BEST
Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology
Teacher
Training
July 31, 2010
If you build it….they will fail!
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
1
Agenda
9:30AM
BEST Introduction/Overview
Roles, Rules, Resources
Engineering Design Process
11:30AM
Lunch
12:00PM
1:00PM
The BEST Kit: Control System
Programming Your Robot
MathWorks Simulink Hands-On
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
2
BEST Mission
To Inspire and Motivate students….
to pursue careers in
Engineering, Science, Technology, and Math
through a sports-like competition
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
3
Our Method
Challenge Students With A REAL Design Task
a problem to solve
with limited resources
“the game”
“the kit”
Design To Function
Design To Cost
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
In a limited time
“6 weeks”
Time To Market
4
How It Works
• Emulate a Start-to-Finish Product Development
• Mimic Industry
• Time-To-Market
• Design/Cost Constraints
• Design To Function
Concept
Design
Build
Test
6 weeks
• Team students with MENTORS from Industry
• Inspiration
• Guidance
• Knowledge
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
5
Product Development
BEST emulates real product development
Design & construction
Designing & building the robot
Engineering process
Technical documentation
Engineering Design Notebook
Documenting the design process
Public Relations
Team Exhibit
Promotion of BEST within the community
Team website
Product Marketing
Marketing presentations to judges
Informal interviews by judges
Teaming
Team organization/operation
Company/Product Advocate
Team Spirit/ Sportsmanship
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
6
Many Aspects to the Contest
Product Development Functions Emphasized
Planning/
Project Mgmt
Concept
Design
Process
Manufacturing
Community
Relations
Sales/
Marketing
Company
Advocacy
Testing
Performance
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
7
Contest is Judged in Two Parts
1. ROBOT HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPETITION
Planning/
Project Mgmt
Concept
Design
Process
Manufacturing
Community
Relations
Sales/
Marketing
Company
Advocacy
Testing
Performance
Contest Day!
July 31, 2010
AWARDS: 1st – 4th Place Head-to-Head
Match High Score
Honorable Mention
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
Most Robust Design
Creative Design
Most Photogenic
8
Contest is Judged in Two Parts
2. BEST AWARD
Planning/
Project Mgmt
Process
Community
Relations
Sales/
Marketing
Company
Advocacy
Concept
Design
Manufacturing
1 Design
Notebook
1 Table Display
2 Community
Awareness
3 Website
1 Marketing
Presentations
2 Informal
Interviews
1 Team Spirit
2 Sportsmanship
3 Code of Conduct
Testing
Performance15%
AWARDS: 1st – 3rd Place BEST Award
Best Table Display
Best Dressed
Best Website
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
Best Spirit Break
Sportsmanship
Teamwork
Best Mentor
9
BEST Philosophy
•
The students will get the most of the process if they
do the work
•
Mentors and Teachers should help the students
realize the students’ ideas
•
The six-week development process is more
important than the game-day competition
• BEST does not stand for “Beat Every Single Team
BEAT
EVERY
SINGLE
TEAM
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
10
The School Provides…
• At least one school sponsor as a teacher-coach
• Classroom/shop facilities
• Transportation to the competition sites
• A single student team representing the school
• Outreach to potential team mentors (e.g., parents)
No Limit on Team size (determined by school)
Sub-Teams will be necessary.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
11
BEST Hub Provides…
•
A single “Kit” for each school
•
Volunteer mentors from industry, as best we can
•
Volunteers to coordinate and run all events
•
The game field for all events
• Awards for student and team recognition
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
12
BEST Events
Kickoff Day
Test Drive
Mall Day/ Practice Day
Machine Compliance Check
Local Competition
Regional Championship
Early/Mid September
End of 3rd Week (Georgetown)
End of 5th Week
End of 6th week (night before)
End of 6th week
Nov/Dec
Top finishers at hub will participate in Regional Championship.
Hub allocation depends on number of teams participating.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
13
2011 Schedules
Kickoff Day
Test Drive
Practice Day
Machine Compliance
Local Competition
Regional Championship
July 31, 2010
Capitol
9/10Anderson HS
10/1G’Town Volvo
10/16Tx History Museum
10/21Vista Ridge HS
10/22Vista Ridge HS
11/18-19UT Dallas
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
Bobcat
9/17TXSU Student Ctr
10/1G’Town Volvo
10/22TXSU Student Ctr
10/28TBA HS
10/29TBA HS
14
What Happens At Kickoff?
•
Sign-in & Team Packet Pickup
•
General Assembly
• Welcome, School Roll Call
• Important Information (schedules, handouts, etc.)
