FRC "Survival Scenario" Exercise

[BigJ]

1. Initial registration fee (1 regional OR 2 districts)
2. Registration Fee for additional regional OR district championship
3. Travel expenses (hotel, transportation, food) for two competition events
4. A mentor of your choice with mechanical engineering expertise
5. A mentor of your choice with programming expertise
6. A mentor of your choice with FRC strategic design expertise
7. A mentor of your choice with expertise in all non-engineering matters
8. An active teacher and supportive school of your choice (1)
9. $500 Visa Debit Card
10. Basic hand tools + Measurement tools + Electrical tools (nothing powered)
11. Basic power tools (Cordless drill + bit set, Dremel, etc.)
12. Drill press & bit set + Band saw
13. $500 worth of raw material (aluminum, steel, polycarb)
14. $500 voucher for AndyMark
15. $500 voucher for McMaster-Carr
16. Sheet metal bending capabilities
17. $500 voucher for Lowe’s or Home Depot
18. Welding capabilities
19. Two Laptops with OS + Internet access
20. $500 voucher for VEX/VEX Pro
21. Team Meeting Area (2)
22. Lathe & tooling
23. Mill & tooling
24. Full Size Practice Area (Space, Carpet, Driver Stations - No Game Elements)
25. Six additional batteries and chargers
26. A mentor of your choice with CAD/Inventor expertise
27. 3 Axis CNC & tooling
28. Belt sander + grinder + arbor press
29. Laser OR water jet cutter
30. A mentor of your choice with electrical engineering expertise
31. Pit Set Up of your choice + Robot Cart
32. Team Uniforms (sufficient quantity for all team members)
33. Team Button Give Aways (sufficient quantity for all events)
34. Unique Team Give Away (sufficient quantity for all events)
    

Top 11 bolded since they are guaranteed.

Assumptions and reasoning:

• The goal is to qualify for championship. I will disregard the Chairman's/EI path to qualification as that would vary heavily on the team and what the students had done in the past.
• Events: I picked registration and travel to 2 events. At the current state of FRC, districts are tough competition. I will go to 2 regionals that are either new, underpopulated, or in a "weaker" region robot-wise. Let's not get into arguments deciding which regionals these would be.
• Mentors: I left the "electrical expertise" and "CAD expertise" down the list for later. I figured a group of engineers and former FIRST students could handle the task of wiring a functional robot. I also left the CAD expertise for farther down the list, for using 3-axis CNC and up tools. A NEM to handle all our hotels and transportation booking and helping with other things also saves a lot of the stress from the other mentors.
• Tools and fabrication: With an experienced FRC mentor I figure the team will be able to build within its means, upgrading its level of construction as it gains more fabrication methods.
• Batteries: I'm sure some nice team would help us out if we couldn't afford extras
• Possibly against the spirit of the challenge, Money-wise I also figured that the mentors have jobs, engineering or otherwise, and wouldn't mind chipping in some cash. I also assumed that the programming mentor would have some sort of personal laptop or other computer to use if the number of items wasn't met for the 2 laptops.
• Spirit/Image items: While important, and one of my favorite parts of first, these dropped to the bottom of a list purely trying to qualify for Championship.
• I set my baseline for comparison at the $500 dollar debit card. A number of things lower on the list are because I felt that the essential parts of it were worth much less. Ex. "Pit and Robot Cart", I felt only the robot cart was essential, and depending on the robot, transportation could be done with something pretty inexpensive.

EDIT: Just realized the max is 30 items! Byebye spirit items!

[Kevin Leonard]

NOTE: This is my personal list, and most definitely does not represent all or even most of the members of Team 20.

