HIVE News:

A mini-sumo robot construction class ending in a mini-sumo tournament is being sponsored by The Hive.

General contest rules are available at http://www.robotroom.com/SumoRules.html.

Specific rules or variations for this contest will be posted at www.pelowitz.com/contest.

The construction class and competition are free and open to all. Class will be limited to no more than 20 participants. Register with Dave Jones (ferljones@yahoo.com).
For the class, a mini-Sumo robot kit must be purchased by the class participant and brought to the first class. Help every step of the construction will be available. The kit we will be using in the class can be purchased at https://solarbotics.com/product/bass/.

Some upgrade components are available at http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/189. Look near the bottom of that page for expansion capabilities. This web page shows a robot identical to the one being built in the class with the exception that the one for the class is Arduino based,  allowing for lots of other fun and useful applications.

Class participant should have basic mechanical skills including some soldering experience. Instructors will help with the soldering and the construction. No programming skills are required, but the group will be discussing the programming. Some C language knowledge will be very helpful.

Teaming with friends is encouraged. Teams no larger than two or three are recommended. Individual participation is also encouraged.

In the first session the group will start construction of the robot. If you have a 25w or lower soldering iron available, please bring it. Extras will be available and they are also available at our local Radio Shack. You should also bring a small Phillips screwdriver #1-2, small needle nose pliers, small flush cutting wire cutters. Solder will be provided. Your kit doesn’t include batteries, so it would be wise to bring 6 or more AA batteries. A laptop will be useful for loading the software and testing your robot.

Try to load the Arduino software and drivers on your laptop before the class. The Arduino software is available to download from arduino.cc/en/Main/Software. If you have problems loading the software, show up for the first class a little early and instructors will get you going.

Here is a summary of things to bring to class: your robot kit, soldering iron, safety glasses, tools, laptop, and AA batteries.

The first place competition winner will be awarded a kit of 37 sensors usable with the Arduino micro-controller boards — a $70 value.

Anyone willing to help the participants with construction, soldering, programming, and judging the contest is invited to contact Dave Jones (ferljones@yahoo.com).