Robots for Exploration and Awareness of Science and Technology
Goals of RobotsEAST
Stimulate students’ interest in studying engineering, science and technology by providing exciting, concrete applications of their studies
Provide a unique opportunity for exploring engineering, science and technology
Promote co-operation and teamwork between students, educators, industry and parents Foster students’ creativity
Interest young people in careers in engineering, science and technology Increase public awareness of engineering, science and technology
Attention Returning teams - Important Changes for 2015 Competition:
Over the last 19 years Robots EAST has been organized by a group of volunteers with partial support from Dalhousie’s Faculty of Engineering. In effort to continue this legacy regardless of volunteer enrollment the Faculty of Engineering has decided to take over the organization of the event. This means that human and financial resources will be provided to organize the competition and grow it in a sustainable way. The organizers recognize that to do this many changes must be made and 2015 competition will see the beginning of it. The following are the major things that will be different this year:
1. The event venue will be changed from Dalplex to Sexton Memorial Gymnasium. Due to reduced amount of space the teams will not have their workspace in the gym but in designated rooms close to it. To make up for this inconvenience the organizers will provide teams with access to technical support staff who will help with mechanical and electronics repairs, welding, and machining.
2. The competition website will be overhauled and migrated into Dalhousie owned servers. While this process will take some time (the new site is expected to be up by Christmas 2014), it will ensure the site is up and accessible at all times.
3. Based on the feedback received in recent years the competition arena will be designed with a focus on simplicity and ease of movement for the robots. An effort will still be made to keep the playfield interactive.
4. The mission release date will be even earlier than last year in effort to give teams more time to design and build the robots. The mission details will be released on Friday, January 9, 2015.
5. There is a planned change in the robot kits for the 2016 competition, which is explained later in this document. Kits will remain the same for 2015. Teams joining Robots EAST for the first time this year will not be required to purchase the new robot kit but will be provided with one on a loan basis. At the end of the tournament all of the participating teams will be asked to turn in their kits or parts of them to the organizers for a retrofit.
Explanation of the projected 2016 kit changes:
The current Robots EAST kits have remained mostly unchanged since the first competition in 1996. Due to the fact that 12V Ni-Cad Dewalt cordless drills are obsolete there is a need to source replacements for them. While there are equivalent Li-ion powered cordless drills on the market using them is not feasible without major changes to the supporting electronics, which would create a large cost.
As a solution the organizers predict that for 2016 the drills will be replaced by smaller motor-gearbox units aimed at reducing the cost of the kit and offering much more reliability and longer battery life. With that however there will be a need to reduce the overall size and weight of the robots that the teams will have to plan for.
The organizers will make an effort to retrofit all of current competitors’ kits during the summer of 2015 and to keep the associated costs down to minimum.
The Contest
High school students from the Atlantic Provinces team up with mentoring engineers, scientists, technologists and teachers to design competitive, radio-controlled robots for a robotics showdown, to be held on Friday, 1st
May and Saturday, 2nd May, 2014 at Dalhousie University in Halifax.
RobotsEAST helps to expose high school students to engineering, science and technology. We want to involve as many students, mentors, parents, siblings and educators as possible. Mentoring engineers, scientists, and technologists help students by providing knowledge and insight. Teams typically consist of 5 to 30 students, plus mentors. The competition typically involves between 16 and 24 teams from across the Atlantic Canadian Provinces.
To make the competition technically accessible, the core power and control systems of the robots are constructed from a ready-to-use kit of parts supplied by RobotsEAST. The kit contains motors, batteries and the control system. The rest of the robot – what makes it unique – is designed by students and constructed from whatever materials they choose.
Highly competitive robots can be constructed with hand tools. More sophisticated machine tools may be used, but they are not necessary. Experience has repeatedly shown that robots win because of careful, innovative design rather than a design that requires access to sophisticated tools.
The actual competition mission details will be released on Friday, 9th January, 2015. These details are only released in January to give both established and new teams an equal opportunity for success. This year, the mission release will be entirely electronic, and teams will have the opportunity to request clarification through our website’s online forum at www.robotseast.ca.
Awards
There are many ways to win RobotsEAST. The awards presented are:
RobotsEAST Atlantic Championship Award
This award is given to the team that wins the tournament. To win the tournament, a team must win as many heats as possible by scoring points on the playing field. The students from the winning team will
also receive $1000 entrance scholarships if they choose to enroll in Dalhousie University’s Engineering program. These scholarships do not “expire” at any time so students from any grade level can benefit from them.
Best Engineered Robot Award
The design of each robot must be fully documented. The judges will read the documentation and then conduct a short engineering review with team members. Judges will be looking for teams where students actually understand how their robot works and can provide reasonable rationale for their design process. Entries are due on Friday, 17th April, 2015. Note that this year, no late entries will be
accepted.
Most Innovative Strategy Award
This award is given to the team that attempts the most innovative strategy. The strategy does not need to have been implemented successfully, but it must be possible within the rules of the tournament. This award will be determined through votes of the competing teams after the last round of heats during the tournament. To keep things fair each school will be given a ballot and may vote for any team but their own.
Multi-Media Award
This award is given to the team that has prepared the best presentation covering the conceptualization, design, implementation, testing, funding, and any other aspects of their robot. Presentations may employ videos, multimedia computer presentations, Web pages, sequences of newspaper articles, or any other presentation methods. Judges will evaluate all presentations with respect to their information content, the comprehensiveness of their coverage, their style and their clarity. Entries are due on Friday, 17th April, 2015. Audio-visual entries are to be no more than 5 minutes in length. Note that this year, no late entries will be accepted.
