What have you done for Angelica’s DREAM today!

1/5/2012

• (Martin) Just went to South West Fasteners and got the nuts and bolts needed for build season.

12-16-11

• (Ledge) Raised a fair amount of money this year, but it is not enough for the Championships for the time being.
• (Ledge) Got the following items

• Two new c-rios
• Fiberglass that was available
• All electrical wires and terminals
• Paid entry fee for AZ regional
• Boeing Grant
• JCPenneys grant
• Arizona Community Foundation

• (Ledge) Discussing Frame concepts with Belt Drive

• Dillon Dayea’s Cads

Week 1

1/7/12

• (Rangel) Helped run rookie workshop and also learned about how to set up the control system this year as a bonus
• (Parra) Download, installed, and played the 2012 rebound rumble simulator.

1-8-12

• (Ledge) Kick off came and went and we have our set of challenges
• (Ledge) http://youtu.be/-bRXOTLQvoE Rebound Rumble game animation
• (Ledge) Here is what have done so far

• inventory of kit of parts
• went over all rules
• went through design matrix https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AjwwFh2vK1WsdGNTSVNjNG1WMW9KbDVMbExMU3VKdGc&output=html
• met on Sunday to discuss game scenarios and possible shooting mechanisms

• pneumatic shooter
• spinning wheel chair wheel shooter
• would like to stay totally offensive, not travel to get balls if possible, but if must, use ramp
• we feel in AZ there will be balls on center ramp and must get these balls first in auto
• parking against step is preferable, but must be able to shoot from key, because possible penalty is very valuable
• two possible feeders, screw or auger drive and belts, single, double and two parts
• hopper is wanting to be avoided if possible
• discussed turret, not all sold on it
• we are all in agreement about fixed angle
• we are all in agreement with 6 wheel 4inch  wheels
• we are building a ramp on Monday, Paul is bringing plywood, I am bringing 4 2 x4s
• we need key shaft for shooter prototypes
• Jerry is looking for baskets

• (Rangel) Did some research which inspired a new way of harvesting balls and shooting them. Team 1114’s 2006 robot contributed greatly to that design. Concept not Final.

Video: http://www.thebluealliance.com/match/2006cur_qm10

Idea: 

1/09/11

• (Diserae)- I have been working with Karen trying to figure out the angle and the velocity the shooter needs to be at. We are trying to get the shooter to have the same angle for the top hoop and bottom hoop, so all we have to do is change the speed.
• (Ledge) Picked up the 4- 2 x 4s and they are ready to be used!
• (Ledge) Large lazy suzans if you need em 10 15 and 21 inch diam http://www.mcmaster.com/#lazy-susans/=fqgggx
• (Ledge) Trajectory Data from Karen

Near shot (from the Fender)

Theta      Vmin      Vtgt      Vmax      Ht      Hang Time

(deg)      (m/s)      (m/s)     (m/s)    (m)           (s)

65            5.0         5.2         5.4       0.5          0.6

75            5.5         5.8         6.2       0.6          0.9

85            8.5         9.2         9.9       0.9          1.8

• (Martin)  Working on the ball launcher.  The prototype will most likely be made out of wood.

Far shot (from the Key)

Theta     Vmin      Vtgt     Vmax     Ht     Hang Time

(deg)      (m/s)     (m/s)   (m/s)    (m)          (s)

65            6.8          7.0      7.2       2.0          1.1

75            8.1          8.4      8.6       3.3          1.5

85            13.3       13.8    14.3     9.6           2.7

• (Ledge) Need to get 4 more 2 x 4 for tomorrow and one ½ steel rod to make axle for prototype shooter
• (Ledge) Kids are doing inventory of components pneumatic and electrical to make sure we have enough parts to make two bots
• (Ledge) Ramp in being built, baskets are being built
• (Ledge) Looks like we want to play on scoring side and only go over ramp to get ball if need be. Also looks like we want a turret. We want a wheeled shooter, details not set yet. Also looking at two part conveyor belt to be able to store balls, retractable ground feeder and ramming ramp to lower bridge, cads coming soon.
• (Ledge) A CAD test of drive train on bridge is being done.
• (Parra) Worked on the simulator with Sergio.
• (Maria) Done with Business Plan, Chairman’s Drafting Started, John’s Dean’s List Editing, Re-writing the  Woody Flowers Award Essay.
• (Eliazar) working on helping the veterans and learning from them and cutting wood
• (Dalton) Made required accounts for a recruit and helped Carlos with measuring and cutting wood.
• (Sergio) I have been working on the simulator and seeing what specific controllers we need to run the full 3 on 3 match. David and I ordered an Xbox 360 Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows and it should arrive tomorrow or the eleventh. This receiver makes it so wireless controls can connect to the simulator without the controls needing to be connected to the computer.
• (Bianca) The electrical chicks took inventory of the electrical components for FIRST. We need to purchase 6 more Jaguars to have enough for both robots this year.
• (Isabel)Daisy and I took inventory of all the electrical components from last year as well as the practice bot the freshmen built in the beginning of this year.
• (Isela)I worked with Anthony organizing electrical stuff .
• (Daisy)Isabel and I took inventory of the Dulce’s electrical components.
• (Ulises) Aaron and I finished building the base of the ramp with Carlos instructions.
• (Dillon) The team decided to ditch the idea of the pneumatic shooter and want the wheel shooter. I am also currently creating CAD models of the bridge and seeing if the robot would be able to go over it. If necessary, adjustments to the frame can be made, such as cutting the front corner.
• (Carlos) Downloaded and Installed game simulator and tried to play it with joystick (Logitech Attack 3) but it did not worked. I found how to attach the 2 hinges to the bridge. In the morning I helped carry the 2 x 4 wood pieces from the parking lot. During 0 hour I helped Martin with the wheel shooter by cutting two pieces of two by four. After school I worked with the help of other people and Jerry to cut wood and build the bridge its 50% done.
• (Joach) I was organizing the nuts and bolts, I almost finished I just need a little bit more to organize. I am going to finish them tomorrow.
• (Liz) Switch the tread on Dulce and I started on the inventory on Pneumatics.
• (Ulises)- Worked on the ramp during zero hour half of it is done we just need to drill in the hole hinges and drill it down to the ramp.

1/10/11

• (Liz) http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=99644 Ball Launcher design from iR3 Creative. http://www.modulox.com/?p=821 This is their website it has the CAD model to download.
• (Ledge) Dulce is retreaded so that Karen could practice centering software  on ramp
• (Ledge) Bought four more 2 x 4 for ramp construction and ½ rod for more axles for Martin for prototype shooter
• (Ledge) Reviewed Dillons Cad on robot approach to ramp and decided that a corner needs to be removed for ease of ramp access. No loss other weight which is good! He will have it done and CAD should be up soon.

• (Ledge) Also saw John CAD on ball shooter with 10 inch lazy suzan looks good, although he used one  wheel instead of dual wheeled shooter, and angle need to be 70 degrees

• (Ledge) Saw Liz’s CD find on shooter looks very promising, we are working on specs from their example, hope to have done soon.
• (Ledge) Talked to Immedia EDU who is looking for the lathe for us, they wanted to know when we
• (Ledge) The $2500 should be available by next wed, make your lists
• (Ledge) Received $1400 dollars in tax credits today!
• (Ledge) Edited Johnny’s Dean list letter
• (Ledge) Got our order in from FIRST store

