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Blogs

     Today is the day we come together as a group with a fresh start and new ambitions, today we began work on the chassis on what will be our hardest challenge yet. Everything is very basic now, but we will evolve and learn new tricks to help create an absolute beast of a machine. 

Tuesday - 8/29/17 

New Beginnings 

Thursday - 8/31/17

Progress so far

      After quite a few set backs, we finally figured out the chassis and figured out what we're going to do from here. Baby steps for now, but we will improve and progress further to victory. 

Tuesday - 9/19/2017

In Today's Episode of

Turning Screws...

       El Manifesto discovered a broken motor incapacitating their progress to a successful motor system! They apprehended the faulty motor and chucked it into the bucket of shame, where all the other rejects of motor-hood lied. The team found a new motor and surgically attached it to the robot! Soon El Manifesto will have a mobile machine to call their own! (Find out next time on Turning Screws)

Friday - 9/22/2017

The Work of a Good Slav

       El Manifesto's robot got it's wires organized and re-positioned in an aesthetically pleasing manner, including plates for the wires to rest on, courtesy of Josh the True Slav. The others began working on the arm for the robot, preparing it for the role of an ultimate fighter...

For it to pick up cones!

Tuesday - 9/26/2017

The конечный Scissor Lift!

       Josh the True Slav stopped by again today to help El Manifesto continue production on the scissor lift. Once rejected by the group, the scissor lift concept will be re imagined by El Manifesto! Also our controller is missing . . . . truly a tragic dilemma!

Thursday - 9/28/2017

Innovation Turned to Ruined Progression

       We successfully made an adequate lift design using bars that are used for linear slide systems. They were great fit for our design, so we used these bars instead of the other, bulkier ones available. Unfortunately our progression ahead of our opponents was swiftly undone, by the sudden realization that these bars were not allowed to be used without its intended purpose. So BOOM...

 

The dismantling commenced 

Thursday - 10/12/2017

Stranded from Home

       El Manifesto was forced to leave the engineering building due to a broken A/C unit! We relocated to an alternate building while repairmen worked to fix the unit. This however did not stop El Manifesto from continuing forth. Access to pieces became a problem, so we had to work with what we could rummage from the engineering building. During this time, we successfully built structural supports on our robot's endo factor. Now nothing's strong enough to take this baby down. We took photos of our work as soon as we returned - 

Monday - 10/16/2017

Calm Ties

       Today, El Manifesto took a slow day and set up some zip ties and organized the robot's wires. Our instructor encouraged us to write him a list of parts that we as teams need for further progression in building, so we provided what we needed and hope to continue going сильный!

Wednesday - 10/18/2017

The Arm Job

       El Manifesto's motors responsible for the arm appear to have a very wide distance between each other. What does this mean for the team? Well, besides confusion, El Manifesto as to find a way to connect the two with a functional and strong claw arm. The time is ticking as next week is "grading time"!

Monday - 10/23/2017

"Arm-olst" Done

       Our robot's Endo-factor is now being finalized and ready for programming. There's only two more days until grading, and we're preparing what's expected. Maybe we'll get extra points for the pun in our title. 

Friday - 10/27/2017

The Cone Trials

       The Trials of the Cone took place on Wednesday the 25th. We successfully managed to get 4 cones on the Pole of Fortune, ultimately closing a passing finish for El Manifesto. Now all that awaits is the future of our robot...

in the glory of battle...

to stack cones...

Tuesday - 10/31/2017

Modifications

     Changes have been performed, stripping has occurred, and pieces have been terminated! Josh the True Slav has called the shots, and stripped the robot down to a bare minimum. Bars have been ripped, bolts have been popped, and uh....

It's all good, just some modifications that El Manifesto is bringing about. Everythin's all 

круто here.

Thursday - 11/2/2017

Ultimate "Re"

     Today's prefix is "Re". It is involved in much of what El Manifesto initiated with their robot. The chassis has been redesigned, it has been refurbished, it has been revamped, and it has been ultimately reconstructed. It's kinda like our progress has been rebooted....

