Scrappy, Not Crappy: 604’s Unique Approaches to Solving Common Resource Constraints
Presenter: James Best and Eugene Fang, FRC 604
A case study of how 604 takes unique approaches to solve common resource constraints teams may face. Topics include: manufacturing with jigs and 3D printing to mitigate limited machine-tool access, model-based design to be efficient with time and money, designing for portability to work around facility limitations, and using simulation to make up for limited time with the robot.
About James and Eugene
James Best and Eugene Fang are the two lead technical mentors for 604. They both started in FLL on the same team together in 2000, progressing through to FRC as students on 604, and graduating in 2010. Since then, they attended grad-school at Carnegie Mellon University together and earned their PhDs in Electrical Engineering and Robotics, respectively. Post high-school, they both continued to remotely mentor 604 as well as other teams before finally moving back to the Bay Area for their jobs and mentoring 604 in-person starting in 2022. With a combined 48 years of FIRST experience, James and Eugene are here to share the tips and tricks they’ve learned over their last 24 years in FIRST to help their students get the most out of the program.