It’s that time of year again!
February in Colorado brings drifting snowflakes on icy breezes, crackling skis carving through champagne powder at Eldora Ski Resort, and scorching aromas of soldering irons and overloaded electronics.
Wait a minute – soldering irons and electronics? Oh… that means the FIRST Robotics regional in Denver is nearly here!
2012 will mark the fourth year of FIRST Robotics Competition coverage by the Denver Space Industry Examiner. Since that first article in 2009 (actually since 1992), hundreds of future Colorado Space Industry engineers and managers have participated in middle or high school FIRST programs across the state. Many more have graduated from high school and are pursuing college degrees in robotics, software engineering, physics, aerospace, and related disciplines. Still more have already graduated from college and are busy reshaping our world.
Each year, approximately 75 teams of Colorado high school students (and thousands more around the globe) endure a grueling six-week robot build season before competing in events like the Colorado Regional. The 2012 build season just ended on February 21st, and now - after all the exhausting hours of frantic inspiration and perspiration on nights and weekends – the students and mentors get to relax for a few weeks.
The Examiner contacted many of the Colorado Regional teams and asked them to describe their programs, challenges during the build season, memorable past experiences, and expectations for the upcoming regional. Several took valuable time off from their busy build season to reply, and their insightful responses appear later in the article. So keep reading!
2012: Rebound Rumble!
As one could guess from the name of the game, Rebound Rumble, the sport this year is basketball. But FIRST likes to think big... so the basketball court will have 8 baskets. Each three-minute match will feature up to 6 robots with 18 basketballs active at any given moment. As usual, the robots operate autonomously for the first 15 seconds of each match without any human assistance… well, almost. During the autonomous period this year, human drivers can control one robot on each team through gestures captured by a Microsoft Kinect motion sensor.
Havabanana Productions has provided this fun animation of the game.
Another challenging aspect of Rebound Rumble involves balance. A low barrier separates the two halves of the basketball court, and three dual-hinged bridges span the barrier. Robots can choose to rumble over the barrier (ouch) or drive smoothly over the bridges – but first the bridges must be lowered. The bridge physics have proven quite tricky for many teams, especially since a robot(s) can earn bonus points by balancing on a bridge at the end of the match.
Denver’s Mile High robo-madness returns
The Colorado Regional has moved up a week this year, to March 23-24. This poses problems for some of the traditional local teams because the tournament no longer coincides with spring break, but a full slate of 48 teams have registered for the event.
The location remains the same: Magness Arena, on the campus of Denver University. The event is open to the public, for the low, low admission price of free. Matches will probably run from 9:00am through 4:00pm on both days.
This is a very family-friendly event, so mark your calendars and bring your kids. Root for your favorite teams and share the excitement that drives so many high school students to work such long hours building and perfecting their robots.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the 48 teams competing in Denver. Your Denver Space Industry Examiner remains a volunteer mentor for the Nederland high school team, so we’ll start with team 1584, the Pirates.
Team 1584, Nederland Pirates: Out for some pirate revenge?
Nederland returns for its 8th competition at the Colorado Regional. High up near the continental divide (and far away from most large corporate sponsors), the small town of Nederland seems an unlikely home for one of the most successful robotics competitors in recent years. The Pirates tied for 4th in the 2009 Colorado Regional, won the event in 2010, and fared extremely well at the 2010 International Finals in Atlanta a few weeks later.
Last year, the Pirates fielded perhaps the best offensive (and most real-world pirates excel at being offensive) robot at the regional but had to stand by and watch in frustration through nine of the ten qualifying rounds because the robot kept losing communications with the Field Management System. Such technical glitches are rare, but they do happen from time to time. The students knew they had built a great robot, and most left the event determined to do better next year.
Now that next year is this year, their patience and hard work has paid off. The Nederland Pirates bagged-and-tagged their robot late on the 21st, on schedule. The 2012 Pirates return to their winning strategy in 2010: defense, defense, and more defense. Their pirate ship, nicknamed the PlunderBot, once again features a compact, powerful “cannon” capable of scoring full-court shots. Among its other features, the PlunderBot sports mecanum wheels for nimble movement, two gyros for control, an accelerometer for balancing on bridges, and a camera for accurate aim and distance tracking.
The 2012 build season had its challenges (as it always does). With only seven teammates, most Pirates worked long hours and filled multiple roles within the team. Conversely, mentors could guide each student directly – a formula that has worked well in past years. What Nederland teams have lacked in quantity, they have always made up for in quality, with several recent graduates pursuing engineering degrees at CU, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Embry Riddle, or the Colorado School of Mines.
