V’ville school board receives a robotic visit
The Enterprise — H. Rose Schneider
“Some of the other robots are prettier, but they aren’t as durable,” explain team members from Clayton A. Bouton High School’s Robotics Team. The robot, named Caesar, is made from a variety of parts, including from a car door’s locking mechanism. The school has competed with student-assembled robots in competitions before; they were placed as the highest-seated rookie this past March at the First Robotics Competition held at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
VOORHEESVILLE — The Voorheesville Board of Education had a special guest attending its meeting on Monday night. Caesar the robot, built by the Voorheesville Praetorians — the high school’s robotics team — was brought in by three of the team’s members to give a presentation on their latest match: the Robot Rumble Off-Season Robotics Competition at Ballston Spa High School.
Team member Spencer Mason explained that their biggest competition was this past March at the First Robotics Competition held at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where their team was placed as the highest-seated rookie.
The competition involves six weeks to build a robot that will then join forces with other teams’ creations to compete in a game in which balls must be launched into goals either on the ground or in the air. The team will kick off building for next year’s competition in January.
Caesar is made up from a starter kit as well as a mix of recycled parts, including the locking mechanism for a car door, which helps the robot grab a large rubber ball.
“Some of the other robots are prettier, but they aren’t as durable,” said one of the team members.
After the team’s presentation, the board later voted that night to accept grant money of $5,000 from New York Tech Valley FIRST, to go to the team.
The school board meets Caesar: Cynthia Monaghan, C. James Coffin, business manager James Franchini, Superintendent Brian Hunt, and Cheryl Dozier watch as Caesar, a robot created by Clayton A. Bouton High School’s Robotics Team, moves under the control the school’s team members, during Monday night’s board meeting.
