The WEGO Robotics Team has begun gearing up for a new season. 

These past couple weeks, members (new and old) have been gathering in the LRC, preparing for when meets begin in early November. Unlike last year, in which there was both a Varsity team as well as a rookie team, this year, the teams have been combined into one to focus on teamwork, innovation, performing the best they can under one umbrella.

“I just felt last year, with two teams going that I could not do my job of mentoring either one of them, because I was always putting out fires,” robotics coach Carol Naughton said. 

In preparation for when the official competition begins, the robotics team consisting of members new and old have all taken to working on different parts of the robot-developing process in order to be as efficient as possible, as well as to help the new recruits learn the ropes. 

Beginning with design work on the chassis (frame), one of their main goals for the working robot design is for it to be as light as possible. Naughton also made sure to highlight the importance of thinking about the function of a piece before putting it on the robot itself, as they’ll have to add upon it throughout the year as the season goes on.

“It’s kind of like figuring out little puzzles. Almost like different flavors of complicated LEGOs,” Nick Riconosciuto, a three-year robotics veteran said.

This unique blend of teamwork and puzzle-solving has motivated new members to compete for the teams limited spots this year, many of them eager to take part in one of the many roles needed to complete a finished robot. Whether that be programming, assembling parts, or even working with a 3D printer, there is no shortage of things to accomplish in the tedious but rewarding process of constructing their mechanical masterpiece.

“The thing that really stuck out to me about this club is because you’re kind of working together,” Peter O’Brien, a senior and new robotics team member, said. “So far, it’s pretty fun problem solving and getting to figure things out that I’ve never worked on before.”

During the actual meets, the rounds begin with teams being randomly paired together, promoting quick thinking and allowing the members to work with another school. The competition itself is split into sections of autonomous and driver-controlled sections, with the former being worth more points overall. The biggest challenge of the process is working to account for your teammates strengths and weaknesses, as it is impossible to know beforehand how their robot build will compare to yours. 

This year, the course involves the robot picking up pieces with a claw and putting them in boxes while human players work on the side to aid their robot. The last thing the robot will have to do is climb a complex monkey bar-like structure in the middle and reach a lower and higher bar for more and more points.

We are using some new equipment this year which is allowing our skill set to grow. We have a new Limelight smart camera with an AI processor that allows us to track the robot’s movement on the field for more precise programming. We are also using a new 3D printer which allows for multiple colors of filament and is much faster than our old one which we were loaned by the science department. Finally, we will be hosting one of our league meets this year on January 11,“ Naughton said.

And though spots are not open for the team anymore, WEGO students can still get involved in robotics and help throughout their season as they could always use an extra hand at home meets to inspect the robots beforehand and make sure things go safe and sound.