Half the pirate crew of 2012 caught a devastating “South Seas Plague” during the final build weekend, as evidenced by the amazingly low energy level of Team Captain Parker Stevens (Parker usually bounces off the walls with energy, honest!) as he puts the nearly-completed robot through some medium-range cannon bombardment testing.
[ Take special note in the video above that every time your Denver Space Industry Examiner fed a ball to the robot, something bad happened. This is why the students rarely let me touch the robot. Who said pirates aren't very smart? ]
One fun moment for the Pirates this season was the first test of the final shooter version. Bridge balance-testing with the champion 2010 robot always proved exciting, too.
Team 1245, Monarch Shazbots: One of the easiest build seasons ever?
Head Mentor David Clark at Monarch High School in Louisville deserves special recognition and thanks for his perpetual inspiration, guidance to younger teams (like Nederland), and boundless enthusiasm in promoting and growing the FIRST family here in Colorado. He also deserves our gratitude for answering the following Examiner questions! Sounds like things have gone well for the Shazbots this season.
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
We have 41 students on the team this year, our 9th. I don't have statistics for how many go into engineering, but looking back over our team photos and putting together what I know about the students I can say pretty confidently 90% are in engineering/math/science related study or work.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
FIRST is about bringing part of the real world into the high school classroom. Students have to hone their individual expertise to be of value to the team. It is all about the team. FIRST prepares students for post secondary and industry challenges. This huge project is overwhelming unless you know how to look and it. Participation in FIRST teaches students how to do that. See a massive endeavor, break it up into manageable chunks, plan, design and build. This becomes manageable.
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
Travelling to Houston to visit two of our team members who had earned NASA internships at JSC the summers of 2009 & 2010. It was so gratifying to see these students on their way, doing so much at so young an age. One of those students was my son Noah. He graduated in 2010 with seven years of FIRST robotics under his belt. It was a defining experience in his development and in our relationship. He is now studying mechanical engineering at CSU, on the robotics team there and interning at a robotics company in Fort Collins. (notice a pattern here?)
We took part in a school pep rally this year, the first in several years. I'm always a little bit nervous about putting the students in front of their peers as robotics still has a 'geeky' reputation. One, by the way, we embrace but don't share. However they were warmly received by students and faculty as they showed off their mecanum drive, our fall design project. phew...
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
This build season has been one of the easiest ever for us. Each year the culture develops a little bit farther and those concepts that in years past I had to continually harp on, now are accepted norms (back up every night to WindChill, Design before you build, etc). There will always be the challenges of long hours, second guessing, usually around week four, if we can really pull this off. At the end of the day we have an amazing product and know that our exhaustion is honestly earned.
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
If you have arrived in Denver with a working robot you've already won. Have fun, continue to work hard, celebrate your success.
Team 399, Eagle Robotics (Lancaster, CA): Transitions and sibling traditions
Nicholas Pontius, the Student Team Manager for community outreach and PR on team 399, shares his insights on the latest wonderbot from the creative mind-factory at Eagle Robotics. The X-1 should be a formidable challenger in Denver, as well as the San Diego and Utah regionals. (check out the X-1 video on their website… impressive!!)
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
This year Team 399 has 41 students ranging from freshman all the way through seniors. We have been running strong since 1999 and we are now in our 13th season. Since 1999, about 90% of the graduates from Eagle Robotics have pursued a degree in engineering.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is an organization that strives to spread STEM to the youth of the world. FIRST is more than just robotics; it’s a lifestyle, community, and a world of friendly competition!
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
Because 399 has been around for 13 years we have a legacy going on. Siblings of students from the very first years of 399 are now on the team and they are so excited to be here. They grew up watching their brothers and sisters competing and always looked forward to the day that they would be able to join the team.
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
This year has been particularly difficult for 399 because we lost our advisor that had been with us for 10 years. The transition has had a few rough patches here and there but we have managed to stay together. [Team] 399 is very fortunate to have the mentors and leaders that they have because if it wasn't for them the team would have fallen apart this season. We have pulled through this transition year together and will continue on for many years to come!
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
When the going gets tough, just KEEP GOING!!!
Team 1410, George Washington High School Patribots: Working and dancing their way to success
David Chan, the student marketing captain of team 1410 reports that the team has overcome several non-technical obstacles on their way to their ninth appearance at the Colorado Regional.
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
This year our team consisted of thirty registered students, and about 28 that were around almost all of the time. Our team has been involved with FIRST since our rookie year in 2004, where we won the rookie inspiration award. We are not sure about the percentage of FIRST graduates which have obtained degrees in engineering, but several of our members have graduated to work in the Army, Navy, or Marines as engineers.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
I would say that FIRST is really what the acronym stands for, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology. But in addition to that, FIRST is, to me, one of the ways that students can become involved in an event that will help them in the real world, and teach leadership and practical skills which will help students in the workplace.
