Good Afternoon Teams,
The GDC took a break this weekend (after meeting two weekends in a row), but work on the 2012 game continues. The Engineering team has been busy prototyping the game elements and a full sized field is ready and waiting on the first floor for when the GDC returns in June. (No. You can’t see it. We’re in lockdown until January 7th.) During our next meeting, we’ll use the elements to “play” the game again and again (using patient GDC members as robots) to establish the rules. We still need to develop the end game, and there’s the scoring to work out and the manual to write, but I’m cautiously optimistic that 2012 is going to be a very exciting season.
Upstairs we’re talking about Bag & Tag; what worked, what didn’t and how to expand the number of Bag & Tag events for 2012. This summer the staff is going to work on streamlining load in, improving load out, and beefing up communications to teams that need to ship to Bag & Tag events. If you’ve never been to a Bag & Tag event, you might want to read up on it this summer.
If you’ve ever considered hosting your own off season event (lots of fun, great practice for your drive team and a potential fundraiser) you’re going to want to check out How to Host an Off-Season FRC Event by Andy Baker & Chris Fultz.
Kate and Collin send their thanks to everyone who completed the KOP survey and tell me they’re reviewing the responses now.
The 2011 Season team survey link was blasted to your team main and alternate contacts last Thursday. As of today there are only 118 responses. I asked a lot of questions about the future of FRC so make sure your team participates before the Sunday, June 5th deadline.
The responses to the 2011 Championship survey tell me we need to increase seating for the fields in the pits, improve communication to teams about special events, and tweak the schedule to reduce conflicts. (And trash cans, I won’t forget about the trash cans.) I appreciate the constructive feedback (and have made note of several good ideas) and will share your comments with the other departments involved in the planning and execution of the 2012 Championship. With everything we learned about holding an event in St Louis this year, I have every expectation next year’s event will be even bigger and better.
If you’ve ever heard Science Friday hosted by Ira Flatow, you’ll be interested to know he’s asked Dean for a couple of inventive “kids” (up to 24 years old) who have invented something interesting to highlight in an upcoming show. If you know of anyone in FRC who meets those qualifications, send me an email ASAP at FRCTEams@usfirst.org and I’ll pass your recommendations on.
You probably know by now that Brandeis is conducting a survey of FRC and FTC teams for FIRST. At this moment only 175 FRC team leaders have replied from the 380 teams who were selected to participate and only 450 team members have completed the survey. We were hoping for a whole lot more involvement. If you are a team that was invited to participate, or if you know a team that was invited to participate, please encourage everyone to complete the process. In addition to giving us feedback about the program, the Brandeis survey will help us attract more sponsors and donors in the future.
227 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Is that a one or a zero?
Good Afternoon Teams,
The GDC met over the weekend here in Manchester (again). We’ve been able to zero in on one concept for 2012 and have started beefing up the idea to add more scoring opportunities. We spent a lot of time discussing bumper rules and protective zones, but haven’t come to any absolute decisions. It’s important to the GDC that the final version of the game doesn’t result in all teams creating similar robots. We like to see multiple solutions to a common challenge. It’s what innovation is all about.
My thanks to the members of the GDC who are giving up their weekends trying to fit 2 years’ worth of work into one season and my reassurances to the teams; we won’t waste the GDC’s other good ideas. We’re keeping notes to ensure those ideas will be back on the table as we plan future diabolical games.
In other news:
Today is your team’s last chance to participate in the Kit of Parts survey. The collector closes tonight at 11:45pm. Please make sure your team has both a technical mentor and a student complete the survey before the deadline. The link went out in an email blast to your main and alternate contact.
I still need release forms from the following Dean’s List students. If you know them, please encourage them to contact deanslist@usfirst.org ASAP.
235 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
The GDC met over the weekend here in Manchester (again). We’ve been able to zero in on one concept for 2012 and have started beefing up the idea to add more scoring opportunities. We spent a lot of time discussing bumper rules and protective zones, but haven’t come to any absolute decisions. It’s important to the GDC that the final version of the game doesn’t result in all teams creating similar robots. We like to see multiple solutions to a common challenge. It’s what innovation is all about.