Code Item Qty Price Grand Total

fc12-58 Foam Basketball (fc12-58) 2 $0.00 $0.00

fc12-66 Encoders, 2 pack (fc12-66) 3 $0.00 $0.00

fc12-01 DB37 Flat Ribbon Cable Kit (fc12-01) 1 $0.00 $0.00

fc12-49 First Aid Kit, Mini (fc12-49) 2 $0.00 $0.00

fc12-26 Digital Sidecar ('09) (fc12-26) 1 $0.00 $0.00

fc12-31 Pneumatic tubing, transparent yellow (fc12-31) 1 $0.00 $0.00

Subtotal: $0.00

Out Of State: $0.00

Shipping Cost: $10.24

Grand Total: $10.24

• (Frank) You need mass (inertial moment) on the shooter wheels.  The closer the mass is to  being located on the rim of the wheel, the better.  This way you get less slowing down of the wheel during the shot. Also less sensitivity to the impedance of the electrical drive to the motor.   An encoder on the shooter drive motor or wheel is virtually mandatory to ensure velocity repeatability.   If using a movable turret for the shooter, bearing “looseness or play ” needs to be minimal. The recoil reaction to shooting a ball needs to be either zero or incredibly repeatable as any variance will affect your shot grouping.   The lazy susan bearings of the past have been inadequate for this task unless heavily (axially) preloaded.  Gravity is not likely enough of a preloaded and preloading needs to be done centrally which is inconvenient if you are trying to feed balls through the middle of it.    
• (Ledge) Pitching machines for ideas http://www.atomicrobotics.com/2012/01/shooting-machines-sizes-shapes/
• (Frank) A pseudo looping  robot that registers with the pedestal ..tweaks its alignment till it can continue to score without error and endlessly scores.  It has  a large mouth at ground level as a way to feed it  and alliance partners can shuttle balls  and load them quickly.   It can be fed by bulldozing balls to floor level ball grabber or to a hopper that is a foot or 3 off the floor.       This bot has to align once and then becomes a conduit to the top hoop.        Of course it can gather its own balls if need be.   Need some means to eliminate the possibility of possesing too many balls.  Not hard to do.         This bot can of course get its own balls if need be.   It gathers balls from the end opposite of the arm/shooter.
• (Frank)  The legalization of solenoids is intriguing.   If we don't need powerful pneumatics,  this is a neat way of doing some mechanisms that need a release or a dynamic index pin.  
• (Martin) Found a new way of launching the ball so I will stop the other prototype and get working on this new one.  Wont be done by Wednesday but it will by Thursday.
• (Eliazar) Working on the ramp with carlos.
• (Dalton) Helped Carlos and others build the practice ramp and we our now making well needed improvements.
• (Uriel) Helped build practice ramp for upcoming competition and also observing.
• (Daisy) Helped fix battery cables
• (Isabel) Fixed cable connectors on the batteries
• (Bianca) Fixed the terminals on the batteries
• (Diserae) Added heat shrink to the batteries
• (Isela) Helped the electrical team with batteries
• (Carlos) In the morning (7 to 8) other people and I were drawing in a trapizoid in a  piece of plywood will be cut and placed in the bridge as a support so it can stand up straight. It will also ensure that the bridge wont flip. During lunch I cut with the circular saw other pieces that were needed. After school the bridge was finished. It moved exactly like in the First video but it did not align correctly by 2 or 3 degrees due to some headscrews that were sticking out of the hinges. Then I decide to test it by putting 160 pounds in multiple places, the approximate weight of 1.3 FRC robots, and it passed the test satisfactorily. After than Ledge told me to test with a higher weight. Finally we tried placed around 330 pounds, (2.75 FRC robots), 165 on each end but it looked it was going to break. Now we are putting more reinforcement on it. At the time of its completion which will be around tomorrow at lunch it will be able to hold at least 300 pounds distributed in half in each end.
• (Manuel) Helped carlos on the ramp
• (Sergio) During lunch, Joach and I put the nets on the basketball hoops. Also, I helped Carlos with building the ramp.
• (Dillon) We’ve decided that 4” wheels would make the frame too low, so we’re sticking with 6” wheels now. We can’t lower the wheel also because we would still need space for the pulleys to attach on the other side of the channel. And we’ve also decided that it’s better to create the ramming shield only 15”(extra 3” just in case), there’s no need to go for the full 25” because we wouldn’t be able to push a 120 pound robot off on the other side of the bridge anyways. I finished the CAD model of the frame and now working on how the ramming shield will work on CAD.
• (Ulises) During lunch I organized the nuts and bolts for Joach and left them on the table when the bell rang. After school I finished building the legs for the base of the ramp; however, after the ramp was done we found certain errors that we needed to fix. One of these mistakes was that the ramp was way to flexible so we decided to put reinforcements to make it sturdy. We also need to tweeke the ramp and balance it out.
• (Joach) Today during lunch I cut out some pieces of fiberglass that Martin need. After-school, I finished organizing the nuts and bolts I also turned in some checks that me an Liz got. Then, I went to go help Carlos with the bridge. It was not that strong it was flexible to much so we decided to put reinforcements on it and we were also trying to make it more balanced. So we had to make some adjustments to it.
• (Rangel) Worked more on the CAD model and found that mounting the mast at about a 45 degree angle can simplify the harvester to one straight line. The harvester would then extend to the ground to pick up balls.
• (Ledge) The following drawings are studies of the geometry needed to clear ramp, 4” wheel vs 6” wheel, and ram approach to ramp

• (Ledge) frame design is not complete, more structural pieces will need to be designed and drawn to strengthen front and rear or frame
• (Liz) Joach and I received tax credit donations of $1600 making us closer to our goal of $20,000 for Nationals.
• (Ledge) Update 1 http://frc-manual.usfirst.org/TeamUpdates/0#term 74
• (Maria) Finalizing Dean’s List, Working on Chairman’s, Organizing for Dean Kamen, Starting Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award
• (Uriel) helped finish the ramp by doing small tasks and is still learning the basics and I observed people working to know how to use the tools.
• (Dalton) Just finished the practice ramp and watched and observed other people.

1/11/12

• (Liz and Joach) We worked on treasure work. We add two new checks to the accounts bring our balance to $12,929.75. We now only need $7,070.25 to reach our goal of $20,000 for Nationals. We fixed and made sure there was no mistakes on the accounts.
• (Ulises) The practice ramp is finally complete and functioning the only thing we are waiting for now is the robot to be build so that we can start practicing
• (Bianca) I started the electrical schematic for Angelica's DREAM.
• (Joach) In the morning, during lunch, and some time after-school I worked on the bridge with Aaron, Sergio, Carlos, and Ulises. We finished the ramp today. Can you start driving the robot on the ramp tomorrow to see how easy it balances?  We would love to see a video of it as well.
• (Carlos) In the morning I found how much wood we are going to use for the other parts of the field. Today after school we finished the bridge. All the dimension are pretty accurate within ½ or ¼ in. We will need enough wood to build the fender walls which we should start building.  They only need to be a 2x4 high and not 8.5” or have a top on it since we will not be driving on top of it. We should start modifying the second driver station to be the scoring end.  Maybe we only build half the scoring setup for ease of transportation. We will need use of the gym or library to truely practice shooting high shots.  Someone should start making arrangements to get them when we are ready to practice.
• (Rangel) Been working on the harvester/ball grabber portion of the CAD model. Its been changing designs every day so I’ve been having to start over in order to improve. Although now it looks rock solid. Am working on putting the parts together right now.
• Has anyone been watching the 2006 aim high game (thebluealliance.com) to see how the best teams had their robots built?  Analyzing and describing their launcher and ball collector. We should have a list of the best robots and what their techniques were.
• (Rangel) Will get someone on it.
• (Sergio) I got the simulator working smoothly with all 4 Xbox controls and the 2 keyboard players. I downloaded the simulator and everything else on the computer in the vault.
• (Isabel) Finished wiring the last battery we had and later looked for electrical components.
• (Diserae) Helped wire the last battery with Isabel.
• (Daisy) Helped do inventory
• (Ledge) Dillon’s new chassis drawings

• (Dillon) Okay, so I've update the frame of the robot to what you said Jerry and I like it a lot now. I remove the cut C-channel in the front and back and replaced it with a 2" angle and there is no longer any spacing in between the front and side bars. Steve and I were talking and decided that placing the 3" channels in between the wheel brackets so it doesn't wiggle around and cause an incident like last year when the axles bent. With this placed, there also is no need to place a gusset on the bottom part of the frame because the wheel brackets already provide that reinforcement. We also talked about how the omni wheel in the front is smaller than the two traction wheels in the back so there might be no need for the middle wheel to be dropped down .125" because the front omni wheel is higher than the rest of the wheels if placed on the ground providing that teeter totter effect. As of right now i am redesigning the ramming shield so it can fully reach the bumper and rotate up and be in dimension. I will also try experimenting the shield so it has a "V" shape to it. So if we hit the bridge in autonomous mode the balls roll off of the V-shaped shield rather than stacking up on the flat shield surface.

