Ramp building

Today we worked on the ramp for our fellow robot to ride up on. In order to have the ramp fold up on our robot, we had to build a slide for the ramp to slip down easily. The problem is that we can't get the ramp to slide down freely. Hopefully, our team will be able to build a working slide for our robot!

Scrimmage with int elegence; on December 21st, 2012

On December 21st, the team TBD scrimmaged with the other Aurora Robotics Team int elegence. We arrived and although we were greeted with hospitality. We had a few issues setting up the board, but after all things were all up working we got three matches against each other, and one collaboration match. The other team has made far progress, and appeared to be not entirely focused on improving what they had, so as we were in progress of both upgrading and fixing our robot, they had a few performance advantages. Also, we did not choose to run autonomous because we were in progress of improving, and they haven't started yet.

Infared Sites

Here are some sites that I found that are useful for infared tracking:
http://massftc.org/robotc/
http://web.mit.edu/roll/website/MITiBot/2875downloads.html
http://botbench.com/blog/robotc-driver-suite/
http://botbench.com/downloads/ROBOTC_driver_tutorial.pdf
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=79248

Enjoy.



Edit 30th post :D

November 11th Meeting

Today, we made substantial progress with our ring lifting device. We found an ideal value that allows the lift ideally. Ben worked on the ramp today and Jared also worked on various construction tasks.

Team Logo

The team t-shirt logo has been finalized and is shown below...

Post-Practice Fun

Just a snapshot into what we do when we clean up with 3 spare minutes...

Meetings from October 16th to November 13th

Sorry we have slipped away from our blog postings, this will not happen again and we are sorry for the inconvenience.

Over the past month, we made great achievements in our robot. To begin with, we made a ring gripping device that is very effective, thanks to a collaborative effort between Jared and Ian. I have worked on designing n infrared detection system with code that provides the widest field-of-view, I have been making decent progress solving this. Jaret has been working primarily on tackling the end game challegnes, and has built a ramp prototype with Etienne.

October 13th Meeting

Ben's secondary robot.

Today, Ian worked on our chain-related components of our robots, as Jared worked on organizing the wiring on the robot and fixing other small details in the robot. Ben started to make a second robot, primarily for testing things that require another robot to test, like our endgame task. I worked on making our infrared values more accurate with a spinning radar-like mount. It is working good and is around 90% bug free at the moment. A code sample is posted below:

#pragma config(Hubs,  S1, HTMotor,  HTServo,  none,     none)
#pragma config(Sensor, S1,     ,               sensorI2CMuxController)
#pragma config(Sensor, S2,     HTIRS2,         sensorI2CCustom)
#pragma config(Motor,  motorA,          spinner,       tmotorNXT, PIDControl, encoder)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_1,     Wheel_Left,    tmotorTetrix, openLoop, reversed)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_2,     Wheel_Right,   tmotorTetrix, openLoop)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_1,    servo1,               tServoNone)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_2,    servo2,               tServoNone)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_3,    servo3,               tServoNone)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_4,    servo4,               tServoNone)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_5,    servo5,               tServoNone)
#pragma config(Servo,  srvo_S1_C2_6,    servo6,               tServoNone)
//*!!Code automatically generated by 'ROBOTC' configuration wizard               !!*//

#include "drivers/HTIRS2-driver.h"

task spin();

task main ()
{
    int _dirDC = 0;
    int _dirAC = 0;
    int _distDCsum = 0;
    int dcS1, dcS2, dcS3, dcS4, dcS5 = 0;
    int acS1, acS2, acS3, acS4, acS5 = 0;
   
    int total = 0;
    int count = 0;
    int combinedavg = 0;

    nxtDisplayTextLine(1, "Display Error!");
   
