge of

electronics and robotics has greatly aided our team in our robot design.


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Sustainability


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Business Plan

Our team funding comes from a variety of sources. Our initial funding comes

from a $100 membership fee which is collected during sign-ups and registration.

Another significant contributor to the team is our school, Saint John Paul II

Academy, which has been especially generous this year in an effort to grow our

robotics club and our team. This year, we were happy to obtain a sponsorship

from Unify, a global communications software and services company. In an effort

to improve the team further next year, we are working hard to obtain additional

donations and sponsorships. Specifically, we are reaching out to the Boca Raton

Rotary Club for a sponsorship in the future.

A good portion of our club’s funding has gone towards building our robot for this

year’s FTC competition. We plan to use some of our extra money on this year’s

side project: building a 3D printer. Last year’s project, our drone, was a lot of fun

and beneficial to the team as it attracted people to our booth at the school’s

open house.

The support of our school, parents, and sponsors has encouraged us to work

harder than ever and achieve more this year. It has also enabled our team to

spread the message of FIRST Robotics and its tremendous programs which

prepare participants for real-world careers in engineering and computer science.


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SKYNET - TEAM 9207

2015 - 2016 BUDGET REPORT

INCOME:

SCHOOL FUNDING 1,576.20

DUES (@ 100/PERSON) 1,200.00

DONATIONS:

DR. MCKESEY 150.00

UNIFY 250.00

TOTAL INCOME 3,176.20

EXPENSES:

FTC REGISTRATION FEE 275.00

EQUIPMENT COSTS:

Control & communication Set 2 302.00

Electronica Modules & Sensors Set 391.00

Tetrix FTC Competition Set 577.00

Shipping Cost 22.20

TOTAL EQUIPMENT COSTS 1,292.20

T-SHIRTS 307.20

TOTAL EXPENSES 1,874.40

PROFIT/(LOSS) 1,301.80


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FTC Team 9207 Sponsorship Contract

The Sponsorship Contract (the “Contract”) states the terms and conditions that govern the

contractual agreement between _____________, having its principal place of business at

_________________ (the “Company”), and ______________ (the “Sponsor”) who agrees to be

bound by this agreement, whereas, the Sponsor agrees to sponsor the Event according to the

terms and conditions. The Sponsorship Tier Classification consists of 5 levels. As the levels

progress, the “Awards/Compensation” carries on from the lower to the higher tier levels.

Depending on the tier, you may qualify to what is listed below. All tiers guarantee company

mention on Team 9207’s website.

Tier One: Bronze

Qualification:

Donation of $100-249

Awards/Compensation

A) Small logo on team shirts

Tier Two: Silver

Qualification:

Donation of $250-$499

Awards/Compensation

B) Name on shirts

C) Progress reports & information on how the team is advancing through the build-

season.

Tier Three: Gold

Qualification:


Awards/Compensation

D) Medium logo on team shirts

E) Small logo on Robot

F) Progress reports & information on how the team is advancing through the build-

season.


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Tier Four: Platinum

Qualification


Awards/Compensation:

G) Large logo team shirts

H) Medium logo put on the robot

I) Progress reports & information on how the team is advancing through the build-

season.

J) Home page spotlight on team website

Tier Five: Diamond

Qualification:

Donations of $1000 or more

Awards/Compensation

K) Large logo on shirt

L) Large logo on Robot

M) Progress reports & information on how the team is advancing through the build-

season.

N) Home page spotlight on team website

*All sponsors will receive a mention on Team 9207’s website

*Shirt Logo sizes go according to the Tier. Tier One through Five: (Small 1 ½ ’’ by 1½ ’’) (Medium 3’’ by 3’’)

(Large 5’’-6’’ by 5’’-6’’)


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PAYMENT

The total cost to be paid to the Team by the Company for the sponsorship shall be up to

the sponsor entirely but must be paid in their entirety before November 2015 to ensure

logo benefits for this year.

PROMOTION

The Sponsor hereby authorizes the “Team 9207 ‘Robot” to utilize the Sponsor’s l ogo

and Associated trademarks, approved versions of which the Sponsor agrees to provide to

the Company in a timely manner.

SPONSOR PRESENCE AT EVENT/SEASON.

The Sponsor is not required to send a representative to events.

Company Associate Sponsor *Name / *Position /* Signature

______________________/_______________________/______________________________

________

*Date (MM/DD/YYYY): _____/_____/__________

If an electronic signature, Witness Information is not necessary.

Witness (Name & Phone Number): _______________________________________

(___ ___ ___)-___ ___ ___ -___ ___ ___ ___

*Required Information

Business Inquires:

Saint John Paul II Academy Robotics Club

4001 N. Military Trail

Boca Raton, FL 33431


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Reply form to:

FTC Team 9207 at PJPII High School

Please mail check to: Pope John Paul II High School Financial Department, addressing the Robotics Club

Check box

Tier Level Donation

Tier One $100.00-249.00

Tier Two $250.00-499.00

Tier Three $500.00-749.00

Tier Four $750.00-999.00

Tier Five Upwards of $1000.00

Check Number _____________________

Amount _____________________

Company Name : ______________________________________________________________________

Your Name : __________________________________________________________________________

Title: ________________________________________________________________________________

Position : _____________________________________________________________________________

Signature: ____________________________________________________________________________


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Competition Strategy

Marisa and Sofia work on drawing up our strategy for the upcoming Res-Q Competition

When initially facing the challenge of this year’s FIRST Res-Q game, our team felt

a bit overwhelmed by its complexity. In creating our game plan for competition

day, we split our focus between the autonomous portion and the manual control

portion. Our drivers are Hopkins and Scott, and our coach is Stephen.

For the first thirty seconds, our robot will climb up one side of the mountain and

get as high as it can to score points.