My thanks to the members of the GDC who are giving up their weekends trying to fit 2 years’ worth of work into one season and my reassurances to the teams; we won’t waste the GDC’s other good ideas. We’re keeping notes to ensure those ideas will be back on the table as we plan future diabolical games.
In other news:
Today is your team’s last chance to participate in the Kit of Parts survey. The collector closes tonight at 11:45pm. Please make sure your team has both a technical mentor and a student complete the survey before the deadline. The link went out in an email blast to your main and alternate contact.
I still need release forms from the following Dean’s List students. If you know them, please encourage them to contact deanslist@usfirst.org ASAP.
- Diane Bernardoni
- Tina Dutra
- TJ Evarts
- Amy Frankhouser
235 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Wait, did he say pool?
Good Afternoon Teams,
The GDC met for the first 2012 onsite meeting last weekend and to quote Dean, “we made great progress”. We spent most of the day Saturday in the 4th floor Einstein conference room throwing around ideas for the 2012 game. Sunday we gathered on the FRC field set up on the 1st floor to throw around game elements (figuratively speaking) and some more ideas. The Engineering Department keeps a collection of items on hand for the GDC and we had some fun testing the behaviors of certain items under certain interesting conditions. (Sorry, I can’t be more specific than that.)
To meet our goal of finalizing the 2012 game early this year, we had to winnow the pool of game ideas down to just a few finalists last weekend and it looks like we have some real winners. We’re playing around with everything from field configuration to length of play (watch for a few questions in the FRC end of season survey coming soon). We plan to reconvene this weekend to further refine the finalists. I’ll let you know what transpires.
My thanks to the 300 teams who have completed the 2011 Championship survey. There is just one more day left before the survey closes then I’ll be reviewing the results, so if your team attended CMP, please make sure your main or alternate contact completes the survey before tomorrow.
There are just 6 days left to complete the Kit of Parts Survey. So far 720 teams have started the survey, which sounds like a lot, however, last year we heard from a total of 811 teams (and we had fewer total teams). Please make sure your team participates. We want to hear from you. Interesting note: although we invited both mentors and students to participate, 3/4 of the respondents so far are mentors.
There are just 8 days left to purchase additional trophies, medallions and pins if your team wants extras.
June 30th is the deadline to purchase additional game pieces if your team is planning an off season event. We have limited quantities left, so orders will be filled on a first come first served basis. I believe AndyMark also has game pieces available.
For those of you who are asking, no, we don’t have the dates for next year’s individual regional events yet. We do know we’re having a six week season starting with week one March 1-3, 2012 if that helps, but the Regional Planning Committees are only just starting to work on contracts with venues for the 2012 season. I’ll be sure to let you know when we have an official calendar.
Don’t forget, Dean has a fundraiser to help your team.
241 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
The GDC met for the first 2012 onsite meeting last weekend and to quote Dean, “we made great progress”. We spent most of the day Saturday in the 4th floor Einstein conference room throwing around ideas for the 2012 game. Sunday we gathered on the FRC field set up on the 1st floor to throw around game elements (figuratively speaking) and some more ideas. The Engineering Department keeps a collection of items on hand for the GDC and we had some fun testing the behaviors of certain items under certain interesting conditions. (Sorry, I can’t be more specific than that.)
To meet our goal of finalizing the 2012 game early this year, we had to winnow the pool of game ideas down to just a few finalists last weekend and it looks like we have some real winners. We’re playing around with everything from field configuration to length of play (watch for a few questions in the FRC end of season survey coming soon). We plan to reconvene this weekend to further refine the finalists. I’ll let you know what transpires.
My thanks to the 300 teams who have completed the 2011 Championship survey. There is just one more day left before the survey closes then I’ll be reviewing the results, so if your team attended CMP, please make sure your main or alternate contact completes the survey before tomorrow.
