Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Robots take up air hockey
By Ron Jackimowicz, Staff Writer
Thursday, July 26, 2007 | No comments posted.
MYRTLE POINT - Six-year-old Hunter Hixson flipped the joystick controllers back and forth trying to navigate his red robot air hockey player toward the puck for another goal.
Hixson, of Myrtle Point; and Ryan Swenson, 9, of Coquille, were among a nearly continuous line of players who found the booth at the Coos County Fair hosted by the Electronics Club of Southwestern Oregon Community College.
The Hoverbot Air Hockey booth is on the top floor of the Clarno Building, which houses the commercial exhibits.
Devon Goode, a second-year computer networking student in Dave Fedukowski's class at Southwestern, was manning the booth and helping with tips about the controllers.
But, like most youngsters, Hixson and Swenson needed little help when handed the controls.
“It draws quite a bit of attention,” Goode said.
It's also free.
Goode said the game is like “air hockey with robots.”
He and first-year student Steve Smith have been working on the project for the last two months.
“This was at least a few months of work,” Goode said. “The last few weeks, we kicked it into overdrive.”
The round playing field is about 18 inches high. It is covered with peg board and painted black. The air is forced under the playing field with two “squirrel cage” motored blowers - one was originally used to dry carpets.
The air makes the robots hover just over the surface. The field is encircled by a 3-inch high-fence with string tied between the posts to keep the robots on the field. The string is left off the goal areas for the 6-inch foam puck to go through.
“It's still an ongoing project,” Goode said. “We're going to have a scoreboard that has an LED to keep score, and nets to catch the puck.”
He said they also plan to put lights around the puck that go in a circular pattern.
The robots are painted foam disks with a pair of fans from remote-control airplanes that are used for guidance.
“Then there's a wireless receiver, and a motor control board I built from scratch,” Goode said.
And then there are batteries.
One of Goode's main tasks while manning the booth is to check and replace the batteries as they wear down.
Besides the fun that the project will bring during the fair, Goode hopes the project will also help the small, on-campus club gain some members.
“Hopefully, it will grow,” Goode said. “People will come out and see it, like it, and might get involved.”
Hixson, of Myrtle Point; and Ryan Swenson, 9, of Coquille, were among a nearly continuous line of players who found the booth at the Coos County Fair hosted by the Electronics Club of Southwestern Oregon Community College.
The Hoverbot Air Hockey booth is on the top floor of the Clarno Building, which houses the commercial exhibits.
Devon Goode, a second-year computer networking student in Dave Fedukowski's class at Southwestern, was manning the booth and helping with tips about the controllers.
But, like most youngsters, Hixson and Swenson needed little help when handed the controls.
“It draws quite a bit of attention,” Goode said.
It's also free.
Goode said the game is like “air hockey with robots.”
He and first-year student Steve Smith have been working on the project for the last two months.
“This was at least a few months of work,” Goode said. “The last few weeks, we kicked it into overdrive.”
The round playing field is about 18 inches high. It is covered with peg board and painted black. The air is forced under the playing field with two “squirrel cage” motored blowers - one was originally used to dry carpets.
The air makes the robots hover just over the surface. The field is encircled by a 3-inch high-fence with string tied between the posts to keep the robots on the field. The string is left off the goal areas for the 6-inch foam puck to go through.
“It's still an ongoing project,” Goode said. “We're going to have a scoreboard that has an LED to keep score, and nets to catch the puck.”
He said they also plan to put lights around the puck that go in a circular pattern.
The robots are painted foam disks with a pair of fans from remote-control airplanes that are used for guidance.
“Then there's a wireless receiver, and a motor control board I built from scratch,” Goode said.
And then there are batteries.
One of Goode's main tasks while manning the booth is to check and replace the batteries as they wear down.
Besides the fun that the project will bring during the fair, Goode hopes the project will also help the small, on-campus club gain some members.
“Hopefully, it will grow,” Goode said. “People will come out and see it, like it, and might get involved.”
The comments below are from users of theworldlink.com and do not necessarily represent the views of The World or Lee Enterprises. Participation Guidelines
Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Not already registered?
The World welcomes your comments about stories, and we encourage a robust dialogue on this site. All comments must meet reasonable standards of decency and civility.
Please follow these basic rules:
- No defamatory comments about individuals or businesses.
- No deliberately false information.
- No obscenity or racially offensive language.
- No harassment, verbal abuse, threats or personal attacks.
- No information that invades another person's privacy.
- No business solicitations or charitable solicitations.
Comments that violate these standards will not be posted. Users with repeated violations may be banned from future posting.Comments will be approved throughout the day during business hours. After hours and weekend comments may not appear until the following business day. It may take a couple of hours before comments are approved.
The World generally does not edit comments, but we reserve the right to edit any comment that does not meet our standards.
Close Guidelines