Schools
BHHS Robotics Team Competes in LA County Competition
The group had six weeks to build a life-size robot that shoots basketballs.
The Robotics team hopes to reach the finals for the second year in a row when it competes in the FIRST Robotics Los Angeles regional competition Friday and Saturday.
The 75 members of the BHHS squad have been working seven days a week since mid-January on the competition’s challenge, which is to build a functioning, life-size robot that can shoot a basketball. The robots compete by making as many baskets as possible in 135 seconds.
The Beverly Hills team, like the other 65 teams in the competition, received a sealed box containing the required parts of the robot. The group had just six weeks to finish the device and send it to Long Beach, Calif., where the competition is being held.
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“This is like sports for the mind,” BHHS robotics teacher Eileen Kahn said. “Students are challenged to raise funds, do their own planning and work as a team.”
Building the robot is a test in engineering design, said BHHS senior and robotics team president Alexander Kern.
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“The process is intense, but really teaches you to perform under pressure,” he said.
The completed robot, which the team dubbed “MettaBot World Peace,” is 58 inches tall and weighs 120 pounds. The robot can shoot a basketball at least 6 feet from the basket.
Although many members of the robotics team enjoy science and math, there are roles for those who don’t. Students also had the chance to work on the team’s website as well as fundraising.
“We raised about $30,000 for parts, entrance fees and travel,” BHHS sophomore Cole Hackbarth said. “It has been a lot of work, but it is worth it.”
Robotics has taken on a higher profile in recent years after Grammy-award winning artist and member of the Black Eyed Peas Wil.i.am attended the kickoff for the 2011 World Championship. He made several media appearances on behalf of the competition and praised robotics as “the new rock and roll.”
To see the BHHS robot—and dozens of other robots designed by students—come to the regional competition at the Long Beach Arena. Admission is free both days. The team’s robotics website will host a live webcast from the competition.
If Beverly Hills places on Saturday, the team will go on to compete in the World Robotics competition next month in St. Louis, Mo. Last year, the BHHS group was a semi-finalist at the world competition in Denver, Colo. To see the list of awards the team has received since 2004, click here.
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