    StartTask(spin);

    while (true)
    {
        _dirDC = HTIRS2readDCDir(HTIRS2);
        if (_dirDC < 0)
            break;
        _dirAC = HTIRS2readACDir(HTIRS2);
        if (_dirAC < 0)
            break;
        if (!HTIRS2readAllDCStrength(HTIRS2, dcS1, dcS2, dcS3, dcS4, dcS5))
            break;
        if (!HTIRS2readAllACStrength(HTIRS2, acS1, acS2, acS3, acS4, acS5 ))
            break;
        _distDCsum = (dcS1 + dcS2 + dcS3 + dcS4 + dcS5);
        ClearTimer(T1);
        while(time1[T1] < 1600)
        {
            total = total + _dirDC;
           
            if (_dirDC != 0)
            {
                count = count + 1;
            }
        }
       
        int _dirAvgSpin = 0;
        _dirAvgSpin = abs(total / count);
        combinedavg = (combinedavg + _dirAvgSpin) / count;
       
        nxtDisplayTextLine(4, "DistAvg: %d", _dirAvgSpin);
        nxtDisplayTextLine(3, "AverageAvg: %d", combinedavg);
    }
}

task spin()
{
    while(true)
    {
        motor[spinner] = 15;
        wait1Msec(800);
        motor[spinner] = -15;
        wait1Msec(800);
    }
}

Meeting on the sixth of October

Today, we worked on many things. Some of those things were Ian's ring picker lift thingy. Ben worked on refining the weight machine to see if the ring was a weighted ring or if it was not. A-t-in worked on making the wheel assembly a lot better. He got rid of the annoying squeak that was bugging all of us. He also tried and made it not slip, which it does when it turns very quickly and sharply. Tyler worked on the autonomous program and also helped me work on the ramp. We have an idea to just lift the robot 1'' because that seems to be the most efficient way to do it. You score 30 points for the first inch and then only 5 points for every subsequent inch. Also I worked on my program to enhance the readability of it.

September 29th Meeting

Today, our team accomplished many wonderful things. I worked on the autonomous's infarred decetor start to move towards the proper location on the correct column. This is still a work in progress. Jaret worked on coding a strong foundation to the teleop program, including many necessary features to ensure success. Ben worked on trying to find a way to detect weighted rings, as Ian worked on experimenting with ways to score points during the end game. Ian, Jaret, and I also tested the robot driving over any obstacles that may be in the feild, and the tests have been uploaded to youtube. This meeting was very productive, and we look forward to further innovation on our team.

September 24th Meeting

Sorry for the lateness of this post, I have just had a lot of things go on. At yesterday's meeting, Jared, Ian, Etienne, and I all made progress. Etienne worked on miscellaneous tasks that needed to be completed, as Jared and Ian had another brainstorming session. I worked on making the autonomous program able to drive towards the infrared beacon. It requires tweaking. We all made great progress last night.

RobotC Software Training

TBD members Jaret and Tyler recently attended a RobotC training program at Rockwell Automation. Most of the work was review, but we did learn to fix a compiler issue and work the infrared sensor. Code samples are below:

Using the Joystick

#pragma config(Hubs,  S1, HTMotor,  none,     none,     none)
#pragma config(Sensor, S1,     ,               sensorI2CMuxController)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_1,     QuickMotor,    tmotorTetrix, openLoop, encoder)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_2,     motorE,        tmotorNone, openLoop)
//*!!Code automatically generated by 'ROBOTC' configuration wizard               !!*//

#define ROBOTC_JOYBTN_LB 5
#define ROBOTC_JOYBTN_RB 6

#include "JoystickDriver.c"

task main()
{

 while(true)
 {
  getJoystickSettings(joystick);

  if(joy1Btn(ROBOTC_JOYBTN_LB))
  {

   ClearTimer(T1);

   while(time1[T1] <= 5000 && joy1Btn(ROBOTC_JOYBTN_RB) == false)
   {
    motor[QuickMotor] = 100;
   }

   motor[QuickMotor] = 0;

  }

 }

}

Using Motors

#pragma config(Hubs,  S1, HTMotor,  none,     none,     none)
#pragma config(Sensor, S1,     ,               sensorI2CMuxController)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_1,     EpicMotor,     tmotorTetrix, openLoop, encoder)
#pragma config(Motor,  mtr_S1_C1_2,     motorE,        tmotorNone, openLoop)
//*!!Code automatically generated by 'ROBOTC' configuration wizard               !!*//

task main()
{

 nMotorEncoder[EpicMotor] = 0;
 while(nMotorEncoder[EpicMotor] < 360)
 {
  motor[EpicMotor] = 100;
 }

 motor[EpicMotor] = 0;