There are just 6 days left to complete the Kit of Parts Survey. So far 720 teams have started the survey, which sounds like a lot, however, last year we heard from a total of 811 teams (and we had fewer total teams). Please make sure your team participates. We want to hear from you. Interesting note: although we invited both mentors and students to participate, 3/4 of the respondents so far are mentors.
There are just 8 days left to purchase additional trophies, medallions and pins if your team wants extras.
June 30th is the deadline to purchase additional game pieces if your team is planning an off season event. We have limited quantities left, so orders will be filled on a first come first served basis. I believe AndyMark also has game pieces available.
For those of you who are asking, no, we don’t have the dates for next year’s individual regional events yet. We do know we’re having a six week season starting with week one March 1-3, 2012 if that helps, but the Regional Planning Committees are only just starting to work on contracts with venues for the 2012 season. I’ll be sure to let you know when we have an official calendar.
Don’t forget, Dean has a fundraiser to help your team.
241 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
Friday, May 6, 2011
A Unique Perspective
Good Morning Teams,
Today I would like to welcome a guest blogger. Collin Fultz was a student on team 234 CyberBlue, in college he helped start team 1747 HBR, then after graduation he returned to 234 as a mentor. Since 2005 Collin has volunteered as a game announcer and MC (mostly at Boilermaker) and currently he works for me as the FRC Kit of Parts Engineer. Talking to Collin after Championship, I realized he has a unique perspective on FRC as he is one of very few people who have experienced the program from all possible points of view. I asked him to share his experience. Here’s what he had to say.
Reactions from St. Louis…
My first exposure to FIRST and FRC was at Championships (then called Nationals) at Epcot in 2001. My family was returning from a Spring Break vacation in Cocoa Beach and the competition was on the way home. My math teacher at the time was a team mentor, so he encouraged my family to stop by and see what he had been talking about in class for the last four months. I was hooked. Ten years and three host cities later, I experienced my first Championship not as a team member or even a volunteer, but as FRC staff.
It’s easy to get caught up in what’s happening on the fields at Championships. After all, the competition fields are the reason for the event, the FIRST Championships. What was eye opening to me was exactly how much “other” stuff goes on at Championship. Until the start of Elimination matches on Saturday, I saw three matches total in St. Louis. This goal for this post is to let you know some of that other stuff that goes on at Championship. It will be focused on FRC, but I know there was a ton of stuff also going on with FTC and FLL.
It started when we landed Tuesday and went straight to the venue to start building fields and setting up inspection stations. In total, eight FRC fields were set up by a team of staff, volunteers, and venue labor. A huge thank you goes out to all of the volunteers that were there Tuesday to help get everything ready. As I said at the Boilermaker Regional, coming to work at FIRST has shown me exactly how much this organization relies on volunteers. We wouldn’t be where we are without you.
Wednesday morning was more set-up, including setting up the area for Supplier Showcase. Wednesday afternoon, Conferences started and we opened the doors for FRC teams to come in out of the rain. A big Thank You needs to go to all of the teams who dealt with the weather Wednesday night and kept a level head about it. That situation had a potential to get ugly, but your graciousness helped save the day.
Thursday started with the pits opening and the Conferences continuing. Next, we had a wrap-up meeting with the Beta Test teams from 2010. These teams are a critical part of the Control System development, and it was important for the Control System team (representatives from FIRST, NI, TI, Oracle, and WPI) to get feedback on both the Beta Test program and the season. I encourage all teams to apply to be a Beta Test team in 2011. It’s the best way to make your voice heard during the development-cycle for the Control System. Then, we had the first FRC Live! from the pits. This one was exciting to me because we were able to announce the new four-slot cRIO-FRC2. We also took that opportunity to thank AndyMark for all of their work with the FIRSTChoice pilot this year. Your feedback on the Kit of Parts Survey will help determine the future of FIRSTChoice.
