Not exactly a computer symposium, but worth mention on this blog. Roboknights 2007 is being organised at Delhi Public School, R K Puram, on the 3rd and 4th of November.
At the Code Warriors Base (read DPS VK), we guys were concentrating on organizing Code Wars, and other stuff. To get to the point, this event was given last priority. To the extent, that the making of the ‘Gothride’ started on the the same day as the event (midnnight ;-P).
I myself was told just a day before the event, that I was included the event. What the heck, might as well come along.
I got at the venue about an half-an-hour before schedule, knowing very well that my teammates would be arriving half-an-hour after registration closed (was pretty close). Actually after about 45 minutes of waiting, I started getting a bit tense. I did not have a mobile phone and had no way of contacting Ankur or Waris (I’ll tell you more about this guy later, @Waris – Send me the damn pics already). I started wondering if they had abandoned the event coz’ they weren’t able to make the bot on time. Stupid of me.
First event -Strawbridge
2 packs of straws, 1 pack of AMAZINGLT blunt pins were what we got. They expected a bridge that could take a weight of minimum 2 kg. Seemed pretty easy. Got 2 and a half hours. The pins were a big pain in the ass thumb.
Lunch was fun. It was in their girls hostel. I saw a boy quite calmly coming out of the girls toilet there. Even pointed it out to him. Didn’t get it, even then.
Second event – Tough
Wasn’t named just for the heck of it.
Tough is an obstacle course around which you have to make your bot go. Pebbles → 3 Bumps → Maneuver around bottles → 30° incline (officially 15°)
The ‘Gothride’ consisted of a plank of wood, with 4 DC motors attached, connected to four switches, which were connected to a battery eliminator, with voltage control. Simple. We taped some rubber band around the wheels for extra traction. Unfortunately, things did NOT go as intended.
During the practice session, we noticed that the wheels on the left and right side of the bot were going in OPPOSITE directions. It seems that Ankur messed the wiring up a bit. The guy panicked, saying stuff like ‘We can’t repair it now…we’ll have to try it without repairing.’ Had to drag the fellow to our workplace.
The actual prelims weren’t good for us either. It got stuck once on pebbles on the first try. Second try, stuck on the first bump. Third try, stuck on pebbles. End of story. Later when I got the time, I managed to check the incline. Without more than the normal voltage, the bot could climb up the incline. Increase the power, and well…the wheels start slipping.
We also lost the Strawbridge event. Apparently, a last minute, addition caused all the weight to land on 2 very small parts. We managed the minimum, but couldn’t take much more.
Rather sad. But, hey, next week, comes Exun, and the defending champs (namely us) are gonna give their best shot.