WEEK 3 RECAP

Intake:     
Members of the intake subsystem continued  working in two groups. The first group worked on finalizing the design and manufacturing a more robust prototype. This prototype is incredibly adjustable, allowing students to rotate and change the dimensions in all axes as necessary. This prototype also makes finding the optimal dimensions for intake of both cones and cubes much easier. Members attached the prototype to the team’s practice swerve chassis to monitor its performance under similar conditions to actual competitions.

The second group moved ahead with the manufacturing, assembling and testing of the intake prototype. It was mounted to a swerve chassis with the goal of observing its behavior at high speeds. After testing, students decided the configuration of double rollers on the system were not up to their standards. Along with mechanical issues, the group also discovered dead spots where the system was not touching the cone at all. Over the next week, students will be fine-tuning and fixing any other problems that may rise with the system.

End-Effector:
Students worked on finalizing a design and basic geometry for the end-effector. The system will be placed on a pivot and attached to the elevator to properly perform the handoff between the two. 

Lift/Extend/Launch:
This week began with the build leads delegating the necessary work to subgroups within the subsystem. Among these subgroups, the first focused on organizing the CAD and assembly. The second worked on routing and talked through gear ratios. The third group started work on a bearing block. Members regrouped in the middle of the week to create a prototype for testing different aspects of the design. These tests proved to be incredibly successful, and worked to boost the morale of the team. As the week progressed, these subgroups continued working on their respective projects, making sure the final products were functioning as intended.

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Software: 
The software group finished autonomous pathing and continued making progress with AprilTag tracking. Students finished the drivetrain simulation and are in the process of transporting different drivetrain code to test on the robot. Members built a second robot to aid with testing prototypes.

Ops: 
Team Operations spent time completing this season’s Business Plan and Safety Manual this week. They also finished pending tasks for the upcoming ‘Hour of Code’ program and a robot demonstration at the Billerica Council on Aging. Members ended the week by updating the team’s competition banner and brainstorming for this season’s button design.