Personnel
Your team should consist of students from one, or possibly two, high schools and mentors (teachers, engineers, scientists, or technologists). Essential ingredients of a team are:
Interested students Interested mentors A place to build the robot
Sponsorship to cover the cost of the kit and the cost of materials for the robot
Your team should consist of at least 5 students and at least 1 mentor. Students from grades 7 to 12 are welcome. Students in grades 10 and 11 can form the nucleus of a team for the following year.
To meet the goals of RobotsEAST, as many students as possible should see that engineering, science and technology are challenging, interesting, and fun. Students who are not directly involved in designing and building the robot can make a team video, design a team logo, help with fundraising, creatively document the process, or take part in some other related activity. Students are encouraged to demonstrate aspects of their robot to their non-participating schoolmates and to the local community.
An excellent place to build the robot is the high school technical education facility. If this is not possible, other possibilities include a sponsor’s facilities, at a mentor’s place of employment, in a garage or basements, at a community center, or in a classroom of a local school or university.
Cost
In order to keep costs to a minimum, the components will be the same as those used last year. The fee to enter RobotsEAST for 2015 will be as follows:
$500 Registration fee for all participating teams. Returning teams are to use their current equipment unless it is faulty in which case the organizers will repair/provide replacement parts free of charge. New teams will be provided with a competition kit on a loan basis.
Please send us your registration form and registration fee by Friday, 19th December, 2014. Registration fees should be payable to Dalhousie RobotsEAST.
Teams should budget for between $300 – $800 for materials to build the robot. Teams should also take into account the cost of travel to and from the tournament.
Sponsorship
There are two main sources of funding for teams: student fundraising, and corporate sponsors. Many teams can raise all the necessary funds via student activities such as bake sales.
However, teams should also be looking for corporate sponsors to help with the contest fee and materials budget. Companies may sponsor a team jointly with other companies, or may partially sponsor a team through in-kind contributions of parts and materials with which to build the team’s robot.
Sponsors’ names should be prominently displayed on team robots, and may be included in team banners, logos and t-shirts. Sponsors may be acknowledged publicly at the kick-off teleconference, and at any and all opportunities throughout the competition and during the contest itself. Banners and logos may be prominently displayed during the actual contest.
Some of the points that you can use to encourage companies to sponsor your team are: A company will make better contact with students who may become future employees A company will be helping students decide on their career paths
A company will be fostering students’ creativity A company will be gaining favorable public exposure
Forming a Team
To form a team, you should:
1. Identify interested students
2. Look for mentors (engineers, scientists, and technologists in local companies and government agencies are frequently willing to be involved)
3. Find sponsors
4. Register your team by completing the attached form and emailing it to the address provided below. 5. Create!
This year, all correspondence will be conducted via email and our website. For more information or to register a team, please contact:
Email: [email protected] Web: www.robotseast.ca
Cheques may be mailed to:
RobotsEAST 2015
c/o Mechanical Engineering Dept. Dalhousie University 5269 Morris St, Room C360
Halifax, NS B3H 4R2
Key Dates
Friday, 19th December 2014 Robots EAST Registration and $500 Fees Due Friday, 9th January 2015 Mission Details Released
Friday, 20th March 2014 Logo Contest Entries, T-Shirt Numbers and Sizes Due Friday, 27th March 2015 Program Sheets, Information Sheets, and Waivers Due Friday, 17th April, 2015 Best Engineered Robot and Multi-Media Entries Due Friday, 1st May and Saturday, 2nd May, 2015 RobotsEAST Competition
Mission Theme
Robots EAST 2015: Tin-Dependence Day
1996 gave birth to the first generation of Robots EAST machines. It was also the year when humanity fought off a threat of extinction as alien species invaded the Earth in the movie “Independence Day”. As the 20th
Robots EAST challenge approaches, the alien invaders have returned. This time, however, humanity cannot rely on the bravery of the now-aged Will Smith but must put their fate in artificial hands.
As a V.20 Defence Bot it is your mission now to defend humankind from the extra-terrestrial threat. You must use every joule in your batteries to protect your fellow humans and hunt down the alien invaders. The true Tin-Dependence Day will come when you find a way to destroy the mother ship, permanently stopping the alien reinforcements that threaten our very survival…
Robots for Exploration and Awareness of Science and Technology
2015 Atlantic Championship
REGISTRATION FORM
Name of School: Telephone:
Address: Fax:
Email: ______
The following people acknowledge and authorize inclusion of this school entry: Staff contact person: Signature:
School number: Email:
Home number: Email:
Principal: Signature:
Phone number: Email:
Please register by Friday, 19th December, 2015.
Registration fees are due by Friday, 19th December, 2015
Please be advised that further information will be forthcoming only to registered teams. The form should be emailed to: [email protected]
Cheques should be mailed to:
RobotsEAST 2015
c/o Mechanical Engineering Dept. Dalhousie University 5269 Morris St, Room C360
Halifax, NS B3H 4R1 Web: www.robotseast.ca
Did you participate previously in RobotsEAST? Yes No If Yes, do you require any replacement components? Yes No If Yes, which ones?
School Colours: ______________________________________________
All correspondence with registered teams will be conducted by email. Please indicate the names and email addresses of any team members you want to include on our mailing list (add extra pages if necessary). We recommend that you have at least one teacher/mentor, one student, and one parent.
Please print legibly.
