VEX Project Update
5th Class have been working very hard on this year's VEX Challenge, called 'Pitching In'.
Our class is split up into five teams, who have each constructed and modified their own robot.
See below a video of Team Spark's Robot in action!
Here are pictures of some of the robots so far!
Before building their robots, each group began designing and researching potential robot designs to meet the challenge presented. Watch the video for this year's challenge here!
We are preparing to compete at the VEX Regional Final at the start of May. Only one robot from our class will be able to carry on to the Regional Final, and this will be decided at an in-house BBNS VEX Championships before Easter. Then the whole class will get behind the best performing robot, and we will all go to the Regional Finals together!
Of course, VEX isn’t all about building a robot:
The Programming Team’s job is to program the robot to autonomously push the balls around the arena and into the field goal. They are currently learning how to use the programming software VEXcode, something they had never used before. They are experimenting with writing their own programs and testing them on robots in a virtual setting, while they wait for the real robots to be fully constructed!
The Engineering Logbook Team are in charge of recording everything done in the project. Their job is to show how their team got from a bunch of Vex pieces to a fully functioning robot; from confusing numbers and terms, to a working program. They are recording every aspect of the design process in pictures, writing and diagrams.
This year's STEM research theme is Biomimicry. The STEM Research Team’s conducting research on how nature can be used as inspiration for the creation of new robotic technologies. They are currently researching and designing a new robot to collect rubbish autonomously from rivers, so as to help keep our oceans clean.
All the students have put their very best foot forward in the project to date, and I am sure they will come out the other side with many new skills and expertise in STEM/robotics. Stay posted for the BBNS VEX Championships Finals in April.