For the first part of the driver-controlled period, we will deposit our two

climbers into the rescue shelters and extend our robot’s arm to trigger the levers

for the lower zip line climbers.

When there is about one minute left, we will clear any debris in front of the

mountain and begin our ascent. Finally, during the end game, our robot will use

its arm to pull itself up the high zone. Ideally, our grand finale will be a successful

pull up on the bar to score maximum points.


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Design/Engineering Process


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Preliminary Meetings

Task(s): Sign all members up for FTC with proper paperwork.

Establish club rules, member roles, organization, etc.

Reflections:

During the initial meetings of our Robotics Club, we

organized the team and set up the framework for how

things would work this year.

We ordered new mechanical parts from Tetrix for this

year’s robot.

We began to design a new club t-shirt through the Custom

Ink website.

We assigned roles to each team member which are as

follows:

President- Hopkins

Co-programmers- Hopkins and Scott

Treasurer- Marisa

Mascot/Spirit Leader- Rob

Videographer- Chris

Mechanical Engineers- Hopkins, Ethan, Frankie, Jared,

Pablo, and Brandon

Public Relations- Sofia

Engineering Notebook Author- Eric

We planned to attend the FTC Kickoff Day at FAU this

coming weekend.

Summary- We welcomed our new and returning members and

set the foundations for a great new year of robotics for

Team 9207 Skynet!


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FTC Kickoff Day at FAU – 9/12/2015

Task(s): Learn the rules for this year’s FTC challenge, Res-

Q. Brainstorm ideas/begin working on our robot.

Reflections:

I. Our team attended the FTC Kickoff event at Florida

Atlantic University where we:

A. Received the official rules and guidelines of this

year’s challenge

B. Learned about the new Android robot programming system

C. Brainstormed ideas for the construction of our robot

1. Wheels are no good because they do not have enough

traction to reach the top of the ramp; we decide to

use treads instead

2. We consider a rotating track on the front to increase

flexibility of movement and claws to increase grip of

the tracks

3. Our robot should be small in size for increased speed

and mobility

4. Many designs were suggested for a device to pick up

debris including a moving claw and a cage/container

that rotates and tilts

D. We considered our strategies for obtaining maximum

points

1. There needs to be something to pick up debris on the

game field

2. There must be an arm to push buttons on rescue

shelters and place climbers in the shelters

3. There should be some arm or protrusion on each side

to activate the zip line climbers on the way up the

ramp

E. Finally, we began initial construction of our robot


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1. All parts were removed from boxes, accounted for, and

organized

2. Hopkins and Scott began working on programming the

motor and electronics system

3. Mechanical team built the base and tracks of the

robot

4. A slight redesign for the tracks was necessary as we

did not have enough sprockets

Summary- We learned about this year’s competition and

dove headfirst into designing and building our robot.

Hopkins and Stephen

observe and inspect this

year’s playing field.

Hopkins and Scott eagerly

tackle the electronics

and programming.


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OnShape digital designs

created by Stephen


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Session 1 – 9/16/2015

Task(s): Finish working on our drive train for the robot.

Create digital designs of the robot. Practice programming.

Reflections:

The left side of the drive train was finished as Brandon

and Pablo attached the motor and track and began to fine

tune things.

Hopkins and Scott had some trouble with the Java

programming, but with a little trial and error, the

motors were successfully tested with a 9 volt battery.

Ethan, Sofia, and Marisa worked on building the right

side of the drive train.

Chris filmed the robot’s construction with his GoPro

camera.

Rob completed his t-shirt design for the team.

Stephen was working with Onshape software to create a

digital design of the robot base and drive trains.

Although the software does not have all of our specific

parts programmed into it, Stephen can create accurate

substitutes.

Mr. Covelli told the team that robotics is like a

business: We have to work together to create ideas and

make those ideas a reality.

Mr. Stebbins recalled the poor performance last year

when the team was asked to talk about the robot. We

decide that everyone should be prepared to describe our

individual roles in the build of the robot.

The programming team ran into trouble when they tested

the motors with the game controllers. Hopkins tried

modifying and re-downloading the program onto the phone

with little success. Finally, a restart got it working

again. Eureka!


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The team working on the right drive train mistakenly

used a motor hub instead of an axle, so the construction

was redone correctly.

The gears of the drive track would not mesh correctly,

so the motor was rotated within its mount to align them

properly.

Some parts were borrowed from last year’s robot during

construction.

Mr. Stebbins was concerned about the picking up of

debris, but Hopkins has an idea for a pivoting claw

mechanism using a servo.

Summary- We completed both drive trains on the base of

the robot and began working on programming.

Early design stages and


created by Stephen


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Session 2 – 9/23/2015

Task(s): Plan our overall design for the robot to best

compete in the Res-Q challenge.

Reflections:

Team t-shirts arrived and were handed out.

The day consisted of lots of design and planning for the

rest of the robot.

A mounted battery had to be undone to get a gear in the

axle. “This is zip tied in two places?! Are you kidding

me?” - Hopkins

The gears were adjusted to reduce unwanted movement.

A major issue was ensuring that the treads were even.

Each tread was taken off and compared to see that they

were of equal length. We want to reduce any chance of

the robot being skewed in the wrong direction during

operation. The treads were even and were replaced back

onto the robot.

Designs and sketches for an arm began. Hopkins suggested

that the arm should move with servos. A discussion for

an extending arm which would enable our robot to reach

the top bars on the ramp also took place.

Plans to acquire more sponsorship and funding were

discussed. A community outreach event was planned for

next week.

Hopkins describes the use of a rack and pinion for the

robot arm. He also discussed the use of pulleys and

cables and the strength needed to lift the robot off the

ramp.

A test drive of the robot was carried out, but the base

was not fully secure. The nuts on the supports were

reinforced to ensure that the base would stay on.


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A second test drive was done to see the new reinforced

supports. The robot was able to drive over small

obstacles.

