Palo Alto student-led teams showcase creativity at international robotics contest
At approximately 121 pounds and 26 inches tall, covered in red and yellow wires, the robot sat among 10 others in a 53-foot semi-truck en route from the Bay Area to Houston. Named DynoMike, with an outstretched aluminum mechanism emulating a dinosaur’s head, it was a robotics team’s ticket to Texas.
Castilleja High School’s team Gatorbotics – composed of 71 girls, the largest the team has seen since its 2004 inception – began building DynoMike in January.
Robotics teams from Castilleja, Palo Alto High School, Gunn High School, Hope Horizons and Peninsula Robotics, an independent student-led team, qualified for the 2024 FIRST Championship, an international robotics contest in Houston. The five local teams competed against thousands of others from around the world to see who built the most effective robot.
From April 17 to 20, teams faced challenges, like which robot can toss the most disks into a slot, or best operate autonomously. Teams were placed into divisions with hundreds of others and competed to advance to the final round.
Peninsula Robotics was a finalist in its division, falling only one spot short of making it to the championship finals.
“Students that were maybe once seen as rejects became winners at the highest level of the championships,” said Alex Ishiyama, Sophomore at Palo Alto High School and business lead for Peninsula Robotics. “We really exemplify how inclusivity and diversity can not only bring together people curious about STEM, but how we can cultivate their passions.”
One of the team’s leading principals is acceptance. Peninsula Robotics accepts all students, growing from a team of five to 50 from a multitude of Bay Area high schools in just two years. Whereas robotics teams for Gunn and Palo Alto High Schools can be more selective.
Their robot, Snoopy, used a turret, which is a rotating mechanism useful for shooting game pieces.
Castilleja’s robot relied on a swerve drive base, four independently operating wheels and one major mechanism, or arm.
While it was Gatorbotics’ third time attending the world championships in recent years, they were excited as ever. The team ran into some technical difficulties but persevered and won the team spirit award.
For them, the event is the most extraordinary opportunity to engage with other passionate students, said Castilleja senior and Gatorbotics team captain Sam Solomon.
“We love getting to know other teams, talking with them, seeing their robots, hearing about their design processes, their code philosophies and getting to work through our issues together,” she said.
Other local high schools’ teams finished strong at the international event.
Palo Alto High School’s Paly Robotics ranked 53rd in its division, Gunn High School’s GRT ranked 60 and Hope Horizons’ Churrobots ranked 33rd.
The FIRST championship is an annual celebration of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math that aims to foster student success in the fields.
But aside from the useful field experience, robotics teams like Peninsula Robotics are a place for community engagement and giving back, Ishiyama said.
The team organizes yearly events at elementary schools, middle schools and even for children across the globe to foster youth interest in STEM. In 2023, a group of students on the team traveled to India to help elementary school students establish STEM related clubs and mentorship programs.
“It feels rewarding being able to pass on our knowledge on STEM and spread the curiosity,” Ishiyama said.
Peninsula Robotics will attend Palo Alto’s May Fete on May 4 as another opportunity to talk to local youth about their program.
Editor’s note: This version corrects the spelling of Gatorbotics’ robot. Its name is DynoMike.