1) Initial registration fee (1 regional OR 2 districts)
2) Registration Fee for additional regional OR district championship
3) A mentor of your choice with electrical engineering expertise
4) A mentor of your choice with programming expertise
5) Two Laptops with OS + Internet access
6) A mentor of your choice with expertise in all non-engineering matters
7) A mentor of your choice with mechanical engineering expertise
8) Travel expenses (hotel, transportation, food) for two competition events
9) $500 Visa Debit Card
10) Basic hand tools + Measurement tools + Electrical tools (nothing powered)
11) Basic power tools (Cordless drill + bit set, Dremel, etc.)
12) $500 voucher for AndyMark
13) An active teacher and supportive school of your choice (1)
14) Team Uniforms (sufficient quantity for all team members)
15) A mentor of your choice with FRC strategic design expertise
16) Full Size Practice Area (Space, Carpet, Driver Stations - No Game Elements)
17) $500 worth of raw material (aluminum, steel, polycarb)
18) Drill press & bit set + Band saw
19) Belt sander + grinder + arbor press
20) A mentor of your choice with CAD/Inventor expertise
21) $500 voucher for VEX/VEX Pro
22) Team Meeting Area (2)
23) Lathe & tooling
24) Mill & tooling
25) Six additional batteries and chargers
26) Team Button Give Aways (sufficient quantity for all events)
27) $500 voucher for McMaster-Carr
28) Pit Set Up of your choice + Robot Cart
29) Laser OR water jet cutter
30) Sheet metal bending capabilities
31) 3 Axis CNC & tooling
32) $500 voucher for Lowe’s or Home Depot
33) Unique Team Give Away (sufficient quantity for all events)
34) Welding capabilities

My basic goal was to be a competitive, basic level FRC team. The kind that could get into eliminations at any FRC regional or district event. I also based the list off of myself (i.e. Programming and Electrical mentors are high up on the list because those are my blind spots.)
I think that any team can build a competitive robot with some intelligence and my top 11 items. (You can substitute those mentors with mentors that suit your blind spots.) I have a non-engineering mentor in there not as much for award submissions, spirit, imagery, etc., but more for the financial, non-engineering mentorship aspects to be taken care of. After that it becomes things I'd like to have in order of preference.

The most interesting part was discovering what I found to be the least important. The bottom four are guaranteed to not be in my list of items this team could have.
31) 3 Axis CNC & tooling- Do you really need CNC to succeed?
32) $500 voucher for Lowe’s or Home Depot- I already have raw materials and vouchers for andymark/vexpro/McMaster, do I need Home Depot items?
33) Unique Team Give Away (sufficient quantity for all events)- I already have team buttons, these are unnecessary.
34) Welding capabilities- This was the most interesting part to me, because my team welds their robots, but if I have the ability to work with sheet metal, I don't need this. And even without either, I can have a pretty good drivetrain with just the KOP drivetrain.

I think I might bring this to our team's attention and see what comes of it.

[AdamHeard]

Considering the laser or waterjet costs more than the entire rest of the list (even the combined salaries of the engineers listed), I would put that #1.

[nicholsjj]

Where's the choice for dedicated students? That would be top on my list. Then every mentor listed. Add in the registration fees and the rest of the stuff will get done. Dedicated students getting taught by passionate mentors is my personal definition of a successful team.

[Pault]

I think the scenario would be a little clearer if you were to say that the team has tried every other company that could potentially sponsor them, and this is the only sponsor to say yes. If there is a possibility that other sponsors come in and give the team some more stuff, then people will be more inclined to pick stuff that is harder to get but not necessarily as important

[AllenGregoryIV]

1 Initial registration fee (1 regional OR 2 districts)
2 Registration Fee for additional regional OR district championship
3 A mentor of your choice with CAD/Inventor expertise
4 Travel expenses (hotel, transportation, food) for two competition events
5 $500 Visa Debit Card
6 Lathe & tooling
7 Laser OR water jet cutter
8 Sheet metal bending capabilities
9 Full Size Practice Area (Space, Carpet, Driver Stations - No Game Elements)
10 $500 voucher for McMaster-Carr
11 $500 voucher for VEX/VEX Pro
12 $500 worth of raw material (aluminum, steel, polycarb)
13 $500 voucher for AndyMark
14 $500 voucher for Lowe’s or Home Depot
15 Team Meeting Area (2)
16 Mill & tooling
17 A mentor of your choice with FRC strategic design expertise
18 A mentor of your choice with programming expertise
19 A mentor of your choice with mechanical engineering expertise
20 A mentor of your choice with expertise in all non-engineering matters
21 A mentor of your choice with electrical engineering expertise
22 3 Axis CNC & tooling
23 Team Uniforms (sufficient quantity for all team members)
24 Pit Set Up of your choice + Robot Cart
25 Two Laptops with OS + Internet access
26 Six additional batteries and chargers
27 An active teacher and supportive school of your choice (1)
28 Basic hand tools + Measurement tools + Electrical tools (nothing powered)
29 Drill press & bit set + Band saw
30 Belt sander + grinder + arbor press
31 Basic power tools (Cordless drill + bit set, Dremel, etc.)
32 Welding capabilities
33 Team Button Give Aways (sufficient quantity for all events)
34 Unique Team Give Away (sufficient quantity for all events)