• Fun Stuff (teaming games, drawings, contests)
• Team Mentor Assignments
•
Breakout Training Sessions
• Run in parallel
• Typically 1 hour+, hub dependent
• Meant for students, bring enough
July 31, 2010
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Consumable Kit Training
Control System Training
Programming
CAD Software Training
Practice Day Signup
BEST Award Review
Others?
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
15
What Happens At Kickoff?
•
Game Intro and Demonstration
• Hub unveils the game field
• Walk through of the game rules
• Possible demonstration robot(s)
•
•
DO NOT COPY THE DEMO BOT!!!
Kit Distribution & Inventory
• Return Kit (aka $Control System$) – be prepared to sign for it
•
•
Consumable Kit – lots of pieces
•
•
July 31, 2010
Controller, joystick, motors, servos, batteries, chargers, etc.
Plywood, PVC, metal, plastic, hardware, misc. items
Inventory EVERYTHING AT KICKOFF! (checklists provided)
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
16
Who/What To Bring?
•
Enthusiasm & excitement (we give awards for it!)
•
Plenty of students to cover the Breakout Sessions
•
One large vehicle to receive the kit, and several able
bodies to carry it (the parts…NOT the vehicle)
•
•
•
2x4 foot plywood
5 foot PVC
Be sure to inventory the kit before you leave the pick-up
site….checklists will be provided
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
17
Test Drive – Practice Day
•
End of Week 3
•
Optional Practice Day
•
Hosted by Capitol BEST Hub (Austin)
•
Georgetown Volvo Dealership
•
Outdoor event (covered)
•
Open format (no scheduled practice times)
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
18
Test Drive – Practice Day
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
19
Test Drive – Practice Day
•
Reasons to take advantage of Test Drive:
1.
2.
3.
4.
•
Turn in Deliverables…Being late can affect judging
Practice on the “real” playing field…
See other designs…get help…
Realize how far behind you are…
Goals for Test Drive:
1. A machine with a drive system….practice driving…
2. Try alternate manipulator concepts…
3. Get help…Help others…
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
20
Mall Day – Practice Day
•
End of Week 5
•
Required Practice Day
•
•
•
Typically in a public venue
•
•
Deliverables may be due!
You must attend…
Opportunity for community awareness
Scheduled practice times
•
July 31, 2010
Signup at Kickoff
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
21
Mall Day – Practice Day
•
•
This is your LAST chance to practice on the field…
Mall Day is MANDATORY…
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
July 31, 2010
Turn in Deliverables
Practice on the “real” playing field…
Practice Driving
Practice Strategy
Practice Driver/Spotter Communication
Practice Against Other Machines
Identify/Make Last Minute Adjustments
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
22
Machine Compliance Check
•
•
•
Typically the night before Game Day
Turn in remaining deliverables (e.g., notebooks)
Machine is tested for compliance
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Size
Weight
Kit parts & quantities
Illegal construction methods (e.g., welding, glued motors, …)
Students must attend
We prefer no adults during compliance check
Must achieve compliance to participate on Game Day
DO NOT show up at the last minute!
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
23
Game Day!
•
•
•
•
•
•
July 31, 2010
Full day of activity (8am – 5pm)
Full throttle: Head-to-Head matches
every 6 minutes
Table Displays Judged
Spirit & Sportsmanship Judged
Marketing Presentations Judged
Student Informal Interviews
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
24
Game Day!
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
25
Agenda
9:30AM
BEST Introduction/Overview
Roles, Rules, Resources
Engineering Design Process
11:30AM
Lunch
12:00PM
1:00PM
The BEST Kit: Control System
Programming Your Robot
MathWorks Simulink Hands-On
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
26
Student, Teacher, Mentor
Roles
If you build it...they will fail!
Role of Team Sponsor (1)
• Primarily team logistics
• Recruit students for the team
• get posters hung, flyers made
• Determine student eligibility for the program
• Have primary responsibility for the students
• Enforce school rules and code of conduct
• Recruit team mentors
• Schedule tool safety training
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
28
Role of Team Sponsor (2)
• Coordinate with other disciplines
• art, language, shop teachers, etc.
• Manage access to school facilities and equipment
• Manage transportation to and from events
• bus or other transportation, drivers
• Manage parent permission for student participation
• travel, handling power equipment, photo release, etc.
• Build student leadership
• Support student organization
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
29
Building The BEST Team
•
•
•
•
•
•
