AIS Robotics Team Completes Robot for Regional Robotics Competition

By Gordana Goudie, Media and Communications Manager

Following six weeks of intensive preparation for the upcoming Peachtree Regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition, the AIS robotics team has completed the robot that will enable its members to compete against 54 other teams. The competition entails playing a game in which the robots, designed and built by the participating teams, race around a track, approximately the size of a basketball field, knock down 40-inch inflated Trackballs from a 6.6-foot overpass and move them around the track passing them either over or under the overpass. Teams score extra points if their robots position their Trackballs back on the overpass before the end of the 2-minute-15-second match.

The AIS robotics team members, under the mentorship of faculty member Bob Geiger, built the entire robot themselves after receiving the “kit of parts” from the competition organizers in January. The kit contained essential parts for building their robot including motors, batteries, and automation components, but the students were responsible for identifying and sourcing the materials needed for the framework of the machine. After six weeks of collaborating, designing, building and testing, the AIS robotics team members produced a six-wheel-drive robot with a two-joint arm that is ready to take the competition by storm.

The AIS robotics team consists of 35 members. Twenty members form part of the engineering sub-team tasked with building the robot. Other sub-teams are responsible for animation, finance, programming, website communications and public relations. Each sub-team plays a crucial role in producing the robot, and team members from each group contribute their special skills and expertise to ensure that the team meets its goals. Students invest significant amounts of time over the six-week preparation period to work on their invention. Martijn ten Lohuis, engineering team member, estimated that he dedicated between 150 and 200 hours after school and during weekends over six weeks to the project.

The team is supported by a dedicated group of parents, faculty members and community members who provide the team members with guidance and advice as they create their robot and meet the challenges of their project. Sponsors include Clyde Bergemann, The C. Tycho & Marie Howle Foundation and Siemens.

The Peachtree regional FIRST competition takes place from March 13 to 15 at the Gwinnett Civic and Cultural Center in Duluth (www.gwinnettciviccenter.com). The competition is free and open to the public on March 14 and 15. AIS encourages its entire community to attend this dynamic event and support the AIS robotics team, iHOT Team 1414. For more information on the iHOT Team 1414, please visit www.ihotrobotics.org/ihot2006/en/sub/index.htm.

For information on FIRST, see www.usfirst.org.