WEDNESDAY (Day 5)
GAME 2
Murphy’s Law ... All that could go wrong, does. After fixing the camera, the computer problem that disabled 2A
previously, happens to 2B, as well. The computer turns on, but the IRQ settings get corrupted and the CMOS hangs. Both
DARwIns are vegetables! Our next match against team FUmanoid from Freie Universitaet from Berlin was about to start,
but neither of our robots would power up. We requested a two minute timeout at the start of the game, and somehow
managed to boot up the 2B’s computer. DARwIn tried to
search for the ball on the field, but without its pan and tilt
head it took a lot of time to locate the ball. It finally did and
proceeded to dash toward the ball, but somehow ripped
out its own power cable and shut down, catastrophically
collapsing in the middle of the field.
Unfortunately, we had to withdraw, with the score
automatically set to 10:0. Our entire team was in shock and
very disappointed. Team moral was zero. We had high
hopes for this game, even believing we could win, but the
electrical and computing hardware were just not cooperating. We had five hours before the next game; just enough
time to figure out how to resurrect our robots.
GAME 3
Praying for a miracle, team member Karl somehow got
the computer to boot up, just 10 minutes before the game.
The computer seemed to be working fine, but none of its
motors were moving, so DARwIn can’t stand up! Seven
minutes before the start of the game, team member Jessie
discovers that a RS-485 cable is missing inside DARwIn’s
body which is causing the malfunction. Everything was so
last minute and hectic, we forgot to install this crucial cable
when putting the robot back together! Six minutes before
the game, team member Robert runs out the stadium, back
to the dorm room to get the soldering equipment and wires.
Robert literally strips the wires, making the cable as he runs
back to the CRC. The game had already started without a After the team’s first
successful match.
functioning robot, but Robert miraculously finished the
cable and team member Jesse opened up DARwIn’s chest
and placed it into the tiny gap between the circuit boards.
Team member Brad booted up the computer and threw
DARwIn on the field, who proceeded to get up and start to
play soccer! A huge cheer came from the audience!
The goalkeeper 2A threw its body to block a kick from
Team B-Human’s striker. Our striker 2B dribbled the ball and
pushed it towards the goal but was blocked by Team B-Human. Team B-Human’s robot walked next to 2B and 2B pushed
it away, making it fall down next to the ball. Then 2B kicked Team B-Human’s robot in the head, instead of the ball next
to it. That brought a big laugh from the audience. (It was probably the most entertaining game in RoboCup history.) The
referees were surprised to see our robots rise up from the dead, and actually play an impressive game. With all that went
wrong, it was truly a miracle!
The audience cheered for the
underdog (that would be us) and
though we lost with a score of 1:0,
we were the true winners of this
game. Fast thinking, great teamwork, skillful hands, and leadership
made the impossible happen.
Though we lost, we celebrated our
first successful game with a late
lunch and started preparing for the
next day of battle.
Getting ready for the next battle.
DARwIn surrounded
by opponents.
He pushes the
others and kicks
their heads like
a bully!
DARwIn 2B bullying the
opponents by pushing and
kicking them —they fall like
bowling pins. Bad robot,
DARwIn, bad robot!
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