FIRST Steamworks

Last updated

FIRST STEAMworks
FIRST Steamworks Logo.svg
Year2017
Season Information
Number of teams3,357 [1]
Number of regionals55
Number of district events90
Championship location Houston
      George R. Brown Convention Center
      Minute Maid Park
St. Louis
      Dome at America's Center
      America's Center
  FIRST Festival of Champions
      SNHU Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire
FIRST Championship Awards
Chairman's Award winnerHouston
     3132 - "Thunder Down Under"
St. Louis
     2614 - "Mountaineer Area Robotics"
Woodie Flowers Award winnerTim Bennington-Davis - Team 1425
Founder's Award winnerSt. Louis Area Planning Committee
ChampionsHouston
     973 - "Greybots"
     1011 - "CRUSH"
     2928 - "Viking Robotics"
     5499 - "The Bay Orangutans"
St. Louis
     2767 - "Stryke Force"
     254 - "The Cheesy Poofs"
     862 - "Lightning Robotics"
     1676 - "The Pascack PI-oneers"
Festival of Champions
     St. Louis Alliance
Links
Website Official website OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

FIRST Steamworks, stylized as FIRST STEAMworks, was the FIRST Robotics Competition game for the 2017 season. As in past games, two alliances of three individual teams and their robots compete on a field to score "match" point to win the game and ranking points to advance to playoff rounds. The game has a steampunk theme and teams are required to shoot wiffle balls which represent fuel into a simulated boiler which transfers the generated steam into an airship in the middle of the field. Each alliance has one airship, which they pressurize with steam from the boiler and load with plastic gears from the field. At the end of the match, robots can climb and hang on team-supplied ropes (or standard ropes supplied by FIRST) attached to the airship for additional points. [2]

Contents

Kickoff

The Kickoff event for FIRST Steamworks occurred on Saturday January 7, 2017. [3] The kickoff video featured the theme song for the season, "Steam Powered" by Professor Elemental, and an explanation of the game. [4] The video was livestreamed at 10:30 AM ET, with many teams attending "local Kickoff Events" to kickstart their build season. [3]

Field

FIRST Steamworks is played on a field 27 ft (8.2 m) by 54 ft 4 in (16.56 m), covered in green carpet and bounded by transparent polycarbonate guardrails on the longer sides and the Alliance Walls on the shorter sides. It is divided into the Neutral Zone, alliance specific Launchpads, Keys and Retrieval Zones.

The field for FIRST Steamworks at the Orlando Regional FIRST Steamworks Orlando Regional (32518465194).jpg
The field for FIRST Steamworks at the Orlando Regional

Neutral Zone

The Neutral Zone is an area in the middle of the field that contains no major scoring elements, and is neutral to both alliances. It is bounded by the Launchpad Lines, white in colour, and the Launchpad Lines are not part of the Neutral Zone.

Launchpad

Each side of the arena is called the Launchpad. The Launchpad is alliance specific, bounded by the Launchpad Lines and the Alliance Wall. Each Launchpad belongs to the alliance that has their Alliance Wall bounding it. Robots start the match contacting the Alliance Wall. The Launchpad contains the Key, Retrieval Zone and the Airship.

Key

The Key is the area in front of the Boiler. It is bounded by alliance-coloured tape and the Boiler and is contained inside the alliance's own Launchpad. Opposing robots may not stay in the Key for more than 5 seconds, as this would obstruct the alliance from scoring in the Boiler.

Retrieval Zone

The Retrieval Zone is the area in front of the Loading Station. It is inside the opposite alliance's Launchpad, meaning that the robot must travel to the other side of the field to get to the Loading Station. Robots in the Retrieval Zone normally receive scoring elements through the Loading Stations. Robots may not contact another robot in the opposing Retrieval Zone, regardless of who initiates the contact.