Also around this time, Supplier Showcase officially opened. Based on feedback from the Suppliers who attended, you all took advantage of them being there and were able to ask technical questions, see potential new products, and get some hardware assistance. Every Supplier I spoke to Friday night (when the Showcase officially closed) was glad they had taken the opportunity to come to Championship to see you. Your enthusiasm is one of the things that helps keep Suppliers coming back each year.
Also opening at this time was Scholarship Row, the Alliance Exhibits, and booths from some of our largest Sponsors. Hopefully you took some time to check out what they had on display. The NI booth had some really cool robots to check out. The CIA booth had a robot that followed a closed-loop path on the floor. The PTC booth was showing how to do quick modeling to test robot designs. Each booth had excited people ready to talk about what they were doing and how what you’re doing is applicable.
Next was a meeting of the Control System team to discuss the changes coming for the 2012 season. Most of the discussion centered on what would be required to get the cRIO-FRC2 ready for Beta Testing and for Kick-off.
Thursday night we had a dinner for the Judges, Regional Directors, and Ambassadors. It was really cool to sit in the Invited Guest area for a little while and see the connections being made. We also had to do the first “switch” of the fields and get them fully tested. We were swapping the dome fields during the i.am.FIRST practice, which was very cool to see.
On Friday there was so much going on that I won’t list it all for fear of leaving something out. I had meetings most of the afternoon. The first was with Intel and CTL. These two companies help bring you the Classmate PC’s teams can use as their Driver Station. We hope to do some things next year that will make the Driver Stations easier to use. The next meeting was with NI and Cross The Road Electronics. CTRE supplied CAN Cable kits to FIRSTChoice this year, and our discussion with them was about how to make CAN as robust as possible for the future. One thing we need to know about CAN is, “Do teams want to use it?” There is a section on the Kit of Parts Survey about CAN, and your feedback will help determine its future. The last scheduled meeting we had was with AndyMark to talk about FIRSTChoice and how we can improve it for 2012. I say scheduled, because we then had an impromptu meeting with Dell about how we can get Dell more involved at every level of FRC. It’s a great position to be in when you have companies approaching you asking how they can get more involved. Finally, one more field swap, then back to the hotel to change and head to the show. I still have “Whip My Hair” stuck in my head…
Saturday morning was a whirlwind and I was excited for the Eliminations. I got to see the Galileo Elimination matches in the afternoon and watched the eventual World Champion alliance up-close. Closing ceremonies gave me the chance to catch my breath a bit. Once Closing Ceremonies were over, the GDC met to discuss the season and plan where we’ll start for 2012. Then, it was upstairs to the Invited Guest Reception to see a few old friends, then back downstairs to load the trucks. We finished with the last truck at about 11:30PM, putting a close on the 2011 FRC Season.
Looking back, it’s incredible all that went on in St. Louis. The Event and Production Staff worked like crazy to make the event as good as it was. The Event Office had a constant flow of people in and out. We cannot thank these people enough for all of their help. Finally, as I said before, the Event and the Program would not be possible without the countless volunteers. Thank you to all who helped this season.
On to 2012…Go Teams!
246 days until the 2012 Kickoff
See you then!
Today I would like to welcome a guest blogger. Collin Fultz was a student on team 234 CyberBlue, in college he helped start team 1747 HBR, then after graduation he returned to 234 as a mentor. Since 2005 Collin has volunteered as a game announcer and MC (mostly at Boilermaker) and currently he works for me as the FRC Kit of Parts Engineer. Talking to Collin after Championship, I realized he has a unique perspective on FRC as he is one of very few people who have experienced the program from all possible points of view. I asked him to share his experience. Here’s what he had to say.
Reactions from St. Louis…
My first exposure to FIRST and FRC was at Championships (then called Nationals) at Epcot in 2001. My family was returning from a Spring Break vacation in Cocoa Beach and the competition was on the way home. My math teacher at the time was a team mentor, so he encouraged my family to stop by and see what he had been talking about in class for the last four months. I was hooked. Ten years and three host cities later, I experienced my first Championship not as a team member or even a volunteer, but as FRC staff.
