Many thanks to our amazing mentors! and… Daniel Bagdorf Chris Cooper Richard Fisler
#FIRST
Scouts doing their stuff
BS9, 01/15/2017
Our first full Saturday in the shop and prototyping is well under way.
Most sub-function teams built prototypes and laid them out within the robot frame and Max got really frustrated about space limitations!
We started the day building and then had a safety lecture from Mr Goss relating to dress, use of glasses, warnings relating to the starting of the robot, who is qualified to use which equipment etc.
Quote of the day relates to our safety talk, hair must be tied back, jacket strings tucked in and …
Mr Goss: “I’m not quite sure what the protocol is for that beard Mr Berry”
The morning started off with CAD work
Some prototyping of the hopper and gear holder
Creating the gear holder on the lathe
Heather and Matt work on the electrics
whilst Sam and Mrs DiCarlo work on controls
Allison worked on the roller grippers
Hayden and Mr Bersing with Ryan and Mr Derry discussing shooter mechanisms
Mr Berry with daughter Audrey work on the practice bot controls
BS8 – Friday Sleep Day 01/13/2017
Friday and the shops were shut!
BS6, 01/12/2017 – Sam Frankel needed
Thursday – ask Sam Frankel for photographs and info
BS5, 01/11/2017
Welcome to hump day in the shop!
Mentors mentor mentors so that mentors can mentor students
Hunter, Hayden and Griffin work on a prototype shooter
The Torchmate Plasma Cutter Control Center
Ryan and David work on aluminum sheeting on the plasma cutter
Shiv, Jeffie and Dillon test batteries
Sam and Reed work with Mr Berry on controls
Gabe and Avery mock up a passive gear collection mechanism in CAD
Sam and Anna work on the Chassis
BS2, 01/08/2017
Mother Nature reminded us that she is in charge … but we were only delayed by an hour before we got straight into our strategy meeting.
With several new students it was good to split into five mixed groups with a reminder that not everyone has the same style and everyone’s voice should be heard.
Quotes of the Day
Mr Derry: “I’ve spent 18 years learning to listen … and I’m still learning”
Allison, Sarah & Shannon
Avery, Sam, Gabe, Anna, Rose, Matt, Sam
Laura Lee, Max, Cole and Hayden strategize with Mr Dushin and Mrs Fuchs
Cole leads the strategy session
Sarah, Shannon and Ryan listen as the game is explained
Allison, Sarah & Shannon
Ryan and Matt
Build Season Day 1
Mother Nature reminded us that she is in charge … but we were only delayed by an hour before we got straight into our strategy meeting.
With several new students it was good to split into five mixed groups with a reminder that not everyone has the same style and everyone’s voice should be heard.
Quotes of the Day
Mr Derry: “I’ve spent 18 years learning to listen … and I’m still learning”
Allison, Sarah & Shannon
Avery, Sam, Gabe, Anna, Rose, Matt, Sam
Laura Lee, Max, Cole and Hayden strategize with Mr Dushin and Mrs Fuchs
Cole leads the strategy session
Sarah, Shannon and Ryan listen as the game is explained
Allison, Sarah & Shannon
Ryan and Matt
Getting started again
Will they go for the high goal? Holding my breath!
@ FIRST championships
Scenes from St. Louis
Best Match for the Ticks so far
128 points …. Moving up
Ready for our Next Outing in Hartford
Wishing good luck at the Midwest Regional to Tick Alum Tim Wilczynski mentoring Team 111 – WildStang!
First match set up
O- Red alliance won Qualification Match #2 — 67 – 15
Robot is starting to take shape…
The system works – our students are making parts with guidance and oversight of mentors!
Manufacturing Parts with the Plasma Cutter
Discussing the Basic Design Using “Chunky CAD”
Stronghold Strategy Mats for Scouting
Thanks to Team 701!
In Between Competitions – March 11th
With a few weeks between District competitions, the team spent a Wednesday night reviewing and contemplating modifications to their strategies, their driving and the robot itself. Continuous improvement!
Happy Valentine’s Day – Beating the the Next Blizzard
Refining the various components to improve our competitiveness…
Getting down to the wire with a blizzard warning on the radar!
Day 40 – Productive Testing
Making the most of a slow night in the shop
Day 39 – Driving, Testing, Modifying
Following yet another snow day… many students were out due to rehearsal for the Band Concert. But some good testing took place and led to discussions of modifications and programming needs.
Day 36 – Testing the Design and Production
This was a day to continue adding components and to test and refine the design. All the teams are coming together and fitting their components into a complete, functional robot.
Prototyping Protective Cones – February 7, 2015
To provide protection for the intake motors at the ends of the intake mechanism, protective cones have been designed. The ultimate goal is to produce them using the 3-D printer. Because the 3-D printer supplies are costly, the team opted to prototype with a vacuum-molding process. The prototype was designed in CAD. The mold was cut into foam on the Shopbot and then smoothed and covered with aluminum foil to prevent melting of the foam during the vacuum molding process. The molded cones (made of a thin plastic material) were then installed on the robot for testing. A few modifications have been made to allow for wiring and testing. Any modifications will be added to the CAD drawing to ensure that the final design is available for the 3D printing process. Laura Lee and Everett were the key design/production managers on this project, with assistance from Mr. Derry, Mr. Trudeau, and Mr. Goss.
