professor to understand them.
KRASA: At this point, we
have created 19 different robots
from scratch, all of which were
designed by high school students.
With the right motivation, high
school kids will amaze you with
their abilities.
SERVO: Are there any
academic requirements for a
student to be a part of your
program? Do you have a waiting list
of students wanting to participate?
YOST: Absolutely. In order to
qualify for the Robotics
Engineering/Solid Works class,
students must pass Fundamentals of
Drafting/Solid Works with an 80% or
higher through the year, plus receive
a recommendation from me in
order to qualify for the class. My
class caps off at 12 students due to
the nature of the course, but I have
had so much interest from parents
and students who have taken the
class this year that I am in the
process of writing curriculum for a
Re-Engineering and Design/Robotics
course.
The History of Rob t
Combat: Rise of the
Insects Part 2
In the April issue of SERVO, we told the story of the development
of the Antweight class in the United
States. This month, we’ll discuss
their larger counterparts: the
Beetleweights. These bots weigh in
at three pounds and have long been
popular with new and veteran
builders alike. The popularity of the
Hooloovoo.
● by Morgan Berry
bots lies in the simple fact that you
can put a lot more stuff into a three
pound bot than you can on a one
pound. Since Beetleweight motors
are not much larger than Antweight
motors, the builder is left with some
available weight to add weapons
and other extras. A three pound bot
was a natural step between the tiny
one pound Ants and the larger 12
pound Hobbyweights, and the
weight class spread quickly
throughout North America.
Beetleweight fights seem to
have originated in the northeast
United States but through the vast
online network of builders, quickly
spread throughout the country. The
first documented Beetleweight
match was in October 2002, hosted
by the Lazy Toad Robot Club in
Pennsylvania. The two Beetleweights
in attendance out of 68 total bots
were Hooloovoo, from Team Tier
Robotics, and Yattering, from Team
Dragon Combat Robots. Hooloovoo
was a plow, while Yattering was a
spinning drum. By April 2003, it had
spread to Seattle, WA and High
Springs, FL. In May, Beetleweights
were in Texas, and by mid 2003,
Beetle matches were being held at
almost every competition in the
United States and Canada.
48 SERVO 06.2012
