The robotics teams scrimmaged yesterday to prepare for the 2014-15 FIRST Tech Challenge competition. See pictures below of what they have been working on and read more about the competition here.

This picture shows the playing field for the 2014-15 FIRST Tech Challenge competition, Cascade Effect. The robots need to knock out the kickstands of the central dispenser to release the balls, then pick them up and place them in the various tubes – taller tubes are worth more points.

 

 

 

 

Four Beaver students work on one of the three robots. This robot has a linear lift system that hoists a scoop full of balls up in the air to tip them into the tubes.

 

 

 

 

 

Beaver students pose with another robot designed to be lightweight, fast, and maneuverable. It has a catapult-like lifting arm that scoops balls into the lower tubes.

 

 

 

 

 

Team Seuss works on its “giraffe neck” robot. The rules state that all robots need to start the competition fitting inside an 18-inch cube, so this robot has a ball conduit that starts out folded up and then unfolds into the configuration shown here. Once unfolded, rotating whiskers feed balls into the bottom of the tube and a conveyor belt carries them up the tube, disgorging them at the top to fall into the tall tubes.