SUBTEAM HIGHLIGHTS
Manufacturing
The Manufacturing subteam, led by Jameson C. B’25, Charlie K. B’25, Yvonne C. B’25, and Cole W. B’24, spent this week on wood robot iterations and preparing for the competition bot. They upgraded the intake grip and stress relief to get the wood bot driving, shooting, and intaking. The subteam gathered materials like electronic components and mechanical parts to start the practice robot build. They also organized the shop and electrical closet and put in a large REV order.
Later in the week, Manufacturing tested shooter concepts like a vertical flywheel arrangement, which performed excellently. They revised the wood bot intake to include another axle and provide another point of contact for the notes. The subteam experimented with adding spin to the shooter before determining the simpler vertical flywheel design was best. Through further prototyping and preparations, Manufacturing made progress towards a functioning practice robot.
Programming
The Programming subteam, led by Julia S. B’24 and Lauren L. B’25, focused on further developing autonomous routines and integrating mechanisms. Lauren tuned the linkage PID and helped Manufacturing test shooter versions while Julia assigned autonomous modes. At the Campus Center, they refined auto paths and tuned drivetrain constants with characterization. Rowan L. B’27 implemented teleop driving and auto selection. Julia and Lauren's groups also worked on basic subsystem commands– SetIntake, SetLinkage, and SetFlywheel.
Later in the week, Programming collaborated with Manufacturing to test shooter tilting and control. Julia’s and Reagan G. B’24’s group developed an intake pseudo-state machine and started on vision targeting. Lauren’s team created setpoint and drive commands to begin auto routines. Arsema R. B’26 and Anna S. B’26 completed drivetrain logging functionality. Programming made critical progress on integrating mechanisms and developing autos.
Design
The Design subteam, led by Rydar J. B’24, spent Week Two refining shooter components and other mechanisms. Rydar modeled front and rear pivots for the 4-bar shooter while evaluating vertical wheel arrangements, Connor M. B’25 mounted electronics and batteries on the drivebase, Brad S. B’25 and Ethan O. B’27 iterated on an arm to hand off game pieces, and Gabe A. B’26 worked on a CNC attachment cage model.
Later in the week, Design continued upgrading shooter and climber concepts. Rydar added a top roller and redesigned the shooter to improve performance, as indicated by Manufacturing prototypes. He also worked on gearboxes for the front pivot. Brad and Ethan advanced the handoff arm wristed intake design. Gabe neared completion on the CNC cage model. With collaborations and upgrades, Design optimized mechanisms to integrate improvements suggested by physical prototypes.
Outreach and Business
The Business and Outreach subteams, led by Sol S. B’25 and Santiago Q. B’25, spent this week on Impact-related tasks and relationship building. They worked on documentation, creating thank you cards for sponsors, and drafting letters to supporters. Discussions with Business/Outreach Mentor Kristine Grace focused on the team endowment and properly recognizing sponsors. Additional time went towards outreach planning and creating social media posts. Overall, the subteam made progress on stewardship through letters, correspondence, and strengthening connections.
Marketing
The Marketing subteam, led by Mac D. B'24, focused on content creation for social media and the FIRST® Impact Award. Mac and Claire S. B'27 collaborated on Instagram posts and Eventbrite while working on the Impact booklet. Amy S. B'27 and Adam A. B'27 assisted in gathering information for the Impact script. Claire storyboarded build season footage and Antoinette D. B'25 captured videos of Programming and Manufacturing’s progress on the wood bot shooter and intake.
Later in the week, Marketing published Facebook events for upcoming team celebrations. Mac and Claire created and posted another Instagram update while progressing on a REV robotics review. Soon after, Mac and David introduced her to graphic design basics on Figma. The subteam reconsidered Impact Award priorities based on discussions with mentors but continued script drafting. Through flexible content creation and adaptations, Marketing advanced social media presence and award preparation.
Scouting
The Scouting subteam, led by Griffin L. B’24, continued developing data analysis tools this week. He improved SQL code for data cleaning and added fake match data to test Power BI visualizations. New graphs were created to display cycle distribution consistency and autonomous note pickup percentages per team. Work also began on publishing data online with Power BI - a shareable link was generated accessible to team members. Though in-person attendance was limited this week, Griffin made steady progress on enhancing back-end data processing and analysis tools leading up to competitions.
General Management
General Management, led by David A. B'25, focused heavily on documentation and promotional material this week. David interviewed a mentor for a retrospective article, published the Week 1 blog, and updated the team website and rosters. He input member hours for the travel team, helped develop 25th anniversary designs, and supported other subteams in External. David also conducted research into engineering notebook systems and reviewed Impact award responses for judging practice later in Build Season.
Later in the week, David held the second general meeting and appended the blog with a new "Kickoff Weekend" section. He resolved roster issues, collected shirt sizes, and incorporated sponsor logos on the team website. David drafted a technical binder outline for competition judging, composed an introduction, and refreshed mentors/members lists. Other tasks involved newsletter promotions, logging sponsors, and tidying the lab space.
Upcoming Events
Ice Cream Social and Robot Reveal Once the seven-week Build Season is over, please join us Saturday February 24 from 5:00 to 9:00 PM in the Campus Center to celebrate the team’s accomplishments. All friends, family, alumni are welcome to join us for ice cream and commemorate this milestone!
End-of-the-Year Party and Desert Auction Once our Competition Season concludes, come back to the Campus Center on June 15 from 5:00 to 8:00 PM to commemorate the 2024 season. We will also host our annual desert auction to fundraise for the team!
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