Robotics Build Season in Full Swing
After school at Notre Dame, you can find some of the most committed and hardworking students taking part in an extra-curricular like no other. The robotics team, the Janksters, are in full swing as their competition, First Robotics Competition (FRC), is coming up on their calendars. Students stay after school for hours to work on their robot, aiming to complete their objective for the season in order to win. All four committees — mechanical, engineering, programming, and business — work together to create a robot that meets the requirements, which changes every year.
“This year’s objective is to retrieve balls from the floor and shoot them into the center of the field, [where] there's a lower hoop and a higher hoop nested above it,” Shiori Kawaguchi ‘23, a member of the mechanical committee, says. The team’s robot also has to be able to swing from monkey bar-like poles after firing the balls. Depending on which hoops it successfully shoots balls at and how high it climbs on the monkey bars, the team will earn points. “At competitions we're grouped with local teams [which are] randomized each match, and we have to work together even though we don't know who they are in advance,” she adds. Competitions showcase skill and teamwork, two important abilities for any situation.
Due to the pandemic, there was no competition last year. This year, there were more new students than veterans, posing a challenge to the team. There were more rookies to teach and less experience as a whole due to the gap year, but the coaches were proud to say that they overcame it through hard work and cooperation. The majority of these new participants were freshmen, who had their fair share of good memories and big takeaways for their first year. Dening Sun ‘25 (programming committee) says that she “learned to collaborate and let people know [her] progress, and come to conclusions about what [she] plan[s] to do.” After all, “teamwork is a crucial part to making [the] robot work.”
On Saturday, February 27, the robotics team held an afternoon showcase on campus for their friends and family, where everyone could see the hard work the team has put in for months. The showcase unofficially marks the end of build season, as competitions are beginning around the world. The Janksters are participating in late March and early April, so they still have some time to make modifications before their big day. They are bound to have a rewarding and fun experience in spring, and hopefully snag a few awards to celebrate their hard work!
