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Made possible by a grant from Creative Financial Group and Penn Engineering, The Central Bucks School District Smart Racetrack Robotics Competition is open to Elementary, Middle and High School students. Prizes will be provided for first, second and third place finishers.
The objective will be to show judges your design process with the creation of a finished Smart Robotic Racetrack and make a brief presentation of your game using Robotic Components.
Design Process- Evidence of Design should include sketches, audio/video clips of team meetings, and/or CAD drawings.
Racetrack Game Creation- Evidence should include a Smart Robotics Racetrack complete with:
1. A completed Smart Robotic Racetrack
2. A technical write-up of the rules of the Smart Racetrack so that participants can "play" or "race" the racetrack game fairly.
3. Evidence of Smart Robotic (Code) control- This should be accomplished using LED's, motors under the control of a microcontroller or microcomputer- Examples can include many platforms like Arduino Uno, Raspberry Pi, MicroBit, CRICKIT, Sphero and etc. Please note that training and resources will be provided by the teachers and students of the CB West Robotics Club.
Links-
CRICKIT Robotics - with Circuit Playground Express
MicroBit Robotics - with CRICKIT
Arduino Uno Robotics- 2 motors
Arduino Robotics- 2 Servos with joystick
Presentation- Present the finished racetrack game to others with an emphasis on the problem-solving/engineering process. Clearly explain the rules of your racetrack game and then set it up for participants to play it.
Please view this webpage for more information, links, tutorials and competition kits as we prepare for our first competition. Please direct questions to jtaylor@cbsd.org. Thank you for your interest.
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Begin with research about making an RC racetrack- Key Seach Terms- Mini rc racetracks- The cars used for this competition are scaled 1/64" = 1'0" and will look similar to this:
2. Make some simple sketches of your racetrack.
2. Selection of Materials- A large piece of cardboard with paper walls will work just fine. Consider experimenting with using different materials.
3. After making the racetrack, use the RC cars to test out the track. Does it work well? What can be improved? Hills? Ramps? Jumps? Double decker?
4. This is the most challenging part of this project: Determine the game part using Robotics. Could the SPHERO bot be used to create a moveable obstacle to slow down opponents' racecars? Could a MicroBIT/circuit playground/CRIKIT be used to wire in LED lights or spinning motors onto the racetrack? Could an arduino or Pi be used with a servo motor to make a wall move to create a shortcut in the racetrack game. Be sure to use extension wires and battery holders with your chosen microcontroller. For advanced users- build a robot to be an integral part of your racetrack game!
5. Test and retest your game.
6. Determine a Rules of Play document to ensure fair play of your Racetrack Game.
7. Present the completed Smart Robotic Racetrack game.
Stay tuned for more information.