• (Ledge) John’s early ball harvester and turret drawings

• (Rangel)So for the past week I've been working on a lot of different ways to mount the ball grabbing mechanism as well as the ball storage system. What we first planned to do is use a vertical mast that can drop down a ball collecting mechanism. That turned out to be easier said then done as it required the ball to change direction a bit more times than we would probably like. It was also very hard to let the ball grabber drop down past the bumper which is at right now the height of 8". We then started seeing if we can mount the mast at an angle to see if we can just telescope the ball grabber out to simplify the travel of the ball into one direction without turning. This was also not possible to do because the shooter must be located where it is at now to score from the sides in the corner of the feeder. This method also proved to be rather fruitless. We also figured that telescoping would be quite difficult and would actually require 2 stages to fully telescope out. Then we came upon a very unique idea. The most limiting factor seemed to be the bumper location so what we decided to do was cut it out as well as cut out part of the central board and the center part of the frame. This allows us to have a lot more flexibility for the ball grabber and the mast/harvester. After cutting just enough out to stay legal, the harvester and the ball grabbing mechanism fit into place wonderfully. The way the ball will travel now is going straight inside the robot until the harvester takes the ball straight to the shooter. I haven't quite cadded all the details out such as the ball grabber but I got the basic dimensions good. One thing I noticed though is that the 1" square fiberglass I used for the harvester and ball grabber wont do. Either the sides of the harvester or the legs must be shorter. It should be a simple fix but just something I noticed. We may want to consider square aluminum tubing as I think square is a good shape for these parts of the robot. The ball grabber will also like planned be as wide as possible and then narrow down into the middle of the robot. I will continue adding detail to make sure everything is worked out. What do you guys think so far?
• (Steven) I should have taken a picture of the sketches Jerry... what you described is u good description of the design idea we were exploring today.  An intake roller (full width) would drop down in front of the opening in the bumpers to funnel the balls in.  It's a simple mechanism that should be easy to implement.After some more thought on the overall design concept in these drawings, I really like where this is heading.  Everything is very modular; the intake can be modified without affecting any other components, the shooter can be modified without affecting any other components... same for the ramp mechanism.  Having two robots this year will be a huge advantage, because anything we develop after bagging the robot will drop right into the competition robot.I'm interested to see how precise we can get the shooter to operate.  I have heard from both the NERDS and the Bit Buckets (team 4183 out of Tucson - pretty much an extension of the 2009 NERDS graduating class) that they plan on shooting primarily from the key.  It might be worth testing out a few different shooter concepts that can be bolted onto the turret to see if we can find one that works best from the key as opposed to up close to the fender.  After all, the ideal shooting position would be from the key since it is the easiest spot on the field to move in and out of while still being protected.  The hard part is making something that will sink 100% of its shots from that position! I think it is great to shoot from the key if you can be fast and accurate. It seems to be wise to have flexibility to shoot from a fixed position for more speed and accuracy like the fender.
• (Frank) I talked to Borna and he says it would be relatively straight forward to have our atom vision board recognize the targets and provide range and direction. Range accuracy for 2010 game was typically 1.5 inches at 20 feet. Zero processing impact on the C-rio. A side benefit is that we already have it set up to be able to record all missions to the on board solid state drive. The recording has some post game analysis value for autonomous. Weight is ~ 2 lbs but I need to confirm that.If this is of value , I would kick it off now rather than the ill fated late start we made last year.
• (Ledge) Saw this on CD Interesting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyMTlgvDjZM&feature=youtu.be
• (Frank)It is packaged in a clear polycarb box 8.5 x 8 x 4.25. It currently has some 3/4" diameter , 2" long   standoffs on the bottom and they have velcro tabs on the bottom. Electrically it is fairly low power with 2A (or less) being the max current running flat out.   32Gbyete SSD2 or 4 Gb  RAM. XP OS. Dual core atom (1.7G processor I think) Xotac boardThe processor has onboard  NVIDIA graphics board that is CUDA ( 16 cores) capable.    We have not however used the CUDA cores because LV did not support them directly.    Unless LV has added CUDA support, for simplicity (and low risk) in development we propose to use the  existing LV framework running 2 threads on each processor as we did in FRC 2010.  We could process  frame rates of of 25...27 fps.  It is more camera driven due to exposure time. We can do the illuminator as well.        For that we are considering a very narrow band light source and an interference filter. I will get you a timeline tonight.
• (Ledge) Did preliminary ball shooting test with fisher price, looks promising, will post video here soon. Can shoot 25 feet. We need clarification on angle, its 70 degrees from where, horizon or vertical? 70 degrees from vertical would be a 20 degree angle up and probably a little low. If you look at Karen’s chart showing the launch angle you can see the ball goes generally up.
• (Martin) Got the first prototype of the ball shouter done.  Now just waiting for any changes to the prototype that need to be done.
• (Uriel) I organized and took apart used fiberglass for the team.
• (Dalton) I organized fiberglass and took apart used ones for future use.

1/12/12

• (Sergio) Helped Carlos with measuring wood for the basketball hoops and tried to ramp test with the 2 batteries.
• (Ulises) Started building the baskets with Carlos we are now waiting for Ledge to bring us the plywood needed to finish the baskets.
• (Isabel) Worked on the new batteries we got donated.
• (Diserae) Helped Isabel wire the batteries we got donated
• (Rangel) Found an interesting thread. http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=99927

It seems like teams(especially powerhouses) are committing to a say no to us and we don’t pick you motto.

• (Rangel)So far I am almost done modifying the ball grabber. Right now it is angled fiberglass but will soon make it square with gussets.                                                                                                                            

• (Steven) A peek at what team CRUSH from Tucson is up to, looks like they are planning to go with a single wheeled shooter: shooter test - http://vimeo.com/34992618  summary of their build status - http://vimeo.com/34995067 
• (Rangel) Updated ball grabber. I moved it up to the front of the frame which makes it so that the motor placement to turn the rollers that will be on the ball grabber will not interfere with the harvester.

1/13/12

• (Liz)(Joach) We are now closer to our goal of $20,000 for nationals we still need $2,470.25. We were refund the FIRST entry fee $4,000 and we got another 600 dollars in tax credits . Making  us closer to our goal of $20,000. Awesome!
• (Ledge) Picked up 4 more 2 x 4 for the back board assembly and another sheet of plywood cost $35 bucks! Thanks you for the guys that pitched in last night, it took the sting of me buying all of it. Also got a 2 x 6 to replace the bar under the ramp so we get a centering affect more like the real thing.
• (Ledge) saw one roller shooter on link above and started making one, will test Saturday, here is another link http://vimeo.com/34937255 and another http://www.flickr.com/photos/wileyb-j/6688012541/ 
• (Ledge) Picked up 6 new batteries for the FRC season and two kick.... chargers, from Stationary Power Systems (All for free, donated), Thanks Jesse! We may want to buy 2 more.
• (Ledge) have not heard from Frank about camera stuff and or the DRO stuff, will call him today

• (Ledge) Ball shooter tests 1,2,3 http://falconroboticsteam842.org/2012manipulatives.aspx I watched the videos as you noted in the end of the last one they all were veering right of the camera. It seems to me there was 6 to 8 feet of difference where the ball landed from side to side. We definitely need to mount the shooter at the 70 degree angle for consistent shots and accuracy. Then we need to mount it to the floor temporarily for testing without ceiling interference. Verify distance at shooter’s height and a distance 3’ above shooter for a fast check against Karen’s chart. Karen noticed a hard drag on the motors. Maybe we are too tight and pinching the ball too much. Test opening them up a little more for greater distance and accuracy. Saturday
• (Ledge) Three robots on ramp! http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/37235?  and http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/37237? 
• Ball harvester from ground http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIofUolPI78&feature=g-upl&context=G28893acAUAAAAAAAAAA 
• (Martin) Just got the ball shooter done with a ball guide on it to reduce the human error on it.  Also got Meraz working on the new prototype that we saw online from team crush.  It uses only two wheels to shout.
• (Ledge) Ramp action videos http://falconroboticsteam842.org/2012RampControl.aspx
• (Jerry) I noticed that people are adding weights to the ramp for it to work properly.  It seems like about 50 lbs. Remember to test per the field specs with batteries. We did what we read somewhere on CD that it took 11lbs to push the ramp down, we currently have 9.5

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=100013

• (Dianalee) Looking for sponsors. I have a contact with Starbucks and Yoshi’s. will follow up soon. I will continue to do further research.

• (Jerry)

• Jerry I will take care of it I will email it to you asap.

• (Meraz) Timmy and I completed in constructing the second prototype. Ledge wants us to wait until tomorrow to bolt everything in case we need to make adjustments.
• Here are the pics from week 1http://falconroboticsteam842.org/2012photos.aspx
• (Daisy) Worked on designing the battery charging station.
• (Diserae) Helped with batteries and started looking at ideas for the charging station.
• (Jerry) Update 2 is out http://frc-manual.usfirst.org/TeamUpdates/0
• (Parra) I helped with the basketball holder and with the basketball hoop.
• (Ulises) Started the other half of the construction of the baskets with Carlos we should be able to finish it completely tomorrow and give the shooter a chance to shoot.
• (Kelly)1/13/2012 Constructed a handle with 3pieces of fiberglass for the ball feeder. This will keep the ball going into the feeder in one direction, eliminating human errors.
• (Rangel) Ball grabber 99 percent complete. All I really need to do now is add detail like bearings and also add gussets and angles to reinforce it.
• (Dillon) For the past week I have been developing the drive train design, the Ramming Shield design, and configuring the belt and pulleys. I am still in the process of designing the middle drop-down omni wheel for lateral drive. The robot is coming really close to finishing. As of now I just need confirm the belt and pulley design with Steve and confirm the Ramming Shield design with the rest of the team.
• (Bianca) I started the electrical schematics for the robot.
• (Isabel) I turned in paperwork and worked on wiring the new batteries.

• (Sergio) Helped with building the medium basketball hoops with Parra.

1/14/12

• (Bianca) We finished the speed controller test board and wiring the new batteries. I found a good design for the battery cart that I think we should follow: http://www.warriors2832.org/batterycart.htm
• (Isabel) Bianca, Isela and I finished wiring the batteries and the speed controller board. We also started to brainstorm the design for the battery cart.
• (Isela) Helped Bianca solder stuff. Picked up electrical equipment and recorded videos.
• (Liz)  RPM of Belt

Near Shot- 5.75x138=794rpm

Middle Shot-5.75x198=1140rpm

High Shot-5.75x228=1300rpm

We counted the rotation of the belt for 10 seconds and then multiplied it by 6. Then we found the ratio between the belt and the sprocket, which is 230/40 = 5.75. Then in order to find the rpm of the belt we multiplied the ratio of 5.75 with the rotation of the belt.

• (Ledge) Here is the shooter test video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSxUPZqMrtw andhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAePL_zu-hc and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkuXojpNbfgand http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdqqullbrAk and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkhgpc2t3Qg
• (Martin) Finished the prototype ball shooter and tested it with the team.  Also got started with the other prototype.
• (Ulises)- The ramp is almost complete. Carlos and I just need to add reinforcements to the frame and make it straight.
• (Sergio) Helped with testing the shooter and helped carlos build the basket ball hoops.
• (Rangel) Found a prototype video of the nerds. We are on the right track in comparison to az at least. Most likely with the rest of teams too.

