2.007 Spring 2012

Like last year, this spring I'm an undergraduate assistant (UA) for 2.007, which is basically an intro to design class that features a robot competition.  Over IAP I helped out preparing for the class.  I contributed a little to the contest table, mostly by painting a few things.  In the end it turned out great, and I think the carnival theme will be a lot of fun!

Robot Carnival!

 As seen above, there are four objects you can interact with in the competition.  At the front is a ticket booth where your robot can press the Easy Button and collect tickets.  On each side is a clown that will be holding a balloon that a robot can inflate by pumping air into a nozzle in the middle.  In the corner is a high striker, where your robot can test its strength and try to ring the bell (hammer not included).  Spanning both sides of the table is the Ferris wheel that can be spun by the robots to gain a score multiplier.

The biggest project I had over IAP was redesigning the kit display board for the class.  Each student participating in the robot competition receives a bin of materials and components at the beginning of the class.  They have to construct their entire robot from this kit throughout the course of the class, so we decided it was important to redo the old display board which was outdated and worn out.  I tried to make it look clean, with functional parts (such as the springs, wheels, and balloon pump), and here's the finished product:

For this semester, one difference for me is that I am going to assisting the electric vehicle section instead of focusing on the traditional labs that participate in the robot competition.  I'll be helping 9 or 10 students design their own personal electric vehicle, such as a scooter or a go-kart.  It should be interesting, so I'll probably be updating any significant progress on here.  Until then I have my own project to work on!