Most successful teams are composed of mixed gradelevels and minimum 2 technical mentors
Teams operate best from a single campus population
Design and build facilities are necessary
Safety Training is MANDATORY
Students learn best when they are responsible for ALL
activities
Mentors and Teachers are primarily for basic
guidance and consultation
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
30
Student Eligibility
•
•
•
•
School determines student eligibility
Teams are unlimited on size*
Encourage teams with mixed grade-levels
Encourage students with varying skill sets/experience
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Engineering/ tech
Science
Math
Shop
Computer
Web
Arts
Writing/Language
Spirit
*There
July 31, 2010
may be a maximum number of awards per team based upon available budget
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
31
The Mentor Experience (1)
Role of Mentors
•
•
•
•
Provide an understanding of engineering process
•
•
•
•
Guide student brainstorming sessions
•
Encourage student participation
Explain the importance of schedules and budgets
Provide technical guidance
Ensure students consider all phases &
deliverables
Discuss methods for evaluating design concepts
Describe prototyping methods
Pose questions to force team to think through
ideas
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
32
The Mentor Experience (2)
How to Operate
• Encourage proper organization early
• Promote teamwork/ teaming concepts
• Ensure the team
• Identifies requirements/ set goals up front
• Sets realistic schedules
• Has on-time deliverables
•
•
•
•
Teach the Engineering Design Process
Teach design margin (weight, size)
Promote new design/invention…steer away reuse
Follow the rules, be an example
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
33
The Mentor Experience(3)
How Much Time Will This Take?
• Meeting times vary by team/school
• Most meet after school (at least)
• Commit to regular participation
• Put in the time that you can…anything helps
• You are providing guidance
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
34
Role of the Students
•
•
•
•
Students Learn the Most By Doing It
• Guide the Students, Don’t Direct the Team
• Make Them Work, Don’t Give Them Answers
Students are Responsible for
• What They Do
• What They Don’t Do
Students Determine Meeting Times
Students organize/run meetings (with
encouragement/guidance)
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
35
The Rules
Read...before you ask...
Documents and more documents
• There are LOTS of documents to be reviewed
• This is JOB #1…starting at Kickoff
• Assign one or more students to be Rules Expert
• BEST is about product development process
•
•
•
•
The team is judged on their process
Team organization is KEY to succes
Document everything as you go
Emphasize planning before execution
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
37
So What’s in the Rules?
• Robot Head-to-Head Competition
•
•
•
•
•
Game Specific Rules + Field Drawings
Generic Rules
Returnables Kit List
Consumables Kit List
Online Q&A
• BEST Award Activities and Judging
• General & Hub Specific Policy Documents
• Scoresheets/Rubriks
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
38
The Kit
Insert links to graphics
• Returnables Kit List
July 31, 2010
• Consumables Kit List
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
39
On-Line Question & Answer
• Use Q&A to pose questions regarding clarification of
rules, field, kits, judging, etc.
• Designate a student to have Q&A responsibility
• Monitor daily
• Hundreds of questions will be asked (…some useful)
• Please do not pose questions until you have THOROUGHLY
READ THE RULES!
• Q&A will be password protected until after last
Kickoff (9/18)
• Abuse may result in your team being blocked from
using Q&A system
http://www.bestinc.org/cgi-bin/bestqna.pl
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
40
So What’s in the Rules?
• Robot Head-to-Head Competition
•
•
•
•
•
Game Specific Rules + Field Drawings
Generic Rules
Returnables Kit List
Consumables Kit List
Online Q&A
• BEST Award Activities and Judging
• General & Hub Specific Policy Documents
• Scoresheets/Rubriks
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
41
BEST Award Activities
• Project Engineering Notebook (25%)
• Marketing Presentation (25%)
• Team Exhibit and Interviews (20%)
• Spirit and Sportsmanship (15%)
• Robot Performance (15%)
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
42
BEST Award Scoresheets
• Defines the EXACT criteria for each category and
relative weight
• This is WHAT YOUR TEAM IS JUDGED ON!
• Don’t ignore these requirements or you will not place
high!
Good
July 31, 2010
Bad
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
43
BEST Award Score Sheets
2009 Project Engineering Notebook Score Sheet
Purpose: To document the process used to design, build, and test the
robot (25 Points)
Possible
Points
Score
DESIGN PROCESS (18 Points)