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
I honestly don't know about heartfelt moments... there aren't many of those. As far as funny goes... At a scrimmage this year in Colorado Mines, one of our co-captains decided, even though none of the bots had an autonomous "hybrid" mode, to get up in front of the Kinect, and pretend to try to control our robot with the Kinect. Hilarious dancing ensued.
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
Half-way through the build season this year, our faculty contact from GW was put on administrative leave, and without him, we ran into many problems with both the bureaucratic nature of the public schools system and even getting into the building to work on our robot. The team persevered though, and was able to work through this major setback… By working directly with the principal of the school, we were able to establish a temporary agreement, and even though the secretary has gotten sick of me coming and asking for the keys to the room, we have been able to work to create a solid robot, even with the limited time that we have had to work on it.
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
Well, be sure to look for us - we are 1410, from George Washington High School, and we hope to see you all at the competition! Good Luck!
Team 2083, Team Blitz (Conifer): Looking forward to the competition
Chris Debrunner, a mentor of Team Blitz at Conifer High School, reports that his team is looking forward to this year's Colorado Regional. Team Blitz has the rare distinction of making the finals during their rookie season back in 2007. Chris polled his students and came up with the following responses (LOL at the doorway story).
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
There are 14 students on the team. We have been a team for 5 years. Bryan Adrian, Jared Rillings, Tyler Grubb, Nathan Grubb, Austin Reed, Jimmy Harris, are all pursuing science or engineering degrees. We have had 11 total graduates.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
FIRST Robotics is a program that is designed to teach students, and get them interested in science and technology.
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
Some of our favorite memories are the ones from staying up till 4:00 in the morning working on the robot. Our funniest moment this year was in our new build space, after we had finished building the robot, someone said, “let’s go outside to test the shooter” to which one of our teammates responded, “How are we going to get it outside?” (Our doorway is quite narrow).
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
The biggest challenge for our team this season was deciding what chassis to build. We had narrowed it down to two designs, a Mecanum wheel design and a design where the wheels pivoted individually, but we had to build prototypes of both chassis before we decided on a final design.
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
We look forward to seeing you at the competition. Good luck from Team Blitz (2083).
Team 662, Rocky Mountain Robotics (Colorado Springs): Something to get excited about!
Maggie Juran, a student member of team 662 shares the importance of communications on a team with 70 students. As one of the most successful FIRST programs in Colorado, team 662 carries well-earned pride into the Colorado Regional. Team 662 will also compete in Kansas City this year.
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
This year we have about 70 kids on our team. I have been on the team for 2 years and it has inspired me to pursue an engineering career which about 85% of the students on the team have pursued in college. However 95% have gone into some field of math and science.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
FIRST Robotics is an organization that inspires students to use math and science in a real world setting. It gives high school students the opportunity to apply what they have learned into a realistic setting. We work under time constraints, money constraints, and design constraints. But the finished product is a reason to get excited about what we do, we build robots!
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
This year one of our students, who coaches a FIRST Lego League team at a local middle school, started to receive thank you letters as the season drew to a close. One of the letters was written by a girl who was shy and quiet at the beginning of the year but started to come out of her shell toward the end of the season. She wrote "Thank you so much for all your hard work. Someday I want to be just like you." Students learn that through FIRST they can have a powerful impact on the community and even the future.
During all of our presentations in a large cafeteria it is hard to hear the speaker. We inherited a microphone and speaker for this reason. However the only way to get any sound out of the speaker is to hold the microphone an inch away from the speaker's mouth. Generally our leadership team has a hard time doing this. It is now a big joke that when a speaker is presenting and we cannot hear them that all of the leadership department makes a signal to pull the microphone closer to their mouth. Usually everyone laughs.
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
This year we had a hard time with communication. Often times we would find ourselves overlapping each other's work which can be very frustrating. Thankfully we created a weekly meeting system and an e-mail account for the specific leaders of each department to check. We also have a website on our blog.
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
What we do is something to get excited about. I know it sounds cheesy, but for me robotics is a sport. It’s a friendly competition that involves strategy. I hope that the spectators at Denver will try to understand the game so that they can be as excited about it as I am. On the other hand, other teams better watch out because team 662 is going to bring some fierce competition! But good luck to everyone and your team! And we look forward to seeing you in Denver soon!
Team 159, Alpine Robotics (Poudre School District): "Robot on Fire!"
