Four Warsaw Robotics Teams Vying For World Competition
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
World competition is at Disney World in Florida.
The first qualifying competition is Saturday at Zionsville, according to advisor and teacher Abbi Richcreek. The four teams depart Warsaw at 4:30 a.m., with the competition starting at 9 a.m.
The second qualifying competition will be March 12 at Warren Central.
Richcreek said only a limited number of teams are taken from each qualifying competition for the world finals. By entering all four teams over two weekends, she said, they hope to improve their chances that all four teams will get to move on to world competition.
Student Alexi Demopoulos said the competition takes place in a 12-foot by 12-foot arena. There are four starting positions. There are two alliances - one red and one blue - composed of two teams each that compete in each match. The blue tries to get as many blue rings on the goalposts as possible, and the red tries to get as many red rings on the goalposts as possible.
At the beginning of each round, for 30 seconds, the robots are autonomous, meaning they must do the job without any remote control, Demopoulos said.
After that, student Andrew Cox said, the teams get a two-minute remote control period to earn points.
The Warsaw teams were still working on their robots Monday afternoon, but Demopoulos wasn't worried.
"I'm more worried about the other (Warsaw) group. We'll do fine," he said. "I think we have a good enough design, and we have a good group to do well enough to get over any obstacles. We should be able to work together and at least do well."
The more teams at the qualifying competitions, Cox said, the more teams that will move on to world competition.
Last semester, the students competed in a different robotic competition. That competition helped the students learn how to deal with breakdowns and stress.
"It's good preparation of mental readiness," Cox said.
Demopoulos said that competition taught him to pick a design and stick with it. His team last semester changed designs five to seven teams, which caused problems.
For the four WCHS teams, there are two basic designs.
In one design, Cox said, they have a basic square base. On the front is a forklift mechanism to pick up the rings. In the back is a vertical claw to climb a ladder for extra points in the competition.
Demopoulos said the ladder climb can be a big game changer because it's worth double the points of the rings if their robot can hang on.
The other robot design, according to student T.J. Zigon, is a dual-claw system. One claw is for picking up rings, and the second claw is for climbing the ladder.
Zigon said in the blueprint phase, he realized what helped his team in the last competition was having a real simple design. He wanted to go with the same concept this time around.
"I think it'll give us a significant advantage," Zigon said. "... I'm feeling pretty good about it."
Student Tyrel Shuler did the programming for his team's robot. Because they changed designs a few times, he kept having to change the robot's programming.
"It was much easier than last time," Shuler said.
Zigon said the teams had assistance from engineers from DePuy, Biomet and Zimmer. The engineers working with the teams included Dennis Njuguna from DePuy, Nik Horsmon from Biomet and Craig Fryman from Zimmer.
"We're going to do our best to win, and show they invested in the right team," said Zigon.
The "forklift" teams include Brandon Bibler, Cox, Demopoulos, Alex Garber, Melanie Wilson, Patrick Johnson and Jimmy Miller. Cox and Demopoulos are the drivers.
The "two claws" teams are Morgan Lackey, Ryan Lewis, Robert Murphy, Cody Shafer, Shuler, James Wynn, Zigon and Alejandro Garcia. Lackey and Zigon are the drivers.
Richcreek said only two people are allowed on the floor during competition, and the judges are pretty strict. The competition also has referees. Each robot is inspected, and may not be any bigger than 18 inches by 18 inches.
The Warsaw teams started working on their robots in December, but because of inclement weather, they've missed some work days.
To help with the costs of the competition, Biomet donated $1,000 to the robotics club. Richcreek said Tornier also gave $1,000, and are interested in helping the teams for future competitions.[[In-content Ad]]The Warsaw Education Foundation also provided a Red Apple grant of $1,500 to help the robotics teams.
DePuy and Zimmer engineers brainstormed and planned the robot designs with the students before any building began, she said.
"I think we're as prepared as we're going to get," said Alex Garber, student.
