PA-TSA CALCULATOR ROBOTS - Mission: Measure, Graph, Predict & Race
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PA-TSA CALCULATOR ROBOTS
Mission: Measure, Graph, Predict & Race
Middle School
REVISION: July 2014
I. OVERVIEW / PURPOSE
A. Students shall utilize the 84-page NASA manual entitled Calculator-
Controlled Robots: Hands-On Mathematics and Science Discovery as
reference material.
B. This manual may be downloaded at http://www.nasa.gov/audience/
foreducators/topnav/materials/listbytype/Calculator-Controlled_Robots.html.
C. Students will develop their expertise in creating programs to control Norland
Calculator Robots.
D. Norland Calculator Robots may be purchased at: http://www.smallrobot.com.
E. It is recommended that each competing team of students uses a different
set of robots and calculators. However, competing teams from the same
TSA chapter may share a robot as long as they use different calculators
for programming.
F. Programs must be the sole design of each individual team of students. Shared
calculators, programs or duplicating of programs will result in immediate
disqualification of the contestants.
II. ELIGIBILITY
A. For Regionals, participants are limited to teams of two (2) students with
the number of entered teams per chapter determined by each Regional
Conference.
B. For States, participants are limited to three (3) teams of two (2) students.
III. TIME LIMITS
The entire event will be completed on-site, therefore you will receive the specific
challenge at the TSA Conference. Bring the programmed calculators, robots, meter
sticks, pencil/paper and batteries to the TSA Conference. Check the Conference
schedule for reporting times and locations.
IV. ATTIRE
Category C - Business Casual TSA Attire is the minimum requirement.
8V. CONFERENCE PROCEDURE
A. Participants may follow these steps in preparing their entry.
1. Locate and secure two calculator robots and two calculators of the
appropriate type.
2. Practice pages 1 through 19 of the NASA manual in anticipation of the
TSA Conference.
B. At the TSA Conference
1. Bring your calculator robots, calculators, meter sticks, pencil/paper and
batteries.
2. Report at the designated time and location for this event.
3. Receive the specific challenge from the Event Coordinator.
4. Practice time; if any; will be designated by the Event Coordinator.
5. Compete with your teammate in the preliminary round.
6. Semi-finalist teams will participate in an addition challenge.
7. Finalist teams will be announced at the Awards General Session.
VI. CONFERENCE REGULATIONS
A. Calculator Robots
1. Two (2) robots and two (2) calculators will be required of each team.
2. Robots ONLY may be shared within chapters that have entered multiple
teams.
3. No alterations may be made to the robot. Robot must be stock.
4. Participants may not share calculators or programs. Each competitor must
provide his/her own calculator.
5. Participants should bring fresh batteries for their calculators and calculator
robots. Batteries will not be supplied by the event staff.
6. Robots will be “driven” on a surface determined by each Conference.
It is recommended that Conference Coordinators provide space with a
gymnasium type flooring surface for this event to be held.
B. Other Supplies/Materials
1. Students should bring at least one meter stick but two are recommended.
2. Students should bring paper and pencils for recording measurements and
performing calculations.
C. Performance Requirements
1. Students must know how to calibrate their calculator robot for straight line
travel.
2. Students must know how to use their calculator robot to make
measurements.
3. Students must be able to estimate distances prior to making
measurements and programs with their calculator robots.
4. Students must be familiar with the DERT Formula as shown on page 6 of
the NASA guide.
5. Students must be familiar with various metric units of measure relating to
distance traveled.
9D. Challenge Descriptions
1. The preliminary round will most closely resemble the MISSION 1,
MISSION 2 and EXPLORATION EXTENSION 1 on pages one to nineteen
(1 to 19) of the NASA manual.
2. The semifinalist round will be based upon the RELAY RACE found on
page forty-one (41) of the NASA manual.
3. The semifinalist portion of this event may or may not be held at the various
Regional Conferences. Advisors should check with their region leaders.
