Weekly Goals (12/9 - 12/13): Defeat is Always Momentary

Today, we resolved to finally get graded on the challenges. Our robot was to autonomously put a cube in one of four randomly chosen boxes, then switch to a manual control program and put a cube in the remaining three boxes, then climb up the ramp and use the claw to hang from a bar. We knew that the motor controlling the string and its axle had a bad connection, so we tightened that.

 

 

Unfortunately, when we made our first official attempt, the string got tangled with the claw when it rose for the Autonomous. So by the time we had failed our first attempt and quickly untangled the string, we were all out of class time. Needless to say, we will try again tomorrow.



Weekly Accomplishments (12/6) - We're ready!

Although we tried many different things in ROBOTC, we couldn't get the Manual Control and any of the Autonomous modes to work within the same program. Some things we did would get us close (the light on the brain indictating a remote control connection would come on), but we couldn't operate the robot manually. After discussing a number of possibilities, we decided to preform a brain swap as a last resort.

 

 

 



Thankfully for us, the brain worked and we can now operate the robot manually. The Autonomous modes and the Manual Control are still segregated, but we will still be allowed to display the working Autonomous program, then quickly get on a computer to switch to Manual Control for the other challenges.

 

Weekly Goals (12/2 - 12/5) - Tweaking the code, bumper switch addition

We now have a bumper switch, and Chris has made some modifications to the code so that when the bumper switch is not pressed, the robot operates in manual control. But when it is pressed, the robot will carry out its Autonomous program, then revert back to manual control. We're running into some issues with the remote control connecting to the robot that we hope to have straightened out by the end of the week.

 



Weekly Accomplishments (11/25) - Autonomous completed, need bumper switch

The Autonomous portion of the challenge has been completed. The theoretical programs worked pretty good, for the most part, but there was still some customization needed (reduce that time a little bit, raise that time, reduce the power of the claw tightening, etc). Not only that, I found out that the some of the motors were either reversed or underpowered. I had to cut the power of the right motor in half so that it wouldn't overpower the left motor and drift off-course. It was long and tedious, but we finally managed to make it in whatever box we wanted about 90% of the time.



Besides the Autonomous, minor mechanical errors had to be corrected. Sometimes the axles on the gear tower were unaligned, or sometimes the string would get in the way of the claw, and we'd have to untangle it and clean it up. All that's needed now is to attatch a bumper switch to the robot so that it reverts to manual control once the Autonomous program has run its course.



Weekly Accomplishments (11/22) - Autonomous well on its way

Good news, our autonomous is well on its way to completion. That robot in the picture isn't actually ours, but I've run extensive diagnostic tests to see exactly how fast the robot moves at full battery. The results:
Forward/backward: 13 inches per second
90 degree turn: 1.9 seconds
Claw rise/lower: 3.5 seconds
Of course, these results are all approximate, because it may not be the same fully charged battery every time, there could be mechanical errors that need fixing, etc. But it's a good estimation, and the courses should only require slight modification, depending on the box the program is directing the robot to.

Weekly Goals (11/18 - 11/22) - Robot done; need Autonomous and SolidWorks

Turns out that both the Autonomous and SolidWorks still need to be completed. I'm beginning to make real headway into learning how to program ROBOTC, and once I understand it sufficiently, I can start planning out the route, writing test programs and doing diagnostics. *no screenshot, sorry*

Meanwhile, the SolidWorks is also coming along for Nick. We hope to have everything done by next Tuesday a week from now.

Weekly Accomplishments (11/15) - Nothing but ROBOTC left

For the last week, our team has been fighting a war on two fronts: the pull up challenge and the cube challenge.

In the pull up challenge, we've finally managed to have our robot complete the task consistently without some gear or axle snapping out of place. And better yet, it can lift itself at least a few inches off the ground.

Yesterday, Nick programmed the controller for the manual portion part of the challenge. On Wednesday, I stayed a couple of hours after school to plot out the autonomous course of our robot in the cube challenge. One of my teacher's former students came in an suggested a simpler route: starting directly parallel to the boxes, the four programs will turn at differing times (depending on he cube), turn back on course and do a U-turn to climb the ramp - all within 30 seconds.

