Rotobics Team Info
Crawfordsville High School’s VEX team, Athenaeum’s “Tobor”, is participating in their third year of competition. This year’s game is the “Clean Sweep”. The team has been meeting three times a week since the beginning of September to prepare for an opportunity to qualify for the championships.
Many new initiatives have been started this year with CADD drawings, animation, and web site design.
Robotics Team Pictures
Member Christopher Slentz propels team to World Champion Status!
CHS Team "TOBOR" qualifies for World Championships!
The tough fighting TOBOR robotics team has qualified for the World Championships in Dallas, Texas! After a long season of dual competition in FTC and VEX robotics. The TOBOR team made it's last chance to qualify count as teammate Brian Caraher's programming won the skills challenge with 35 points to qualify for the world championships. The Crawfordsville team came with a unique design and felt that it could be the best competition of the year. The team now turns its attention towards Dallas as the members begin making changes to improve the design before April 22nd. A fundraising campaign has started with a goal of raising $1800 toward the trip. This is a great opportunity for the kids, they will have a chance to meet students and teams from China, Australia, Canada, Mexico, and all over the world. If you wish to support the team please contact Darrin Wilcoxson at Crawfordsville High School.
2009-10 FTC Competition Announced!
http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/ftc/content.aspx?id=962
To sign up for the team or send information to the team please fill in your name, email address, and comments.
About the Robotics Team
The Robotics team is an after-school project where we brainstorm, design, build, test, and compeat in competitions. The first competition that we will be in is the VEX competition titled Clean Sweep on Dec 5th. The FTC "HOT SHOT" is the second competition we will be in Dec 12th where we will travel to compete against 30 other midwest teams in Chicago, IL.
FIRST Tech Challenge Robotic Platform
Date: April 21, 2008
Specifics of the new FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) platform were announced Thursday, April 17 at the Opening Ceremonies of the FTC World Championship.
The price of the full FTC Competition Kit is $900. The new kit includes everything teams need to compete in FTC next season and into the future. The kit offers a full complement of parts including three software packages, 11 motors, 10 sensors, Bluetooth communications, rechargeable batteries, metal gears, and a complete set of structural components. The kits are reconfigurable and can be used over multiple seasons.
Returning FTC teams will receive a $450 grant toward the cost of the new kit. There are also 250 need-based rookie team grants available. These rookie team grants are $450 for the 2008 season. The same 250 teams will receive a grant of $275 for the 2009 FTC season. 2008 registration will begin in late May.
For the 2008 season, FIRST will support Affiliate Partners with $5,000 regional grants to develop FTC events in their areas. In total, FIRST is providing over $700,000 to facilitate the platform change. These funds were made available by several past and present FIRST Board members.
Game design for the upcoming 2008 season will start soon and the new game will be announced in September. We will continue to feature head-to-head competition and the use of alliances. The new platform allows FIRST to expand the level of challenge teams will face.
The 2008 game will include tasks that reflect real-world issues faced by robotics designers today. Uneven surfaces, manipulation of objects, and greater use of sensor technology will be featured.
As we move forward, the FTC mission remains the same: to provide our community with tools and games that challenge them, and to cultivate their interest in science and technology. We will continue to do this in a competitive format that celebrates team success both at the competition and in the thought and effort to reach the competition. The new FTC platform is designed to appeal to a range of high-school-age teams from diverse backgrounds, including those that may not have the resources to compete in higher cost events.
All of us at FIRST are excited by what the future holds and look forward to next season.
Thanks,
Ken Johnson
New Robot "Quad Rover"
The new quad rover robot will be joining the team over the 2008 summer. This gas powered device is totally autonomous and will be modified to carry a T-shirt launcher that will be used during home football games! We are excited to add this to our collection of robots for the students to work with, gaining more knowledge of how gps tracking works along with other sensors such as compass, IR, and sound. Be sure to come to the football games this fall to see the team in action.
