Thanks. I know this is not a project for this season. I am chief electrical/chief programmer/team captian/mechanical designer (we only have about 10 students and 6 mentors, so everyone does everything). Check out this link though. It is quite doable in a short time and would really help.
www.pyroelectro.com/projects/ir_radar/index.html
I am thinking of using this ir radar to detect other bots and then the camera to zero in on the trailer and fire.