Clarkson robotics team wins regional competition

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Mar 26, 2004

The Clarkson University 2004 FIRST Robotics Team received first place in the FIRST Robotics regional competition recently held in Long Island. Clarkson was one of 36 teams from New York and New England competing in the event. This is the second of two regional competitions the team has participated in this spring. The Clarkson team is now set to compete in the national championship event that will take place next month in Atlanta.

Earlier this month, the team participated in the BAE Systems Granite State Regional Competition in Manchester, N.H. After finishing a disappointing 35th out of 51 registered teams, the students focused on making a strong showing at the Long Island Competition. Confident in the design and capabilities of their robot, the team concentrated on driver training and the human player aspects of the competition.

Division By Zero, the name of the Clarkson FIRST Robotics Team, consists of 25 Clarkson students working with 30 students from Salmon River and Massena high schools. Technical advisers include Jim Carroll, professor of electrical and computer engineering; Charles Storrin, a retired supervisor for electrical maintenance at New York Power Authority; and high school teachers Bernie Bissonnette (Massena Central) and Chuck Raiti (Salmon River). The team includes senior electrical and mechanical engineering students who help design the complex robot systems, such as an automated gripper mechanism, as part of their formal degree programs.

Last January, along with more than 900 teams from around the world, the Clarkson team received the instructions for this year's game, "FIRST Frenzy: Raising the Bar." The students then had six weeks to design and create a robot that scores points by shooting 13-inch and 30-inch balls into both stationary and mobile goals in two-minute matches against robot opponents. The 24-foot-by-48-foot playing field also includes a six-inch high plat: form in the middle with a 10-foot bar overhead, which the robots can hang on to receive additional points.

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is a national program that aims to inspire high school students to pursue college degrees and ultimately careers in science and technology. The annual robotics competition teams high school students with engineers from universities and industry to design and build a remote-controlled robot that competes in a sporting-like event.