Team LiveWire’s 2012 robot “Mis. Fathom”! A few clips from various practice sessions, documenting our shooting and harvesting mechanisms and our ability to go over the barrier. We unfortunately forgot to record our bridge-balancing endeavors, but our driver is capable of going from scoring position to balanced consistently in under 15 seconds!
Let us know if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions!
Also, in case you’re wondering why we chose “Mis. Fathom,” there’s actually a pretty good explanation. Sleep deprivation resulted in a nautical theme, specifically causing us to refer to the sides of the robot as “port,” “starboard,” “bow,” and “stern,” and measuring everything in fathoms rather than feet.
Our robots are always girls, as one of our coaches is known to say, “It’s way too pretty to be a boy!” So we decided to put the two together and get “Mis. Fathom,” made even funnier by the pun of “mis.” on “Miss,” referring to how we “mis-fathomed” or “mis-calculated” how long it would take to actually build!
…Yes, we come up with some interesting ideas during all-nighters at robotics. Luckily, we only had one all-nighter and only four nights where we stayed past 1am!
Specs:
Drivetrain:
-2 CIMs, two-wheel drive
-2 speed gearbox with pneumatic shifting
-Two pneumatic drive wheels
-Four pneumatically-controlled, retractable casters
-Zero degree turn radius
-Ability to tilt backward to jump over the barrier!
Harvester:
-Pneumatic claw to pick up balls
-Lift powered by two window motors
-Camera streaming for improved vision
-Able to push down bridge
Shooter:
-4 wheels driven by one CIM
-Top wheels spaced further apart for backspin
-Rollers and belt system powered by one CIM
-Variable power based on joystick throttle
Autonomous:
-Shoots two balls from the key
-Able to start in any location
-Able to score in any basket
Sensors:
-Camera streaming for harvesting accuracy
-Ultrasonic range-finding
-Encoders on drive wheels
-Gyro for angle finding, and ability to drive straight in autonomous