Madison Robotics Team Defends Title at Bayonne Meet

Madison High School's robotics team topped a field of 20 teams, including the 2011 world champs, in a competition this month at Bayonne High School.

Madison's team, "Mad Science," now in its fourth year, won the same competition last year.

Robotics teams design, build, program and modify robots throughout the year. Teams score points in competitions by having their robots complete a variety of tasks, first on auto-pilot, and then while driven by students.

This year, teams can accumulate points by having their robots lift themselves off the ground from an overhead bar, raise a flag 7 feet in the air, and dispense cubes into containers, among other tasks.

Madison ultimately won the Nov. 3 Bayonne competition by captaining an alliance with other teams to beat the Westport, Conn., Wreckers, the 2011 World Champions, in what turned out to be an exciting and unpredictable final match.

Throughout the competition, Madison's robot was running well, dispensing cubes into one of four crates randomly marked by an infrared beacon, and navigating a ramp for additional points. In driver-controlled mode, the team scored more points by dispensing cubes, cranking a handle to lift a flag 7 feet high, and having the approximately 40-lb. robot essentially do a pull-up on an iron pipe.

Madison picked the Westfield Robotics team and the Cresskill Cougars team as partners for the playoffs, knowing it faced a challenge in a best two-out-of-three match against Westport in the finals.

Westport partnered with Westfield Robotics 2 and Mechanical Mayhem of Jersey City.

After two matches, the teams were tied 1-1.

In match three, one of Madison's partner's robots stopped moving, which seemed to doom Madison's chances, but a review by the head referee revealed a gap between the foam floor tiles and the wall where the stopped robot's wheel was stuck. The field setup error voided the third match.

Match four, with cheering crowds and an uncertain outcome, ended in a 176-176 tie, a rarity in high-scoring matches.

The last match also was close and saw both teams score easily, but a penalty assessed to Westport for interfering with Madison’s crate pendulum ensured a Madison victory.

Led by physics teacher Matthew Blackman, Madison’s team has 17 members who design, build, program and troubleshoot the robot, and create game strategies. Madison resident Joseph Kennedy is a mentor for the team.

The team driver at Bayonne was Jackson Rambusch, along with gunners Geoff Schiller and Chris Spelker, led by field coach Simon Bird.

Madison’s next match will be a qualifier for the State Tournament, hosted by Livingston High School 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 14. The community is invited to attend.

For more information about the Madison High School robotics team visit www.madisonrobotics.org.