Team 449

The various parts of Blair's robot for the FIRST Lunacy competition are nearly ready for combined testing. Up until this point, the drive, throwing & tracking, and harvesting systems have only been tested independently. These tests were successful, and the team is now preparing to place the various components within the robot's superstructure and test it as a single unit.

FIRST Lunacy is the 2009 FRC competition. The game involves manipulating small, hollow spherical objects called Moon Rocks, Empty Cells, and Super Cells. Human players (payload specialists) play a role in throwing scoring objects out onto the field or loading robots from the outpost or the fueling station. They can also manually score an object into a trailer. Each robot tows a trailer across a low-friction playing field. Two points are awarded for each moon rock placed in opposing trailers, but more points can be earned by taking Empty Cells into the air lock and exchanging them for Super Cells during the last 20 seconds of the match. A Super Cell scored into an opposing trailer earns 15 points. The only game-specific penalty is for using Super Cells too soon, which results in a double penalty. Lunacy is played on a field that deliberately has a very low coefficient of friction, and the teams are required to use wheels that have very little traction.

The placing together of the various components of Team 499's robot (as yet unnamed) marks the transition to the final stage of build season.