Summary- We came up with a plan for our robot’s general

design and successfully tested the robot driving.


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Session 3 – 9/30/2015

Task(s): Look online for the parts we need to buy. Finalize

the robot’s arm design.

Reflections:

Hopkins is researching online for potential new part

purchases, specifically rubber tread inserts.

The design for the debris arm was finalized. There will

be two upright posts with an axle at the back of the

robot. The arm will hinge on a single origin. A rack and

pinion system will be used to enable the arm’s

extension, and the bucket on the arm will be controlled

by servos on both sides. Hooks will be added to grip the

metal bars on the ramp.

To make space for the new arm, the wheels on the drive

train had to be moved back, and smaller gears were used

to make more room.

Summary- We finished designing the robot’s arm.


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Session 4 – 10/7/2015

Task(s): Order parts for our arm and begin building its

structure. Sign up for competitions?

Reflections:

Tracks were removed from the robot in order to fix a

stability issue near the back of the base. Pablo and

Frankie worked on it.

Arm construction is still underway. We have the

structure of the arm, but now we need to add the rack

and pinion mechanism and the debris bucket.

Hopkins continues to look online to buy more Tetrix

parts including the materials for the rack and pinion on

the arm.

Mr. Stebbins announces the competition dates: November

21 and December 12. We plan to register for the December

event, but we are unsure if we could meet the November

date. Hopefully this deadline will put a fire underneath

our team to motivate them.

Stephen fixes a slight issue with the motor mount on the

arm extension.

Hopkins and Ethan went to St. Joan of Arc Catholic

School for a community outreach event. The kids

appreciated the help and advice from us. Ethan played

with Legos and enjoyed himself.

We had two remove two large beams from last year’s

robot. Issues arose when we realized the screws were put

in extra tight last year. Stephen tried to unscrew it

but realized that he was twisting it the wrong way. An

argument broke out over the validity of the phrase

“righty tighty, lefty loosey” between Ethan and Stephen.


30

We are still unsure of whether Stephen knows left from

right.

Hopkins and Scott have put together a fairly short and

simple program that is able to control the motors

effectively. Our robot will now be able to do basic

maneuvers such as going forward or in reverse and

turning.

Mr. Stebbins comes back in from a break and enforces

discipline to wake us out of our state of lazy content.

Hopkins begins bossing people around in order to achieve

some sense of productivity.

Ethan is working on the servos for the robot arm.

Stephen works on attaching the robot arm to the base.

Summary- We worked on building the structure of our arm

and ordering parts for it. We also decided to sign up

for the December 12 competition.


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Session 5 - 10/9/2015

Task(s): Work on the electronics and motor systems. Test the

motors we have connected.

Reflections:

We are adding metal plates to the base which will hold

and secure the electronic system and batteries.

Spacers were added to the wheels and gears on the track

because they were too close to the metal plates.

Ethan came up with the idea to create a Google Drive or

Dropbox for the Robotics Club to consolidate all photos,

notes, and other materials. That way, when people miss

meetings, someone else can take over their job and

upload the work to the online folder.

Scott took apart the electronics system so Hopkins and

Ethan had to put it back together and hook up the

Android phones.

The motors were tested using a gear. The controller was

able to control both forward and backward motion

successfully.

A disturbance was caused when Sofia smashed a cupcake

into Brandon’s face in a vain effort to make (the silent

but deadly) Jared speak or laugh.

Summary- Problems were fixed. Cupcakes were smashed in

faces. It was an interesting day.


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Session 6 - 10/14/2015

Task(s): Work hard on programming and fix any minor issues

with the robot.

Reflections:

No one really showed up to this meeting.

Hopkins and Scott got a lot done without the usual

distractions. They attached a few motors with the

batteries and controllers. They also worked more on the

electronics and coding.

The parts for the rack and pinion system on the arm were

ordered.

Summary- Hopkins and Scott worked solo on the robot with

everyone else going AWOL.


created by Stephen


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Session 7 - 10/16/2015

Task(s): Work on the drone which will be shown at our

robotics booth for open house. Stabilize arm.

Reflections:

Hopkins brought in his drone to work on because we are

going to show it off at the Robotics booth at open

house. Ethan took it to Mrs. Foley’s lab to solder some

of the wires.

The argument about “righty tighty, lefty loosey”

resurfaces.

Stephen had to flip all of the screws on a metal plate

because of his OCD.

The batteries, motors, and motor controls were mounted

on the robot by Stephen and Frankie.

The arm is not stable enough; it shifts slightly from

side to side. Pablo found a metal piece to secure it but

needed spacers to make it fit.

The rack and pinion parts have been ordered and should

be here by next meeting.

Pablo, Brandon, and Ethan serenaded us with their

guitars.

Ethan helped Mr. Covelli attach a rack for the Android

phones.

A bar was added to the front of the base to keep the arm

off the ground.

Stephen needs to transfer Hopkin’s design to Onshape so

we can work on the robot when Hopkins is not at the

meetings.

Summary- We stabilized the arm, mounted motors and

controls, and worked on Hopkins’ drone for our club

booth at the upcoming Open House.


34

Session 8 - 10/21/2015

Task(s): Get the tread inserts (came in mail this week) into

the treads.

Reflections:

The rubber tread inserts (part of the Tetrix tank tread

kit) came in the mail. Unfortunately they will not fit

into the treads on the track. We need some sort of

lubricant.

The treads were taken off the track, and we tried using

water mixed with soap from the bathroom to put in the

tread inserts. We even tried using hand sanitizer, but

nothing will work. Hopkins considers the use of white

lithium grease as lubricant.

Rob is working on a poster for the open house on

November 1.

Mr. Stebbins reminds us that the competition dates are

posted online. The first one coming up is on November

14. We decide that we will probably be unable to meet

that deadline, and settle on the later competition date

in December.