It’s easy to get caught up in what’s happening on the fields at Championships. After all, the competition fields are the reason for the event, the FIRST Championships. What was eye opening to me was exactly how much “other” stuff goes on at Championship. Until the start of Elimination matches on Saturday, I saw three matches total in St. Louis. This goal for this post is to let you know some of that other stuff that goes on at Championship. It will be focused on FRC, but I know there was a ton of stuff also going on with FTC and FLL.
It started when we landed Tuesday and went straight to the venue to start building fields and setting up inspection stations. In total, eight FRC fields were set up by a team of staff, volunteers, and venue labor. A huge thank you goes out to all of the volunteers that were there Tuesday to help get everything ready. As I said at the Boilermaker Regional, coming to work at FIRST has shown me exactly how much this organization relies on volunteers. We wouldn’t be where we are without you.
Wednesday morning was more set-up, including setting up the area for Supplier Showcase. Wednesday afternoon, Conferences started and we opened the doors for FRC teams to come in out of the rain. A big Thank You needs to go to all of the teams who dealt with the weather Wednesday night and kept a level head about it. That situation had a potential to get ugly, but your graciousness helped save the day.
Thursday started with the pits opening and the Conferences continuing. Next, we had a wrap-up meeting with the Beta Test teams from 2010. These teams are a critical part of the Control System development, and it was important for the Control System team (representatives from FIRST, NI, TI, Oracle, and WPI) to get feedback on both the Beta Test program and the season. I encourage all teams to apply to be a Beta Test team in 2011. It’s the best way to make your voice heard during the development-cycle for the Control System. Then, we had the first FRC Live! from the pits. This one was exciting to me because we were able to announce the new four-slot cRIO-FRC2. We also took that opportunity to thank AndyMark for all of their work with the FIRSTChoice pilot this year. Your feedback on the Kit of Parts Survey will help determine the future of FIRSTChoice.
Also around this time, Supplier Showcase officially opened. Based on feedback from the Suppliers who attended, you all took advantage of them being there and were able to ask technical questions, see potential new products, and get some hardware assistance. Every Supplier I spoke to Friday night (when the Showcase officially closed) was glad they had taken the opportunity to come to Championship to see you. Your enthusiasm is one of the things that helps keep Suppliers coming back each year.
Also opening at this time was Scholarship Row, the Alliance Exhibits, and booths from some of our largest Sponsors. Hopefully you took some time to check out what they had on display. The NI booth had some really cool robots to check out. The CIA booth had a robot that followed a closed-loop path on the floor. The PTC booth was showing how to do quick modeling to test robot designs. Each booth had excited people ready to talk about what they were doing and how what you’re doing is applicable.
Next was a meeting of the Control System team to discuss the changes coming for the 2012 season. Most of the discussion centered on what would be required to get the cRIO-FRC2 ready for Beta Testing and for Kick-off.
Thursday night we had a dinner for the Judges, Regional Directors, and Ambassadors. It was really cool to sit in the Invited Guest area for a little while and see the connections being made. We also had to do the first “switch” of the fields and get them fully tested. We were swapping the dome fields during the i.am.FIRST practice, which was very cool to see.
On Friday there was so much going on that I won’t list it all for fear of leaving something out. I had meetings most of the afternoon. The first was with Intel and CTL. These two companies help bring you the Classmate PC’s teams can use as their Driver Station. We hope to do some things next year that will make the Driver Stations easier to use. The next meeting was with NI and Cross The Road Electronics. CTRE supplied CAN Cable kits to FIRSTChoice this year, and our discussion with them was about how to make CAN as robust as possible for the future. One thing we need to know about CAN is, “Do teams want to use it?” There is a section on the Kit of Parts Survey about CAN, and your feedback will help determine its future. The last scheduled meeting we had was with AndyMark to talk about FIRSTChoice and how we can improve it for 2012. I say scheduled, because we then had an impromptu meeting with Dell about how we can get Dell more involved at every level of FRC. It’s a great position to be in when you have companies approaching you asking how they can get more involved. Finally, one more field swap, then back to the hotel to change and head to the show. I still have “Whip My Hair” stuck in my head…
Saturday morning was a whirlwind and I was excited for the Eliminations. I got to see the Galileo Elimination matches in the afternoon and watched the eventual World Champion alliance up-close. Closing ceremonies gave me the chance to catch my breath a bit. Once Closing Ceremonies were over, the GDC met to discuss the season and plan where we’ll start for 2012. Then, it was upstairs to the Invited Guest Reception to see a few old friends, then back downstairs to load the trucks. We finished with the last truck at about 11:30PM, putting a close on the 2011 FRC Season.
