They call themselves “The Professionals,” and when it comes to designing, building, and programming robots, these Kewanee High School students live up to their team’s name. Kewanee High School’s Robotics Club was formed last year with Ken Haggard as its advisor, and the KHS “Professionals” won their division in a regional competition February 25-26 in Iowa City.
Forty-six teams competed in the Iowa City tournament with Kewanee’s alliance narrowly missing first place and an opportunity to advance to world competition next month in St. Louis. “We were extremely proud of how we did,” said Haggard.
The robot, built and programmed by the Robotics Club, was placed in an alliance with two other teams, which faced off against other three-robot teams in a game called “Get Over It.”
The game was played on a 12- by 12- foot field with teams competing in matches consisting of a 40-second autonomous period, in which the robot performed on its own, followed by a two-minute driver-controlled period in which team members guided the robot to accomplish specified tasks.
The object of the game was to score more points than the opponents by emptying baton dispensers filled with 6-inch long PVC tubes and storing them in stationary and rolling goals. Goals included parking the robot on a cliff, parking the robot on a mountain or bridge, and dispensing batons.
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