As we are approaching Silicon Valley Regional and the Houston Championships, the team has been working hard to prepare for the competition, and we are¥ continuing to make some small revisions on our robot. 

Operations plays a vital role in our ability to attend Houston. This past week, the team has continued to write emails reaching out to parents, friends, and other relatives for funds. We have also contacted local and big businesses, seeking corporate matchings for grants. So far, we have been able to raise around 60% of the fundraising goal of $45,000, and we are working hard to reach the full amount needed to fund the competition. Please help us reach our goal by donating on our website! Any help is greatly appreciated, and would help our team attend Houston. 

The Mechanical team is finishing creating spares for the robot, including a spare wrist, elevator and intake. Additionally, we shifted to a new bumper mounting solution and moved the bumpers higher to make engaging in auto more reliable. 

The Programming team wrote code for a two piece autonomous and engage, and are working up the speeds for a three piece auto in the final days leading up to the Silicon Valley Regional. The team is also working on programming multiple autonomous routines to increase our flexibility and implementing vision alignment for scoring at the grid and intaking from the shelf.

As we pursue our preparations for our last two competitions of the season, good prospects for our robot look promising. We are continuing lots of driver practice to ensure that the drive team is able to optimize the abilities of the robot to its full potential. We are looking forward to Silicon Valley Regional in the upcoming week!

Student Interview:

Senior Angela Sheu is the Captain for Iron Claw Robotics. As captain, Angela plays a key role in managing and leading the team to victory through her hard work and strong leadership. 

Angela joined robotics in her freshman year because she had heard that the team was restarting and learning how to build robots captured her interest. Over her four years on the team, qualifying for Houston at SFR this year has been her most memorable moment in robotics. She feels that with the hard work and dedication the team has put into this year’s robot has finally been realized. “We really earned this accomplishment and it was a proud moment for us.” The different experiences and perspectives that Angela received throughout her years on the team is what fueled her passion for robotics. She enjoys learning new things each year, and believes that robotics has provided her a very formative experience. 

Angela recommends robotics to other students seeking a unique and new experience because it allows you to choose what you want to learn about and specialize in regards to the creation of the robot, which is something that cannot be provided by other clubs or organizations.

“As a person, you’ll grow throughout high school over time. The world around you and your perspective of the world will change, and it is not something to be scared of.” – Angela Sheu