Muncie/Delaware Robotics PhyXTGears Team 1720 was given the Autodesk Visualization Award March 20 during the FIRST Robotics Regional Competition at Purdue University for an animated film they created. For those who wish to see the winning Animation video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RD-gbbC1kCc
Each year, Autodesk, Inc. recognizes excellence in student animation that “clearly and creatively illustrates the spirit of the FIRST Robotics.” FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is an organization affiliated with NASA, that inspires and motivates high school students to become interested and involved in science and technology. FIRST robotics competitions are held annually on the regional and national level.
PhyXTGears produced a 30 second animated film for the FIRST theme “Using Biomimicry for Sustainability”, which promoted the benefits of “Gecko Tape.” Don’t go looking for it at the local hardware store. “The gecko-based non-chemical adhesive is currently being developed at several universities,” said Eric Jiang, one of the team members who worked on the animation project. Other members of the group include Jackson Eflin, Emily Kao, Morgan Moncada, and Shelby Smith, led by mentor Andy Beane(IDIAA Faculty Fellow), of BSU’s Department of Art. This was the 2nd Autodesk Visualization Award for Team 1720 in the team’s 4 year tenure.
Last weekend, March 20-21 was PhyXTGears’ first official competition of the new year. Thirty-five teams from Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Kentucky gathered at Purdue to play in the 2009 game challenge called “Lunacy”, in honor of the 40th anniversary of NASA’s success of landing a man on the moon.
Of the 35 teams present, at the end of the qualifying matches, Muncie’s own ranked #1! Teams play best 2 out of 3 for the Elimination rounds. The third and final match was a close game. When time ran out, the two alliances were tied at 60 points each. A break was taken while the judges recounted the points. After several minutes wait, the official score was announced, 60 to 62. PhyXTGears lost the 3rd match by only 2 points. You can’t get much closer than that! Team 1720 ranked #7 overall after the Elimination rounds.
Links:
Robotics Team Homepage
Ball Bearings Story: A Well Oiled Machine
More Information: http://muncierobots.iweb.bsu.edu/gallery/2009/Boilermaker.html