Twenty Ottoson Middle School students hope to put their six robots underwater in a real-world test at Spy Pond this fall.
Their teacher, Brandy Whitney, stands behind that hope.
The students worked from February into June to assemble and successfully test the robots, called SeaPerches.
“They amazed me with their will to keep doing something over and over despite setbacks and challenges,” Whitney wrote in an email. “They have amazing dedication.”
A teacher for eight years, four of them instructing in engineering, Whitney provided an outline of the persistence by the members of the Robotics Club.
Sixth- through eighth-graders aim to complete the project this fall and hope to compete, perhaps diving into the SeaPerch challenge.
High schoolers usually tackle this kind of engineering project.
The slide show with this story portrays snapshots of the students’ progress. See the full robot assembly slide shown here >>
An update from June on the Ottoson engineering site says four of six robots are complete and two of six complex circuit boards are running. “Robots experiencing a need for extra design process and reengineering time will be finished at the start of the 2014-2015 year,” it says.
Edited excerpts of a Q-and-A with Whitney at the Ottoson site explains further.
Q: What can you say about the experience of building the SeaPerch?
A: Building the SeaPerches was a challenging yet very rewarding experience for all students involved. Generally, most SeaPerch teams are groups of high school students, although it is definitely a project that has been and can be done with students as young as grade six.
Students who for the most part had no knowledge of even basic circuitry now know how to wire a motor, assemble a robot and have a basic understanding of soldering and more complex circuits. I think learning how to solder was probably the most rewarding and exciting part of the project. Student remarked how they felt it was “real-world engineering” and they felt “like college students.”
Q: Have you been able to do any underwater testing?
A: End-of-the-year testing of the robots underwater was done inside Ottoson. It was a complete success. Students were quickly able to assess the buoyancy for their vehicle and started to discuss how they would modify it.
Q: I know you really wanted an underwater camera. Were you able to solve that problem?
A: We have not solved that yet, although I am planning on investigating funding sources for next year and already have a camera in the $100 range in mind.
Q: What do you think are the most important lessons that the students learn from participating in the club and from the SeaPerch project?
A: This project is very challenging mentally and physically. It requires a lot of time and patience. Some groups did not complete the circuit board and used a spare for the launch; others had different issues with their robots. The most important thing they learned was never, ever, ever give up! To quote Dori from “Finding Nemo” (as they often did), “Just keep swimming!”
Q: I know you got a grant this year. Are you hoping to do SeaPerch again next year?
A: I am very hopeful to add to our SeaPerch team next year. I will be writing a grant, however funding is limited, and we did already receive a grant last year. If we cannot receive grant funding, we will still meet and work on this project, perfect it and see how far we can go.
May 19: Technology showcase includes robot makers
This story was published Thursday, July 31, 2014.
