Our team is divided up into different committees in order to complete many tasks at once. Not all of the people in one committee are needed in another committee’s work, but sometimes committees will want to (or have to) work together.
Programming & Electronics
The Programming & Electronics committee works on programming the robot and mounting electronics. Using Java, students define the teleoperated and autonomous actions of the robot. They experiment with and research new features and devices, including sensors and cameras, to further enhance our robot’s capabilities. These students also learn common electronics skills such as soldering and wire management to make the robot function more clean and robust.
Marketing
Marketing organizes team fundraising and outreach events to inform the community of 1089’s progress in FIRST. The goal of this group is to inform the general public about FIRST and the many opportunities available to its participants. Additionally, they set up fundraisers to ensure team sustainability. The members of this committee learn valuable lessons in communication and coordination of events for the team. They also promote our team on social media outlets such as Twitter and Instagram. Lastly, they create award submissions to inform FIRST of Team 1089’s progress. Overall, they work hard to outline the team’s goals and success and present them to the community.
Robot Design
The Robot Design Committee focuses on building a robot for the FIRST Robotics Competition game each season. During build season, the team is asked to present ideas, sketches, drawings and supporting documentation, including CAD designs through various platforms (currently OnShape). They ensure that the ideas that are brainstormed are achievable within the rules of the game, and they research existing solutions to help streamline the process of reaching an optimal solution to address each year’s challenge.
Spirit & Imagery
Spirit is responsible for creating a team image in the community through participation in outreach events and through usage of the various spirit materials. Spirit materials consist of the team banner, flag, and mascot as well as the noisemakers, “MERCURY 1089” signs, and team pom-poms. The spirit chair is responsible for keeping track of and maintaining the spirit materials. Spirit also extends into competitions where they prepare team cheers and excite team members about the year’s competition. The skills acquired from this committee are in marketing from publicizing the team to the community as a whole.
Scouting & Strategy
Scouting & Strategy creates a form for both round and pit scouting at competitions. This is used as a reference when making important decisions during alliance selections, developing strong decision making and persuasive argument skills of why a robot should be ranked higher than another should. Their role is to compile the scouting sheets into a list, used by the team representative on the field to generate a successful alliance. Strategy also sends information to the drivers prior to matches and generates strategies to fit the needs of our alliance.
Build & Safety
This committee works to build the final robot and other structures, such as field and pit structures. They develop prototypes of ideas to address the challenge, and implement the final design as laid out by the Robot Design committee. They promote the ideas of safety, critical thinking, project management, and gracious professionalism, and offer all members the possibility to learn the aspects and functions of the robot.