Alliance Station and Loading Lanes

The Alliance Station is the area behind the Alliance Wall where drivers are stationed. They control their robots from the Driver Stations inside the Alliance Station, behind the Alliance Wall. Behind the Alliance Station is the Loading Lane, belonging to the opposite alliance. Human Players are stationed in the Loading Lanes, with a supply of both gears and fuel to deposit through the Loading Stations to the robots, who then score points with them. Both areas are bounded by alliance-coloured tape. The Loading Station is the only way to get more gears after the start of the match and one of the two ways to get more fuel, the other being the Hoppers.

Boiler

The Boiler is located at the corner of the field, belonging to the alliance that has its Alliance Wall next to it and their Key in front of it. There are two goals on the Boiler, the Low Efficiency Goal, which is 1 ft 6 in (46 cm) above the ground, and the High Efficiency Goal, which is 8 ft 1 in (246 cm) off the ground. The Low Efficiency Goal is low enough for robots to dump fuel into, though the High Efficiency Goal is too high to do that, so fuel must be launched upwards into it. Fuel may only be launched from an alliance's own Launchpad.

Hoppers

There are five Hoppers stationed around the field, on the guardrails. There are polycarbonate plates on the guardrails. If these are hit by a robot, 2 containers of fuel (1 Hopper) are released onto the field. There are 50 fuel in each container and 100 fuel in each Hopper. Hoppers are neutral with one in each Launchpad and the rest in the Neutral Zone, so any alliance can use the Hoppers. This is one of the two ways robots can get more fuel after the game starts, with the other being the Loading Station.

Airship

The Airship is located in the centre of the alliance's Launchpad, is hexagonal in shape and is the main way alliances score points. Two Human Players, known as Pilots, are stationed inside the Airship. On the Airship there are 3 lifts with pegs for robots to deposit gears onto and a cable to let the Pilots pull the gears from the pegs onto the Airship. The lifts are on the 3 faces that are closest to the Alliance Wall. Pegs consist of a plastic spike and a spring that bends, which may cause the gear to fall off the peg while it is being lifted into the Airship. There are bumpers that separate the pegs, with each on the corner of the face. The edge of the bumpers also define the Base Line, a line marked with green tape that is parallel to the Alliance Wall and touching the edge of the bumpers. Also on the Airship are davits, which each hold a rope and a Touchpad. The davits are positioned with one on the side of the hexagon facing the Alliance Wall and the others two faces away. At the end of the game, the robots attempt to climb the ropes connected to the davits, activating the Touchpad. In the middle of the Airship is the Steam Tank, which displays lights for how much fuel has been scored in the Boiler and also where the first gear is placed to activate the first rotor. The other gears must be placed on the sides of the Airship, with an increasing number of gears required for each succeeding rotor. The second rotor requires 2 gears, the third requires 4 gears and the fourth requires 6 gears. There is one reserve "free" gear that is pre-placed on the Airship for the Pilots to use, however it cannot be used in the Autonomous period.

Gameplay and Scoring

Scoring Elements

There are two major scoring elements in the FIRST Steamworks game, namely fuel and gears. Fuel are plastic wiffleballs with 26 holes in them, are "Screamin' Yellow" in colour, weigh about 2.6 oz (74 g) each, with a 5 inches (13 cm) diameter. Gears are plastic toothed wheels with 10 teeth, weigh 18.4 oz (520 g) each, an 11 inches (28 cm) diameter, a 10 inches (25 cm) pitch diameter and are 2 inches (5.1 cm) thick. Robots may control as many fuel as they wish, but only 1 gear at a time. Ropes are also regulated.

Autonomous Period

Robots start the match contacting their Alliance Wall, with up to 1 gear and up to 10 fuel preloaded on the robot. The first 15 seconds of the match is called the Autonomous Period. Robots are controlled by pre-programmed commands with no driver input, hence they operate autonomously. Drivers and Human Players must stand behind the white Starting Line during Autonomous to ensure this is the case. Pilots, however, may still operate the lifts and place gears/turn rotors during Autonomous, but may not touch the reserve gear. Each rotor that is activated in Autonomous gives the alliance 60 points, each fuel scored in the High Goal is worth 1 kilopascal and each fuel scored in the Low Goal is worth 1⁄3 kilopascals. Also, if a robot crosses the Base Line, it earns 5 points. If a rotor is engaged in Autonomous, the yellow stack lights next to it will illuminate.