On that day, I realized that we would have to replace the robot's brain. When new ROBOTC firmware is put in the brain, it's supposed to purge any old remnant programs. We put a few commands into the brain, but when we tested it, our robot started twitching and moving forward without any programming telling it to do so. The programming will have to be finished next week.

Weekly Goals (11/12 - 11/15): Robot Pull-up and ROBOTC

As explained last week, we are still taking on two things at once: the robot pull-up challenge and the cube-placement challenges. The robot pull-up challenge will be finally attempted on the same day as the other challenge, and it doesn't require any Autonomous, so we'll be ready for that when our robot can physically do it (enough torque, sturdy axles, etc).



The cube-placement challenge is already halfway-completed. We've tested our claw without any Autonomous and it preformed sufficiently. All that's left to do is to program the Autonomous. Starting from a fixed location in the arena, our robot automatically place in a cube in one of four randomly chosen boxes on the balancing beam. I will write up four programs on ROBOTC, one for each box, and when the chosen box is revealed, we'll take a few minutes to load the respective program onto the robot's brain and then trigger it via bumper switch in the arena.

Weekly Accomplishments (11/8): Robot Pull-up & Extension

Today, our team learned that it's being granted an extension by the teacher. This is likely resulting from the fact that we only have three people officially on our team while the other two teams have six or seven each. We have until the end of the extension to complete both the robot pull-up challenge an the cube challenge, which will be done on the same day.

We have made significant headway in the robot pull-up challenge: the string is attached to an additional motor and it succeeded in pulling our robot off the ground (albeit barely).

However, after some tweaking, the robot failed the second test. The axles on the tower kept coming undone, and many other things were suddenly loose, so we have to fix them next week. And I still have to program ROBOTC....

Weekly Goals (11/4 - 11/8): Two Challenges at Once

This week, two challenges will be attempted at once. Along with the current challenge of using the claw to drop cubes into boxes, we'll be revisiting the previous challenge from a few weeks ago (the robot bar pull-up). It's quite late, but we need a grade for it.


















This structure will be placed alongside the current end effector and a string will be tied to both it and the robot's frame. A motor  on the arm will reel in the string, effectively lifting the entire robot.

Weekly Accomplishments (11/1): Torque and Claw

This week, we have completed our robot, for the most part. First of all, we've added torque to the tower - a lot more torque.

 

The claw is our new end effector and it has proven itself capable of lifting cubes in the arena. Of course, there is a motor attached to the claw (so it can move), and we've added an extension to the wire coming from the motor so it can go straight to the tower without getting caught in anything. Oh, and the armor surrounding the brain is still there from the last challenge - there is still the danger of the claw falling down hard on the brain.

Other than that, the only thing left for this challenge is for me to figure out how to program VEX. That's right: I'm in charge of the Autonomous aspect of the challenge. Oh boy.

Weekly Goals (10/28 - 11/1): New Cube Challenge

It's possible that some more people may be joining our team soon, or at least volunteering part time. Myself included, our team only has three people, and the other two teams have either 6 or 7 each.

Anyway, as for our new challenge...

 

 

Details are still coming in, but the basic objective is to use the robot's end effector to place those orange cubes in the plastic boxes while the boxes are perched atop that plank. Seems easy enough, but the plank is actually a balance beam, so delicacy on our part is required. Nick will adjust the SolidWorks accordingly.

 

Weekly Accomplishments (10/24): Challenge Failed, moving on...

Our challenge was to use the wooden end effector to lift our robot off the ground using a bar - basically a robot pull-up. Unfortunately, our robot has failed at that task. The robot didn't have enough torque, enough strength. Here's a picture:

 
 
 

















As for now, we're moving on to the next challenge, which I will explain in further detail next week. We're changing the end effector to a claw...

...and adding more torque (gears) to our tower.

Weekly Goal 10/21 - 10/24: Arm and SolidWorks Completion

Our base has been completed, but our arm is still missing an end effector. As soon as he can, Chris is going to carve it out of a block of wood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meanwhile, Nick is still working on the SolidWorks model for the robot.

Weekly Accomplishments (10/18): Arm Stabilization, SolidWorks Progress



On Wednesday, Nick completed the basic chassis on SolidWorks. We don't know how far he is beyond that, as he isn't here today.

