Cal U. hosts BotsIQ competition; Greene County team shines
Members of a Greene County team prepare their robot T.R.I.M. for competition Friday during the BotsIQ Tournament at California University of Pennsylvania. The “Battle Bots”-styled competition continues today.
Chartiers-Houston team “Cataphract” awaits its first bout against two bots that will compete against its single bot because the two weighed in collectively under the 15-pound weight limit. Team members are, from left, Jose Diaz, Chad Johnston, Austin Riggle, Dominic Rucker, Jake Cavallo and Tommy Lento.
Observer-Reporter
In this file photo from 2016, a competitor pins another team’s robot against the wall for 10 seconds, earning valuable points with judges.
Chartiers-Houston “Cataphract” members repair their robot, whose name doubles as a reference to one of their team sponsors, Caterpillar, as well as an ancient armored calvary unit in 100 B.C. Eurasia.
Josh McCartney, one half of the brother mechanic duo on the Greene County Home School team, repairs the engine on the team’s robot after winning their second bout Friday.
Most teams use remote airplane controllers for their bots’ user interface.
CALIFORNIA – A six-member home-schooled team from Greene County fielded a robot Friday in the first bracket of a two-day combat tournament at California University’s Convocation Center.
The team’s “T.R.I.M.” robot, a “totally radical indestructible machine,” was made in a garage with the help of sponsor grant monies to a brotherly duo of technicians and their own outlay of $800.
T.R.I.M. won its first two bouts against schools with multithousand-dollar budgets, proving the BotsIQ Tournament to be one of the most accessible contests to high school students.
In its 11th year, the tournament hosted 85 teams and 1,200 students, setting a record for attendance, according to BotsIQ Executive Director Bill Padnos.
It’s much like a scene from a gladiator bloodsport. Spectators screamed and cheered as robot parts flew into the air and bots slammed and chopped each other into submission. Winners captured victories through technical knockouts by incapacitating the other’s robot, or winning a judges’ decision by demonstrating aggression through 10-second wall pins and overall control of the match by the end of the three-minute bout.
Central Valley had a unique way to qualify for competition: fielding two robots that each weighed in collectively below the 15-pound weight limit. It was the first time Chartiers-Houston’s “Cataphract” team saw such a competitor.
“We incapacitated the smaller, seemingly weaker robot. We have no weapons, so we just concentrated on overpowering it,” said senior driver Jake Cavallo, on the team’s first-round win. The team then took to repairing its Cataphract unit, a moniker recognizing the team’s corporate adviser, Caterpillar, as well as the literal name for armored calvary units in ancient combat. The team made sure to honor that aspect, too.
“Last year, we had a complete aluminum chassis. It was beat up after matches. So this year we put on it, instead of weapons, hard plastic armor,” Cavallo said.
Last year, Chartiers-Houston won rookie team of the tournament for advancing the furthest among new teams, team member Dominic Rucker said.
“I’m in my first year working on the team and I’m already doing electrical and soldering work,” said Jose Diaz, a sophomore.
Cavallo said the great thing about the tournament is that any kind of team can field a competitive robot.
“It comes down to strategy, driving and how much work you put in. Anybody can win,” Cavallo said.
The McCartneys, Ashton and Josh, of team T.R.I.M., had to repair their bot after their bouts. T.R.I.M. had a flipping device, a three-pound “beater bar” that helped propel it to a victory. Ashton McCartney explained the team’s success as his older brother, Josh, repaired a detached motor. They had 20 minutes to fix it before the next match.
“We flipped them over three times and did damage you could not believe. Just totaled it,” Ashton said.
Team coach and father of two of the members, Josh McCartney, said community support was crucial to the team’s success.
“Lingus Manufacturing in Waynesburg donated materials … But you see we’re beating teams with million-dollar school budgets, and these guys built this with hand tools and no machining equipment,” McCartney said.
But the competition is more than entertainment and a way to build real-world engineering experience, Padnos said. It’s a showcase for potential hires right out of high school.
“Local manufacturers should be at more of these competitions. This is a recruiting tool. Anyone who sits at a career fair for eight hours without showing here, they’re not going to get the better workers. Do you want them exposed to your competitors, or do you want to grab them up?” Padnos said.
The “Battle Bots”-styled competition continues today and live stream coverage is available at www.botsiqpa.org.