At NASA technology program, students let their robots roll

HAMPTON

"OK, this is Mr. Rover."

Hi, Mr. Rover.

"And Mr. Rover likes to pick up things, especially things named Mr. Cup and placed directly in its path."

Go for it, Mr. Rover.

But science - like some Mars rovers - has its share of glitches, as 43 high school students learned firsthand Thursday afternoon during demonstrations of robots they designed and built during the first Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars program.

After several weeks of online lessons, the students met for a week at NASA Langley Research Center, where they researched Mars missions during the day and built robots at night. Starting with identical parts (a Lego Mindstorms NXT kit), each team built robots and programmed laptops to make them perform different functions.

Some danced. Some talked. Some were fast. Some weren't. But they all worked.

The students applied for the program early in the year, worked through the online lessons and were divided into teams for the Mars mission planning: Getting There, Living There, Working There and Mission Integration.

Living There Team 2 presented its robot first. As it danced to the lyrics, "I like where we are when we drive in the car," someone in the audience said softly, "We're screwed."

Working There Team 2 introduced its robot: "This robot has a giant grappling arm and we're gonna try to grab a can of soda."

And it... almost... did.

"It's a very large program, and we had some trouble with it," one team member confided. "This is a very sound-sensitive robot, so it will have a seizure if you start applauding."

And it did.

Dante was the only walking robot - all of the others had wheels - and because it resembled a Star Wars machine, the team had stuck "laser guns" on its front that they hoped would flash when triggered by clapping hands.

"Impressive," said someone in the back.

Mission Integration Team 3 was self-deprecating: "This is our robot, but we're not quite sure what it does." What it did was roll really fast, change direction to avoid obstacles and spin its arm furiously, prompting that same voice in the crowd to say, "Yep. We're screwed."

Getting There Team 4 came to the mic with its creation - "So this is Dexter and he's an interactive bot" - that had a touch sensor, microphone and ultrasonic range finder. "All right, Dexter, go, boy, go!" It responded to commands on cue.

"Oh, God," said the voice.

Then Mission Integration Team 1 took the floor with a robot that featured a tall tower - the better to hear you with. "Uh, this is Tim," said the spokesman. "Please, stay quiet. There are a few programs that are sound sensitive."

A hand clap and command: "Dance!" And Tim zipped around.

Another clap. "He can run away from stuff." And Tim ran away from a tossed shoe and a rolling can.

"Stop!" And Tim stopped.

When the competition stopped, after a dozen teams, Tim won, accumulating points in categories such as motion, action based on sensor input, data acquisition and communication, and style. Tim's creators were Cian Branco of Grassfield High School in Chesapeake, Joel Hollingsworth of Hampton Christian School and David Lemery of Galileo Magnet High School in Danville.

Three teams tied for second place.

In third place was the walking robot, Dante, and builders Jamie VanderHeiden of Kellam High School and Jerry Carlson of Maggie Walker Governor's School.

The program wraps up today. If enthusiasm is any indication, the robot building may continue for a long time after that.

Diane Tennant, (757) 446-2478, diane.tennant@pilotonline.com