Chris is editing photos and videos from his GoPro

camera, deleting all the bad ones.

Hopkins found a video on the Tetrix website about how to

apply the tank tread inserts, but it was totally

useless.

Finally, Mr. Stebbins found a solution for the tread

inserts. We will use Expo Whiteboard Cleaner as

lubricant. Frankie and Pablo work on putting them into

the tracks. Pablo eventually gets tired, and Brandon has

to take over for him.

Chris came up with a creative idea to rip each of the

tread inserts in half and push them in from either side


35

of the treads. This makes things easier, and they fit in

surprisingly well. Ingenuity leads to success.

Pablo discovers the meaning of what it is to have a

mechanical advantage.

The Expo spray lubricant is very effective, but it

releases an extremely powerful and unpleasant odor.

Summary- The rubber tread inserts were nearly impossible

to put on the tracks. With some ingenuity and elbow

grease, we got it done.


36

Session 9 - 10/28/2015

Task(s): Fix issues with drone’s propellers and wiring.

Reflections:

Hopkins and I worked on the drone for the upcoming open

house. We bought a new set of propellers which would not

fit in the mounts. Hopkins used a power drill with an

abrasive bit to drill recesses which created enough

space to mount the propellers.

Ethan fixed and soldered the wiring system of the drone.

The bar supporting the arm on the front of the robot was

removed because we plan to add a sensor which will stop

the arm when it gets too close to the ground.

Jared took over writing in the journal when Eric left,

and he left some beautiful illustrations.

Summary- We drilled recesses in the propeller mounts for

the drone in order to get the propellers to mount and

fit correctly (different sets of parts). Jared drew

pretty pictures.

Jared’s beautiful

artwork in the

engineering

notebook. He is

the next Picasso!


37

Session 10 - 11/4/2015

Task(s): Work on team video editing. Continue construction

of the robot’s extending arm. Add sensor to arm?

Reflections:

The drone flew well at the open house. Ethan and Hopkins

used it to pop some balloons.

The rack and pinion system for the arm is almost

finished. Stephen and Brandon are putting on the

finishing touches and tightening everything.

Hopkins and Scott tested the motors and almost caused a

motor burn. Fortunately, Hopkins stopped it in time to

prevent an issue. We still have 3 or 4 motors on our old

robot if we need to use them.

Brandon tested the arm’s movement up and down.

Chris continues to edit the team video. He chose a funky

song for the background music. However, he cannot find

the six or seven words we need to include in the video

online for the competition submission.

Scott and Hopkins work some more on the code for the

motors.

Ethan and Brandon attached the wiring for the stop

mechanism on the arm with the sensor.

Rob removed some miscellaneous bits and screws stuck at

the bottom of the robot.

Ethan: “Wayne Gretzky, the basketball player?” Everyone

gasps, astonished at his ignorance. Mr. Stebbins: “Did

he play for the Montreal Canadiens or the Toronto Blue

Jays – I mean Maple Leafs?”

Mr. Stebbins reminded us of our struggle to wear safety

goggles. We don’t want to get disqualified at a

competition for something silly like that.


38

Jared has a hilarious reaction when Pablo tickles his

elbow.

The sensor was attached to the arm for the stopping

mechanism. It should work (as soon as Hopkins learns to

program it).

We need to order more parts including a color sensor.

However, we are running low on money. Marissa might try

to find another sponsor. Hopkins needs to send a letter

to the Rotary Club to get more funding.

Stephen realizes the extending part of the arm which

will hold the claw would make a great zombie killing

weapon.

Summary- Popping balloons with drones, listening to

funky music, total ignorance about athletics (we are

nerds so I guess it’s excusable), and building zombie

killing weapons.


created by Stephen


39

Session 11 – 11/11/2015

Task(s): Reorganize all robot parts in bins. Continue

editing team video. Continue working on arm.

Reflections:

Rob and Pablo are organizing the robot parts into bins.

Chris is having a bit of trouble editing the video on

his laptop. He had to download the new version of GoPro

Studio. We are unsure of what song we should pick for

the background music.

Stephen is constructing the part of the arm with the

claw. Unfortunately, the two plates of the claw did not

mesh together so Frankie had to line them up

“creatively” to make them fit. Servos will be used to

control the claw’s movements.

Scott and Frankie reinforced the motor

control/electronics panels.

Ethan helped Hopkins and Scott start the robot after a

malfunction with the phones and programming.

Mr. Covelli gave Hopkins some advice about programming.

He said that we should save a separate file for each

program we make that works so that we do not have to

start from scratch if things go wrong. While everything

is in one huge program, if something goes wrong,

everything goes wrong.

We tested the arm, and it extends and moves properly.

Summary- We worked on the arm’s claw and tested the arm.

Mr. Covelli gave Hopkins good advice about programming:

Start with the basic functions and work from there.

Don’t make everything in one complicated, jumbled mess

of a program.


40

Session 12 – 11/13/2015

Task(s): Solder wiring for the motor system. Test the robot

on Mr. Covelli’s wooden mock mountain. Test rack and pinion

system on the arm as well as the claw attachment.

Reflections:

Ethan brought his soldering kit to work on the robot’s

wiring. He accidentally burned himself during the

process.

Chris and Frankie express concerns about the claw’s

ability/strength to actually pick up debris in the game.

Ethan had to grab some electric tape from his house.

Hopkins removed the “world’s most annoying screw” from a

servo on the arm.

Scott tested the robot driving on the wooden mock-up

ramp that Mr. Covelli built for us to practice on.

We need another metal servo horn because one of them is

stripped and the screw is loose.

Our wire management could be much better. We will start

using zip ties to control things.

While going up the ramp we do not want our robot to fall

or flip over. We need to be careful about our weight

distribution so that we can safely scale the ramp.

