M-SET attends 2012 FRC Kick-off

Members of the Mechanical Science and Engineering team (MSET) found out recently that the robot they will build this year needs to be able to shoot basketballs and balance on bridges.

The object of the game is to score as many baskets as possible and earn extra points by balancing on the tetering bridges. Zuccarino also said that the organization has included an Xbox 360 Kinect in each kit-of-parts for teams to control their robot via body motion.

The FRC kick-off took place on Jan. 7 at San Jose State University and had more than 90 attendees. During the event, FRC officials introduced the 2012 game, new game rules, parts and sponsors, which included Coca-Cola and Microsoft.

The team is now hard at work building prototypes and discussing ideas for each aspect of the robot. The team has also taken a step further in organization, splitting veterans and new team members into different “sub teams” that will allow mentors and officers to keep track of ongoing projects.

“This year we decided to have different components of the robot broken up into different teams of five to 10 kids,” Zuccarino said. “And we’d synthesize them at the very end. It’s kind of cool because everyone can have a leadership role and exercise their leadership ability.”

This season, the team will participate in the Silicon and Central Valley Regionals. They are taking place at San Jose State University and Madera respectively. The team is also on the wait list for the national tournament in St. Louis, Mo. If they win at least one of their regional events, they are guaranteed make it to nationals with a $4,000 fee, but if they lose both their regional events, they have a slim chance of moving on to nationals.

“This year the competitions are really ambitious since you have to shoot basketballs into hoops and people are paid millions of dollars to do that well,” Zuccarino said. “We only have 45 days, so it’s going to be tough.”

The team has its sights set on their best FRC season yet, but former champions Bellarmine and Mountain View High School will stand in the way.

“We’re looking forward to this year, it’ll be competitive, but I believe our team can make it to nationals,” said Zuccarino.