Looking back, it’s incredible all that went on in St. Louis. The Event and Production Staff worked like crazy to make the event as good as it was. The Event Office had a constant flow of people in and out. We cannot thank these people enough for all of their help. Finally, as I said before, the Event and the Program would not be possible without the countless volunteers. Thank you to all who helped this season.
On to 2012…Go Teams!
246 days until the 2012 Kickoff
See you then!
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Yes, I’m already counting down to kickoff 2012
Good Afternoon Teams,
We’ve unloaded five of the seven trucks from Championship and the last two are scheduled to arrive next week. The FRC staff will spend the off season following up the final details of the 2011 season, cleaning and repairing the reusable field components, and preparing for 2012.
I have a number of notes for teams below, but first, I want to welcome the three newest members of the GDC. I mentioned during FRC Live at Championship, that the GDC is taking steps this year to complete development of the 2012 game before the end of the summer. Then the GDC will turn its attention to the 2013 game in an effort to get game development a year ahead. If we are successful, this will give the FRC staff more time for field preparation, manual development and testing and as a result improve the week one competition experience for teams. Because of the additional workload, the GDC has welcomed two FRC staff members, Collin Fultz, Kit of Parts Engineer and Ryan Foley, Software Engineer to the team, and has decided to add an additional Rotating Member position. Hall of Fame team mentors and Woodie Flowers Award Winners were invited this spring to apply for this position and on Saturday night, after finals, the GDC formally invited Linda Wallace from team 191 X-Cats to be the first person to serve in this new role. Linda has more than 25 years of professional engineering experience and has been a member of the X-Cats for 12 years. Welcome Linda, we’re all looking forward to working with you this year.
Now, on to my notes from championship.
At the LOGO MOTION Championship in St Louis:
Now that we’re in the off season:
As we look to the future:
It’s going to be an interesting summer as we prepare for the next few years. I’m looking forward to the GDC meeting this weekend and will be sure to let you know how it goes.
247 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
We’ve unloaded five of the seven trucks from Championship and the last two are scheduled to arrive next week. The FRC staff will spend the off season following up the final details of the 2011 season, cleaning and repairing the reusable field components, and preparing for 2012.
I have a number of notes for teams below, but first, I want to welcome the three newest members of the GDC. I mentioned during FRC Live at Championship, that the GDC is taking steps this year to complete development of the 2012 game before the end of the summer. Then the GDC will turn its attention to the 2013 game in an effort to get game development a year ahead. If we are successful, this will give the FRC staff more time for field preparation, manual development and testing and as a result improve the week one competition experience for teams. Because of the additional workload, the GDC has welcomed two FRC staff members, Collin Fultz, Kit of Parts Engineer and Ryan Foley, Software Engineer to the team, and has decided to add an additional Rotating Member position. Hall of Fame team mentors and Woodie Flowers Award Winners were invited this spring to apply for this position and on Saturday night, after finals, the GDC formally invited Linda Wallace from team 191 X-Cats to be the first person to serve in this new role. Linda has more than 25 years of professional engineering experience and has been a member of the X-Cats for 12 years. Welcome Linda, we’re all looking forward to working with you this year.
Now, on to my notes from championship.