Monday - 11/6/2017

The Ship and its Sails

     After successfully redesigning the chassis, the team now works on recoupling the motors and adjusting the wheels. It's all a work in progress . . . a rebooted one, but it is the speed and accuracy of the build that counts. It's go-time after those "sails" are up and running.

Wednesday - 11/8/2017

Arm Surgery

     Josh the True Slav finished designing a lift system and implemented it to our robot. Today the rest of the crew began giving ol' metal boy his very own arm (back). Expect a claw to serve as it's tool, a claw of advanced cone lifting ingenuity. 

Monday - 11/13/2017

Culmination Nerve

     The claw is in position, the cones are in sight, but the time is not yet to come. Today's objective is to finish up the end effector and tighten all the supports. The Countdown is upon us, so we must work diligently. 

Friday - 11/17/2017

The Countdown

     At the time of writing this sentence, El Manifesto has approximately 31 minutes left until their ultimate judgement. The securing of wires, transferring of program, and mastering of skill will all lead to a successful victory for the team. Time to get the claw ready, and stack some долбанные cones!!

i

Also by the way, Josh the True Slav finally developed the SolidWorks model for our robot, which we greatly appreciate...until next time!!!

Tuesday - 11/21/2017

David Eisley Sings

     It's time to cue the music and grab the mic, cause El Manifesto has successfully finished their second cone trial! Yoni took hold of the mantle and swiftly stacked 5 cones onto the post, ultimately securing a 100% passing grade for the team! Now that the mission is complete, it is time for Thanksgiving, and for everyone to go get fat with their families. . .

Tuesday - 11/28/2017

Hunter's Lift

     Well, Thanksgiving break was a very fun and pleasant time for everyone. But now, it's time to get back to the grind. So we needed to start designing a sufficient lift system, and get our robot ready for the next challenge. We needed to get this puppy SWOLE. Hunter gave a suggestion to use our premature square lift to lift up the cone, and use the claw to grab the top of the cone. Modifications were done to apply for this suggestion, but we eventually found out that it just wouldn't work. So it's up to the future El Manifesto to figure it out. . .on Thursday

Thursday - 11/30/2017

Just a Bar

     So we were struggling with our square lift, since actually lifting the goal post seemed unfeasible considering how gosh darn heavy the post was. Yoni decided just to add a bar underneath the front end of the lift to see if it would help a bit. . .and it did.

Now, not only can our robot lift the goal post, but it can chuck that sucker over itself!

And all we needed. . .was a bar. . .

Monday - 12/4/2017

Simple Technician

     So today was a pretty slow day. Yoni spent some time adding a quite necessary wheel to the robot, as well as modifying the lift a little bit. NOTHING BIG, PRETTY SIMPLE! On the other hand, Hunter was fiddling around with a rubber banded claw that could deliver a deadly blow your arm, which he so kindly displays to the camera. NOTHING BIG, PRETTY SIMPLE! Mondays can indeed be so powerful as to doze down a group as fierce as El Manifesto. . .

Friday - 12/8/2017

Insert Command Here

     The controller is down, and the cords are hooked. It is time for our next step. "Autonomous" is the word of the day as El Manifesto begins programming for the continuation of The Cone Trials. This requires for all actions performed by the robot to be driven by the data in it's brain, not the hand of the player. *Insert montage of intense programming*

Tuesday - 12/12/2017

Our 80 процентов

     El Manifesto took a pause on the programming today to complete the next challenge! The objective was to stack a maximum of 5 cones on the red mobile goal and then transport the goal past the 20 point corner zone. Sounds easy right? Well. . .even with the magnificent trigger hands of Yoni, we were unable to complete the objective. Yoni did however stack 4 cones and deliver the goal post to the 10 point zone, securing a solid 80% for the team. So kudos to that. 

Thursday - 12/14/2017

V-Day

     The time has come! It is Vex Day. It is the day for competition. The day when robots collide and cones are thrown. A Vex Robotics Competition took place in class today with the long awaited "In the Zone" game. Josh the True Slav modified the robot yesterday afternoon to perform as a swift and fierce scissor-lift. The team finalized the robot and slapped it on the field, ready for the cones. Kudos to our alternating partners The Real Deal and Megatron, who worked along our side to nail each cone in its place!