Implementation of the Engineering Design Process
Evidence that the engineering process was effectively used.
25
Comments:

Brainstorming Approaches
How well organized and productive was the brainstorming approach used
and documented.
25
Comments:

Analytical Evaluation of Design Alternatives
Use of analytical and mathematical skills in deciding upon and
implementing design alternatives.
25
Comments:

Offensive and Defensive Evaluation
Analysis of gaming strategies and design elements to achieve goals
25
Comments:

Design Creativity
Overall use of creativity to solve the problem presented in the game.
25
Comments:

Support Documentation
CAD/other drawings, photos, team organization, meeting minutes, test
results, etc. that support the main document.
25
Comments:
Page 1 of 2
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
44
BEST Award Score Sheets (2)
2009 Project Engineering Notebook Score Sheet
RESEARCH PAPER (4 Points)
▪
▪
▪
Correlation between game and current and future use of similar
technology
Comments:
Any related information of game theme, such as history, famous
inventor(s), or major milestones.
Comments:
Creativity in linking game theme to appropriately related science content
10
10
10
Comments:
▪
Proper use of grammar and composition throughout paper, citations of
sources used to gather information for paper, stayed within 2-5 page limit
Comments:
10
OVERALL QUALITY AND COMPLETENESS OF NOTEBOOK (8 Points)

15
Submission of completed Team Demographics Form

Organization and appearance
Table of contents, summary, page numbers, discussion of evaluation points, linkage to
appendices.
Comments:

Adherence to specifications
Standard binder, business font no smaller than 12 pt., double-spaced (single spaced
ok in tables and outlines), 30 one-sided page limit for main section, 20 doublesided page limit for appendices, 1” margins, required cover information.
Comments:

Quality of content
Well written descriptions, clear photo labels, lack of extraneous material, etc.
15
15
15
Comments:
July 31, 2010
Total
250
Final score:
÷10
25
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
÷ 10
45
Project Engineering Notebook
•
•
•
•
•
•
Documents your engineering design process
This is NOT a photo album…
Use photos and diagrams efficiently
Check your gramr and speling
Don’t write it the night before it’s due
Requires participation from the design team
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
46
Team Exhibit & Interviews
•
•
•
•
Your exhibit does not document the robot design!
Promotion of BEST in the community
Foster BEST spirit, camaraderie, & participation
Evidence of sportsmanship
• You can’t display what you haven’t done…
• Team exhibits are often themed
• Judges perform informal interviews with students at
the team exhibits and in the pits
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
47
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
48
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
49
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
50
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
51
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
52
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
53
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
54
Marketing Presentation
•
•
•
•
15 minute Powerpoint presentation
Minimum 4 students participate, no adults
Present to a panel of judges
Should cover:
•
•
•
•
Company demographics
Marketing strategies employed
Design and construction processes
Technological resources & invention
• Presentation times are assigned by the hub
• Don’t be late, don’t go over your time
• Practice, practice, practice
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
55
Spirit & Sportsmanship
•Pretty self-explanatory
•Signs, posters, trinkets, hand-outs
•Bands, cheerleaders, mascots
•Dress the part
•Sorry…no throwing objects into the stands
•Capitol BEST Spirit Break! 2 minutes of fun…
•Visible positive attitudes regardless of performance
•Support for others
•Graceful winning and losing
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
56
Team Resources
Web Resources
 http://www.bestinc.org
 Resources Page
 File manager
 Notebook upload
 http://robotevents.com
 Team Demographics
 http://www.capitol-best.org
 Team information
 Team websites
 Direct links / Other documentation
 http://resources.tstc.edu/bobcat
 Under Development
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
58
Organizing Your Team
Organizing the Team
• Educate your students on teams/teaming
• Organize, set responsibilities and goals
• Project Management
• Maintain/enforce team goals, schedules, deliverables, etc.
• Design Team
• Function A Sub-Team
• Function B Sub-Team
• Software/Programming Team
• Build Team
• Kit management
• Construction of components
• Test Team
• Verification & testing by 3rd party
• Data analysis, proof of concepts
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
60
Organizing the Team (2)
• Marketing/Publicity Team
•
•
•
•
Marketing presentation
Graphic arts
Costumes/Themes/Decoration
Radio/TV/newspaper
• Community Relations/Awareness Team
• Outreach to the community; events & activities
• Table display/Exhibit booth design & construction
• Team webpage design
• Finance/Fundraising Team
• For incidentals, table display, travel, team t-shirts, etc.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
61
Organizing the Team (3)
• Spirit & Sportsmanship Team
• Plan for events
• Recruitment, invitations
• Helping other teams
• Documentation Team
•
•
•
•
July 31, 2010
Engineering Design Notebook
Technical writing
Photography
Videography
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
62
BEST Teacher Wisdom
•
•
•
•
•
•
Don’t do it all yourself…
Can’t is not in the vocabulary of visionaries
Take a camera everywhere you go
Don’t paint the robot or booth the night before
Last minute changes won’t fix missed driving practice
Good judgment comes from experience, which
comes from bad judgment
• A chassis on the ground is worth 2 on the
chalkboard, and 10 on CAD
• Every team member is capable of making a unique
contribution
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
63
BEST Teacher Wisdom
• Compromise is required
• Part of good teaming is learning how to disagree
• Don’t underestimate the power of cardboard, straws,
paper clips, rubber bands, and some glue…
• The greatest design in 6 weeks is of no use without
someone that can drive it
• BEST teachers help each other
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
64
Summary
 Don’t be Overwhelmed
 Set goals
 Do what is reasonable for your team
 DON’T GIVE UP!





