Collaborate

Engage and Persist

Material Exploration

Project Paragraph

Growth Paragraph

Iteration



We created a battle bot and an accompanying video of our process for personal enrichment and to inspire others by showing how building a really cool thing is something anyone can do. Throughout our process we took videos of ourselves making this battle bot and by the end of it, we compiled these videos into a short inspirational montage of the last 3 weeks. The actual process of building the battle bot was segmented into different design sections: The flipping mech, Materials, Wheels, Wedge Shape, Chassis, and Electronics. Collaboration was key to the success of this project. Knowing this, we prioritized communication and challenged ourselves to keep our goals unified and defined. Iteration was also at the core of our work flow. We failed often and fast to the point where every single part on the battle bot was redesigned and tested at least twice. Some parts even went through 7 iterations. The final battle bot was a wedge shape with a flipper mechanism. One of the defining and unique features of our bot is how the front flipping plate is able to rest on the ground while a spring is being wound up, and when the spring is wound, it connects with the front plate to activate a flipping motion.

This studio admittedly began with a rough start. Our team was disorganized and confused on the direction we were moving towards. We had no clear purpose for our project. This was an important lesson to the value of communication and defining goals. Throughout the project, I also struggled facing failure. I noticed that the worry of my design failing in a test made me postpone the experimentation process. I now recognize the value of experimentation and how much opportunity it holds for learning. I learned about group dynamics and leadership as our team solved problems and overcame challenges. I also learned how to work with high forces (from the spring), and how to design parts to be structurally sound. For example, the effects of cantilevering a shaft.