Teleop Period

After the Autonomous Period ends, the Teleop Period (Tele-operated) begins. It lasts for 135 seconds and robots are controlled by driver inputs. Rotors that are engaged in Teleop earns the alliance 40 points, fuel in the High Goal is worth 1⁄3 kilopascals and fuel in the Low Goal is worth 1⁄9 kilopascals. At the end of the match, each whole kilopascal accumulated throughout both periods is worth 1 point.

End Game

The last 30 seconds of the Teleop Period is called the End Game. In the End Game, Pilots deploy the ropes on the Airship to let the robots climb them. Each robot that climbs a rope and activates a Touchpad for at least 1 second and when the game timer reaches 0 earns 50 points for their alliance.

Special Scoring

There are some other ways that alliances can score points. If an alliance scores at least 40 kilopascals throughout the match, they earn 1 extra Ranking Point for qualification matches and 20 points for playoff matches. Also, if an alliance gets all four rotors turning by the end of the match, they score 1 extra Ranking Point for qualification matches and 100 points for playoff matches. Another way to score extra points is by penalties. If the opposing alliance breaks the rules, they may receive a Foul or a Tech Foul. A Foul is 5 points to the other alliance and a Tech Foul is 25 points to the other alliance.

Scoring Summary

ActionAutonomousTeleopRanking Points
Mobility5 points
Rotor Spinning60 points40 points
Fuel in High Goal1 kilopascal1⁄3 kilopascal
Fuel in Low Goal1⁄3 kilopascal1⁄9 kilopascal
Every 1 kilopascal1 point1 point
Climb Rope50 points
At least 40 kilopascals20 points

(in Playoffs)

1 RP

(in Qualification)

All 4 Rotors spinning100 points

(in Playoffs)

1 RP

(in Qualification)

Foul5 points5 points
Tech Foul25 points25 points
Win2 RP

(in Qualification)

Tie1 RP

(in Qualification)

Events

The FIRST Steamworks Field at the Menora Mivtachim Arena, 2017 Israel District Championship FIRST Robotics Competition Israel District Championship Field.jpg
The FIRST Steamworks Field at the Menora Mivtachim Arena, 2017 Israel District Championship

FIRST holds many competitions around the world in the 7 week season, with many teams qualifying for the FIRST Championship each event. Only regional and district championship events are listed.

Week 1

EventLocationDate
South Florida West Palm Beach, Florida March 1–4
Lake Superior Duluth, Minnesota March 1–4
Northern Lights Duluth, Minnesota March 1–4
Toluca Toluca March 1–4
Palmetto Myrtle Beach, South Carolina March 1–4
Hub City Lubbock, Texas March 1–4

[5]

Week 2

EventLocationDate
Arkansas Rock City Little Rock, Arkansas March 8–11
Arizona North Flagstaff, Arizona March 8–11
San Diego Del Mar, California March 8–11
Orlando Orlando, Florida March 8–11
Shenzhen Shenzhen March 8–11
St. Louis St. Louis March 8–11
Miami Valley Springfield, Ohio March 8–11
Dallas Irving, Texas March 8–11
Utah West Valley City, Utah March 8–11
Central Valley Madera, California March 9–12
Southern Cross Sydney March 13–15

[5]

Week 3

EventLocationDate
Ventura Ventura, California March 15–18
Central Illinois Peoria, Illinois March 15–18
Greater Kansas City Kansas City, Missouri March 15–18
Finger Lakes Rochester, New York March 15–18
New York Tech Valley Troy, New York March 15–18
Greater Pittsburgh California, Pennsylvania March 15–18
Lone Star Central Houston March 15–18
South Pacific Sydney March 16–18
San Francisco San Francisco March 16–19