        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-imnfSSOta4

• (Joach) Worked on the basketball holder today. We made it more stronger, but tomorrow we are going to make it as strong and straight as possible.
• (Ledge) another on wheel shooter http://www.youtube.com/user/kyakfsh?feature=mhee and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeA2mHrrVWI&list=UUv_9jINXLDwAMUA3l80nVjw&index=1&feature=plcp 

1/15/12

• (Maria)Sponsor Letter Done! Working on Teacher of the Year and Re-writing Woody Flowers
• (Ledge) From Steve’s email Here is a list of parts we would need for the drivetrain for one robot:

32 tooth pulley, part number "P32-5M-15AL"  (x6)

63 in long belt, part number "5MR-1600-15"  (x2)

Recommend spares, 2 belts and 2 pulleys should suffice for now.  Brings grand total for two robots + 2 spare belts + 2 spare pulleys to:

"P32-5M-15AL"  (x14)

"5MR-1600-15"  (x6)

Still looking at some stuff for the tower and intake.  We're trying to find two belt lengths that come close to what the current cadded length is so that we don't end up with a bunch of belts that don't add up to the right length.  Should we go 1" wide for these belts?  I'll send out another email tonight with more part numbers after we have a better idea.

NOTE ON THE PULLEYS: the pulleys from Gates do not come with Keyways, and I believe the bore is 3/8".  We will need to broach these pulleys

Frank, any chance you could help us out with your keyway broach set and arbor press sometime in the coming weeks when our pulleys come in?

• (Ledge) Preliminary elevator test video http://falconroboticsteam842.org/2012BallElevator.aspx

and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnVrt323P5U we are working on a short     motorized segment now

• (Martin)  Just finished the the ball lifter mechanism.  I am now going to get started on making it motorized.  
• (Daisy) worked on chairman’s essay
• (Ledge) The field team is working hard !

• (Martin)  Just got done with the motorized version of the ball lifting/conveyor belt mechanism. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0ZJV0i7fm0&feature=youtu.be
• (Liz) Worked with Martin, on the ball lifting prototype.  
• (Sergio) Helped Carlos and the others build the basketball hoops and I was also helping cut wood.
• (Joach) Worked on the basket ball hoops.
• (Manuel) Helped build the basketball hoops
• (Dillon ) At school, I worked on getting CAD models of the pneumatic cylinders done and talking to Jerry about how we’re getting the omni wheel dropped for the lateral drive. We’re going to make a pivot point and mount a toughbox nano on the omni wheel and mount that to an angle piece. That angle piece will be mounted to the pivot point on one end and a pneumatic cylinder will be mounted on the other end. The cylinder will control the rotation of the omni wheel. After school, John and I went over to our mentor, Jerry’s house and worked on some more cadding. There, I mounted the pistons I cadded into the ramming shield and mounted the piston to the frame. It is really cool to see the piston push the shield up and down! I am currently working on how we will drop the omni wheel for the lateral drive. I have also updated my design according to John’s harvester design as well, including a cut out hole for the ball gatherer and some more gussets and mounting structures.
• 
• 
• (Carlos) Worked on the field which is 95% done.
• (Diserae) Helped Karen work with the accelerometer.
• (DianaLee) Looking for sponsors and contacted Starbucks.
• (Parra) Helped mount the Basketball hoops onto the holder and helped stablized the bottom of the holder.

Week 2

1/16/12

• (Diserae and Isabel) We tested the improved ball shooting mechanism and it shot the ball withing 6.5’’ at 7’  and 11” at 11’.

• (Martin)  I tested the ball shooter with the new sloped wheels.  It was more accurate it performed much better than it did with the flat wheels.  I am now going to get stared on a prototype for picking ball of the ground directly so that they can be fed to the conveyor belt and then to the shooter.
• (Ulises) Carlos and I finally finished building the baskets, and is ready to be used to practice. I also cleaned the back room and helped organize the fiber glass.
• (Eli) Worked on the basketball hoops and helped organize the fiber glass with Dalton, Sergio, and Ulises.
• (Carlos) Finished building the basketball hoops today. Today I started to plan how to make the wood bridge that we have more realistic.
• (Ledge) Here is a link to the nerds shooter http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeLe2WWemWA
• (Ledge) Sent email to gate distributor for pulleys and belts for drive train, hope to hear from him soon about ETA
• (Ledge) Here is a video of two robots balancing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpuvOoA1Oeo&feature=g-upl&context=G21cf809AUAAAAAAAAAA
• (Dillon) I finished cadding the pneumatic cylinders. I mounted the cylinder that act as a brake for the wheels. It’s a small 1” stroke cylinder that when activated, hits the middle wheel and stops movement. This will be very useful when we begin to shoot our basketballs and a robot tries to move us, we will be grounded. I also figured out the dimensions of the angle and linear movement of the omni wheel for the lateral drive. This will be useful if we want to make an adjustment laterally and if another robot were to trap us between a corner. Also, Jerry and I started discussing on where we will be mounting the major electrical components the robot needs. As of now, I need to finish configuring the mounting points of the lateral drive system and placing the electrical components where needed.
• (Sergio) Helped rearrange the fiberglass.
• (Liz) Helped for a while with Carlos then had the freshman to help organize the fiberglass.

1-17-12

• (Maria) Finished more sponsor letters
•  (Ken)  Faxed re-granting letter to FIRST Finance.  Received box from AndyMark with FIRST Choice
• (Carlos) Helped to build the harvester and test it. Also helped test the elevator and harvester simultaneously.
• (Martin) Just got the ball harvester done and tested. The ABS pipe worked perfectly fine by itself we just made the pipe a little rough with sand paper.  The ideal distance that the harvester needs to be off the ground is 6.75”.  We will next be putting together the harvester and the elevator and test it all at one.
• (Ledge) Video of harvester and elevator together http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnD4T1VvE-0 and harvester alone http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z3UFCcTIAI
• (Martin)  Tested the harvester with the elevator together and it worked!!!
• (Isabel) Worked on schematics for Angelica’s DREAM.
• (Daisy) Worked on schematics and on chairman’s
• (Dalton) Helped test the harvester and elevator prototypes and it works great.
• (Ulises) Worked on the Chairman’s paper and helped test the harvester and elevator prototypes and it works great.
• (Dillon) I replaced the cylinders I had in the robot with more accurate cylinders I found on the Internet and it works well. I also worked on the lateral omni drive some more and am trying to fit the gearbox nano, motor, and the 6” omni wheel in the small limited space I have. I have also seen the prototypes the team has made.
• (Rangel) I mounted a piston to the ball grabber so it now retracts. I also set up the turret for rotation and all that’s left to do is the turret. I may need to drop the harvester down a bit though. Would post a picture but Solidworks isn't being kind to my laptop.
• (Joach) Helped out Martin with his prototypes and we also tested them.
• (Liz) Helped test the prototype.

1.18.12

• (Liz)(Joach) The $500 check from Boeing was finally approved. We now need $1970.25 for Nationals.
• (Ulises) Worked on Chairman's paper
• (Liz) Started the pneumatics schematics.
• (Dillon) We didn’t have a lot of time staying after school, but again I worked on the lateral drive. Steve and I came up with another concept that can potentially make this whole job a lot easier. Instead of mounting an angle piece to the gearbox Nano and rotating it with the cylinder, we might be able to mount the Gearbox and omni wheel directly to the fiberglass channel frame with a single bolt and rotate that with the piston, thus making it stronger and faster.
• (Daisy) Worked on Board Layout for Components
• (Isabel) Worked on the schematics and board layout
• (Bianca) The electrical chicks started laying out the components on a board to find the most efficient layout.

1-19-12

• (Ledge) The $2500 check is ready at the district, I will go pick it up today at 10:15 and then get is deposited sometime tomorrow so we can start purchasing
• (Ledge) Here is the link to the first order of stuff, the bulk of which is for drive train https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0Ao4TPv-TccPZdDlGUUMyclJtTHBNdEMtRWVZY1dlT1E&output=html
• (Ledge) Patrick, our Gates connection has placed the order for the drive train pulleys and belts and he does not have a delivery time set for it yet, he will let us know asap! Thanks Patrick! We will get him the elevator stuff today hopefully so he can start that order too.
• (Maria) Editing Chairman’s, Working on teacher of the year,
• (Eli) working on the ramp and watching john and Dillon cad
• (Daisy & Ulises) Working on the Chairman's Paper  
• (Isabel) Worked in board layout and changing the battery terminals
• (Bianca) I worked on the electrical layout and schematics. I also helped Isabel with the batteries.
• (Dalton) Worked with Liz organizing pistons.
• (Uriel) Helped Liz measure pistons.
• (Sergio) Started working on the inbound station.
• (Liz) Organized and took inventory of all pistons. Made a list of what we need to purchase and finishing the schematics.
• (Joach) Was fixing the ramp, we are almost done with it.
• (Rangel) Sorry I haven’t posted in a while. Will fix this. Here is the latest update to the manipulator design aspect of the robot. First lets establish definitions. Ball grabber is the harvester. Middle structure is hopper/conveyor belt. Lazy Susan and above is the shooter. Some of the changes made to the design are that we have a new way of making the hopper as well as how to brace it more efficiently. The harvester has had a few changes in the placement of it and so far it is pretty solid. Unlikely to change. The harvester still needs motor mounted and pulleys. The pistons we are using are also attached to the harvester and only needs to be mounted to the frame. The shooter has been heavily updated and is now in its final stages. The plan is to mount a wheel to a window motor and have that wheel turn the Lazy Susan. We also plan on using bane-bot wheels for the shooter because they come in small sizes and can be carved down to fit a wheel shape. All that’s left for the shooter is to mount the sensor to it so that it can tell how much its rotated. Below are screenshots of the progress made.
• (Ulises) Daisy and I were writing the chairman's paper.

