2016 Stop Build
The Janksters have made phenomenal progress this Build Season, and we are so proud of all members for their determination and organization throughout these challenging six weeks.
In Kickoff, the team was given a video and a 100-page game manual. They delved into the depths of the game in order to understand exactly what we need. Cynthis Chung ’19 commented, “By the end of the day, we ended up with a long list of great ideas that are going to contribute to the making of our robot”.
The team were then ready to come up with a strategy after sorting through everyone’s goals, ultimately deciding on one that would best fit our capabilities and objectives. Concrete ideas were created, and prototypes were made. Prototyping allowed everyone to experience problems and solve them, narrowing broad ideas to the best, msot rational option. Katie McLaughlin ’19 summed it up perfectly when she said “My favorite part is seeing all these crazy ideas start to form something that is becoming more realistic. After much discussion and troubleshooting, members started finalizing factors like how actual mechanism will function, materials they will use, and solving any issues that they come across”.
Once actual committees were created , the Build Season process became much more goal-oriented, and each group of students was able to bond throughout the next few weeks. Mechanical became separated into Ball Manipulation, Field Elements, Scaling, and Chassis. All committees kept working hard despite the time crunch of deadlines. but they began to stress when Robot Reveal came around the corner.
Though the team didn’t know if the robot was going to work in time, but it was fully functional for family, friends, and teachers to enjoy, so we were able to make finishing touches before Stop Build. Despite the many mechanisms it has, including 10 wheels, two electronics boards were able to fit on. Long hours did not bring anyone down, and around 2 hours before Bag and Tag, the robot was able to go around defenses, shoot boulders, and move with maneuverability.
Yesterday, our coach returned to school with various pints of ice cream to continue our tradition of naming the robot. She collected the names of the many employees that had helped her in the process of buying ice cream, toppings, and syrups. One name was picked out, and the team is ecstatic about the result. We are ecstatic to welcome Cierra of 2016 into our robot family!
The team is now preparing for competition, and the drive team has been decided. There’s a time crunch to get some practice in with the second robot, and all the committees are trying to consolidate items to pack. Additionally, members Tamara Kawa and Tiffany Ta are practicing for their presentation in Chariman’s Award, which they will show to the judges at our first competition, Central Valley Regional. Come out to Madera and watch Cierra perform for the first time on March 11 and 12th!