They needed to make sure that Zeus was stable enough to make the platform's
incline. Zeus also had to be able to launch the 7-inch foam balls into the
goals.
For the robotics students at Memorial High School, 5840 S. Hudson Ave.,
these were only the beginning of the computations and tweaking that would be
required to make their robot, Zeus, competition ready.
In order for Zeus to be ready for the F.I.R.S.T. Robotics Competition, the
students had six weeks to build it, then ship it to the competition
organizers to be put into storage until game day.
The competition will take the Memorial group to Houston at the end of this
month. Although it is an international event, the students find themselves
watching teams that are a little closer to home.
"It's usually a rivalry," said Duncan Staggs, a sophomore in the group. "Who
can do the best out of Tulsa."
Teams from Tulsa High School for Science and Technology and Booker T.
Washington High School also will compete in the Lone Star Regional March 30
through April 1.
Memorial fared well last year, finishing higher than other Tulsa-area teams,
even though it was the team's first year.
Joe Matheson, one of two robotics instructors helping the students get ready
for the competition, said the game itself, although competitive, is not
designed to be like "Robot Wars" on television. It is supposed to be
friendly.
"It's not a tear-'em-up thing," he said. "Gracious professionalism is the
motto."
The students built a second robot, Athena, after Zeus was shipped to the
competition, so they could practice for the main event.
The students' robots will compete in a game that is a cross between soccer
and basketball.
"We have to play offense and defense," said Lane Matheson, the other
robotics instructor. "Kind of like you would in a sporting event."
In the end, the competition itself is not the main point of the program.
"This program is designed for students to be exposed to engineers and what
they do," Joe Matheson said.