VII. EVALUATION PROCEDURES
A. Preliminary Round
1. PREP: The preliminary round will most closely resemble the MISSION
1, MISSION 2 and EXPLORATION EXTENSION 1 on pages 1 to 19 of
the NASA manual. Competitors must come prepared with the GO and
CALI programs from the NASA manual already programmed on their
calculators.
2. SETUP: Each team of 2 participants will have two (2) minutes for setup
of their robots. This may include inserting batteries, performing system
calibration and performing test measurements. Participants may use meter
sticks during setup only. Penalties will be assessed for going beyond the
2-minute time allotted.
3. TASK: Following setup, each team has three (3) minutes to run
their robots between objects and record their observations on paper.
Participants may NOT use meter sticks during this task. (See NASA
MISSION 1.) The participants may run their robots as many times, as
needed, within this 3-minute period. Penalties will be assessed for going
beyond the 3-minute time allotted.
4. CALCULATION: After completing the task and recording observations
from each run, the team of participants has five (5) minutes to perform
calculations to determine the distance between the objects. At the end
of this 5-minute period, the participant must submit their final estimates
for the distances to the event judge. Penalties will be assessed for going
beyond the 5-minute time allotted.
5. RANKINGS: The twelve (12) teams whom most closely calculated the
distances advance to the semifinalist round.
B. Semifinalist Round
1. PREP: The semifinalist round will most closely resemble the Relay Race
on page 41 of the NASA manual – using only tow (2) robots instead of four
(4).
2. INFORMATION SESSION: Teams that qualify for the semifinalist round
will attend an information session, where the Event Coordinator will
explain the semifinalist challenge, answer questions and set the schedule
for the semifinalist round.
3. RANKINGS: The semifinalist round will be a head-to-head, single-
elimination competition to determine the final rankings.
10C. Deductions and Disqualifications
1. Deductions of twenty percent (20%) of the total possible points can be
made for the following (only once for any or all infractions):
a. Damaging the conference course.
b. Arriving late to demonstration time.
c. Going beyond the time limits allotted for any phase of the
competition.
d. Any conduct unbecoming a TSA participant.
e. Failure to follow the regulations provided in the official rules.
f. Dress code violation.
2. Disqualification can result for the following:
a. Failing to appear at the selected demonstration time with appropriate
materials.
b. Sharing or duplicating of programs and/or calculators.
D. A scoring rubric is not needed for this event as the results are strictly decided
by on-site performance. Speed and/or accuracy may play a factor in
determining ties.
VIII. EVENT COORDINATOR INFORMATION
A. Required Contest Personnel
1. Contest Coordinator
2. One (1) person to register participants
3. Three (3) judges recommended
B. Required Space
1. Gym floor or similar is preferred
2. Classroom floor as alternative
3. 20' by 20' area preferred
C. Required Materials
1. Regional Coordinators will need to design and provide materials for at
least a preliminary challenge.
2. Regional coordinators may omit the semifinalist round if time does not
permit.
3. Refer to the NASA manual at the link in Section I. B. above when planning
Regional Conference challenges.
D. Criteria For Judging
1. Semifinalist teams shall be seeded in numerical order on the basis of
a final score as determined by the judges based upon each team’s
measurements and calculations from the preliminary round.
2. Twelve (12) semifinalist should be chosen to participate in a seeded head-
to-head semifinalist round. See seeded bracket on next page.
3. The top ten finalist shall then be ranked based upon their score and order
of finish in the Relay Race. Other places shall be determined in the same
manner. No ties are permitted. In case of a tie, judges shall consult with
each other to ascertain the winner based upon each team’s most recent
Relay Race. Speed and/or accuracy may play a factor in determining ties.
11Relay Race Seeded Bracket
NOTE: Place teams on the bracket seeded in the
order of their finish in the preliminary round.
1
9
8
Loser to Consolation Game
12
5
4
3 Champion
11
6
Loser to Consolation Game
10
7
Second
2
Single Elimination
Tournament Chart Consolation Game
Third
Seeded
12 Player Field
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