Guide the Students, Don’t try to do it for them
Recruit parents and other teachers
Be dedicated, be an example
Six weeks goes by VERY fast
Winning is the benefit, not the purpose…
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
65
Agenda
9:30AM
BEST Introduction/Overview
Roles, Rules, Resources
Engineering Design Process
11:30AM
Lunch
12:00PM
1:00PM
The BEST Kit: Control System
Programming Your Robot
MathWorks Simulink Hands-On
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
66
Engineering Design Process
Agenda
9:30AM
BEST Introduction/Overview
Roles, Rules, Resources
Engineering Design Process
11:30AM
Lunch
12:00PM
1:00PM
The BEST Kit: Control System
Programming Your Robot
MathWorks Simulink Hands-On
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
68
The BEST Kit
Two Parts to the Kit:
• Consumables
• Returnables
(aka Control System)
Agenda
9:30AM
BEST Introduction/Overview
Roles, Rules, Resources
Engineering Design Process
Morning Summary
11:30AM
Lunch
12:00PM
1:00PM
The BEST Kit: Control System
Programming Your Robot
MathWorks Simulink Hands-On
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
70
Software For Teams
 Programming Your Robot
Graphical icon drag & drop.
System Modeling & Simulation.
Automatic C-code generation.
12 month 20-seat license.
Graphical block-based C-programming.
Teaches C programming constructs.
Online hardware debugger.
4 month 3-seat license.
Textual C-programming.
Full Integrated Design Environment.
Real-time code debugger.
4 month 3-seat license.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
71
Software For Teams
 3D Computer Aided Design (CAD)
3D Solid Modeling Tool.
Mech. Modeling, Simulation, Drawings, etc.
150 day license.
 Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
Integrated within SolidWorks.
Tooling interface to many CNC machines.
4-month license.
 CAD Curriculum/Training Tools
Integrated within SolidWorks.
Step-by-step Video tutorials.
SolidWorks certification curriculum.
4-month license.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
72
Software For Teams
 General Computation
Powerful computational tool.
Powerful documentation tool.
Great research and analysis tool.
12 month license per student.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
73
Programming Your Robot
BEST Robotics Library for Simulink
BACKUP
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
75
easyC
Drag blocks from
here
Block-based Programming.
Easy to learn C programming.
Drag blocks here to build your
program.
Context sensitive so you can’t
make a program structure
mistake.
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights
August 1, 2010
76
Game Specific Rules + Field Drawings
• Game Theme
• Useful in BEST Award research paper
•
•
•
•
Game Objective
Rules for playing the game
Point values and scoring
Tournament format
• Seeding Rounds (typically 8 matches per team)
• Semifinals (6 total matches)
• Finals (3 total matches)
• Drawings of the game field
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
77
Generic Rules
• Safety rules
• Tools allowed in pits, safety glasses, etc.
• Robot materials & construction constraints
• Kit do’s and don’ts, cceptable energy sources, replacement
of parts, non-functional decorations, no welding, etc.
• Robot size/weight constraints
• 24lbs, 24” on a side
•
•
•
•
Robot compliance checking
Interaction with field & other robots
Match setup/ robot removal (30 sec)
Drivers & spotters requirements
• Min 50% of team or 5 drivers (rotate per match)
• General penalties
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
78
Kit Notes
• Do’s and don’ts for using the kit components
• Some guidance on “how” to use the components
• Diagrams and photos aid in identifying kit
components by name
• Designate student(s) to become the experts on
kit components
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
79
Q&A
Feel free to contact me or other Capitol BEST
representatives anytime during the next 6weeks.
Take advantage of the Team Mentoring…
July 31, 2010
Copyright © 2010 BEST Robotics, Inc. All rights reserved.
80