[5]

Week 4

EventLocationDate
Rocket City Huntsville, Alabama March 22–25
Sacramento Davis, California March 22–25
Colorado Denver March 22–25
Iowa Cedar Falls, Iowa March 22–25
Bayou Kenner, Louisiana March 22–25
Oklahoma Oklahoma City March 22–25
Montreal Montreal, Québec March 22–25
Smoky Mountains Knoxville, Tennessee March 22–25
Wisconsin Milwaukee March 22–25
Los Angeles Long Beach, California March 23–26
Hudson Valley Suffern, New York March 23–26
Israel District Championship Tel Aviv, Israel March 28–30

[5]

Week 5

EventLocationDate
Orange County Irvine, California March 29 – April 1
Silicon Valley San Jose, California March 29 – April 1
Hawaii Honolulu March 29 – April 1
Idaho Boise, Idaho March 29 – April 1
Midwest Chicago March 29 – April 1
Laguna Torreón March 29 – April 1
Buckeye Cleveland March 29 – April 1
Brazos Valley Waco, Texas March 30 – April 2
Lone Star North The Woodlands, Texas March 30 – April 2
North Carolina District Championship Lillington, North Carolina March 31 – April 2

[5]

Week 6

EventLocationDate
Western Canada Calgary, Alberta April 5–8
Arizona West Phoenix, Arizona April 5–8
Peachtree District Championship Athens, Georgia April 5–8
Minnesota 10000 Lakes Minneapolis April 5–8
Minnesota North Star Minneapolis April 5–8
Las Vegas Las Vegas April 5–8
Alamo San Antonio April 5–8
Chesapeake District Championship Richmond, Virginia April 5–8
Mid-Atlantic District Championship Bethlehem, Pennsylvania April 5–8
Pacific Northwest District Championship Cheney, Washington April 5–8
New England District Championship Durham, New Hampshire April 5–8
Indiana District Championship Huntington, Indiana April 6–8
New York City New York City April 6–9

[5]

Week 7

EventLocationDate
Michigan District Championship University Center, Michigan April 12–15
Seven Rivers La Crosse, Wisconsin April 12–15
Ontario District Championship Mississauga, Ontario April 12–15

[5]

FIRST Championship

EventLocationDate
FIRST Championship (Houston) Houston April 19–22
FIRST Championship (St. Louis) St. Louis April 26–29
FIRST Festival of Champions Manchester, New Hampshire July 28–29

[5]

Results

The following tables show the winners of the subdivisions and finals at each FIRST Championship event, as well as the Festival of Champions

Houston

Subdivision Winners

DivisionCaptain1st Pick2nd Pick3rd Pick
Carver212298749106314
Turing1318204615952907
Galileo5654241526304112
Roebling973101129285499
Hopper604284818682903
Newton118167841885892

Einstein

Round Robin
PosDivisionPldWLPtsQualification
1Newton (Q)5411.6Advance to Einstein Finals
2Roebling (Q)5321.2
3Carver5321.2
4Hopper5321.2
5Galileo5230.8
6Turing5050
Source: [6]
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
Finals
DivisionAlliance12Wins
Newton118-1678-4188-58924724690
Roebling973-1011-2928-54995394952

[7]

St. Louis

Subdivision Winners

DivisionCaptain1st Pick2nd Pick3rd Pick
Archimedes10586716402137
Carson12556871796597
Curie205612413841511
Daly27672548621676
Darwin198633103023719
Tesla3452368320842537

Einstein

Round Robin
PosDivisionPldWLPtsQualification
1Darwin (Q)5321.2Advance to Einstein Finals
2Daly (Q)5321.2
3Curie5321.2
4Carson5321.2
5Tesla5230.8
6Archimedes5140.4
Source: [8]
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
Finals
DivisionAlliance12Wins
Darwin1986-3310-302-37194875430
Daly2767-254-862-16764945462

