Details, Details

Our master geometry got a little larger this week...

For CyberKnights, CAD usually starts during week 1, the chassis hopefully gets "approved" before the end of week 1, and then CAD continues on for a few weeks.

Many weeks.

Many many weeks.

Are We There Yet?

We're four weeks into this crazy season...

Some years it felt like we finished some of the "detail CAD" on that last subsystem (for something that actually makes it on the robot) with mere hours to CAM, fabricate and assemble before bag, or the end of a 6-hour window, or etc. Other years we've been V1 CAD complete in 3-4 weeks, with a full robot built, run, tested, broken, fixed, re-run, and more before bag. (What's bag-and-tag again?)

This year, with no manufacturing available and a targeted schedule that still exists in the future, things don't feel quite as rushed. We have flashes of pace, and then relax a bit. And, until we can actually get on site, this is a-ok. (Fingers crossed.)

Burnin' down the list

This week was all about steady progress. By the end of the working week, we were down to less than one page of "burndown" items. (Burndown list: A list of all remaining tasks we know we have to complete before calling the robot "review ready".) As more of the robot comes together, we are able to start drilling into small details. Details like how our current A-frame actually is interfering with the swerve module turning gear. But we can't move that upright, otherwise we don't have any access to bolt the superstructure onto the brainpan. Well, what if we rivet the superstructure to the chassis? We shouldn't need the modularity this year.

All that leads to some enthusiastic conversations about the thickness of our brain pan. 

Not sure why we use OnShape when we can use Paint!

Also this week we changed part of our superstructure mount and brain pan thickness. The change that took literally some time to perform, and subsequently correct everything that changed (broke) because of it.

A Meeting of Minds

We did have one of our quite rare "multi-team" get togethers this week. The mechanical team hosted several members of the software team that are involved in camera tracking of the goal and the power cells for the shooting and identification/collector challenges. As seen in our very elongated master geometry sketch, we were checking in with the team on minimum and maximum distances for the whole power cell. Another historic trait of the CyberKnights is the exclusion of electronics components until we put them in our burndown list... With our steady progress and limited systems on the robot, the LimeLights are getting great placement this year. 

My personal burndown list has included items such as this for years. I think I'm making incremental gains, but every year is different, difficult, and in the end, all the required electronics make it on the robot, and more of the "want" electronics are getting included.

Games and Inventions

I chatted with our Global Innovation and Game Design groups this week. They too are making steady progress. The game design Slack channel is full of videos and documents from past games - some of which I was mentoring this team for, some of which I missed during my college and early career years.

As mentioned last week, I tried to ask questions about the core gameplay that was being thought about, and how fun it is. Fun for teams, for spectators, (for volunteers to put together...) fun for everyone. It sounds fun. Right now. Gotta' keep checking the fun throughout the season.

Have fun!

-B