Only a month is left until competition day. Mr. Covelli

says that we are really playing around too much and that

we need to seriously get down to business. There is a

time for work and a time for play. We need to work.

We tried using the rack and pinion system on the arm to

lift the robot off the ground. However, Hopkins did not

put the lock on to secure the arm. The top half of the

arm floated in the air while our robot came crashing

down. Luckily, no major issues or damages occurred.


41

We are considering buying a claw add-on for the arm

instead of making our own.

Ethan soldered some wire extensions.

Frankie and Hopkins disagree over where to secure the

batteries on the base. They settle on a spot along the

left side drive track.

We fixed the arm, and it successfully lifted and held

the robot in the air!

Concerns for the arm remain. Will it reach the pull up

bar? Will our claw design work?

We went over to the FAU Tech Garage to work on the robot

some more.

There were some issues communicating with the phones so

the robot would not drive. When it could drive, we

tested it at the practice competition field at FAU. Our

robot fell over down the ramp and one of the servos

broke. This is a major setback, and we need to come up

with a design that will make it up the ramp to maximize

points.

Summary- Ethan soldered some wiring and wire extensions.

Mr. Covelli tried to bring us into focus as competition

day rapidly approaches. We tested the rack and pinion

system on the arm by lifting up the robot, but it fell!

We fixed the issue and lifted it up the second time.

Then, we tried to go up the ramp at the practice playing

field, and our robot fell over backwards! We have some

major issues to work on including

weight distribution and potentially

designing a new claw.

Current state of our

robot. The arm’s rack and

pinion extension system

is functional.


42

Session 13 – 11/18/15

Task(s): Redistribute the robot’s weight. Scrap old claw and

work on designing a new claw attachment. Create an

autonomous program for the robot. Create our Res-Q

competition strategies.

Reflections:

Mr. Covelli suggests that we redistribute the robot’s

weight to get up the ramp.

Hopkins really cracks down on the phones and iPads

because people are playing games on them. We have to

stop playing around because we joined this club

voluntarily and we should participate in it.

The metal claw was too heavy which caused the robot to

fall forwards as it went up the ramp in reverse at FAU

last week. We are going to scrap the claw and redesign.

Chris is filming for the video.

Today we are going to come up with a strategy to get the

most points during the autonomous and manual segments.

One limitation for our game plan is our lack of color

sensors for the robot. This means that we will not be

able to press the team buttons on the rescue bins.

One concern for the autonomous segment is crashing into

our ally’s robot. We plan to create two or more

autonomous programs in order to adjust our robot’s path

to work with allies.

Frankie and Stephen are taking apart the old claw and

remodeling it.

Rob, Sofia, and Marissa are collaborating to create our

competition strategy.

Hopkins is putting the new claw design onto his laptop

in a CAD program. We will then print this design out at

FAU on their 3D printers.


43

Summary- We created a strategy for maximizing points on

competition day in December. People have been playing on

their phones too much at meetings so Hopkins banned

them. We are going to scrap and redesign the claw.


44

Session 14 – 11/18/2015

Task(s): Design new claw in CAD program to be 3D printed

out. Obtain a functional replacement core power distribution

model.

Reflections:

Hopkins finished the CAD design for the claw, but it

must be printed out in 4 separate parts due to the size

limitation of the 3D printers.

One of our core power distribution models had a faulty

manufacturing issue so we are trying to contact the

company. Hopefully, we will be able to send it back and

get a new part.

“We need to un-negativize it” – Hopkins

Summary- Today was a short meeting. We finished our new

design for the claw on the computer and plan to 3D print

it out at the FAU Tech Garage.

We are making good

progress on the robot


45

Session 15 – 11/24/2015

Task(s): Get claw 3D printed at FAU. Finish team video

because the deadline is this week.

Reflections:

Mr. Stebbins opens up the meeting with the hard truth.

The competition is in three weeks and we can’t even get

the robot up the first part of the ramp. We are in the

same position as we were last year, but we should be

doing better than that. We need to pull together and

finish strong before competition day.

The claw has begun to be 3D printed at FAU.

In light of the fact that we cannot traverse the ramp

right now, we need a backup strategy for points if we

cannot get the maximum pull up bar at the end.

Yesterday, Ethan went to St. Joan of Arc, an elementary

school in our local outreach efforts, and helped their

robotics club on their project. Sharing robotics

knowledge and inspiring passion in the field will help

our community grow over time.

Today’s efforts will be focused on the video because the

deadline if fast approaching.

We have trouble trying to film a team intro because we

cannot stop laughing at our awkwardness and

incoordination.

Hopkins gets a bit tongue-tied in front of the camera.

Eventually, he films his segment about our club’s

community outreach.

Eric talked for the video segment about club funding.

Frankie talked for the video segment about robot design

and functions.


46

Scott went to pick up the first of four claw pieces from

FAU. It looks good, but it is bright red. Pablo is

concerned that it clashes with the rest of the robot.

Sofia drew up the game plan/strategy on the board again

and Hopkins explained it all for the team and the video.

Scott talked for the video segment about problems and

struggles we have had throughout the design process.

We watched last year’s video as an example of what not

to do for ours this year.

I thought of an epic motivational speech to give but

then the meeting ended: “We have had repeated issues and

difficulties that have set us back, but we shall not be

defeated. We will push the boundaries of our problem-

solving skills, determination, creativity, perseverance,

and teamwork to make this robot a success!”

Summary- The deadline for the team video was like, now,

so we finished filming our segments. Chris worked at

home to edit it. Ethan worked more with St. Joan of Arc

for our outreach program. Mr. Stebbins reveals the harsh

truth about our current status. We can’t even get up the

ramp. We need to get our act together because December

12 is fast approaching.


47

Session 16 – 12/2/2015

Task(s): Improve wire management/organization. Get the

fundamental robot functions working such as driving and arm

movement and extension. Debug code. Finalize team video.

