Thread by @charles_gaba

I spent the weekend in Jackson, MI for the #FRC2023 robotics competition (my son is on the team). This photo captures a scene straight out of an espionage thriller movie--these 2 girls had to replace a faulty motor with literally *seconds* to spare before their next competition.

Normally this was a situation where a half-dozen adult mentors (w/professional engineering or electrical experience) would have jumped in, but these 2 high school students pulled it off themselves w/only their fellow pit crew members to assist. Their parents should be very proud.

With their fellow pit crew members right afterwards. Go #BionicBlackHawks @FRC2834!

Here's the robots in action--unfortunately I had to trim away the first section (where they operate autonomously) due to Twitter video time limits but you get the idea. Very cool. #FRC2023 @FRC2834 #BIonicBlackHawks

The scoring system is incredibly complex--every match has alliances of 3 "red" robots working together against 3 "blue" robots--they actually switch between red & blue for each match--so you're not just trying to get points for your own team but also your alliance.

It's not just about putting cones & cubes on the poles/shelves, though--they also get points for balancing on the charging station (the big balance beam thing), for being in certain positions at certain points during the match, for working together, for blocking opponents, etc.

Just about EVERY aspect of the robots are handled by the HS students themselves (w/assistance from mentors): Programming, electrical wiring, chassis design, material choice, acquisition & modifications, CAD, printing, power supply, wheel design, intake & deployment design...

The students also handle repairs & modifications (see example at the top of the thread), design & develop the control systems, do field work to survey the other teams, develop strategies for themselves & their alliances (which change every match) and so on. Amazing stuff.

My son is on the programming team (he isn't in the photos above--his part was pretty much done once the matches started, at least for now). He coded a very cool feature I'm not at liberty to reveal, but I'm extremely proud of him especially as this is his first year on the team.

Oh yeah...and it's not always cubes & cones; the game itself changes every year; last year it was more of a basketball/hoop thing, other years you have to stack things WALL-E style, etc. This is the 2021 promo video which gives a good overview.

By changing the game every year, it means every team has to start from scratch each year, coming up with brand-new strategies, designs etc. every season.

I volunteered as a practice field attendant this past weekend so I got to see all 40 robots up close. You'd think they would all be pretty much the same given the constraints in dimensions & goals, but I was amazed at the variety of designs & materials used by different teams.