Unit 5: Vex Self Design

The Engineering Design Process (EDP): The iterative cycle of Ask, Brainstorm, Plan, Create, Test, and Improve.

Optimization & Trade-offs: Understanding that a faster robot might be less stable, or a wider intake might be harder to maneuver.

Advanced Mechanics: Knowledge of gear ratios (High Speed vs. High Torque) specifically for clearing the "Swept Away" field quickly.

Strategic Scoring: The math behind the game (e.g., Is it better to clear 10 wiffle balls or focus on the 3-point footballs?).

Prototyping: Students will modify their Clawbots or design new "intakes" (like a plow, a top-roller, or a wide scoop) to handle multiple game pieces at once.

Engineering Notebooking: Document every design change, sketch, and "failure" to show how the robot evolved over the 15 days.

Iteration: Test a design on the field, identify a bottleneck (e.g., "The balls are getting stuck under the chassis"), and build a mechanical fix.

Performance Testing: Conduct 60-second "scrimmages" to collect data on how many points their design can score compared to the standard Clawbot.

The "Swept Away" Championship & Design Review: 1. The Tournament: Teams compete in a final bracketed tournament using the full "Swept Away" rules. 2. The Design Defense: Before the final match, teams must present their "Star Modification" to the class, explaining: * What specific problem they were trying to solve. * How they used gear ratios or structural changes to solve it. * One piece of data from their testing that proved their design was an improvement over the original build.