FIRST Robotics 2020- The Von Frankenstein Moment

Most of the odd little traditions from my earliest involvement with robotics have gone by the wayside.  What the FIRST team is building now is so far beyond the comic relief combat robots that my son and I were making twenty years ago.  But there is still one private tradition that I think will always be there, at least in the back of my mind.  The Von Frankenstein Moment*.  You know, the point at which you throw the switch and your creation comes to life.  Here, there's nothing like The Original:

This year's project has long been operational in its various prototypes and subsystems, but I kept hoping for The Moment when everything came together, and when it acquired a "life" of its own as more than a stitched together assortment of parts.

I saw the first glimpse of it when the autonomous targeting system flawlessly drove the robot automatically to the ideal launch point and then put three rapid fire shots into the highest point target.  Alas, two trials later it was firing randomly at a reflection it saw on the wall.  Or maybe Skynet was just beginning to become Aware....

Eventually of course software dialed it in and the robot seeks out its target and fires accurately.  You can even kick it around a bit, as there will be defense played in this game.  It cares not, simply re-scans, targets and carries on.

Various late season images.

Our pit area.  The media station was a joint project last year with our students and the designers at a sponsor.  It shows video (here the frame being lasered) and has nice front illuminated graphics.  We will be stationing our tireless spokesperson at this post.

This year's shirts.  Displayed on the remnants of the steel sheet we used to cut the robot parts.  I think it requires about 50 individual pieces to make this machine.

My season long campaign against entropy and lost parts draws near to its end....

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* In the original literary work and most of the early films the Mad Scientist is referred to as Victor Frankenstein and the Von designation is not used.  In fact, not appropriate since Mary Shelly wrote him as being of Swiss/Italian origins, not German.  Some of the later cheesy horror films switched this to a more Germanic sounding Victor Von Frankenstein.  Guess that shows you my tastes in entertainment earlier in life....