Festival of Champions

ChampionshipAlliance12345Wins
Houston973-1011-4188-54995084924595393102
St. Louis2767-254-862-16763424284855555883

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FIRST Frenzy: Raising the Bar</span>

FIRST Frenzy: Raising the Bar was the 2004 game for the FIRST Robotics Competition. The game included elements from previous years' games, including mobile goals, "capping" goals with large inflatable balls, and others. In Raising the Bar, teams could score by having their human player score purple balls in any of the goals, capping the goals with a multiplier ball, or hanging their robot suspended from the 10-foot (3.0 m) high 'chin up bar'. In the qualifying matches, Teams competed in 2-member randomly generated alliances. In the elimination rounds, 3-member alliances competed against each other with one team sitting out each match. The alliance that won two matches advanced in the tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aim High</span>

Aim High was the 2006 game for the FIRST Robotics Competition. The competition involved teams competing to gain points by delivering balls into goals and positioning their robots in certain positions on the playing field. The teams took it in turn to provide defense and attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triple Play (FIRST)</span>

Triple Play was the name of the 2005 season FIRST Robotics Competition game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toroid Terror</span>

Toroid Terror was the 1997 game for the FIRST Robotics Competition. This was the first year that FRC had a regional event outside its origins in New Hampshire; in addition to Manchester, regionals were held in Chicago and New Brunswick, New Jersey, as well as the championship event at a complex set up in the Epcot parking lot. It was also the first year in which the scoring object was not a ball.

Breakaway is the game for the 2010 FIRST Robotics Competition, announced on January 9, 2010. Robots direct soccer balls into goals, traverse "bumps" in the field, suspend themselves and each other on towers, and/or go through a tunnel located in the center of the field.

Get Over It! is the robotics competition event for the 2010-11 FIRST Tech Challenge. Two teams compete to score points by depositing colored batons in various types of goals. The name of the game refers to the many obstacles that traverse the middle of the field, which include a mountain, two bridges, and two ramps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Logo Motion</span>

Logo Motion is the 2011 FIRST Robotics Competition game. Playing pieces are inner tubes shaped like the components of the FIRST logo. The primary objective of the game is to place them on racks to gain points. In the endgame, robots deploy smaller robots ("minibots") to climb a tower. Minibots must be made from the FIRST Tech Challenge kit of parts. The game celebrates the 20th season of the FRC and is also meant to commemorate the artist Jack Kamen, who designed the original FIRST logo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebound Rumble</span>

Rebound Rumble is the 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition game. It is styled similarly to basketball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ring It Up!</span> Robotics competition

Ring It Up!, released on 8 September 2012, was the 2012–2013 robotics competition for FIRST Tech Challenge. In the competition, two alliances, each consisting of two teams, competed to score plastic rings on a set of pegs aligned in a three-dimensional tic-tac-toe board. Ring It Up! is the eighth FTC challenge. More than 2400 teams competed worldwide, surpassing the number of competitors in the previous year's Bowled Over! challenge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultimate Ascent</span>

Ultimate Ascent was the 2013 FIRST Robotics Competition game. It is styled similarly to disc golf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Block Party!</span> FIRST Tech Challenge robotics competition

Block Party!, released on September 7, 2013, is the 2013–2014 robotics competition for FIRST Tech Challenge. In the competition, two alliances, each consisting of two teams, compete to score blocks in plastic crates atop alliance-colored pendulums. Block Party! is the ninth FTC challenge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Recycle Rush</span>

Recycle Rush was the 2015 FIRST Robotics Competition game. It involves picking up and stacking totes on scoring platforms, putting pool noodles ("litter") inside recycling containers, and putting the containers on top of scoring stacks of totes. There is also a coopertition aspect of the game where both alliances of teams can pool their totes and stack them on a step dividing the field to each gain twenty points. Along with these robot actions, human players can attempt to throw the pool noodles across the field to gain four points for each noodle left in the opposing alliance's work zone.