TBT – The Elf on the Shelf
So getting our team into one place to get a full team photo is practically impossible. In this photo the whole of the front row have been individually photoshopped into the original. Unfortunately Mr Wilczinski was busy judging – and by the time he arrived, there was no more...
February 4, 2014
Tonight’s work included locating and wiring the limit switch. Strengthening the elevator structure, finishing the flappers and designing the protective cone for intake motor
Finding a location for the bottom limit switch
Gabriel working with Mr Derry and Mrs DiCarlo on the limit switch
Allison measuring!
Jared working on finishing the ends of the elevator structural reinforcing arms
RJ in his favorite helmet
Avery and Tom work in Solidworks to design the “Cone”
David deburrs a wire clamp that he has previously milled
David deburrs a wire clamp that he has previously milled
Jared and RJ work on the elevator
Gabrielle and Nate work on wires for the limit switch
Shannon working on the parts list
Max fixes springs to the flappers
Day 32 – Hard at Work
Day 30 – Elevator Operational!
After a delicious pancake breakfast hosted by the local Lions Club, the Ticks got to work. By the end of the day the elevator was operational and the intake was revised and improved. Progress!
Pancake Breakfast Hosted by Lyme-Old Lions Club
One Month Down … Starting to look like a working ‘bot
Chassis Team checking master links and monitoring testing for issues as components come online Elevator Team working on the carriage Fork Team milling flaps Intake Team installing stops, modifying wheels and working on belt system Programming and Wiring Team working on getting the control system into the chassis and...
Day 28 – Starting to Get it Together
A productive Friday evening in the shops…
Close up of the drive train
Click for a close up of our drive train showing the wheels. Our drive consists of three wheels two in the front and one omni in the back. The front wheels are powered by two cims each. Our drive train has been designed to be able to pivot around...
Day 27 – Post Storm Action
We missed 4 days this week due to weather-related school closures. A sense of urgency and purpose prevailed all evening. Parts being made, supplies ordered, designs refined.
Day 23 – Before the Storm…
Day 20 – Busy Thursday
Day 14 – Saturday Playday
The Elevator Team worked on fabricating aluminium parts and welding.
The Wiring Team harvested and tested PWM cables and testing out the PMW motor and control signals and looking at them on the oscilloscope to determine what signals the robot is actually receiving.
The Programming Team’s work schedule included looking at the format of the code and working on the elevator and drive subsystems.
The Chassis Team worked on finishing chassis construction, adding lightening holes and producing chain tighteners. They also worked on designing an encoding mount to be 3d printed.
The CAD team worked with Solidworks on testing PWM wires, planning the code and mounting encoders on transmitters and Hunter worked with Mr Trudeau on Solidworks to determine the exact location of the lightening holes.
The PR team worked on creating a schedule for our visiting Journalist from The Day next Saturday and sourcing some great give-aways for our district competitions.
The Intake team worked on refining their prototype and integrating the intake with the forks. They worked on the space available and location.
Tom works on solidworks designing and testing the PWM wires and planning the code and mounting encoders on the transmitters
The Fork Team worked on prototyping a dual fork system testing horizontal vs vertical systems
Gabrielle works with Mrs Di Carlo on formatting the code.
Jared reviews his chassis/drive drawings
Gabrielle and Matt harvesting and testing PWM cable
The chassis/drive team are working on finishing the chassis construction and adding lightening holes to reduce weight. Work also includes a chain tightener and designing an encoding mount to be 3d printed.
Hunter works with Mr Trudeau on Solidworks to design the exact placement of the lightening holes
The intake team with Sam and Hayden work on refining the prototype and integrating the intake with the forks. Their work plan also included working on the space available and location.
Nate cuts foot-long sections of tubing for the spaces for the elevator system
Day 11 – Skeleton Crew…
With Mid-terms pending, many students spent the work window studying instead of working in the shop. But those of us here made the most of our time – testing programs, modifying designs and documenting our activities.
Day 10 – Testing Ideas
Day 9 – Divide to Conquer
Dividing the team into small groups has us moving ahead this weekend with refining the various elements to meet our overall desired strategic goals. We have observed interactions among the groups and each group has progressed to CAD and prototyping to test different ideas. The control/programming group is supporting the other groups’ efforts as well as developing their own programming and control system skills.
Jared Sophie & Hunter reviewing some drawings with Mr. Bersing & Mr. Derry
Norman and Hunter workign with Mr. Derry
Mr. Congdon and Aiden looking at wheel options for the drive system
Mr. Petri helping Anna with a part
David with Mr. Hendrick and Mr.Foster
Mr. Gentry showing Shannon & Sophie how to develop the parts list
Programmers review code from Saturday
Gabriel & Sam handle some wiring
Mr Borden shows Sam & Gabriel some techniques
Norman & Justin work on Chassis
One Week Down!
