The Final Stretch

Within a matter of weeks, the end of build season is steadily approaching, and it’s at this time that the team get serious. With much of the focus on the final robot, there isn’t much time to fool around as the stop build day is approaching, and faster than most people think. Various parts have been prototyped, tested, adjusted, and tested again all in an effort to create the best robot possible. The team is still working at their best this season and shows no signs of ever slowing down. There is roughly one week left, and all gears are turning.
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Here is what our programming team has and will accomplish:

Autonomous for 2 starting positions has been programmed


- Some ultrasonic sensors have been soldered and are being tested this week


- The NavX gyro and accelerometer has been programmed and tested. We will calibrate its orientation this week


- The intake, flipper arm, and drivetrain have been programmed along with indicator LED modes to show the drivers what the robot is doing from far away.


- A limit switch has been soldered and is ready to be implemented to limit the range of the flipper arm's movement. Code for it has been made.


- Java team has abandoned Synthesis simulation due to technical difficulties. Instead, they have been assigned to write code for the robot in order to gain experience. Some are still programming the drivetrain and others are working on auto. The progress varies from member to member but that is ok as this is mostly a learning experience.


- The electrical components have all been updated firmware-wise and all our CAN devices (PDP and Victor SPX motor controllers) have been assigned ID's.










This upcoming week we need to write code for the climber arm and the winch along with more autonomous modes incorporating the ultrasonic sensors. Our final robot's electrical system will need updated firmware and will need the CAN devices to be assigned ID's. Java team will continue to write code for the robot and hopefully have a successful test run with the practice robot. If we can, LED's will be programmed to simultaneously operate with whatever the robot is doing.






If anyone is interested in helping the team program the robot in the upcoming week I will be there almost every day (Tuesday I might not show up). No previous experience is necessary, however having LabVIEW installed will allow you to work on your own code.