For more information about VEX Robotics and the competition, visit the website at www.vexrobotics.com
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World competition is at Disney World in Florida.
The first qualifying competition is Saturday at Zionsville, according to advisor and teacher Abbi Richcreek. The four teams depart Warsaw at 4:30 a.m., with the competition starting at 9 a.m.
The second qualifying competition will be March 12 at Warren Central.
Richcreek said only a limited number of teams are taken from each qualifying competition for the world finals. By entering all four teams over two weekends, she said, they hope to improve their chances that all four teams will get to move on to world competition.
Student Alexi Demopoulos said the competition takes place in a 12-foot by 12-foot arena. There are four starting positions. There are two alliances - one red and one blue - composed of two teams each that compete in each match. The blue tries to get as many blue rings on the goalposts as possible, and the red tries to get as many red rings on the goalposts as possible.
At the beginning of each round, for 30 seconds, the robots are autonomous, meaning they must do the job without any remote control, Demopoulos said.
After that, student Andrew Cox said, the teams get a two-minute remote control period to earn points.
The Warsaw teams were still working on their robots Monday afternoon, but Demopoulos wasn't worried.
"I'm more worried about the other (Warsaw) group. We'll do fine," he said. "I think we have a good enough design, and we have a good group to do well enough to get over any obstacles. We should be able to work together and at least do well."
The more teams at the qualifying competitions, Cox said, the more teams that will move on to world competition.
Last semester, the students competed in a different robotic competition. That competition helped the students learn how to deal with breakdowns and stress.
"It's good preparation of mental readiness," Cox said.
Demopoulos said that competition taught him to pick a design and stick with it. His team last semester changed designs five to seven teams, which caused problems.
For the four WCHS teams, there are two basic designs.
In one design, Cox said, they have a basic square base. On the front is a forklift mechanism to pick up the rings. In the back is a vertical claw to climb a ladder for extra points in the competition.
Demopoulos said the ladder climb can be a big game changer because it's worth double the points of the rings if their robot can hang on.
The other robot design, according to student T.J. Zigon, is a dual-claw system. One claw is for picking up rings, and the second claw is for climbing the ladder.
Zigon said in the blueprint phase, he realized what helped his team in the last competition was having a real simple design. He wanted to go with the same concept this time around.
"I think it'll give us a significant advantage," Zigon said. "... I'm feeling pretty good about it."
Student Tyrel Shuler did the programming for his team's robot. Because they changed designs a few times, he kept having to change the robot's programming.
"It was much easier than last time," Shuler said.
Zigon said the teams had assistance from engineers from DePuy, Biomet and Zimmer. The engineers working with the teams included Dennis Njuguna from DePuy, Nik Horsmon from Biomet and Craig Fryman from Zimmer.
"We're going to do our best to win, and show they invested in the right team," said Zigon.
The "forklift" teams include Brandon Bibler, Cox, Demopoulos, Alex Garber, Melanie Wilson, Patrick Johnson and Jimmy Miller. Cox and Demopoulos are the drivers.
The "two claws" teams are Morgan Lackey, Ryan Lewis, Robert Murphy, Cody Shafer, Shuler, James Wynn, Zigon and Alejandro Garcia. Lackey and Zigon are the drivers.
Richcreek said only two people are allowed on the floor during competition, and the judges are pretty strict. The competition also has referees. Each robot is inspected, and may not be any bigger than 18 inches by 18 inches.
The Warsaw teams started working on their robots in December, but because of inclement weather, they've missed some work days.
To help with the costs of the competition, Biomet donated $1,000 to the robotics club. Richcreek said Tornier also gave $1,000, and are interested in helping the teams for future competitions.[[In-content Ad]]The Warsaw Education Foundation also provided a Red Apple grant of $1,500 to help the robotics teams.
DePuy and Zimmer engineers brainstormed and planned the robot designs with the students before any building began, she said.
"I think we're as prepared as we're going to get," said Alex Garber, student.
For more information about VEX Robotics and the competition, visit the website at www.vexrobotics.com
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