Reflections:

We must get a replacement core power distribution model

because it was faultily manufactured and we lost contact

with the company to get a replacement. Hopkins says they

have spares at the FAU Tech Garage.

Mr. Covelli points out that we have been focusing on

minor issues. We need to start with the basic and

fundamental issues like actually running our robot

before moving on to the details. We need to keep the

bigger picture in mind.

Mr. Stebbins is afraid that our sloppy wire management

will be an issue so we are going to add more zip ties.

We need to attach a couple servos and metal arms to the

sides of the robot in order to trigger the zip line

climbers as our robot ascends the ramp.

Scott and Hopkins are almost finished with the

autonomous code.

It is time to lock it down and get serious for the

upcoming competition. Mr. Stebbins says that everyone

needs to attend and participate in meetings.

Our code is primarily comprised of universal control

functions that can be used to do many basic maneuvers.

We mix and match those movement commands to create the

autonomous driving program.

The video is finally “done”! Chris did a great job, but

it needs a little work.

We filmed a new segment with Stephen about the robot’s

capabilities.


48

Stephen is working on transferring the robot design into

CAD.

Summary- Hopkins and Scott finished all of the

autonomous code and have begun the debugging process.

Chris finished the video but had to make some

adjustments (re-filming) and add an outro. We worked on

our wire management with zip ties. Mr. Covelli gave us

advice that we need to start with the fundamental issues

like actually driving our robot instead of nitpicking on

insignificant issues like tightening screws.


49

Session 17 – 12/4/2015

Task(s): Fix claw’s wrist which is not functioning properly.

Work on 3D printed claw? Fix servo wiring.

Reflections:

To Do List for this meeting: claw’s wrist servo, claw’s

jaw (3D printed out now), wire management, wiring for

servos, new worm gear, and MAKE ROBOT MOVE CORRECTLY!

Hopkins and Scott were supposed to be 3D printing out

the claw pieces but the pieces take a long time to print

and they have been very forgetful.

We tested the robot functionality. The arm extends, the

claw moves up and down, and the wrist rotates but its

rotation is limited. Hopkins says we need a continuous

servo to maximize movement flexibility.

If the arm moves too far back it will crash to the

ground. We are thinking of adding some precautionary

lock to prevent that from happening.

Mr. Stebbins is concerned about the arm being too heavy.

He suggests adding additional support.

Summary- We compiled a list of tasks we need to get done

before competition and worked on them.


50

Session 18 – 12/7/2015

Task(s): Put together 3D printed claw and epoxy it.

Reflections:

We worked on the claw by attaching the two (finally

printed) claw pieces to their correct counterparts.

We epoxied all of the cracks in the 3D printed parts

to reinforce their strength.

Unfortunately, the claw pieces did not print very

well and they are a pain to work with. Stephen went

so far as to say that their poor design hurt him

personally in his inner soul.

Summary- The claw pieces are finally printed out, but

they kinda suck. We have to work with it because we

don’t have time to change them.


51

Session 19 – 12/8/2015

Task(s): Create more OnShape designs for our robot. Finalize

and stabilize arm and claw attachment.

Reflections:

Mr. Covelli recommends that we drill a metal bar through

the interlocking claw pieces to secure them together. He

also brought some foam tape which we can add to the

tracks to potentially add more traction for when our

robot climbs up the ramp.

Stephen is working on the digital designs in Onshape.

Stephen needs a part that we don’t have so he bends a

corner piece in half using pliers and torque power and

his own bare hands like a true American man.

We are putting the “finishing touches” on the arm.

Scott is working through some of the bugs in the robot’s

programming.

We added a support pipe which will reinforce the arm as

it is held in the air.

We moved a servo on the arm and added spacers to give it

clearance. It can now rotate freely on the claw’s wrist

mechanism.

Summary- We worked more on the arm and claw.


52

Session 20 – 12/10/15

Task(s): Work on preparations for Saturday’s competition

(assign roles, fix any programming errors, pass robot

inspection rules). Fix arm’s wrist servo.

Reflections:

During the prior meeting, someone plugged a wire

extension into itself and zip tied it to the arm. Ethan

fixed the issue.

Mr. Stebbins passed out information forms for the FTC

competition this Saturday. That will be the ultimate

test for our robot.

For the competition we will serve the following roles:

Driver- Stephen

Arm operator- Hopkins

Coach- Scott

Pit mechanic- Frankie

Battery charger- Sofia

Miscellaneous- Everyone else

Hopkins is epoxying the claw pieces together.

We mounted plastic protectors along the sides of the

drive tracks to prevent any damage to our robot during

intense competition. We might put one on the back of the

robot, too. Mr. Stebbins asked Sofia to decorate the

protectors with team spirit.

The arm and claw create a large weight and strain on the

front of the robot. We consider adding a lead weight to

the back of the robot to even out weight distribution.

Scott’s code is working now.

Then we mounted another servo and chain onto the arm to

move the claw up and down. We tested it and it works!

Unfortunately, the servo is not strong enough to lift

the heavy claw. We could use a stronger servo from FAU,


53

but those are too large. We could also change out the

gear on the claw’s wrist for a bigger one to get more

lifting power.

However, if we double the gear size, we halve the power

of our 360 degree rotation servo to a 180 degree

rotation. This will not be enough to reach debris on the

ground.

In the end, we decide to flip the claw and tuck it under

the arm (previously, it sat on top of the arm) so that

it would reach the ground with its limited rotation and

so that it would fit within the 18 X 18 inch box limit

for competition.

Scott added a “maximum overdrive” mode to the arm

control. If the arm were to go too far backwards and

crash to the floor, it can switch to maximum overdrive

when full power is given to downward motion (normally

its down motion power decays). This control is activated

with the simple press of a button and will act as a

failsafe if our arm does fall backwards.