Nate & Mr. Bersing selecting materiel
Max working on CAD drawing
Tom & Burnes workign on CAD
Mr. Hendrick, David, Patrick, Mr. Foster, Max
Anna working on intake
Anna & Hayden discussing intake methods
Mr. hendrick, David & Mr. Foster looking at fork
Mr. Bersing & Laura Lee with elevator
Norm & Justin on chassis prototyping
Matt with electrical components
Mr. Trudeau, Norm, Aiden, Mr. Congdon review chassis and drive ideas
Mr. Borden, Matt, Jared checking out the wiring on 2014 bot
Matt, Jared, Shannon testing wiring
Mrs. DiCarlo & Shannon checking the connections
Mr. Bozenhard & Anna on intake ideas
Intake Mechansim
Chassis/Drive with basic electronics
Elevator Mecahnism
2005 Robot Showcase
The game for the 2005 season is played on a 27′ wide by 52′ long playing field with the 9 goals configured in 3 x 3 matrix, similar to tic-tac-toe. The robots will attempt to place the red and blue game tetras in or on one or more of...
2004 Robot Showcase
The game for the 2004 season requires robots to collect and pass 13” balls to the human player to then shoot them into fixed and moveable goals. There are three 30” balls on the playing field that can be placed on top of any goal by a robot, which...
2003 Robot Showcase
The game for the 2003 season required robots to collect and stack plastic storage containers on their side of the playing field. The location of the robots and containers and the height of the stacks at the end of the match determined each team’s score for the round.
2002 Robot Showcase
Each 2 minute match began with the 24’ x 48’ field broken up into 5 zones and set up as follows. Four robots start on the playing field and are paired in alliances of 2. There were 2 robots at diagonally opposite corners, 10 soccer balls in each driver...
2001 Robot – “Duncan Hines” (for it, dunking the ball was a “piece of cake”)
Four teams worked together as one alliance to try to achieve as high a score as possible in each match. Points were scored by placing balls in their goal, and by positioning their robots and goals in designated areas at the end of each match. At the start of...
2000 – “Gracie”
Four teams, paired in two alliances, competed in each match. An alliance scored points by placing balls in their goal, and by positioning their robots in designated areas at the end of each match. At the start of a match each alliance had seven yellow balls and one black...
1999 – “The Tick”
Points were scored by positioning “floppies,” robots, and the “puck” on the playing field. Floppies were light weight, pillow-like objects with Velcro-loop material located in the center and around the perimeter. Each alliance had ten color coded floppies located on the playing field and at the player stations. At...
Team of 2005
Student members of 2005 team (38): Tom Abraham, Daniel Bagdorf, William Bagdorf, Anne Fairfield-Sonn, Barton Linderman, Cecily Faenza, Chris Lehrman, Christina Norman-Gohn, Clare Conniff, Dana Meinke, David Brown, David Faenza, Dennis Hauteniemi, Elene Birch, James Smith, John Stearns, John Glenn, Julie Mercurio, Kate Ross, Katie Garland, Matt King, Melissa...
2014 Robot – A little SSP
2014 Motorolla Quality Award
Congratulations to Team 236 for winning the Motorola Quality Award for Robostness in Concept and Design. The judges cited in particular the Swan Arm and Pick-Up Mechanism. The consistent way in which these parts worked, helped make the 236 robot stand out. It’s speed and consistency of pick-up made...
Day 6 – Reviewing Our Ideas
Our 2015 Mentors
Team of 2014
Students, Teachers and Mentors, they’ll all be here soon (when we catch up with them) … the Technoticks Team 236 of 2014. We know that not everyone can be there every day, so here is the full list of the team of 2014 including those who have given us...
2014 – Our Fabulous Mentors
CT Qualifier – Groton
CT Qualifier – Hartford 2014
It was a great day at Hartford and Team 236 won the Motorolla Quality Award … Go Ticks!
2015 Official Game Manual & Updates
2015 Game On!
Thanks to Dominion for hosting our launch once again. It’s now Game On! for our 6-week build season before competing for the first time in Recycle Rush!
Day 4 – Refining Our Ideas
Day 4 – Building Field Elements
Day 4 – Controlling an Old Robot
Day 3 Sorting Through the New Control System
Day 3 Refining the Ideas
Team of 2015 – Work In Progress!
Our 2015 Team is Work in Progress. We are busy trying to get them to sit still enough to get a photo. If your photo isn’t here … please let Mrs Crisp know and we can add you in a “shot!”
Day 2 Brainstorming
Chairman’s Award
Each team that is honored with the Chairman’s Award at the First Championship joins the First Hall of Fame
Team 236 won this award in 2009 – this is the Tick’s Chairman’s Award video
