We are going to the
Run for the Robots Premier Event
May 2026, Lexington, KY
Stuff we like
Here are some links and information that have helped us this season
.png)
Robot Parts
goBILDA® products are purpose-designed to lower the barrier-to-entry for robotics. As part of that mission, we’re proud to provide discounts and technical resources for participants in the FIRST Tech Challenge, which fosters STEM education for grades 7-12.
We are using 4-bar Odometry Pods, which use dead-wheel encoders to more accurately measure movement. They are spring-loaded to maintain pressure on the field. They greatly increase consistency in autonomous routines. The Pinpoint coprocessor performs sensor fusion between the encoders and the IMU to deliver precise location information.
The Limelight Camera is a powerful vision system that, when integrated with code, is able to enhance robot operation. Different “pipelines” are setup to manage separate tasks. We use the Limelight to:
-
Read the April Tag on the Obelisk
-
Aim our rotatable turret at the goal
-
Measure the distance from the goal and adjust the speed of the flywheel shooter to ensure accurate shots
Code, Design, and Compete with Robots!
FIRST® Tech Challenge students work together with their mentors to design and build robots to compete in a dynamic and exciting challenge released every September.
Teams program classroom-scale robots to follow autonomous commands before student drivers take control in two-on-two matches.
On and off the field, students develop STEM skills, engage in community outreach, practice engineering innovation, and build confidence to help them succeed.
We Heart JAVA
& Pedro Pathing
We are learning how to program in JAVA using Android Studio and Git Hub. We are developing good programming habits now that will make us excellent team members in our future careers.
Pedro Pathing is a specialized framework that was designed to help with the creation of code for Auto navigation, especially for Mecanum drivetrains. It generates smooth autonomous navigation and pathing code for FTC robots using Bezier curves with error correction. While this is an amazing tool, it has a steep learning curve and tuning the robot is time consuming and difficult. We learned a lot!