Cameron Morris from Team 159 takes a historical perspective on FIRST and the Colorado Regional. Hailing from the Ft Collins area, Alpine Robotics, the oldest FIRST team in Colorado (they have the lowest team number), always brings a large base of fans and a heaping helping of team spirit to the Colorado Regional. This year should be no exception. You can bet their robot will arrive at the regional flameproof and in one piece, ready to give team 662 some of that fierce competition they desire.
Q1: How many students participated on your team this year? How many years have you been involved in FIRST Robotics? How many graduates (or percentage) have pursued advanced degrees in engineering or other related fields?
We have 39 regularly attending students, all of whom have diverse interests and abilities. Alpine Robotics has been competing in FIRST Robotics competitions for 14 years, and was the first FRC team to be founded in Colorado. A very high percentage of our alumni go on to advanced degrees in engineering, with many of them going to academic institutions known for their high levels of excellence such as the Resselaear Polytechnic Institute and the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering. Others are successful in other fields, both inside and outside of academics. One alumnus of our team even manages a successful web comic, Tea Time! Comics.
Q2: How would you describe FIRST Robotics to someone in the general public? What's it all about?
FIRST Robotics is, on the surface, simply the organizer of four engineering competitions aimed at different age groups which successfully presents an opportunity to be in an engineering competition to a student from grade K-12. However, it achieves so much more than simply that. And more, even than being For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, it is a program that unfailingly produces in competing teams an intense spirit of competition and cooperation (or, as FIRST puts it, coopertition) that is in my experience, unique to the organization.
Q3: What's your most heart-touching FIRST story or memory? What's the funniest thing that has happened to your team during the build season or at a competition?
Perhaps one of the most heart-touching FIRST stories I know is that of a rookie attending their first FIRST competition who mistakenly thought that the then Fed-Ex sponsored shipping required that they ship their robot in standard package sizes. When they arrived at the competition, they soon realized, at the sight of the intact robots surrounding them in the pits that they should have shipped their robot whole. As they began the mad dash to put their robot back together again, other teams on the pit floor jumped at the chance to help, and they collectively managed to assemble the rookie team's robot in time for matches. This is characteristic of the unique atmosphere of coopertition that pervades all of FIRST.
The funniest things that happen to our team often involve fire. A piece of team oral history that has been passed down from years past is of one of our robots that was so poorly wired that the circuits caught fire during a match. At the time, I'm sure it was not very funny, but that fire has been the source of many team jokes for years now. It has achieved a legendary status. But in addition to being a funny story, the "robot on fire" serves as a lesson to our team that we must pay close attention while we work, and though it is a very fun process, it is necessary to be serious at times.
[ Examiner’s Note: Team 1584 from Nederland confirms the “robot on fire” legend because we were on team 159’s alliance. It happened in 2007 during the first round of the final tournament. Teams 159, 1584, and 2261 formed the #2 alliance and had high hopes of competing well. Alas, in the very first match, team 159’s bot caught on fire, team 2261’s bot broke its manipulator arm, and team 1584’s drive motor seized up so we could only drive in circles. Needless to say, many lessons were learned that day. ]
Q4: What challenges have you faced during this build season? Have you overcome these challenges? If so, how?
Of the many challenges we face during the build season, the most difficult to overcome is not in the production of an effective robot, as one might expect, but rather in the production of an effective team. Alpine Robotics prides itself on be a student-driven and student-centered team. Sometimes, however, there is some conflict over who precisely has their hands on the steering wheel. We overcome this through high levels of communication between different areas of the team, and also on a personal level. All major decisions as a collective, and not as individuals.
Q5: What message would you share with the other teams or spectators in Denver?
In the words of Gordon Smith, a beloved mentor of our team, we would like to ask of all spectators and teams in Denver "I like robots, do you like robots?" The enthusiastic response that we expect is a resounding affirmative. The message that we will present to everyone at Denver is our world-famous cheer, "159!" and the response "Go Alpine!" We invite everyone in Denver to join in!
Many more teams lurk out there in the shadows. Let’s hear from you!
Each of the 48 teams in the Colorado Regional comes from a different background, has overcome unique challenges, and brings a different perspective to the exciting sport of FIRST robotics. If you are a member of a Colorado FIRST team or a more-distant team competing in the Colorado Regional, please use the comments section to provide your own answers to the questions above – or share any other feedback you’d like to contribute.
Good luck, teams! Let’s make this year’s Colorado Regional the best ever!
Recap of Colorado Regional details:
Dates: March 23-24 (with a practice day on March 22)
Times: 9:00am – 4:00pm each day, approximately
Location: Magness Arena at DU (in the Ritchie Center)
Public entry fee: FREE!
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