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Niceville HS's Speedy Robot Earns Slot in International Tournament
April 10, 2008
Torry Shuman makes a few adjustments to the robot
during the competition. |
"Raoul" is not only fast - reaching speeds of 26 mph
during the competition - but it is also unique-looking,
according to team member Greg Mitchell. Most of the
other robots were made of sheet metal. |
The robots had to be built to knock these large balls off
a six and a half foot wall. Points were given for various
aspects of the game. |
The team was grateful for the help they received from two
other Florida teams. The term coined by the organizers
is "Gracious Professionalism." |
The team was given six weeks to build the robot, and had
to follow a strict protocol. |
The Niceville High School CHOICE IT team received the "Rookie All Star Award" at the Bayou Regional FIRST robotics competition in New Orleans at the end of March. This distinction earned the team the right to compete against 350 teams at the International tournament in Atlanta April 18-19.
"We were all pretty proud of our little robot," said team member Cassie Robison. "It was shorter than the others, but beastly."
"It's mainly a speed robot," explained senior Torry Shuman. "We switched the drive train four or five times [during the design/build phase], and ended up with the chain going straight to the wheel."
The robot - nicknamed "Raoul" - turned out to be one of the fastest robots at the competition. According to team member Greg Mitchell, Raoul reached speeds of over 26 mph and was capable of going even faster.
During the preliminary and final competitions in New Orleans, the team was allied with two other teams each round. The goal of the competition was to have the robots knock 10 lb., 40 inch balls off a six and a half foot high platform and then throw them back onto it. Points were given for various aspects of the game, including the number of times the robot went around the 54 x 27 foot track, so Raoul's speed was greatly appreciated by its allies.
Having a system of shifting alliances changes the spirit of the competition, according to the students. "You want everyone to be good, instead of hoping to sabotage the other robots," said Mitchell.
CHOICE IT Programming Ben Shuman, who sponsored the team with colleague Sean McSheehy, agreed. "The best experience of the whole event is something that FIRST calls 'Gracious Professionalism,'" he said. "Even though the actual competition matches were intense, in the pit area, there was open cooperation among all the teams. As a rookie team, we wouldn't have made it through without the other teams - especially Team Krunch and Exploding Bacon [two Florida teams] - coming to our rescue."
Many of the members of the Niceville team will miss their senior prom this year, because the competition in Atlanta will be held on the same Saturday. The team is raising money to cover the travel costs for the next level of competition. They received a $6000 grant from NASA for the regional competition, and local businesses and residents are pitching in to fund the entrance costs for the international competition and travel expenses for the 16 members.
"This competition is a great marriage of problem-solving, application of technical knowledge and appreciation for others' knowledge," said Shuman. "What appears at the end of this exercise is wonderful mosaic from the aggregation of different folks' skills and talents."
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For those interested in donating to the robotics competition fund, checks can be made out to Niceville High School with "NHS Robotics" in the memo section.
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