}

Using Sensors

#pragma config(Sensor, S1,     Sensor,         sensorI2CHiTechnicAccel)
//*!!Code automatically generated by 'ROBOTC' configuration wizard               !!*//

task main()
{

 while(true)
 {

  nxtDisplayTextLine(0, "Value: %d", SensorValue[Sensor]);
    nxtDisplayTextLine(1, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 2));
    nxtDisplayTextLine(2, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 4));
    nxtDisplayTextLine(3, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 8));
    nxtDisplayTextLine(4, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 16));
    nxtDisplayTextLine(5, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 32));
  nxtDisplayTextLine(6, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 64));
    nxtDisplayTextLine(7, "Value: %d", (SensorValue[Sensor] / 128));

 }

}

Using the Timers

task main()
{

 ClearTimer(T1);
 nxtDisplayTextLine(1, "Waiting...");

  while(nNxtButtonPressed != 3)
  {
   nxtDisplayTextLine(1, "Elapsed: %d", time1[T1]);
  }

  eraseDisplay();
  nxtDisplayTextLine(1, "Elapsed: %d", time1[T1]);
  wait1Msec(2000);

}

September 22nd Meeting

Our robot with new modifications.

Today I worked on adding new features to the autonomous program for locating the infrared beacon. I made a lot of progress with this. Jared and Ben worked on making some modifications to the robot, with Jaret helping with redesigning the electronic components. We also discussed how we will get points in the end game by lifting another robot. Etienne primarily worked on brainstorming ideas for grabbing rings and helped on the ramp idea for end game. Overall, this meeting was very productive and I feel our team has a lot of potential in this year's competition.

TBD Board Setup

Our team has finished the board assembly and received the rings for the 2012 - 2013 competition! We are ready to swing into full gear. Good luck to all teams competing!

September 17th Meeting

The Brainstorming Board for the Meeting

At today's meeting, we started off with a discussion of rules and the game rule book as usual. Then, I primarily worked on the beginning stages of the autonomous program, starting with infrared beacon locating, which is a partial success after making tables and charts to assist me in programming. While I was working on this, the other three worked on brainstorming ideas for various tasks, primarily the lifting of the robot in the end game. A lot was accomplished in the meeting autonomous and endgame wise, making tonight very productive and worthwhile.

September 15 Meeting

               At today's meeting the whole team tried to think of a way to raise rings. We thought about the mechanisms in a forklift for a basis for ideas. Jared and Ian worked on experimenting with the chain for the lifting mechanism. Tyler worked on the infrared detection for the autonomous mode. Jaret and Etienne worked on building an arm for the programming conference on September 23.

August 18th Meeting

The work-in-progress base for our robot.

At today's meeting, everyone was present except for Jared and Sam. We worked on the base of our robot, after finalizing off our drive train. I worked on getting the robot design into the Creo software for simulation later on. The robot base consists of two of our drive train setups together. We also worked on attaching the battery pack and other components like controllers. I feel we accomplished a lot this meeting and we are doing well preparing for the season by planning ahead.

August 11th Meeting

The work-in-progress drive train.

At this meeting with only Jared, Ben, and I. Ben worked on story-boarding plans for our team's video entry for an award at competitions, as Jared worked on beginning a drive train loosely based off the recently landed Mars Rover, which I then modeled in the PTC software. A video simulation or image is soon to come. We also created our team YouTube channel, which can be found here. I found this meeting very productive for a pre-season meeting.

Software Overview: Creo

Creo is a piece of software that can model almost anything, including FIRST Tech Challenge robots. This software has many simulation features, making it worthwhile for any team to look into. Shown to the right is an example of a robot I quickly modeled. In the future, our team will be using this software for in-depth simulations of our robot designs for the challenge.

Team Org Chart

The diagram below is an Org Chart, a chart that lays out which roles each team member carries out in order to ensure the success of the team.