• (Carlos) Working on the bridge which is almost done.
• (Martin) got all of the pieces for the frame marked and ready to cut.

1-20-12

• (Ledge) I have a cart at AndyMark waiting for me to purchase once I get the clearance from my wife that the check is cleared. Also started Blue reqs to purchase additional parts from McMaster, Banebots and US bearings. Hopefully some of these items will be coming in by the end of next week, I hate procurement!........
• (Ledge) Expressed to John that the lightening design might have gone too far the other way and that it is compromising strength. We will see what is the final design....
• (Ledge) Belts and pulleys will be here Monday
• (Ledge) I am getting concerned about getting all the parts in time so everyone, I need your parts, I hate to put pressure, but it is possible we will not get the parts before ship date  or with one week to spare if we don’t order ALL stuff now....One week at best for district and one week for shipping, That is two weeks.... and we are at two weeks now.....I need a final decision on the remaining pneumatics for Omni wheel and conveyor belt retraction. Also we need to finalize the pulleys and belts for elevator...
• (Ledge) Andymark order placed

• 6” performance wheels
• Black Jaguars
• Anderson Connectors
• Dual use Gyro
• Pg71 Gear box set with motor
• 2.5 cims
• toughbox mini w/ 19 and 45 gear set for  new ratio
• toughbox nano w 24 and 40 gear set for new ratio
• one ball
• one air compressor
• key hubs
• 6” onmiwheels

• (Ledge) Ordered -blue req of

• Lazy susan 10 inch
• bane bots wheels  for shooter and turret
• bearings ½ flanged

• (Ledge) Placed order for free cylinders from Bimba

• 1 ½ bore 4“ stroke ( omni wheel) 2 of them, they did not have 3”
• ¾” bore 4”  stroke for feeder one of them need to buy one more, they did not have 3”

• (Ledge) Waiting for quote from wistech for ¾” bore 8” stroke and ¾” bore 4” stroke
• (Ledge) Got the quote and req is on the way!
• (Meraz) During lunch Martin, Ulises, and I finished the 2x2 aluminum plates for the axles.
• (Ledge) Worked on website
• (Meraz)(Martin)(Liz)(Dillon) We started cutting the pieces for the chassis, as well as cheesing anywhere we could.
• (Isabel) Worked on filling out the paperwork for parts for the robot
• (eliazar)worked on moving the basketball thing and cleaned the play room watched john cad working on my throwing for human player.
• (Dalton) Did small jobs for builders and helped Carlos the rest of the day building a feeder and removing ceiling panels.
• (Aaron) The ball feeder to the field is done but it is not to accurate so it will be modified.. The field is almost set up just need some few details.
• (Carlos) Today other people and me finished building the feeder station. He also placed all the arena objects in the playroom. I also started to work in the drivers station.
• (Martin)   Got all of the pieces for the frame cut and we will now see how it will be assembled.

1-21-12

• (Martin)  Starting to get the frame cheesed to drop the weight of the frame.   We are estimating to drop 2 lbs with all the cheesing.

1-22-12

• (Ledge) NERDS Polycord video of ball elevator http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB9IiNlYZm8
• (Ledge) Martin has been “cheesing” the frame parts with Elizabeth, with Dillon verifying measurements. This is for weight reduction
• 

• (Carlos) Today I built the drivers station and the bump.
• (Dillon) (Martin) (Liz) We finished cheesing the frame and now assembling the parts. We got the side rails done and the front and back pieces mounted. So far the frame weighs 16 pounds.
• (Daisy & Ulises) worked on the Chairman’s paper
• (Sergio) Practiced throwing the basketball through the feeder.
• (Martin) Got most all of the frame cheesed and we will now get working on getting the frame together.
• (Martin)  Got the first frame mostly done and we stared on the second one.

Week 3

1-23-12

• (Martin)  Working on getting most of the frame done and stared to work on the shafts.
• (Rangel)

So there have been quite a few changes made to the design of the manipulator portion of our robot. First off the frame structure that holds everything together has been beefed up quite a bit. Side support as well as front and back support have been strengthened. I made the frame structure in a way so that it is as sturdy as possible while using the least amount of materials. As such I made everything connect together like a box as well as trying to make the most of every brace.

The hopper/conveyor belt has also been improved. We now have our door mechanism designed that allows us to store balls for very little material added as well as a very small loss of efficiency in our conveyor belt. Not a lot of changes on the harvester have really been done except the mounting of it(which could still be improved).

The shooter has been updated as well in which the wheel that turns the Lazy Susan will now be trimmed down about a quarter of an inch. This allows us to more easily mount the gear so that we can hook up the potentiometer for precise control. The axis camera has also been mounted to the shooter mechanism. The mounting could still be improved.

The next thing I plan to work on is the mounting of the shooter parts and finalizing certain parts of the design with Jerry and Steve so that we can start ordering parts we need as soon as possible. Do you guys have any suggestions on how to improve the design so far?

• (Dalton) I practiced and helped Sergio C., Sergio B., Aaron, and Eli to be the human player of the team.
• (Sergio B) I was practicing and helping the guys named up there below me.
• (Eli)practice  throwing a ball to be a human player.
• (Ulises) Edited the chairman's paper and helped Martin make a key.
• (Joach) Today I helped Liz on the frame and I also started filing sharp edges off the robot.
• (Ledge) Got the paperwork started for the purchase of the camera for the robot.
• (Ledge) Set up Yoshi bowl sale for Tuesday to raise some more funds, hope it goes well.
• (Ledge) Will buy 5 feet of ½” steel rod for axles from Home Depot in the morning.
• (Sergio) Practiced for the human player position.
• (Liz) Joach and I mounted the gussets on one of the robots. I also made my schematics bigger for the web page.
• (Isabel) Worked on schematics.

1-24-12

• (Parra)Helped Dillon bolt some pieces onto the Robot and the Twin robot.

• (Ledge) Here is the last order for the belts and pulleys for the harvester and elevator

5MR-300-15 (x4)      

5MR-850-15 (x4)      

5MR-1600-15 (x4)    

P30-5M-15AL (x16)  

5MR-700-15 (x9)      

P48-5M-15AL (x16)  

P15-5M-15AL (x4)

• (Ledge) The 1st order of belts and pulleys came in! They are awesome!
• (Dalton) Practiced with Sergio C. and Anthony then observed Carlos and Ulises(sorry if misspelled).
• (Joach) Made some gussets for Dillon today. Then, after I was done with the gussets I filed the sharp edges off the robots. I also fixed the handle of the cart for Sergio.
• (Carlos) Today I cutted about 12 pieces of (5 in long) steel rod that are going to be used as a shaft for the wheels. Then Ulises, Martin, and I machined 3 of them by making a groove on them so the key can fit.
• (Ulises) Machined a groove on the 5 in long steel rods with Carlos and Martin.
• (Liz) Helped Joach with the gussets and was filing sharp edges off the robot.
• (Martin) worked on getting the shafts machined.
• (Bianca) Made first prototype of honeycomb board for the electrical components using honeycomb structure, school glue and butcher paper.
• (Isabel) Using honeycomb and butcher paper, Bianca and I created the prototype of our electrical component board.

1-25-12

• (Martin)Got Carlos working on the keyed axles for the robot.  We also got all the Andy Mark part so ledge and I put the mini tough box transmissions together.
• (Ulises) Helped Carlos finish the axles and helped Jesus file down the fiber glass.
• (Bianca) Made second prototype of electronics board using honeycomb structure, paper from paper bag and epoxy; it worked much better than the first prototype.
• (Isabel) We got the jaguars, encoders, and anderson connectors today. Bianca and I finished wiring the last two batteries that needed to be done and named them as well.
• (Daisy) Discussed Chairman’s, rewriting it, making it more like a novel \\\
• (Meraz) Worked with Dillon, Liz, and Martin on the arms to ram the platform.
• (Ledge) Here are the arms of the ram coming together

• (Ledge) Here is a pic of the NERDS gear box for their shooter, we will be doing the same thing.

