Robotics!

Today I learned so much!  We traveled to Cheney WA today to watch our nephew, Anthony, compete at the FRC Pacific Northwest Robotics Championship.  This is quite an event.  We had no idea what we were getting in to!  Thankfully, Anthony's mom (my cousin Margaret) was there to explain it all to us.

There's no way I can even begin to do justice to what we witnessed, but with the following photos, you may get a sliver of an idea of what went on today at the competition, and I do mean competition!

This is the name of Anthony's team.

Each year in early January, teams from around the world gather at specified locations to receive the challenge for the year.  The very moment after the announcement of the parameters of the competition, the work begins.  By the first of March, robots are designed and ready to begin the competition season.

The playing field.

A closer look at one tower and the steam plant in the corner. 

Anthony's team's robot.  It would take hours to explain how this works!  

Teams number less than ten kids on a team to over 30.  Teams are led by mentors, but the kids truly do all the work.  They design, write the programs, machine the parts, do the wiring, and assemble the parts, test and re-test their designs.  Hours and hours of work go in to this project.

Reynald is holding a piece of Anthony's team's robot.  Every piece of this was machined by the kids.

Once on the floor and the bell is sounded, off go the robots!  For this challenge they had to design a machine that would pick up and then deposit one of these gears to the tower.

A close up of a gear.

This robot has just deposited a gear and is backing away to get another.

The gear at the bottom, starting it's journey up to the platform.

This gear is to the top.  A team member picks it up and puts it on the rail.  There is a pre-determined number of gears that have to be gathered to get the maximum points.

The robot also had to be able to pick up these yellow balls and then shoot them in to the steam plant.

The robots have to hit this bin that holds the balls to release them so that they can pick them up to shoot in to the steam plant.

This robot is shooting balls in to the steam plant.  For every three balls that fall in to the target, the team gets one point.

Finally, they had to find a rope on the tower and grab on to it and climb up to the top.  IF the robot made it to the top of the rope, it tapped a light that went off to signal that it had reached the final goal.

These are the kids that drive the robot and help with strategy.

Two robots on their way up to tap the light.

You can see the robots suspended in the air, and the lights at the top are shining.

This all happens in two minutes.  As you might imagine, there is a great deal of strategy involved.  There are referees, play by play announcers and even instant replay!

There are four referees watching each match.  

These two fellas called the matches as they saw them!

Note the drawings on the instant replay, just like the ESPN announcers do!

When the floor competition is complete, the robot goes back to the "pit" where it is inspected by two judges who critique the finer points of the construction and originality of design.

The adults in the blue shirts are the judges that evaluating and questioning the design team of this robot.

Anthony explaining some of the robot pieces to Uncle Ron.

The experience these kiddos are getting and the learning that is happening is awe inspiring.  There was such energy and power in this building today, all from kids aged 14 to 18 years.  What a gift they have.