The BArlow RobAutics Team FRC 4572 is brainstorming ideas to prepare for Jan. 4 when the team reveals its newly built robot for the upcoming competition season.
“We won’t know the details of this year’s game or the specific robot functionality required until the official FIRST Robotics Competition game reveal on Jan. 4, but based on past game patterns and a few teasers that the competition has shared, we have some ideas about the likely high-level skills our robot will need,” said Lucy Tancredi, a team mentor.
The Joel Barlow High School’s robotics team had a successful season last year competing with its robot, Chompy, taking third and fifth place in competitions. The team spent weeks strategizing and prototyping, and devoted more than 200 hours to build Chompy, who was extremely effective at hitting targets at any level needed for competition.
This year the team is buoyed by a $6,000 Connecticut Manufacturing Innovation Fund grant it received to help pay for travel expenses to attend upcoming competitions.
“While some other robotics or sports teams have access to dedicated buses or trailers, we cannot fund transportation to competitions, which means organizing vehicles and parents to transport not only the team but also our robot, pit setup, tools, and other equipment we need on site,” said Tancredi. A competition in Burlington Vt. is a five-hour drive and takes place over three days, so families need to arrange hotels, meals and transportation on their own.
The $6,000 grant will cover the initial competition entry fee, but the team would still need to raise several thousand more for the entry fee for regionals should it qualify.
“Building a basic robot base that can simply drive across the field costs over $5,000 in motors, a central computer and other essential components,” said Tancredi. “Then we have to build the game functionality on top of that, requiring many more expensive parts. At competitions, we also need spare parts to quickly replace any damaged or malfunctioning pieces.”
Those interested in sponsoring the team can get additional information on the FRC 4572 website.