Summary- We assigned team roles for the competition this

Saturday. We glued the claw together. We also came up

with a solution together for fixing the arm wrist

servo’s limited rotation due to the extreme weight of

the claw. Scott coded a “maximum overdrive” mode!


54


created by Stephen


55

Session 21 – 12/11/2015

Task(s): Fix all problems with robot and programming before

competition tomorrow (mostly the claw attachment). Test the

robot at the FAU Tech Runway practice fields. Create team

logo to put on the side of our robot.

Reflections:

Today is the last day before our first competition of

the year. At school, we prayed as a team in the chapel

for guidance and peace during the event tomorrow.

We all went to the FAU Tech Garage and began by relaxing

a bit and playing some foosball. Stephen left a four

minute voicemail on Hopkins’ phone to pick him up a

McFlurry and fries from McDonald’s. Stephen was

disappointed.

Our plan for today is to fix any remaining issues with

the robot and software, finish the autonomous program,

and test everything A LOT! We need to know it will work

tomorrow during the real deal. We will stay as long as

it takes to finish this robot.

We received a bit of help and advice from Daniel

Erikson, a member of our team from last year.

While working on the competition playing field, Chris

and Pablo began throwing debris at each other.

We helped unload a truck with pieces for the new playing

field which will be used for tomorrow’s competition. We

also helped set up tables and chairs for the event.

The claw’s wrist will not rotate because something is

set incorrectly in the code.

We successfully tested the robot’s driving capabilities.

It was able to make it a little more than half way up

the ramp. Our claw should be able to reach the pull up

bar. It is not the prettiest ascent, but it works.


56

Hopkins and Scott worked on fixing the programming while

the rest of us played with Lego robots.

Mr. Covelli suggested that we add thin strips of foam

tape to some of the rubber tread inserts to increase

traction when going up the ramp. However, the tape might

just fall off as it is only held by a weak adhesive. We

went up the ramp, and those pieces of foam didn’t stand

a chance of staying on.

Mr. Covelli also points out that a layer of dirt has

built up on the rubber treads, reducing its traction for

climbing. We will use sandpaper to clean them off.

Hopkins and Scott altered the autonomous program. Now

the arm has begun to malfunction.

Sofia drew a team logo of a robotic eagle and the logo

of our sponsor Unify. We taped her drawings onto the

plastic protectors on either side of the robot.

To get the claw to successfully rotate, we are going to

switch out our servo with a more powerful “super servo”

from FAU. This extra power will give us the boost we

need to get the claw working.

Ethan soldered some wires to connect the new “super

servo” to the robot.

Summary- It was our last day before competition. We

worked very hard at the Tech Garage to fix all of the

issues with the robot and its programming. We look

forward to performing well in the competition.


57

Our robot the night

before the big day! I

think he’s excited!


58

Competition Day - 12/12/2015

Task(s): Perform as well as we can in our matches and avoid

any major catastrophes.

Reflections:

The team arrived at the FAU Tech Garage at 7:30 AM.

Ethan brought donuts. Mr. Stebbins signed our team in,

and we got straight to work on our robot.

Hopkins and Scott cannot program the stronger “super”

servo to control our claw’s wrist. We removed the servo.

No wrist rotation will limit us in competition matches.

Ethan fixed a minor electrical issue with one of the

motors.

The mechanical team worked on getting the robot to fit

within the 18 inch box, removing or rearranging parts as

necessary.

Ethan switched out a motor control panel because it

stopped outputting to the rack and pinion system.

Hopefully, the new one will enable us to extend the arm.

We attached a bar on the front of the robot to push

around debris and prevent it from sliding into our

robot’s wiring and control units.

Our robot passed all inspections so our goal now is to

optimize our robot for competition throughout the day.

Currently, our arm is still not working or extending.

Ethan added some plastic tubing and zip ties in order to

secure a few loose wires in the back of the robot. This

will help prevent entanglements or issues if a robot

were to crash into ours.

Hopkins and Scott reverted to programming from last week

which works! The arm now extends and moves properly.

The first match went moderately well. Hopkins had

trouble controlling the robot because the controls were


59

reversed for some unknown reason. Our ally scored a lot

of points, and we won the match. It was a good way to

start the competition day.

With our claw unable to move or rotate due to

programming issues, we decided to remove it totally

because it is essentially dead weight.

During the second match, our robot was able to climb up

to the middle zone of the ramp. However, the phone on

the robot disconnected because someone forgot to put in

the pin to secure it.

We decided to add the L-shaped hook attachment which

Frankie made to the arm. This should allow our robot to

latch onto the pull-up bar and pull itself up the ramp.

We were sure to get our addition approved by the judges.

Hopkins also decided to add a pin onto the end of it to

carry climbers to the rescue bin and trigger levers.

Pablo, Brandon, and Rob reorganized our messy workspace.

We tested the new arm hook. It can pull our robot up to

the high zone. Unfortunately, the arm cannot extend far

enough to reach the pull-up bar.

We tried to change the angle of the hook from 90 degrees

to 45 so that it could more easily wrap around the pull-

up bar. The new hook angle was still unable to wrap

around the bar so we changed it back to 90 degrees.

Mr. Covelli told Ethan and I that this is like a

business. Somebody has to take charge and get things

done. Our employees, or team members, have to take

initiative and do what needs to be done. We must work

together as a team.

Our strategy for matches is to score climbers into the

rescue bin, trigger the lowest zip line climber, and

reach the high zone of the ramp.


60

We added more bolts and tightened everything in an

effort to secure the robot between matches.

We tried shortening the pin on the end of our arm

because the second climber was never able to come off.

Unfortunately, the climbers were simply flung off the

shorter pin before we even reached the bin. It was

changed back to the longer piece.

While attempting the pull-up maneuver, Hopkins gunned

the throttle and the robot fell over backwards down the

ramp. Luckily, there were no major injuries or issues.