Tuesday - 12/18/2017

Kyle the Special Bot

     Breaking news involving El Manifesto! We finally gave our little bot-boy a name. His name is Kyle. . . and he is a she. Yoni says Kyle is a special robot, maybe implying that it has autism. But, no matter how obnoxious Kyle's performance failures become, she (it) will still continue to nail some cones to the ground. Kyle also got quite the upgrade with a new ferocious claw on her arm, and a nice, complete scissor lift. Today marks the 2nd day of the Vex competition in class, so as always, we will continue backhanding the competition!

Wednesday - 1/10/2018

Back in the город

     Well, decorations have been put away, families have returned home, and winter break has come to an end. Now it is time to return to the "wonderful world" of vex robotics. Our robot, Kyle, is begging for some good 'ol artificial intelligence, so that's what we're gonna give her. The autonomous challenge is ahead of us, so we must bring some programming to the table!

Friday - 1/12/2018

A Case of 'Tisms

     The coding continues in today's agenda. While Hunter slams in some juicy programming through the computer, Yoni is taking some time to "fix" of Kyle. He describes Kyle as having many performance malfunctions, which he calls "'tisms". These 'Tisms involve rigid movements and loose rubber bands. Fortunately, Hunter guarantees that no 'Tisms will be involved in his programming. 

Wednesday - 1/17/2018

To arrange a Branch

     To arrange a branch, there are many requirements. An understanding of its circuits is key. One can not simply give a branch a cookie to get it growing. You must know the branch, know what it can do, and how you can point it in the right direction. That's what Hunter and Yoni are doin' to help 'ol Bessie. . .I mean Kyle. We're trying to program Kyle's claw to work autonomously. . . . .that's about it. . .

Friday - 1/17/2018

Friday was a Horse

     El Manifesto's upcoming challenge awaits, which takes place next Tuesday. A 15 second autonomous period "In the Zone" followed by Yoni taking the wheel. The best approach is to aim for the mobile goals, so that means we need our little Kyle to prepare for that weight, and knowing how to pick it up. As Hunter finishes up the program, Yoni continues his work on the claw. Now just to combine both aspects. . .

Tuesday - 1/23/2018

Autonomous Fail

     So today's shot at the challenge didn't play very well for El Manifesto. While Kyle had some adjustments done, the Microcontroller was found to have a muddled port, resulting in no information flowing through the cable for the autonomous. So we switched cables to other ports to make it work, but some cables were accidently flipped, causing the claw to open ouwards instead of inwards. . .

At least we manage with the controller. . .

Thursday - 1/25/2018

Another Go

     Although, autonomous is still out of the question right now, El Manifesto has worked to fix Kyle and bring her back her fire. The claw has been repaired and the arm has underwent some maintenence. Oh yeah, and some schmucks stole some collars that were actually attatched to Kyle. It's a scavenger's world out here. . .

Anyways, we aim to achieve a stupendous score, and give El Manifesto a well-formed victory.

Wednesday - 1/31/2018

Dusk approaches

     This is officially the last week of Vex Robotics for El Manifesto and our fellow teams. We'll finish it off with a good old in-class competition, and give Kyle her last runs on the field. Today's results concluded in a satisfying victory from Kyle, mostly due to the fact that her lift and claw were actually repaired correctly. Quite a good way to conclude Kyle's journey, rather than a good case of 'tisms kicking in. . .

Tuesday - 2/6/2018

The Encore

     Looks like last week's blog is being disregarded, as this week is going to be the true ending. Kyle is brought out once again for her final act, and has performed (thankfully) remarkably and better than ever. Her autonomous is working! With one fell swoop, Kyle lands that cone on the post, securing 10 additional points for El Manifesto when needed.

Thursday - 2/8/2018

Team Finale

     To end the competitions, teams must collide and clash against others! El Manifesto teams up with Godzilla to go up against opposing teams. Together they will shape an immense victory, and destroy the competition. . .at least that's the plan. If autonomous and the sweaty palms of Yoni and Nate perform unerringly, then there will be no doubt for succession.

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