2006 Zorgatron

While the simple design of our five-foot tall robot, named Zorgatron, was not technically sophisticated, our robot was consistent in its performance. Zorgatron was positioned and programmed, while in the autonomous mode, to seek out the closest ground-level goal, and dump its entire cache of balls. When control of the robot went into manual mode, Zorgatron was able to defend its goals and block other robots from scoring. That consistency, combined with a cunning defensive strategy, led to a winning performance.

Zorgatron, the 2006 Robot.

Zorgotron was constructed of materials we could work with in a home setting: aluminum sheeting, plywood, PVC pipe for the frame that held the net. Built on the chassis that came with the FIRST kit, Zorgotron measured 26″ x 36″ x 5′. Custom wheels were purchased for IFI; we used magic sliders as nubs in the front, instead of wheels. CIM motors were used for driving.

MORE FACTS

The footprint was 28″ x 38″
The sliders in the front were machined HDPE nubs (HDPE is a type of plastic, stands for high density polyethylene).
The magic sliders died in the first round of the practice matches at Wisconsin because the ramps tore them up.
The gear reduction for the drive train was 29:1 because of the monstrous wheel sprockets we bought.
It was designed to provide 52 lbs of pushing force.
It had a top speed of 6.4 ft.

Game:

Aim High is played by two alliances, red and blue, each consisting of three robots. During a 10-second autonomous mode robots are programmed to score into any of the three goals: one raised center goal marked by a green vision target and two corner goals at floor level. At the end of the autonomous period the alliance with the most points will gain a 10-point bonus and will be placed on defense for round two. Rounds two, three and four are each 40 seconds long and are human-controlled rounds. Between rounds two and three the alliances switch from offense to defense or vice versa. At the start of round 4 any alliance can score into the corresponding goals. At the end of the match any alliance can receive bonus points by placing its three robots on a platform below the center goal. The alliance with the most points wins with scoring as follows: 3 points for any ball scored in the center goal, 1 point for any ball scored in the corner goals, 10 bonus points for scoring the highest in the autonomous round and 25 points for placing all 3 robots on the platform at the end (10 points for 2 robots and 5 points for 1 robot).