Paly Robotics is dedicated to enriching the education of its members through building, programming, animation, and community outreach. Our team is focused on learning new skills, which include technical skills, communication skills, leadership skills, and teamwork. We are proud to be a completely student-run team and our finished projects are always a result of our student's work.
The Paly Robotics team is happy to have been a part of FIRST for over 20 years. FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, has a term "gracious professionalism" that we believe everyone should abide by. To read more about FIRST go to their website.
Good design is key to developing a successful robot, and this is the job of the Design Team. Design Team leads the team in prototyping, allowing different mechanisms and ideas to be built and tested out. After determining which prototypes work the best, Design Team creates a computer-aided design (CAD) of the robot before it is built.
The Build Team is in charge of — you guessed it — building the robot! The Build Team takes a design and makes it a reality, thanks to Team 8's plethora of tools, including a lathe, CNC mill, laser cutter and 3D printer. In addition to machining, Build Team members learn about topics such as robot wiring and pneumatics systems, bringing all of this knowledge to help create the final product.
Writing code in Java and Python, the Software and Scouting Team works alongside Build Team to test our robot and make it functional. In addition to autonomous and human control of the robot, they code features such as computer vision and a dashboard to display the robot status during matches. They are also responsible for developing applications for data collection and analysis. We publish our projects here: www.github.com/team8.
The Art Team manages the team's public image with an emphasis on professional animation and graphic design. With Adobe Illustrator, Art Team designs our custom merchandise, such as t-shirts, banners, posters, and buttons. During the Build Season, their focus is on the FIRST Safety and Digital Animation awards, using Blender animation software and Premiere Pro to make the magic happen.
The Business Team has ensured the financial sustainability of the team, winning the Entrepreneurship Award seven times since its inception in 2015. Business Team oversees all corporate sponsorships, fundraising, outreach, awards, and public relations efforts. Every year we develop business, sponsorship, and diversity plans.
With more than 150 years of history, Bayer is one of the world’s primary life science groups, developing technologies for pharmaceuticals, crop sciences, and consumer health. Their philanthropic branch, the Bayer Fund, supports many FIRST teams, including Team 8, helping to shape the next generation of engineers. |
FIRST NorCal is a program dedicated to furthering the education of the next generation in STEM. With nearly 7000 active students, FIRST NorCal allows kids in California to access crucial experience in robotics. Its partership with Team 8 bolsters our learning. |
Dropbox is one of the most well-known file hosting companies in the world, and offers accessible cloud storage and file syncing to its users. Their sponsorship has made us more efficient and an overall better team. |
Instantly recognizable across the globe for the revolutionary iPhone, Apple is arguably one of the most influential companies of the 21st century. Based in neighboring Cupertino, Apple continues to find new ways to innovate, including partnering with Team 8. |
The Gene Haas Foundation, based in California, is dedicated to promoting technical expertise and machine learning in high schools, colleges and universities, and trade schools. Through numerous grants and scholarship programs, the Gene Haas Foundation supports its local and broader California communities, and generously contributes to Team 8 and its efforts to promote hands-on learning at Paly and our community. |
Intuitive Surgical creates robotic-assisted systems that enable doctors to perform minimally invasive surgeries. Intuitive Surgical also reaches out to the community through their Intuitive Foundation, which supports FRC teams through donations and invitations to tour their company sites. Alumni of Team 8 have cited visits to Intuitive Surgical’s headquarters as one of their most exciting high school experiences. |
Markforged produces innovative machines, such as their 3D printers, that help drive STEAM innovation around the globe and turn computer-created designs into reality. Markforged sponsors our team by helping us access their 3D printers, which are crucial to our team’s ability to fabricate parts throughout the year. |
Solidworks sponsors Team 8 by sending us free student copies of their CAD software, allowing us to effectively design and prototype our robot. They also donated a powerful CAM tool that we use in conjunction with our CNC Mill and 3D Printer. |
Bild is a cloud PDM tool that enables Team 8 to securely collaborate on, store, and review expansive CAD projects. This platform differentiates itself from others with its near instantaneous speed and plays a critical role in our robots’ completion. |