• (Ledge) Here is an experiment we did with honeycomb and a paper bag and epoxy

it held the weight very well. We could use this to mount our electronics on, its worth considering. We need more tests on it. Will do tomorrow

• (Ledge) Our AnyMark order came in and we assembled the tyranny's, thinking about making a team feeder, where another robot can drop balls into us. Looking into the idea Frank brought up. We will see if its feesable.
• (Dalton) In the morning I filed at the edges of the twin frame. After school I observed Carlos milling and vacuumed for Joach and Liz.  I helped Sergio and Eli practice for cart human player.
• (Sergio) Practiced throwing the ball through the feeder and driving the cart.
• (Liz) I help with the building of the ramp with Meraz, Joach and Dillon. I cut out the brackets with Joach finishing it off.
• (Joach) Today in the morning I filed the sharp edges on the robot and also was drying the glue for the first prototype of the electrical board. Me and Liz made some brackets for Dillon that he need for the arm. I also made him some rectangles that he need.
• (Carlos) Finished keying the shafts with the help of Martin, and Ulises. After that I helped Dillon with the bridge lowering mechanism.
• (Parra) helped Dillon put pieces of the rams arms onto the robot.
• (Daisy) worked on Chairman’s essay

1/26/12

• (Uriel & Dalton) I helped Sergio C. and Aaron practice for human player.
• (Carolina) Helping Daisy and Ulises write and edit the Chairman’s Essay.
• (Sergio) Practiced different techniques for human player feeding. I tried throwing two handed (no spin), 2 handed (with spin), and one handed. My best results came from throwing it one handed.
• (Liz) Found out where to put the pneumatic solenoids, they have been moved from the front side to the side with the wheels at. They will be wired with a bailing wire on a piece of fiberglass and that piece will then be bolted onto the frame. If we needed to for some reason reach for the solenoids we can just unbolt the fiberglass and lift it out with the solenoids attached. The storage tanks might be mount on the tower. The compressor is still at the front. Not Shoe glued wired with bailing wire as we discussed
• (Rangel)Worked on cad model further. Working on the motor placement to run the conveyor belts. Also guiding potential human players in practicing occasionally.
• (Bianca) & (Isabel) We are waiting for the tower design to be finalized so we can find places to mount the electrical components. Also, we will be making a mock board of components to be able to drive the robot without the tower.
• (Carlos) In the morning I finished milling keys on the axles. At lunch Ledge told me to make a spread sheet for the Bill of Materials. There is an actual one that first makes but it is not real eased yet. After that I worked with Steve in the Rollers and Poly belts. After that I started to build a prototype of the harvester. It should be done by tomorrow.

1-27-12

• (Ledge) Martin got one set of axle holes drilled very precisely

• (Ledge) checked to see if reqs have left the campus yet, They have not.....I was told today that they would be at district later today. So we wait..... and time goes by.......I hate this.
• (Carlos) Today I worked in the harvester prototype. This time we added an extra roller and we tightened three poly cord belts around the two test how much would they help the movement of the ball. It has a pretty good grip. One problem that we noticed is that when the rollers are rotating and they are not completely parallel or align to each other the poly cord belts tend to move from their place. We might need to put small grooves in the rollers so it can stay in place. Here are the new links.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrv9zkdEujQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrv9zkdEujQ&context=C3167e98ADOEgsToPDskL_gITE0tyT60fQ9bUPdTW

• (Dalton) Today I helped Sergio C. Aaron, Ulises, and Eli practice for human player.  From what I can see, they are improving a lot since their first attempts.
• (Bianca, Isabel, & Isela) We started and almost finished the mock electrical board. It has a power distribution board, circuit breaker, digital sidecar and four jaguars.
• (Ulises) Chairman's and practiced to be human player.
• (Carolina) Worked on the Chairman’s paper with Daisy and Ulises.
• (Daisy) Worked on the mock board with Bianca, Isabel and Isela, we got the jaguars on the board the way we planned. Afterwards I worked on chairman's
• (Parra)I helped the human players run their tests and practice and that's all.
• (Eli)Worked on practicing for human player
• (Ledge) bought ½ “ clips from home depot so Martin can start attaching wheels and bough wood cutting dremel tool so Dillon Can cut ply wood that Mr. Johnson got for the bots. He got really nice plywood!
• (Carlos) Watched Frank and Martin drilling the aluminum plates, then I tried to do it.
• (Sergio) Ran tests for human player techniques.
• (Liz)(Joach) Cut out fiberglass for electrical.

1-28-12

• (Ledge) Working on how to get parts we need desperately faster
• (Ledge) Will be working with electrical to put together a temporary electronics board so they can test the chassis. I have to jump in because we are short personnel, I have not had a day off since Jan 6.....Questioning my sanity
• (Ledge) Need to pick up Ribbon cable crimping tool and connectors to make our own cable, hopefully from Fry’s tomorrow.
• (Ledge) Need to write Maria’s Deans list since others let her down. I want to do it anyway. Its just sad that others let her down.
• (Ledge) Martin is drilling out the pulleys  and I will drop them off at Franks so he can broach the keyway
• (Isabel) Worked on the mock board for electrical components to go on the robot. We need to figure out a way on mounting on the board without making it flex. Finished working on the power schematics.
• (ledge) Dillon worked on omni wheel  some more. Also cut wood for base board of robot
• (Ledge) Wrote Maria’s Dean’s List letter
• (Ulises) Working on the Chairman's paper and practicing for the role of human player.
• (Dalton)  I helped Sergio C., Aaron, Eli, Ulises practice for human player.
• (Liz)(Joach) Emailed Robert Tang giving him his receipt. Worked on Thank you letter updating on them on what we have done so far. Searched for T-shirt vendors.
• (Sergio) Practiced for human player.

Week 4

1-29-12

• (Maria) Re-writing Chairman’s
• (Ledge) Martin and team are installing bearing holders

• (Ledge) Dropping off press at Franks so he can broach the pulleys that were drilled out to ½” shaft.

• (Ledge) John finished harvester

• (Ledge) Dillon should be done with omni wheel today, there is a need for a 1 to 1.5 ratio of leverage so that 2.7” of wheel movement will require 4” stroke on the cylinder, it will also yield a greater that 140lbs lift
• (Ledge) Look twins

• (Dillon) finished mounting the bellypans of the robot and finishing up the lateral drive. I am working on a 1 to 1.5 ratio lever so the omni wheel can travel 2.7” but the pneumatic cylinder travels 4” and still put out enough force to lift the back half of a 120 pound robot.
• (Liz) Mounted the bearing holders on the robot.
• (Daisy) Worked on Chairman’s and editing

1-30-12

• (Sergio) Memorizing rules and practiced.
• (Bianca) Helped Martin mount bearing holders on the robot.
• (Dalton) I helped Sergio C. practice and helped around in the robot room.
• (Ulises) I was working and editing the Chairman's essay with Daisy
• (Daisy) Worked on Chairman’s with Ulises
• (Carlos) Worked in prototyping some parts of the robot that we were not sure if they worked.
• (Liz) Worked Martin on placing the wheels on the chasis we have three wheels.
• (Isabel) Went over the activities sheet and updated the requirements.

1-31-12

• (Ulises) I was working and editing the Chairman's essay with Daisy.
• (Liz)(Joach)(Meraz) Made most pieces of the harvester all is left is to get the 7” by 7.4”
• cut out with the slot for the motor. Tomorrow it will all be mounted together.
• (Dillon) I started working on the elevator system but can no longer proceed until the polycarbonate sheets are here. Hopefully they will be here  tomorrow so I can finish assembling it all together. I also got the final design for the lateral drive including the piston placement. There still is a possibility that the mounting might change. Now I am also adding more parts into my CAD model of the robot.
• (Isabel) Turned in the blue requisition for the axis camera.
• (Parra) Helped Sergio with practice in the playroom.
• (Sergio) Memorized rules and practiced throwing through feeder
• (Daisy) Wrote Chariman’s

2-1-12

• (Parra)helped Dillon with tower and lexan pieces.
• (Maria) Editing Chairman’s, writing teacher of the Year
• (Daisy’s) Wrote Chairman’s and editing it

• (Ulises) I was working and editing the Chairman's essay with Daisy.
• (Sergio) Helped in the build room.
• (Dalton) I helped in the robot room.
• (Liz) Put on the SIM Motors on the transmissions. Also worked on the harvester.
• (Ken)Purchased ½” E clips.  They are available at Lowes and Homedepot.  
• (Joach) I helped out Dillon cut out pieces of Lexan that we need to build the tower.
• (Meraz) Today liz and I started working on building the tower.
• (Bianca) I mounted the mock electronics board on the first completed frame.
• (Isabel) Worked on finishing the paperwork for the Duel in the Desert, Microchip and Boeing.

2-2-12

• (eliazar)worked on cleaning gear and helping with the harvester
• (Ulises) I was working and editing the Chairman's essay.
• (Dalton) I helped in the robot room with the tower and some other things.
• (Isabel) I changed the router from the old robot to the one we are in the process of building.
• (Sergio) Helped Dillon with the ball harvester and cleaned gears.
• (Meraz) Today Liz, Joach, and I finished mounting the ramp on one of the robots, also we started making the mounts for the piston that’s going to operate the ramp.
• (Steven) Video of belt drivetrain running today: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq5rEqF07Og
• And video of mysterious belt-derailing problem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YQk0fjhk-o
• (Liz)(Joach) Finished mounting the ramp on and we finished the mounts for the pistons.
• Worked in some parts of the drivetrain.

2-3-12

• (Bianca) I finalized the T-shirt design:
• 
• (Sergio) I helped Carlos in the build room.
• (Parra) Helped Dillion put the wood onto the ram and Helped Ulises take of and put pieces of wood on the robot.
• (Ulises) Helped Jesus, Carlos and Dillon with small tasks.
• (Dalton)  Today I watched Dillon and helped Carlos and Liz with small tasks.  I helped David put a piece back on a machine.  For the rest of the day I helped Meraz and Joach file wood.
• (Liz) Joach and I made the mounts for the pistons on the twin bot and I helped with the ramp being placed on.