FIRST Stronghold was the 2016 FIRST Robotics Competition game. The game was played by two alliances of up to three teams each, and involves breaching the opponents’ defenses, known as outer work as well as capturing their tower by first firing "boulders" at it, and then surrounding or scaling the tower using a singular rung on the tower wall. Points were scored by crossing elements of the tower's outer works, shooting boulders into the opposing tower's five goals in order to lower the tower strength, and by surrounding and scaling the tower.

<i>FIRST</i> Res-Q

FIRST Res-Q, released on September 8, 2015, is the 2015–2016 robotics competition for FIRST Tech Challenge. In the competition, two alliances, each consisting of two teams, compete to climb a mountain and score debris in alliance specific goals. FIRST Res-Q is the eleventh FTC challenge game.

VEX Robotics is a robotics program for elementary through university students and a subset of Innovation First International. The VEX Robotics competitions and programs are managed by the Robotics Education & Competition Foundation (RECF). In April 2018, VEX Robotics Competition was named the largest robotics competition in the world by Guinness World Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FIRST Power Up</span>

FIRST Power Up, stylised as FIRST POWER UP, is the FIRST Robotics Competition game for the 2018 season. It involves two alliances of three teams each, with each team controlling a robot and performing specific tasks on a field to score points. The game has a retro 8-bit theme and teams are required to place milk crates, or "power cubes", on large balancing scales to tip the scale and gain ownership. Alliances can also trade power cubes for power ups, giving them a temporary advantage in a match. At the end of the match, robots can climb the tower attached to the centre balancing scale using a rung attached to the tower, giving them additional points.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Destination: Deep Space</span> 2019 FIRST Robotics Competition game

Destination: Deep Space, stylized as DESTINATION: DEEP SPACE and officially known as Destination: Deep Space Presented By The Boeing Company, is the FIRST Robotics Competition game for the 2019 season. It involves two alliances of three teams each, with each team controlling a robot and performing specific tasks on a field to score points. The game centers around an outer space theme involving two alliances consisting of three teams each competing to place poly-carbonate hatch panels and orange rubber balls or "cargo" on rockets and cargo ships before returning to their HAB platform to climb at the end of the match.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infinite Recharge</span>

Infinite Recharge is the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) game for the 2020 season. The season is in partnership with Lucasfilm as part of its Star Wars: Force for Change initiative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rapid React</span> 2022 FIRST Robotics Competition game

Rapid React, stylized as RAPID REACT and officially known as Rapid React presented by The Boeing Company for sponsorship reasons, is the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) game for the 2022 season. The game is themed around transportation as part of the FIRST-wide FIRST Forward theme for 2021-2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charged Up (FIRST)</span> 2023 FIRST Robotics Competition game

Charged Up, stylized as CHARGED UP and officially known as Charged Up presented by Haas for sponsorship reasons, was the FIRST Robotics Competition game for the 2023 season. The game is part of the FIRST-wide FIRST Energize theme for the 2022-2023 season, which focuses on energy and sustainable development. The season's kickoff event occurred on January 7, 2023, and was streamed live on Twitch.

References

  1. ↑ "2017 Season Facts" (PDF). www.firstinspires.org. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  2. ↑ "One Page Game Description" (PDF). FIRST. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  3. 1 2 "Kickoff". FIRST. November 25, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Founder's Reception and Kickoff Broadcast". FIRST. November 29, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "2017 FRC Event List". The Blue Alliance. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  6. ↑ "CMPTX Playoff Matches: FRC Event Web". frc-events.firstinspires.org. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
  7. ↑ "2017 Einstein Field (Houston)". The Blue Alliance. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  8. ↑ "CMPMO Playoff Matches: FRC Event Web". frc-events.firstinspires.org. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.