GAEA, our second robot, means “earth” in Greek and Latin. According to Greek mythology, Gaea was the mother of all Titans, one of which was ATLaS, our namesake robot our Rookie season. GAEA is an acronym that means: Grabbing Actuated Elevator Automaton.

In 2015’s “Recycle Rush” competition, GAEA  grabbed totes and recycling containers and placed them on the scoring platforms. Standing at 74 inches tall, GAEA accomplished these tasks with a pneumatic cylinder that extended or retracted its high-friction arms.

The Elevator Mechanism has a high-powered winch that feeds a steel cable through a pulley in order to lift our Grabbing Mechanism on GAEA’s vertical axis. It’s most significant innovation: GAEA can move both its arms with a single pneumatic cylinder. With her mecanum wheels, GAEA can move totes sideways or virtually in any direction, allowing totes and containers to be stacked faster and more efficiently.

Our game strategy for “Recycling Rush” was to work with our Alliance to provide a “cat like” robot – GAEA is quick, agile and stable – collecting and carrying up to four totes or three totes and one recycling container.

 

Spec Sheet: GAEA – 4915

Spartronics | Bainbridge Island

Dimensions: 28 in. x 32 in. x 75 in.

Weight: 117.2 lbs (Inspected)

Drive train: 4-wheel, 6” diameter Mecanum

Motor controllers: 5, 1 for each wheel + 1 for winch

Pneumatics: 4 tanks with 2 single solenoids – partially open, open and closed

Gear ratio for the winch: ~70 to 1

Gear ratio for Mecanum: 10.7 to 1

Arm mechanism: Elevator and pneumatic grabber

Game play:

– Can carry up to 4 totes with mobility

– Can carry up to 3 totes and a container with mobility, 5th Level

– Can pick up totes from the chute (preferred)

– Can pick up totes (wide and long) and move to landfill

• Can pick up sideways containers
• We can load litter from chute, but not push on field

Coopertition:

– We can stack the three yellow totes and move to the step

Human Player:

• Toss noodles past the opponent’s landfill
• Master stacker
• Rules master

Elevator:

• The Elevator Mechanism has a high-powered winch that feeds a steel cable through a pulley in order to lift our Grabbing Mechanism

Innovative Grabbing Mechanism/Arm:

– GAEA can move its two arms with a single pneumatic cylinder

Autonomous – 5 options:

• Move
• Grab a recycling container and move to auto zone
• Grab and move a tote to auto zone
• Stack a recycling container on a tote and move both to auto zone
• Remains stationery – Positioned for Teleop

Programming

• Used Java
• We have a command-based system
• Iterative vs. simple