Meeting Plans: 8/11 - 9/08

Jared worked out the following plans for upcoming meetings from August 11th to September 8th:

Date	Plans
Aug. 11th	Mock Competition
Aug. 18th	Start Work on Video, PTC Software, and Drive Train
Aug. 25th	Continue from Last Meeting
Sept. 8th	Challenge Announcement & Season Planning/Brainstorming

August 4th Meeting

As the senior team members assisted the beginners some basic programming, which consumed most of the meeting, we had a mini-competition where both teams faced off in last season's challenge, Bowled Over. After battling with their robots, the teams switched robots. This led to interesting outcomes, but it was a very fun and educational activity.

July 28th Meeting

At this meeting our team finished our prototype robots. We added the wheels and the servo motors. Also, we put the battery and the NXT brick in place. We learned how to put the Samantha Module on the robot, and how you should tuck the cable in the robot to prevent it from getting in the way of other things. We are deciding between two names ; Untitled2 and T.B.D

Originally Written by Ben Ruiz

Revised by Tyler Thieding

FTC Summer Kick-Off

Welcome to the new Aurora Robotics FTC Team! We are now team #6022 and everyone should come Saturday ready to discuss keeping or changing the team name. Next practice will be Saturday July 21st at 9AM. Also all team profiles need to be completed by the end of practice this Saturday.

Congratulations to Ian as our new Team Captain, we look forward to your leadership this season.

Team Rules & Consequences

Rules:

• Respect Others' Ideas
• No Unexcused Absences
• No Malicious Actions to People on Our Team

Consequences:

1. Verbal Warning
2. 10-Minute Break
3. 1-4 Meeting Suspension (May Be Repeated)
4. Removed From Team

Team Profiles: Etienne Waroquet

Name: Etienne Waroquet

Grade: 6

Team Role: Builder

Biography:

Etienne is 11 years old. Etienne wants to be a nuclear engineer when he is older. Etienne has always loved building.

Team Profiles: Ben Ruiz

Name: Ben Ruiz

Grade: 6

Team Role: Driver / Builder

Biography:

Benjamin Ruiz has just started working with F.T.C this year. Ben also builds and drivers robots. He was in the F.L.L composition and made it to the regional finals in the F.L.L.

Team Profiles: Sam Berryhill

Name: Sam Berryhill

Grade: 7

Team Role: Driver / Tester

Biography:

Is 13 ; Goes to Harmon Middle School

Team Profiles: Jared Ruehr

Name: Jared Ruehr

Grade: 8

Team Role: Primary Builder

Biography:

Jared is one of J2IT's builders and is the vice team captain and is also a mentor for the younger team members. His job aspirations are to be some kind of engineer. Some of his other hobbies are sketching, sports, camping, and playing on the computer. Jared also participated in the FLL two years ago and participated in the FTC last year on J2IT . He enjoys having participated in the FTC and wishes to participate next year.

Team Profiles: Jaret Skonieczny

Name: Jaret Skonieczny

Grade: 8

Team Role: Primary Tele-Op Programmer

Biography:

The job of programming the remote controls goes to Jaret. He makes sure, with the help of Ian, that the programs are running smoothly. He also designed and made all of the programs relating to the joysticks. Jaret is 13 and is 100% ohion. He was on FLL for 1 year and this is his first year doing FTC. Jaret likes reading, writing, and math and does well in school. He is currently in Boy Scouts and likes to camp.

Team Profiles: Ian Doemling

Name: Ian Doemling

Grade: 8

Team Role: Builder / Captain

Biography:

Ian Doemling is one of J2IT's builders. Ian also tests many of the programs, ecspecially the driver controlled programs. Ian is 13 years old and grew up in the wonderful city of Pittsburgh, Pensylvania. At the age of 7 he moved to Aurora, Ohio. He loves math and science and excels in school. He was on an FLL Team for 1 year then moved to an FTC Team this year. Ian loves to problem solve and build. He is in boy scouts and loves the outdoors.

Team Profiles: Tyler Thieding

Name: Tyler Thieding

Grade: 8

Team Role: Primary Autonomous Programmer

Biography:

Tyler Thieding is the team's autonomous programmer who is skilled with various forms of programming and computer networking. He loves math and science and he succeeds in his schoolwork and is a straight-A student. His career aspirations are a theoretical physicist.