Day 25

Day 25
Wednesday
January 30, 2013

The team continued work on the hopper and shooter systems.

Thanks to the CAD team, the systems integration team came up with 2 final integration options:

A) The hopper and shooter are interconnected and capable of rotating together. Both are resting on an axel in the center of the robot with the angle of the shooter/hopper manipulated by sprockets and 2 windows motors. We will have the level 1 climber in the center of the robot, around the center of gravity of the robot.

B) The hopper and shooter are interconnected and capable of rotating together. We will have the level 1 climber in the center of the robot, around the center of gravity of the robot. The hopper/shooter is resting on hinges near the front or rear of the robot. 

The CAD model of the final integrated robot and all of the systems are completed. 

The animation background of the chairman's award video is/near completed.

The hopper/shooter system will be integrated tomorrow. 

Expect final integration over the next 3 days. We are pursuing our goal of completion of the total robot by the end of week 4.

CAD Photos

Curious about our team's final robot design with the integration of all systems/mechanisms?

Take a quick look through our CAD photos of the final planned integration design. Several options for integration are still under consideration. We are currently pursuing our goal of completion of the robot construction by the end of week 4.

Special thanks to Leonid Khoroshev and Scott Mathog of the CAD team for the CAD files.

Day 24

Day  24

Tuesday

29 January 2013

We successfully tested the frisbee launcher. We have isolated the stability issues of the Frisbee launcher. The issue is with the wheels itself. Alternative wheels are being sought for the issues. The frisbee feeder for the launcher/hopper will be completed by tomorrow.

We tested the connectivity between the cRio and the laptop/controls. We will have the drivetrain driving by tomorrow.

We are preparing for the final integration of all systems for the robot. The superstructure design is being finalized. We have an idea for how we will integrate all of the systems. We are waiting for the completion of all systems before proceeding with the final integration.

Day 23

Day  23

Monday

28 January 2013

We have tested the frisbee launcher and have discovered issues with the stability of the wheels when moving at full rpm.

The hopper and drivetrain systems are complete. We are waiting to test the drivetrain and have it driving as soon as possible.

We are set to complete the entire robot build by the end of week 4, this Saturday, and begin troubleshooting/final testing.

Day 12

January 17, 2013
Thursday
Day 12 of FRC 2013 Build

The team continued with the construction of the drivetrain. The drivetrain will be completed by Day 13.

The hopper team, frisbee launcher team, and climbing team is currently constructing their frames.

We also weighed the parts for each team. The results from the weighing are posted below:
Climbing System - 14.5 lb.
Hopper System - 4.7 lb.
Frisbee Launcher System - 12.2 lb.
drivetrain - 28.9 lb.
Final weight after weighing - 60.3 lb.

We will work to reduce the weight so that the final robot weight, without the battery and bumpers, will be under 100 lb.

We also calculated the maximum gross weight of the robot:
Max. weight of Climbing System - 30 lb.
Max. weight of Hopper System - 10 lb.
Max. weight of Frisbee Launcher System - 25 lb.
Max. weight of drivetrain - 50 lb.
Max. weight of Final robot - 115 lb.

Day 11

January 16, 2013
Wednesday
Day 11 of FRC 2013 Build Season

Today the drive team continued to work on the robot chassis/drivetrain.

The frame of the robot is completed and the CIMple gearboxes are installed. The robot will use 4 6" rubber wheels, with 2 wheels connected to a single CIMple gearbox on each side. The dimensions of the chassis is 30" wide by 20" long. So far the drivetrain and the necessary electronics weigh around 30 pounds.

We plan to have the drivetrain running and tested by the end of week 2.

Day 10

Day 10 of FRC 2013 Build
January 15, 2013
Tuesday

Today the team worked on acquiring the necessary parts for each of the various systems.

The Drivetrain team and the Frisbee Hopper team manufactured/acquired most of their necessary parts on Tuesday. The Frisbee Shooter and Pyramid Climbing system teams purchased their necessary parts through Andymark today.

The drivetrain frame is nearly assembled. We are striving to finish the drivetrain by Friday.

Day 9

January 14, 2013
Day 9 of FRC 2013 Build

So far the team has finalized the design of the robot.

We will be using a linear launcher and a frisbee loading mechanism, similar to robot in 3 day's frisbee shooter and hopper. We came up with an idea to climb the pyramid and we are pursuing the third level of the pyramid.

We also began working on the drivetrain of the robot. We are hoping to have the drivetrain driving no later than Saturday. Our plan is to finish by the end of week 4.

Day 3 - Day 6

Day 3 - 6 of Build Season
Januar y 8 , 2013 - January 11, 2013

The team worked on prototypes for their basic designs.

The team separated into design teams and each team created basic design concepts based on their strategies.

After creating basic design strategies and using a design matrix to select their preliminary designs, the teams began work on their prototypes.

Students used VEX Robotics kits and any material to simulate their basic designs.

Day 2

Day 2
Monday
January 7, 2013

The team completed all of it's objectives for day 2.

At the beginning of the meeting, students presented their strategies for the FRC 2013 game to the whole class. Following the presentations, the team divided into 4 design groups, with each group concentrating on creating 4 basic design concepts, with 1-2 of those concepts becoming preliminary design concepts.

The team is on track to select the final design by Saturday with construction of the robot to begin on Wednesday at the latest.

Only 43 more days until the Stop-Build day for the robot.

Day 1

Day 1
Sunday
January 6, 2012

No team meeting was held for Day 1, since no meetings are held during Sundays.

Each student were given a homework assignment, create a game strategy for the 2013 game, Ultimate Ascent. This homework assignment is due at the beginning of class on Day 2, Monday January 7.

All students, please note that we are on build schedule until the end of the build season.

As of now, there are only 44 days left until the end of the build season for FRC 2013.

Day 0 (FRC Kickoff)

The new game for the 2013 FR5C season is Ultimate Ascent.

The link to the game manual can be found here:
http://frc-manual.usfirst.org/viewItem/3

Today the team began the season by reviewing the game manual and watching the entire FRC Kickoff webcast. The team separated into groups to cover a different section of the game manual (excluding the introduction). After 45 minutes reviewing the sections, each group presented what they found to the class. We completed nearly all of our goals for Day 0.