The battery began falling out of its holder so we

tightened its securing bar with a hex key.

During our last match, our robot was unable to mount the

middle zone bars. Mr. Covelli points out that the tread

inserts may be covered in a layer of grime which is

reducing our robot’s traction on the ramp. We can sand

them down at a later meeting.

We won the FTC Think award!

Summary: We performed well at our first competition.

With some ingenuity, we were able to greatly improve our

robot throughout the day.

We won the FTC Think Award!

Our robot with its new

and improved metal hook

attachment


61

Hopkins, Scott, and

Stephen prepare before a

match

Mr. Stebbins and Mr.

Covelli talk to the team

about the game plan


62

Session 22 - 1/6/2016

Task(s): Plan and prepare for our league competition on

January 16 and Judgment Day this Saturday. Fix minor issues

with robot and test its functionality. Create new designs

for the side of our robot.

Reflections:

Mr. Stebbins informed the team that our league

competition day will be January 16. Judgment Day will be

on January 9.

Hopkins, Ethan, Eric, and Scott were chosen to represent

the team at Judgment Day. Hopkins, Ethan, and Eric will

be doing the presentation/interview with the judges.

Scott will be helping during the robot’s functionality

demonstration.

Frankie and other mechanical team members worked on

fixing any issues with the robot and making small

improvements such as adding support to the arm’s base.

Hopkins, Ethan, and Eric looked over the judging

parameters for the Judgment Day presentation. They

created a slide show presentation which outlined their

primary talking points about our team.

Scott worked on testing the robot to ensure optimum and

flawless functionality (or as close to flawless as we

can get). Hopkins and Scott said that they were able to

do a pull-up on the practice course at FAU.

We received the score for our team video which was

rather disappointing. We had high hopes as Chris spent a

lot of time on producing it. However, we will use this

disappointment as a learning experience. Next year, we

will make a better video more in line with what the

judges are looking for.


63

Sofia painted some decorative team designs for the

protective plating on the side of our robot. They look

awesome! We also put the logo of our sponsor, Unify, on

there.

Summary: Hopkins, Ethan, Scott, and Eric prepared to

present on Judgment Day this Saturday. Sofia painted

some super cool designs for our robot’s side panels.

Sofia made these great designs for

the sides of our robot


64

Judgment Day - 1/9/2016

Task(s): Present our team information/bio and robot

functionality to the panel of judges.

Reflections:

Hopkins, Ethan, Scott, Eric, Mr. Stebbins, and Mr.

Covelli arrived at the FAU Tech Garage early in the

morning around 11:00. We wore formal professional attire

(suit and tie).

We tested the robot only to find that its battery did

not have full charge. This meant that the robot could

not achieve full speed and ascend the ramp on the

practice field.

To solve the battery issue, we switched it out for our

other battery. However, this battery had last year’s

connections so we had to switch out the connector on our

power source’s wiring. Luckily, they had the parts we

needed around the shop at the Tech Garage.

Our presentation went well. The only issue is that we

began to run out of time while presenting, and we had to

skip over one of the sections to cover the most

important information.

The judges gave us some good advice. They said that you

will not always have time to prepare and make a slide

show like we did, so we should practice our presentation

skills under a time crunch. They also told Hopkins to

wear socks with his dress shoes (“It’s a Florida thing”

– Hopkins)

We had a break for lunch. Then we returned for our robot

demonstration. The autonomous program worked fairly well

and got our robot to the lower zone of the mountain. We

were able to drop climbers in the rescue shelters and

make our way up the ramp. However, we could not do a


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pull up without a bit of external support. Hopkins and

Scott had trouble controlling the robot because the

controllers’ buttons randomly reversed directions.

The judges pointed out that our robot hops up onto the

bars of the middle zone when the treads reach a part

that is missing an insert. Perhaps we should remove

every other tread insert to more easily ascend the

mountain.

After our two judgment day presentations, we went to the

FAU Tech Runway to help Scooter and clean up the metal

shop.

Summary: We gave our team presentation/interview with

the judges, and we showed off our robot’s capabilities

during the field judgment. Both presentations went

pretty well. With some quick thinking, we fixed an issue

with our underpowered battery. After the judgment

process, we helped clean up the Tech Runway metal shop.


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Above: The squad dressed up looking fresh and

professional at the FAU Tech Garage

Below: Eric and Scott practicing with the robot on

the competition field as Mr. Stebbins observes


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Session 23 – 1/13/2016

Task(s): Finish preparations for our league competition on

Saturday. Debug and perfect coding. Make improvements to

our robot based on the judges suggestions from Judgment

Day. Practice driving and pull up maneuver at the FAU

practice fields.

Reflections:

Now that Judgment Day is behind us, we are preparing

for the league competition on Saturday.

Scott and Hopkins are debugging and perfecting the

autonomous and controller programming.

Mr. Covelli pointed out that a lot of our robot’s

parts are loose. Frankie and Ethan worked on

tightening everything down and securing it.

As per the judges’ recommendation at Judgment Day, we

removed every other tread insert on our treads to

more easily overcome the bars and ascend the ramp.

All of the mechanical parts on our robot are

functioning properly. Now, we just need to improve

the programming and hope for the best on competition

day.

We are anxious to test the pull up maneuver at the

FAU practice fields.

Sofia drove the robot and Scott controlled the arm at

FAU. We achieved the pull up successfully!

Hopkins went through the inspection checklist to

ensure that our robot was up to standards.

Summary: We took out tread inserts so our robot could

more easily ascend the mountain. Hopkins and Scott

perfected the robot’s programming. We tested our

robot and successfully did a pull up on the bar!


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WE DID THE PULL UP!!!

Sofia drove and Scott

operated the arm

Name: Eric Heinlein Date: Initial - ftc.flfirst.org

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