2-4-12

• (Ledge) YEEEE HAAAAAA! Finally got the practice bot running! We burned up four Jaguars in the process! (need to order 4 more)We have main batter pack power feed reversed........check list. Then we could not get the new replacement jaguars to get a signal, they were plugged into the Digital side car in in reverse polarity, then we noticed that they were plugged into the digital in/ out instead of the PWMs and so we moved the wires to the correct spot and now the radio did not work. We noticed that the switch on the back was in the middle instead of AP. But hey it finally worked. Here is the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugzIXtS8AiI
• (Ledge) Here it is approaching ramp http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JviKwBjEP1c
• (Ledge) Here it is exiting the ramp http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjEZXhUHNnA
• (Ledge) This year we are really busting our butts and we are being plagued with one set back after another. One robot is bad enough, two is murder.......
• (Dillon) Today, I finished mounting the other ram on the good robot and helped with the building of the harvester.
• (Liz) Added the pistons to the twin robot and helped build the harvester.
• (Carlos) Changed the plywood mountings on the robot into bigger ones.

2-5-12

• (Carlos) Helped mount the belt tower.
• (Ledge) Wired up Encoder for the Forbes Bot
• (Ledge) Wired up both encoders for Angelica bot
• (Ledge) team started install elevator on Angelica bot
• (Ledge) Karen got gyro chip working on Forbes bot
• (Ledge) Martin Got all axles done on Angelica bot, need to install belt positioners tomorrow
• (Ledge) Need to pep up team, they are tired and losing focus. Tempers are short. Need to get commitments from key people. Need to emphasize follow through and thinking, ask questions if you don’t know, don’t guess, don’t show apathy. This is how we fall apart. this is not how a team wins. Not what champions do. Do we want to be champions? Will find out tomorrow......
• (Dillon) Today, Jerry, Ulises, Carlos, Jerry, Rangel, and I started mounting the conveyor belt system on the competition bot. Once I get the the other conveyor belt system built with the aluminum angle, we will replace it and transport the first one onto the practice bot.
• (Liz) Worked on Harvester.

Week 5

2/6/12

• (Liz)(Joach) Finished both Harvester and will start mounting it on the practice bot tomorrow.
• (Ulises) Helped Dillon mount the conveyor belt  and assisted Carlos when he was cutting the fiber glass by vacuuming for him.
• Almost done with mounting the Tower that supports the conveyor belt and shooter. I got the a group started in mounting the lateral drive system, they got the pieces cut, the toughbox nanos are made with the omni wheel, and getting ready to mount the pniematic cylinder as well.
• (Eliazar)Worked on taking out the pistons.
• (Isabel) Turned in the paperwork for the jaguars and router. Bianca, Daisy and I planned what the lay out would be for the electrical board on the robot. We calculated the amount of lexan that would be needed for the board and in the end it came up to be 46 inches by 30 inches.
• (Dalton) I cut the large Yoshi advertisement with two adverts in half with Carolina and Valeria.  I observed Martin and helped Joach with holding the vacuums.

2/7/12

• (Ulises) Helped Carlos cut some pieces of fiber glass for Dillon.
• (Rangel) Harvester Frames are both complete. One robot right now is in the process of getting mounted with pistons so that it can actuate properly. Then it will just be mounting the rollers and transmissions that’s left. We have also begun the building of the structure that supports the shooter as well as the conveyor belt. Shooter will also be started as soon as we can get the wood we need or we might just go with fiberglass.
• (Isabel) Diserae and I worked on grinding the the tips for the soldering guns. I later worked on updating the requirements list.
• (Joach)(Liz) We worked on making some triangles to mount the harvester frame. We got two triangles mounted on one robot know we just have to mount and make two more triangles to mount on the other robot.

2-8-12

• (Ulises) Read and edited the Chairman's paper.
• (Joach)(Liz) I made two more triangles that we are going to use to mount the harvester frame. Then, me and Liz started to mount them.
• (Ledge) Update on build. The Competition bot is coming along faster now than the practice bot. We have most of the elevator bulit for the comp bot and almost done for the prac bot. All drive assembles for drive trains with positioners and tensioners done. Working on completing omni whee assemblies by Friday. We are having Pulley issues in that we can’t find three inch pulleys. I told John to check Bearing Belt and Chain and US bearing to see if they has some. I have not heard back from John yet.....
• (Ledge) Got word that spot opened up for Championships, so we started the rushed paperwork to get the entry fee paid. Need Mr. Cordova’s signature to complete the process so that the district can pay with Visa. We have 48 hours, 24 have gone.
• (Ledge) Bianca and her crew have the Lexan they need to start mounting the electronics for both bots
• (Ledge) We are collecting money now to purchase the (4) ¾ inch bore 1 ½” stroke cylinders so that me could make the locking ram assembly. We need 134$ and they are in town. It will take too long by conventional means.......
• (Meraz) Today Timmy and I worked on getting the braces mounted for the shooter, we finished one side and are going to work on the rest tomorrow.

• (Ulises & Daisy) Was working and editing the Chairman's essay.
• (Isabel) The team just found out that we will be able to go to nationals. Ledge talked to administration and district to arrange the fastest way to pay for the entry fee. Diserae and I got the paperwork started right away. We finished the paperwork for hotel and airline tickets as well so Ledge could get the signatures.
• (Carlos)In the morning I cleaned some parts of the Robot room in search of lost bolts. After that I mounted pieces of fiber glass in front of the practice robot that will hold the tower and the pulleys with the belts.
• (Parra)Helped Dillon put some rivets on the new Tower.

2-9-12

• (Meraz) Timmy and I finished mounting the other support, we also started on the lexan door that’s going to compress the balls in the tower. Arron and I grinded of the excess part of the two side braces for the tower.
• (Isabel) Today Diserae, Bianca, Ledge and I started to look for the cheapest airline tickets available. The tickets where a bit expensive so we had to to cut down on one person so there will be 17 students going to nationals rather than the 18 we were going to originally take. Ledge talked to US Airlines and found out that each ticket will cost $310 with a total of $6,212. Whitley booked the hotel today so I was able to work on the amendment of the paperwork for the hotel we turned in yesterday. The total amount for the hotel would be $4008.00 for six rooms. When I was done with my secretary duties I worked with Bianca, Daisy and Isela on the layout of the electronic on the robot. We got David to cut some pieces so that tomorrow after school we may start to work on mounting the electronics on the boards that will be located on the robot.
• (Isela)Bianca,Daisy and Isabel worked on the layout for the electronics on the robot. Tomorrow we will be mounting the electronics.
• (Carlos) Today after school I cut some two pieces of angle fiber glass (7inx1.5inx.125in) that will be used to tension the belts, to keep them from moving and shifting teeth. After that I also cut 6 pieces of C-channel fiberglass that will be used as braces to hold the bumpers.
• (Sergio) Today, I helped Dillon with the ball harvester.

2-10-12

• (Ledge) Tested Onmi wheel elevation on practice bot

Here is video with 160lbs total

http://youtu.be/xxj3XzbU7bQ

another view

http://youtu.be/hgoD_h92Qow

• (Carlos) Finished cutting the mounts for the bumpers. After that I cut other pieces to mount the piston that it is going to open a the lexan door.
• (Isabel) Diserae and I looked for a female chaperon to accompany  the team to nationals. It took us about half an hour but at the end we convinced Mrs. Roman to accompany us. I made an amendment for the airplane tickets on the deal Diserae found with Frontier airlines. When I was done with my secretary duties I helped Bianca on the electrical board. The officers and heads of the team came together to figure out the final list of the people who will be traveling to nationals.
• (Ulises, Daisy, & Maria) Edited and worked on the final Chairman's paper that we are going to turn in.

2-11-12

• (Ledge) We got the side crawl done and it works

http://youtu.be/lu4CjqI8nIY

and

http://youtu.be/8fZPjebZfx4

• (Isabel) Today Bianca and I got a lot done. We mounted everything on the electrical board but we were not able to mount the board on the robot. We took most of Dulce’s electrical components out.
• (Joach)(Liz) Fixed the tower for the practice bot. Liz and I worked on the thank you letter.

2-12-12

• (Karen) Created pinout: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aq2NCso2CkwqdExEUnJJa0tPSEk4dGY0LVNCNE1BMmc
• (Isabel) Today we found out that we had to add one more jaguar to our electrical board. All of our board had to be reorganized since there was one more jaguar that had to be added for the lazy susan. We where two jaguars short; one for each robot; so we had to use the brown old jaguars. Bianca, Daisy, Isela and Diserae worked on reorganizing the electrical board. We actually got to mount the board on the practice robot. David was working on cutting the pieces of lexan that will be holding the router and digital side card.

