High School Robotics Team Heads to NH Competition

The whirr of motorized drills and occasional whine of the metal grinder, accompanied by scents of sawdust and heated metal and the clatter of tools and murmur of voices--this is what you will experience in room 117 of Groton-Dunstable Regional High School most evenings from 6-9 p.m. in February. There, members of FIRST Robotics Team 1277 are busy constructing a robot to compete in this year's FIRST Robotics Competition.

FIRST, a program founded in 1989 by Dean Kamen, stands for "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology." FIRST helps students develop interests in the fields of engineering and science and build teamwork skills.

Led by captains David Linzey, Carl Donnenwirth, and Nick Burnett, Team 1277 has spent six weeks creating a robot to participate in this year's challenge, "Rebound Rumble." In the games, the robot will work as part of an alliance to pick up foam basketballs and shoot them into three different levels of hoops to score points. Each alliance consists of three robots, all from different FIRST robotics teams. The alliance must score points against an opposing alliance, also composed of three, and defend their own hoops. In the middle of the field, there are three seesaw-like mechanisms mounted on a six-inch high metal rail, cutting the field in half. The robots must reach the other side to shoot by either going over the rail or using the seesaws. Additional points are awarded at the end of each match if the robots balance on the seesaws.

The regional competition March 1-3, will take place at Verizon Center in Manchester, NH. Follow the team's progress at www.team1277.org. The team thanks their sponsors, the National Defense Education Program, Raytheon, BAE Systems, and the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts--Ted and Connie Lapres Fund.