Team Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious has one of the longest name with some of the youngest minds. They are building a world class robot to save bees. Support them & send them to Denmark for the First Lego League-European Open championship in Denmark. 

Winning this event will put India on the Global Map. This event is scheduled for May 2017.

Pic: Clockwise from Right–  Kavya, Shivai, Sameeha, Dhruv, Yajur, Dhruv

Team members talking about themselves:

Sameeha Sood Age- 10

I have been doing robotics since I was 7. I love robotics because I can build whatever I want. It’s up to my imagination and I let it go wild. I have been participating in WRO and FLL since 2015. We made it to nationals in both years and this time we have also qualified for the internationals

I’m very excited to represent India at an international level but I’m also nervous. It’s my first time going for my own international competition and I’m very happy. I will get to make lots of new friends and Learn about new projects

My Likes/interests-dance, DIY, performing arts, visual arts and robotics

Shivai Patil Age- 11

I have participated in Jr. FLL 2 times, FLL 1 time and Indian Robot Olympiad 2 times. I love robotics because it helped me to widen our mechanical knowledge. I feel super excited about qualifying for internationals.

My Likes and interests- Singing, playing the violin, Robotics

Dhruv Bumb Age-13

I started learning robotics at RoboClub since 2013. I learned NXT and EV3. Then I attended my first competition which was IRO in 2014. After IRO I attended my first FLL where I made it to nationals. Then I participated in another IRO in 2015 where I also qualified to nationals. Then my next competition was IRO 2016, where I made it for my first internationals. I love robotics because it makes me think creatively and it also allows me to make innovative robots and participate in various competitions where I gain a lot of knowledge. Also robotics is a platform for me where I can express and share my ideas with everyone.

My Likes/interests- football, drums, and robotics

Dhruv Wadhwa Age:14

My formal interaction with robotics started in 2015 when I decided to do a summer camp of Robotics during my annual vacation. I was really fascinated by the creativity, imagination and excitement involved in designing & building a Robo and wanted to do more. Then I joined regular classes with RoboClub and when I was done I decided to start competitions which opened up the amazing world of FLL to me.

I love robotics because I understand how important it is. Robotics is something that will change the world. I love robotics so I can be a part of that change.

Representing a country in an international competition is something not everyone gets a chance to do. I feel that getting chosen for internationals gives me a sense of responsibility which drives me to do better and make my country proud. While I hope to do the same I am really excited to about the fun and experience of making new friends all across the world.

My Likes/ interests: My interests range from music, sports and many more. I am learning to play the guitar & I love to play cricket. I am very passionate about robotics too.

ABOUT THE BEE SAVER BOT :

Pic: The core of the bot and the bot with arms to perform different tasks

Our team has developed a bee saver bot that removes bees safely and carefully without harming them or humans.

Our solution is called the Bee Saver Bot – it’s a combination of robotics and hi-tech components. The process has 3 steps.

STEP 1 :  First, we scan the site where the hive is. 

STEP 2: we print a custom designed enclosure which collects the hive and bees all at once. 

STEP 3: we slice of the hive where it is attached to the wall of the building and transport the enclosure to the nearest bee farm for relocation.

We send up a quadcopter, like a flying drone with 3D cameras. They scan the hive and the area around it and get 3d measurements. The measurements are then fed into a cad-cam software which designs the shape of the enclosure which is needed to cover the hive and the bees altogether. The design is fed into a wood-based 3d printer. A fully biodegradable, breathable and re-usable enclosure is now ready! The quad copters go up again near the hive. 2 arms enclose the hive completely, a 3rd arm uses a sharp blade to slice off the hive right from near the wall and seal the enclosure. The enclosure is now transferred to a vehicle to be transported to the nearest bee farm.

This solution can save millions of bees from getting hurt and actually relocate them back to bee farms from where they can be back on the fields where they contribute so much to our food chain!

Why we chose this cause: Saving Honey Bees

We chose honey bees because they are mostly overlooked. Bees are mostly killed by us humans through pesticides, colony collapse disorder and many more ways.

We learnt that more than 85% of the world’s crops are pollinated by Honey Bees .Every third bite of food comes from a bee pollinated crop or animal that depends on bee pollination. As a part of the research we visited a bee keeping farm and training center in UP and learnt all about BEES.

Whenever mostly people see a beehive in their houses, they call the pest controls and burn the hive. That kills about 20-80 thousand bees. So we thought of building a solution that can safely relocate the beehive without harming the bees. Our solution is a BEE SAVER BOT that takes down beehives without harming any humans or bees in households and high rise buildings.

It scans the beehive, and relocates it by building an enclosure that safely encloses the beehive and transports it to the nearest bee farm. We achieve our goal of saving Bees using a combination of High tech robotics and a community awareness drive.

How does the project benefit society?

Our project is firstly increasing awareness about the importance of Bees. And awareness is the first step towards change! If bees are saved , then so are humans and the entire ecosystem. Bees all over the world are disappearing for various reasons, but there is lack of awareness amongst us about their importance. If we can stop bees from dying and make people aware that they are important to the ecosystem, we help the society with more crop production and increased food amounts in the world.