This was picked on the basis of building the best robot and assumes you have an awesome group of students. It's possible to run a successful team with only one mentor, hard but possible. Since most of the robot is going to be laser cut sheet metal, CAD experience is the most important. Students can pick up the programming, electrical, and other stuff pretty well from all the resources that exist and getting help from other teams.

You can buy, craigslist, dumpster dive, etc. for a lot of the small tools and items that you need. Once you have a lathe, laser cutter, and CNC break there isn't much you can't make.

The full practice area would be extremely beneficial to making a competitive robot. Several really great teams meet in a garage and figure out a way to get it done, but having a meeting space would be preferred.

A robot cart can just be a $10 furniture dolly and pit shelves while nice are not needed. I also feel like buttons in FRC are dying down a bit, they aren't nearly as "required" as I remember them being. Handwritten notes of encouragement would be better giveaways than pretty much anything you could buy anyway, so why waste the spot.

I'm hoping I role at least a 5. If we get a 1 we would probably move to a plywood laser cut robot like 1899.

[Andrew Schreiber]

I'll play...

1 Initial registration fee (1 regional OR 2 districts)
2 Registration Fee for additional regional OR district championship
3 A mentor of your choice with expertise in all non-engineering matters
4 A mentor of your choice with mechanical engineering expertise
5 Basic hand tools + Measurement tools + Electrical tools (nothing powered)
6 Basic power tools (Cordless drill + bit set, Dremel, etc.)
7 An active teacher and supportive school of your choice (1)
8 A mentor of your choice with FRC strategic design expertise
9 Full Size Practice Area (Space, Carpet, Driver Stations - No Game Elements)
10 Team Meeting Area (2)
11 Six additional batteries and chargers
12 $500 voucher for VEX/VEX Pro
13 $500 voucher for AndyMark
14 $500 worth of raw material (aluminum, steel, polycarb)
15 A mentor of your choice with programming expertise
16 A mentor of your choice with electrical engineering expertise
17 Travel expenses (hotel, transportation, food) for two competition events
18 Lathe & tooling
19 Drill press & bit set + Band saw
20 $500 voucher for Lowe’s or Home Depot
21 $500 Visa Debit Card
22 Laser OR water jet cutter
23 A mentor of your choice with CAD/Inventor expertise
24 Team Uniforms (sufficient quantity for all team members)
25 Mill & tooling
26 $500 voucher for McMaster-Carr
27 Two Laptops with OS + Internet access
28 Belt sander + grinder + arbor press
29 3 Axis CNC & tooling
30 Sheet metal bending capabilities
31 Pit Set Up of your choice + Robot Cart
32 Team Button Give Aways (sufficient quantity for all events)
33 Unique Team Give Away (sufficient quantity for all events)
34 Welding capabilities


I'm assuming that any tools come with knowledge of operation...

My list is different due to the fact that you said I keep my students. Which means I retain the resources they bring in. I have the benefit of being in a relatively affluent area in which almost all of my students have ready access to a computer at home. It also means I can expect students to cover their travel cost (we currently do) Options 1-11 are assured, this means I've done my best to build a group that can provide the next couple key items (most notably recruiting mentors and raising the small amount of funds needed to build a simple effective robot). 12-20 are things that would be nice to have given to me but that I can ultimately get given 1-11 and a few months of work. 21-34 are things that would be nice to have but ultimately don't impact my ability to get things done.

In fact, I'd be willing to say that given 1-15 on my list (and some dedicated students) I could say with relatively few doubts that we could put together a solid robot that would play in the afternoon at almost any regional and has a high chance of seeding high.