Spotlight on Dixie tricks – Mentor engineers help Corvallis teens meet requirements for regional robotics contest

Corvallis High School students are putting the finishing touches on their entry in the FIRST Robotics competition in Portland, Ore., next week. The 130-pound robot named "Dixie" can climb stairs, play ball and even lift itself off the ground.

By JANE RIDER of the Missoulian

http://missoulian.com/articles/2004/02/25/news/local/news02.txt

CORVALLIS – In a multi-purpose room at Corvallis Schools, 13 high school students put their 130-pound robot "Dixie" through tricky maneuvers and final test runs to prepare her to compete at a regional robotics competition in Portland, Ore., next week.

As of Tuesday evening, the students had just two days left to work out any kinks before shipping the machine out Thursday. She’ll compete in Portland first; another regional competition in San Jose, Calif., follows soon after.

The teens, with the help of several local engineers who have volunteered time as mentors, were given six weeks to build the robot and meet all the contest’s requirements.

"This is by far the most technical robot they’ve ever made," said Tracy Pfeifer, a Corvallis science teacher and robotics adviser who helped launch the robotics program at Corvallis five years ago.

Since then, the students have competed each year with the help of parent and engineer volunteers and sponsorships from Montana State University, Farmers State Bank and several other local contributors. The program is an extracurricular activity which builds skills in science, engineering and technology.

Corvallis is the only high school in Montana with a robotics program and to participate in FIRST – For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology. The national robotics competition is designed to inspire students to pursue science, engineering and technology careers.

FIRST began about a decade ago with 28 teams and a single 14-by-14 foot playing field in a New Hampshire high school gym. Today, the 2004 event will reach more than 20,000 students on more than 900 teams in 27 competitions. Participants come from just about every state in the United States, Canada, Brazil and Great Britain.

The program teams up professionals and young people to solve an engineering design problem in an intense and competitive way. The competitions are high-tech spectator sporting events, the result of lots of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring, project timelines, and deadlines.

Corvallis’ robot picks up a 30-inch yellow ball and places it in a goal; plows other smaller balls into another goal; activates an arm upward to latch onto a pull-up bar and lift itself off the ground; grabs and moves a mobile goal; and runs autonomously.

In the competition, the robot must play a complicated two-minute game that includes other robots and 15 seconds of autonomous movements. CHS junior Max Masnick programmed the machine to complete the autonomous movements which are a key part of starting the game.

Students used math, engineering, science and invention to create the machine.

"A lot of what this gets down to is problem solving," said Jeff Sharpe, a mechanical structural engineer with Bitterroot Engineering and Design who has mentored students since the program’s inception.

"It’s an exciting program," Sharpe said. "It gives these kids the option to excel in something high-tech that otherwise might not be available in the valley."

Sharpe enjoys mentoring the students and watching them grow as they gain experience at regional and national events. This year, if students are successful at regionals, they may compete at nationals in Atlanta in April.

Since Corvallis began its robotics program, five former students who participated in it are now attending Montana State University’s College of Engineering. They’ve also agreed to serve as mentors for high school students at Bozeman High School which is launching its own robotics program.

"One of the biggest challenges now is to increase public awareness of the significance of this program for the students, the school and the community," Pfiefer said.

She’s seen firsthand how teens benefit and flourish working on their projects. The biggest advantage other national schools have over Corvallis is the support they get from major corporate sponsors; so far Corvallis has relied on volunteers and community donations to keep the program running.

"These students are getting the opportunity to work as young engineers, utilizing skills that practice highly technological, mechanical and electrical engineering," she said. "This level of engineering would most likely not be offered until the second or third year of college."

"It’s such an incredible opportunity for someone planning to go into engineering or technology after high school," said Max Masnick, 17. "It’s the best possible thing you can do in high school. There is nothing else like it."

Drew Lesnik, 16, also a junior, became interested in Corvallis’ program in seventh grade, when he watched his brother spend his free time after school building robots.

"I’ve been an unofficial member for five years," Lesnik said. "I was the parts boy those first two years."

Now he balances his free time between basketball and robotics.

"I definitely want to get into engineering," he said. "I have a mechanical mind and a like to combine it with problem solving. This is what I love doing. Why not get into it as much as I can?"

Reporter Jane Rider can be reached at 523-5298 or at [email protected]