The lightening McQueen!!

ROBOT GAME: We have built, tested, and programmed an autonomous robot using LEGO MINDSTORMS® technology to solve a set of missions in the Robot Game. Throughout this experience, we operated under the FIRSTLEGO League signature set of Core Values, celebrating discovery, teamwork, and Gracious Professionalism

HOW DID WE BUILD THE ROBOT ?

Pic: The bot with arms to perform different tasks

Our robot is super cool. We call it the Lightning McQueen, not only because it is red in color but also because no matter how many problems it faces, it is fixed back to perfection. We tried to make it as multitasking as possible in the least amount of time. We have 6 routes in all, covering most of the missions on the game field from collecting animals, food, shark shipment, milking automation, feeding, beekeeping etc. we have also made an optional ‘animal conservation’ mission route if there is time. There are many innovative features we have used such as pneumatics, pulley suspension etc.

To build our robot, we have used Lego Mindstorms EV3. We are using EV3 large motors, color sensors that are used for line following, gyro sensor to take accurate turns, and pneumatics for multi-tasking. The pneumatics are just like hydraulics, they store the air in them and then use it for various tasks. Our robot consists of simple mechanisms such as Gear mechanisms, incline planes, and lever mechanisms. We did so to minimize the use of motors during the tasks. An example of one of our cool mechanisms: the Food collecting mission: we have used a Reciprocating Mechanism---The robot leaves the base and an enclosure drops which traps the animals. Then, the robot aligns to the wall, reaches the refrigerator, and the reciprocating mechanism activates, collecting food in the same enclosure!

Initially we had weekend sessions (2-4 hrs/week), but closer to the competition we practiced 5 days a week , 18-24 hr weekly on an average. We have been learning Robotics at Roboclub for a few years now. everyone on our team has learnt Mindstorms EV3 and have participated in the WRO and FLL competitions before. For this animal allies challenge we explored a lot of new mechanisms before we actually started building our BOT.

ABOUT ROBO CLUB

RoboClub is a World-class Robotics Club for young children 4.5 to 18 years old.

Our endeavor is to get children excited about learning science, engineering and technology. And we enable that through Hi-Tech-Fun robotics programs. Our programs are at-par with internationally recognized robotics schools and specifically designed for each age group. Equipment comprises of hi-tech robotic kits and components. Our system of interactive education through our action-packed programs in robotics, mechanics, electronics, coding and animation also imparts important life skills of teamwork, logical thinking, confidence and creativity. Through active participation in international robotics competitions like the First Lego League and World Robot Olympiad our young children get to realize the potential in the national and global arenas. An international winning track record since our inception is testament to the fact that Roboclub children are getting it right!

Founder of RoboClub- Ms. Sunaina Sood has an entrepreneurial background with extensive experience in fields relating to young children’s activities and education. Her expertise ensures that RoboClub programs remain updated in content and work hand-in-hand with the best academic curriculums for each age group, giving the children a new level of hands-on understanding in concepts they learn in school. A doting mother of two, Sunaina believes that having your own kids raises your game to a whole new level. With her passion for education and learning, no wonder that she is the chief Mentor of champion RoboClub teams at the FLL, WRO and other Robotics competitions.

Our educational team comprises of equally passionate engineers, who love teaching children and inspiring them towards STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), subjects that can lead to amazing careers later in life.

The unending zest of RoboClub children to stay above and beyond class hours to complete tasks and create robotics solutions combined with the satisfaction and joy of RoboClub parents says it all about our quest for excellence.

About FirstLego League

FLL is a robotics competition for children 9 to 16 year old. It encourages children from around the world to learn science and technology through robotics and compete in the global arena to showcase their knowledge and skills. Over 200,000 children from 60 countries participate every year making it one of the largest robotics events across the globe.

National competitions are held in each country. Winners from the national competition are selected for the international competition where teams from across the globe are pitted against each other.

At the FLL India 2016-17, RoboClub Team-Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious fought off stiff competition from other older and more experienced teams. They stood in the top 8 at India-level despite being the youngest team (all under 14 years old). The Team also won the prestigious FLL-CORE Values Award for best team-work, conceptual knowledge, scientific application and spirit.

Team- Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious now has the opportunity to represent the Indian challenge at the FLL-EOC competition to be held in Denmark in May 2017.

About First Lego League-European Open Championship

FLL open championship DENMARK competition will have teams participating from 60 countries. An international audience of more than 200000 participants and visitors ensures international recognition for any brand supporting our young children who are determined to impress the judges with their uninhibited enthusiasm.

FLL introduces a scientific and real-world challenge for teams to focus and research on. The robotics part of the competition involves designing and programming LEGO Mindstorms robots to complete tasks. The students work out solutions to the various problems they are given and then meet for regional tournaments to share their knowledge, compare ideas, and display their robots.

COST BREAK UP :