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Robots battled it out in the country’s first Mini Robot Rumble last weekend, and a small team of Orewa College students was among those who took part.
The inaugural Mini Robot Rumble is an Auckland University Robotics Association initiative that saw small robots built by students “battle to the death” by knocking each other out of action through several rounds until an eventual winner was declared.
It is this aspect of ‘bash and crash’ that appealed to the two Year 9 Orewa College students, Daniel Vandersloot and Daniel Wing, who were at the controls of the robot they call Cheesebot – because it is shaped like a wedge of cheese.
“In other competitions, robots are pre-programmed to complete certain tasks and manoevres,” Daniel Wing says. “Getting to destroy other robots is quite different and should be fun. It’s why we wanted to enter.”
There is a pit in the middle of the ring where fights took place, and the Orewa students’ robot was designed to be push other robots into that.
It was designed and built by Year 12 Orewa College student Isaac Kirkwood who was overseas at the time of the competition. He says key to building the robot, which he named Bridget, was about keeping it simple. It’s made from a computer case lid, bent into a wedge and designed to be very sturdy, take hits and be easy to repair and recharge between battles.
Kits for the robots, valued at around $2000 each, are provided to teams that enter at a cost of $250 with the rest covered by sponsor Vodafone.
Physics and science teacher Nish Rabeendran says Isaac made a lot of modifications to the basic kit, using parts from an old computer. He also made the motor more powerful. Not only does the robot move fast and push hard but it can also quickly spin around and change direction.
Nish says no weapons or electrocution was allowed, but you can add blades that have the potential to cut off the wheels of an opponent’s robot. Glass around the ring protects competitors and spectators. Also for safety reasons, a weight restriction of 1.33kg applied to the robots, which Bridget is very close to.
Around 16 teams took part in the event. Organisers expect these numbers will grow once people get a chance to see what is involved in the Robot Rumble. The University’s Robotics Association has successfully completed in larger scale versions of the event in Australia – until now NZ students have had to travel overseas for this style of robotic competition.
Vodafone’s Technology Director Tony Baird believes supporting robotics and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education in NZ is crucial.
“We know how important it is to grow future engineers and technologists. It’s fantastic to think that many of the students taking part in this competition will be able to use what they’ve learnt to bring about transformation in this rapidly evolving digital age,” he said.
Find out how the Orewa College team did – information will be linked to this story.
Update July 27, 2017:
The team made it to the Quarter Finals.
