Robot Stolen in Seattle -- Team 1778

[Bob Steele]

I got this distressing email from Kevin Crader - mentor for team 1778

I am sorry to report that our robot Chilly was stolen yesterday out out of the back of our teachers van. He has filed a police report, and we have involved King5 and Komo4 news. This is a tragic event, a huge loss to all of us in Mountlake Terrace Robotics, but we will hopefully come out ahead. It's not useful to anyone else. We are reaching out to whoever took it to just return it to a fire station, no questions asked. And if we can get a plug in that if you are interested in getting involved in FIRST Robotics or supporting our team. This is the project that my son Brandon, myself, 25 other high school kids and mentors worked on last year.

If anyone has any information about this please let me know and I will relay the information to the Mountlake Terrace team...

I also think considering how devastating this is to their team they were still thinking of ways to promote FIRST in general... This says a great deal about their team.

Our team has already offered to loan our robot if they need it for a demo.

Please just be aware... if anything shows up on anyone's Craiglists or Ebay please let us know..

thanks for the thoughts

[Madison]

!

That sucks. I'll keep my eyes peeled and ask some folks to keep a look out as well. I can't imagine what use there'd be in stealing a robot. Sure, the electronics and things are valuable, but only if you know what you're looking at. Aluminum scrap isn't worth enough to bother, either.

I can't even imagine what sort of person takes a robot. People are so stupid.

[Chaos204]

I am speachless...

Ill keep an eye out... on the east coast... keep us updated

[Libby K]

Good luck on finding Chilly. I hope the robot makes it back with the team where it belongs.

I'm way out here on the other coast, but you never know, I'll keep my eyes out for it.

[RyanN]

That stinks... I couldn't imagine how I would be if one of our robots was stolen. They are all like little kids to me, every one has its own personal characteristic that makes it special. I hope Team 1778 finds their robot intact and working. I can't imagine what the people were thinking when they stole the robot. Outside of FIRST, our robots are basically useless for everyday tasks. As soon as they find out how expensive and specialized our parts are, then they'll find out that it will be hard to sell, and hopefully just return the robot to its rightful owners. (but you always have to wonder if the robot has a mind of its own and was not stolen, but actually escaped the van and is living a life of its own...)

[lukevanoort]

I must say, this one puzzles me. I have no idea why anyone would want to steal a robot. It's not like FIRST robots are particularly easy to steal, most that I have seen would require at least three people to carry any distance and would not fit on a handtruck. They also aren't that useful to the average person. I mean, the aluminium has already been machined into the desired shape and would probably be not ideal for use as scrap material, and the control system is also quite specialized. The only thing I can think of a thief wanting is the copper wire, but there really isn't a lot of that in a robot.

[AdamHeard]

Wow.... that is really really strange.

Hopefully whomever stole it will quickly realize it is of no value to them (unless there are familiar with FIRST/possibly combat robots [knows the value of victors]... and I can't imagine anyone of us doing it).

[Chief Pride]

thats crazy... i mean... who would want it? and how could they have gotten away with a 120 lb robot without people noticing? o.O

[Cory]

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

Wow.... that is really really strange.

Hopefully whomever stole it will quickly realize it is of no value to them (unless there are familiar with FIRST/possibly combat robots [knows the value of victors]... and I can't imagine anyone of us doing it).

I found this statement to be noteworthy. It seems to me that the prevailing thought is the people in FIRST must all be good people, because FIRST is a good program. Unfortunately that simply is not the case. While most participants are upstanding citizens, there will always be people who are either malicious, take advantage of their position of power, abuse others trust in them, or are downright sleazy. While there may be less of these people in FIRST than in the general population, without a doubt they still exist.

Everyone should think about that fact before deciding to blindly trust any FIRST'er they meet (as all too many of us do).

P.S. Sorry if it seems like I'm picking on you Adam, didn't mean it that way

I can't imagine why the average person would steal a robot. They generally aren't easy to carry, transport, or sell...nor do they look like they are of particular value. I hope that the culprit is found ASAP.

[synth3tk]

Well, when will the Search & Rescue party be formed? Does your child own a cellular device? How old is he or she?

(Just trying to add a little humor. I'm sure this is a tough time for you all.)

[Rickertsen2]

Wow. That really sucks. Did they take the OI and control system to or just the robot? I hope yall find it.

why steal a robot. Well robots are pretty cool. If you have no morals and are looking for something to compulsively steel, what's cooler than a robot? Thats why we build them isn't it. I doubt anybody stealing a robot is looking to make money by parting it out or selling it for scrap.

I wish you the best of luck in getting it back but sadly, stolen goods are hardly ever recovered.

[AndrewN]

Thank you everyone for your support.

Chilli was taken without the ramps, just the chassis. They did not get the operator console or interface.

It's totally useless, except as parts. There are 7 victors and a couple of
spikes. The motors (CIM) are connected to the chain drive through a banebot
transmission. One radio was mounted. Did I mention that they only have the RC and not the OI??

We are hoping that the local TV station will put something on the news today asking for Chilli's return.

[vivek16]

well good luck to you guys. yikes that is worth a lot. I know victors alone run upwards of a hundred dollars so there is atleast a couple thousand dollars worth of stuff on there

-vivek

[synth3tk]

Pranks, scrap metal, pawning it, who knows what the motives could be. Point is, this is a huge loss, and I couldn't imagine someone stealing a robot that we put so much hard work, time, and effort into making. I'm also across the country but will keep an eye out electronically and physical.

[dtengineering]

I only wish this was an '80's sci-fi flick where the robot developed AI and went into hiding until people learned to love it as a real, living being.

Until Chilly phones home we'll keep an eye out. Sorry to hear of the loss.

Jason