 



 

 

On Thursday, after we attached the main part of the arm to the rest of the chassis, we realized that the base was very unstable and wobbly. This was the result of us not having any axles long enough to reach from side to side. One axle started on the right side and went about 2/3 of the way across, and another axle below that one went 2/3 of the way from the left side to the right. In the center, where to the two coincided, a brace connected them, and the arm was attached there. We had to take the entire arm base off and relocate it because it didn't provide stability.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today, Chris has mostly completed work on the new arm base. We'll be cutting out a wooden end effector today that will allow the robot to hang from the metal bar in the arena.

 

 



 

 

 



 

Weekly Goal 10/14-10/18: Arm and Base Completion

As of yesterday, our battery has been replaced and we have successfully operated our chassis. The base for the arm has been completed, and the arm itself is currently being built. The arm must be completed by the end of the week. And finally, Nick has begun the SolidWorks model for our robot.

P.S.: Our previous blogger, Jacob Irons, has been transferred out of our class, so I (Daniel Cohen) will be assuming blogging responsibilities from here on out. 



Motor Adjustments and Arm Base

While Chris began to program our brain, we added some spacers to our motors to reduce unwanted wobbling, and began to put together a base to mount our arm.

(Pictures to be resized shortly)

Chassis Completion

Today, in spite of two days spent away from the classroom, we've completed our chassis. However, our battery proved to be faulty, so we are unable to test it until it is replaced.

(BLOG UPDATE) Introduced page list

Quick navigational update; the sidebar now displays links to the main page, as well as work-in-progress pages for each team member.

Brain Mount

While Daniel continued work on the chassis, Chris made up a quick mount for our brain, which serves as a cage of sorts. The brain is shield from all sides and allows for easy access to ports and switches.

In addition, Nick drilled a hole into the back of our cart to allow for easy charger access, protecting our batteries in the process.

(BLOG UPDATE) Resized Images, New Features Added

Just a quick update; I have resized the images posted on the blog so that they will no longer interfere with the sidebar features. You can still view them full-size, simply click on the image and it will expand.

In addition, I have also added a post archive, search bar, and hit counter.

COMING SOON: Remaining team bios, team pictures

We've finished our cart!

Today, we put the finishing touches onto our cart, namely the ropes that prevent the door from falling down once it's opened. All there is left to do is affixing a lot to the latch, to keep unwanted classmates away from our parts.

Door Installation and Claw Brainstorming

As we install the door onto our cart, we continue with the process of adding wheels to our chassis.
We have also discovered a pair of claw mechanisms while searching through scrap, and we are considering using them to latch onto the bar for the hanging challenge.

Wheel Installation

Today, we began to add wheels, gears, and axles to our chassis. Our cart is nearly complete, and we hope to have our basic chassis up and running by the end of the week.

In addition, we have introduced minor design changes to our chassis to properly support our motors.

Chassis Redesign and Door Construction

We've redesigned our chassis to be lighter, as well as shorter in order to comply with both FTC standards and our scissor lift idea.
In addition, we've finished installing the walls of our cart, and are working on the locking front door.

Basic Chassis Construction and Cart Progress

Today, our team constructed a basic chassis reminiscent of last year's basic "squarebot" design, as a placeholder. We also amassed a small collection of supplies, and drilled some holes in our cart, to properly mount it's wooden walls.

Constructing our Cart

Today, our group began construction of the cart with which we'll store our materials. We cut plywood into squares that will fit evenly on the cart, while securing our parts.

Early Brainstorming Sessions

Today we discussed the nature of the blocks featured in this year's competion, and contemplated a few potential methods of moving them. We were thinking of using a pitchfork of sorts, with an additional mechanism to remove the blocks once they are in place. A reverse scissor lift was also consdered, it would lift the robot itself up to the pendulums, where it will deposit the blocks. In order for this to be viable, we will have to focus on making our robot light, but functional, potentially 3D printing nonstructural components.

Welcome to our Development Blog!

Hello! Welcome to our team's development blog for our VEX robotics program. This year, we are working towards completion FTC's Block Party challenge. Our team consists of Jacob, Chris, Nick, and Daniel, follow our blog for bi-weekly updates on our progress!