At the LOGO MOTION Championship in St Louis:
- 9 FRC fields were shipped into St Louis for the Championship. If you counted fields, only 8 were set up (including practice fields and the Collegiate Aerial Robotics Demonstration) which means we had one extra field on hand for emergencies.
- 490 people volunteered for FRC event roles at Championship (and more walked in to help during the weekend.)
- Robot inspectors inspected 352 robots and approximately 650 minibots for a total of over 1,000 robot inspections.
- 678 total matches were played.
- The highest combined match score was 131-122, on Newton
- Highest individual alliance score was 146, also on Newton. (This is one ubertube short of the perfect score of 158.)
- 136 trophies, 2710 medallions, and 20 banners were awarded to teams. Teams can order additional trophies, medallions, pins and buttons from the 2011 season here. Deadline May 19th.
- National Instruments introduced the new cRIO FRC2 which will be included in the 2012 rookie kit of parts and which will be available for purchase sometime in the fall. The cRIO FRC2 chassis will be less than $300. The new upgrade kit which includes 3 modules and the cRIO FRC2 chassis will be less than $550. All existing cRIO modules are compatible with the new cRIO FRC2.
- CNN was in the house filming for ‘Don’t Fail Me’ which will air May 15th at 8pm on CNN. The tv special features Team 842, Falcon Robotics from Carl Hayden High School, Phoenix, AZ; Team 1403, Cougar Robotics from Montgomery High School, Skillman, NJ; and Team 3675, Eagletrons from Seymour High School, Seymour, TN. Soledad O’Brien talks about the special here.
- Morgan Freeman stopped by. He did some announcing on Archimedes and visited with teams. The video he made to promote FIRST is here.
- FRC live videos are available on the FRCTeamsglobal youtube channel.
Now that we’re in the off season:
- Dean’s Homework was “spread the word about FIRST and sell light bulbs”. To help teams with that aim, light bulbs are now available in 10 bulb packs. Details here.
- Please complete the Kit of Parts survey (sent to your team main contact) and the FRC end of season survey (coming soon). The FRC staff read all your responses and take your input into consideration as we strive for continuous improvement. FIRST also has another Brandeis study underway. If your team is invited to participate in this confidential survey, please make every effort to participate. The data Brandeis collects is invaluable in promoting FIRST to sponsors and donors
As we look to the future:
- Expect fields in pits at Championship next year. As the FIRST family of programs grows, we need to ensure all programs are represented at Championship. In order to give FTC and FLL fields equal prominence in the Dome, the decision was made this season to reduce the number of FRC fields in the dome. (Believe it or not, this decision was made long before will.i.am committed to hold the ‘half time’ show.) Rather than eliminate Einstein entirely or move one division into the pits and have those teams not compete in the dome, we went with having two fields in the pits and developed the plan to ensure all teams had time in the dome. We’re going to be reviewing pit/dome layout this summer and working to find ways to resolve some of the crowding and noise issues in the pits, but as our other programs grow, don’t expect FRC to have 5 fields in the dome next year.
- This summer we’re going to be taking a long hard look at the future of Championship (CMP). At the current rate of growth for FRC, we are going to face a space crunch at CMP in a few years. Consider this. At each regional, six teams earn a space at CMP (the winning alliance, the Engineering Inspiration winner, the Chairman’s Award winner and the Rookie All Star team). This year we had 48 regionals. Add eighteen teams from the Michigan State CMP (When the District pilot began, the State CMP replaced three Regional events.) and you get a total of 306 teams. 352 teams competed this year. Not every team who qualifies to come to CMP can make it, so there are always a few empty slots, but as we continue to add new regionals each year, we are eventually going to run out of room. In the short run, there will be fewer and fewer spaces for non-qualifying teams at CMP. In the long run, we’re going to have to figure out a new system for determining which teams come to CMP.
It’s going to be an interesting summer as we prepare for the next few years. I’m looking forward to the GDC meeting this weekend and will be sure to let you know how it goes.
247 days until the 2012 kickoff
See you then!
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