Week 6

2-13-12

• (ledge) Team got elevator working on competition bot, it works pretty good. We would have liked it faster, but we think it will be ok

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdE1Oh_eHfU&list=UUwLQB4zKbzMKxzCS5-7qMxw&index=1&feature=plcp

and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9dCWQlYu6E&list=UUwLQB4zKbzMKxzCS5-7qMxw&index=2&feature=plcp

• (ledge) Also test omni wheel drive, it works great!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu4CjqI8nIY&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fZPjebZfx4&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

• (Ledge) Hoping to get remaining pistons today form Wistech and mounts and clevis too
• (Ledge) Hoping to get water jet gear and tranny frame today from Marzee
• (Ledge) Got teflon Tape so will be doing more pneumatics today, Liz is absent so I have to do it alone.......
• (Ledge) for the first time, I can see light at the end of the tunnel. Harvester is still a question. John is missing today as well. it hurts when key people can’t show up

 It looks like we will make weight!

• (Ledge) FIRST payment for the championships is done, now we need to raise some more money so we can eat when we are there......
• (Ledge) Need to call Yoshi today to order for tomorrow.
• (Sergio) Helped find nuts and cut washers to a ½ diameter
• (Manuel) Helped clean and organize the robot room
• (Bianca) We finished wiring the electronics board, we’re ready to mount and wire the motors!
• (Isabel) I silvered the ends of the jaguars wire that will be connecting to the power distribution board.
• (Carlos) Finished cutting the fiberglass mounts for the bumpers with their proper slots, dimensions and bolted in place.

2-14-12

• (Liz) Pneumatics is close to being done on the competition bot. We will be able to finish it all once the clevises arrive and the pistons for the Ramp to lock.
• (Ledge) Here is some stuff that went on today

• The pulleys came in
• Found a cheaper solution for abs endcaps
• Girls started wiring up robots
• Got as much pneumatics as we can get done on comp bot
• Will be done with as much on practice bot with pnuematics as well
• Water jet gear came in, and tranny as well, kids worked on assembling it today
• Getting encoder ready
• Shooter parts came in for one bot, kids worked on assembling that as well.
• Frank Came, Steve came

• (Ledge) Did not see Mr. Johnson with bumper bolts today maybe tomorrow
• (Dillon) Steve, Frank, and I finished a shooter and we tested it. It works very well and are planning to mount it. For the past week I’ve been working on mounting the conveyor belt on the practice robot and made stronger braces for the ram on the competition robot.
• (Bianca) We started mounting electronics on the practice bot and finished wiring the motors.
• (Isabel) We mounted the electronics board on the robot and started to work on wiring the motors.
• (Daisy)Worked on routing wires
• (Carlos) Mounted some fiberglass angles that will help hold the harvester.

2-15-12

• (Bianca) I nearly completed wiring the practice robot enough to have it driving. We ran out of solder before we could finish, but all that is left it the wire that connects the battery to the power description board.
• (Isabel) Diserae, BIanca, Daisy and I worked on wiring the motors on the practice robot. i helped Bianca wire the practice robot so that we may be able to drive it so it may be presentable for the Microchip presentation tomorrow.  We ran out of solder so we where not able to wire the batter cables.
• (Daisy) Worked on wiring motors
• (Carlos) Mounted some pieces of lexan in both robots that will be used as protection for some of the electronics.

2-16-12

• (Bianca) I finished wiring the driving motors on the practice robot just in time for the Microchip presentation. Nothing was burned down or blown up. :)
• (Uriel)  Today I helped Mr. Johnson with carrying stuff to his car and I helped sharpen and put away the drill bits.
• (Isabel) I filled and gave out the permission slips for Duel in the Desert. I checked the activities sheet for last week and  updated the requirements list.
• (Parra)Helped Mr. Johnson take the bumpers down to his car, Cut four pieces of metal for the robot but messed up twice, and cleaned up a bit.
• (Ulises) Sharpened the standard drill bits with  
• (Carlos) Help Ledge screw the ABS pipes the will be part of the harvester. Cut six bolts to the right size that will be used to mount the lazy-susan.
• 4 days, 15 hours until ship date or 111 hours.

2-17-12

• Busy!!!!!

2-18-12

• (Carlos)  Helped build pieces that will be used in the harvester.
• 75 hours until ship date.
• (Liz) worked on building the harvester.
• (Isabel) Wired the jaguars from the practice bot to the competition bot as well as the ribbon cable as soon as Jerry came back with the robot from Duel in the Desert.
• (Isela) Worked with Bianca as her assistant to anything that she needed in electrical.  
• (Daisy) Worked on jaguars

2-19-12

• (Ledge) Disaster! We re-weighed the robot and we were 130 lbs!!!!!!!!! What happened? We don’t know, as you saw earlier in this journal we seemed to be within weight, but we must have done something wrong..... So we ditched the omni wheel and put Angelica on a severe diet!!!!!!!!! Let you know how it goes later. …..........
• (Dillon) WE had to cheese out a lot out of the robot and took off a lot of pounds. I am also currently working on a linkage design that uses two pivoting tubes and a piston. The tubes are folded, then activated by the piston into a straight alignment giving a great amount of strength to the ram
• (eliazar)practice human player ball skills and cleaned up in the robot room help bianca too.
• (Isabel) We ran the harvester motor wires. We spent a whole hour looking for giro chip that was technically not lost because in the end we figured out Ledge had it.
• (Daisy) Worked on wiring the wago and running wire and searching for giro chip.

Week 7

2-20-12

• (Daisy) Wired the light, fixed a PWM that had a tear, and worked on encoders
• (Isela) Finished up wiring up angelica by wiring  up the light and labeled big red and the electric theorem with the label maker.
• (Isabel) We worked on wiring the encoders for the motors. I ran the wire for the turret encoders.
• (Liz) Switched out the solenoids that were leaking to non leaking solenoids.

2-21-12

• (Daisy) Added connectors to the Router with Isabel and worked a little bit on the harvester wires and painted bumpers.
• (Isabel) Daisy and I wired the Bridge  and the harvester.

2-22-12

• (Ledge) Competition Robot is bagged and tagged. Now we need to finish the practice bot.
• (Ledge) Agnelica weighed 118.5 lbs when we bagged her.
• (Ledge) We are making new locking arms for the ram and hope to switch that out, also going to use White board instead of wood for ram, it slips way better and we will use lemon fresh pledge to make it even slippery er.

Week 8

3-2-12

• (ledge) Shooter on practice bot should be done today, just wiring the shooter motors and encoders
• (Ledge) Need to adjust the shooter so the ball goes in the right place
• (Ledge) All new batteries are charged and ready to go.
• (Ledge) We now have spare radio, camera and cyprus board for backup

Week 9

3-5-12

• (Ledge) Steves video of the practice robot in action
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-tstY5SNw0
• (Carlos) BOM 98% done. Cart 10 % built.
• (Ulises) Helped Carlos modify the cart for this years robot.
• (Aaron) Practiced for human player
• (Isabel) Turned in the blue requisition for food money for Nationals.

3-6-12

• (Ulises) Helped Carlos modify the cart for this years robot.
• (Aaron) Modified the feeder made it more realistic as in the video
• (Isabel) Made and amendment to the Local Motors paperwork for next Tuesday.

3-7-12

• (Ledge) the three drivers continued to practice now counting the line up with basket, averaging 6 shots
• (Ledge) The green turret wheel is now chewed up, It must be kept down. It rode up and is got chewed up we will probably have to make a new one. Might want to buy another

• I’ll buy two new blue ones (stiffer rubber, should last longer).  We should try to stick a set screw or pin through the window motor adapter so the keyed shaft cannot slide out.  -Steven

• (Ledge) video of yesterdays practice runs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDX2tFY2A1Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jthqFPDUJN8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9veoorogpr8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeAJm-Ctwkg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIqV9RbKPr4

• (Ledge) White board broken again, Timmy ran into ramp sideways while collecting balls
• (Ledge) Need to replace Ethernet cord , existing one is loose
• (ledge) Motors very hot after practice runs, might want to blow air or take breaks, fear motors will burn up, just watch it
• (Ledge) Martin tightened belts today
• (Maria) Made Flyer for Angelica’s DREAM-Chairman’s and did feather hand outs
• (Dillon) Did some practice runs and did fairly well.
• (Rangel) Got a lot of good practice in today. Here are some things we need to do tommorow:

• Replace ethernet cable
• Fix ram
• Replace Harvester with new one
• Put brace on the turret wheel

Some things we learned while driving is that the harvester probably needs the polycarbonate guides. You risk driving over a ball and getting stuck without them. Another thing is that aligning with the side of the fender is quite time consuming though we are getting faster and faster. All of us are pretty inconsistent though. Tomorrow before any practice we will create a standardized way of lining up. We tried using different techniques today but couldn’t really tell which way was best. Here is the spreadsheet on google docs we will be using to keep track of all our practice times and scores.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AoARbQRKPQ9zdGVLeGd1RDRqREJlUWo5OGl3Wmg1S1E#gid=0

First letter is the one who was driver and second letter is the one who is co pilot.

J= John

D = DIllon

T = Timmy(Jorge)

3/8/12

• (Isabel) Charged the batteries and updated the requirements list. Had to re-solder the terminal connected to the fisher price motor.
• (Isela) Helped around in whatever they needed help on such as keeping data in the battery chart.
• (Daisy) Kept data on the battery chart

3/9/12

• (Meraz) Today I worked on the banner design, Kept battery data while electrical chicks were out, recorded the drivers practicing with Phoenix country day and helped Carlos, Aaron, Sergio, and Joach fix the score structure.

3/10/12

3/11/12

Week 10