A University of Wisconsin-Madison robotics team wants to show that the key to a good jump shot might just be a computer algorithm and a well-made circuit board.
Wisconsin Robotics, a robotics team made up of engineering students at UW-Madison, is one of seven schools set to compete in a basketball skills contest where robots will face off in a live game of H-O-R-S-E.
Agribusiness and food company Land O’ Lakes is behind the robotics competition, where student teams from the seven universities will design and build a robot to compete in a series of basketball shooting drills. The teams will compete for a $10,000 grand prize and a chance to face off with NBA legend David Robinson in a final shoot-out at a live event in Minneapolis on April 7.
Land O’ Lakes spokesperson Kim Olson said the “bot shot” competition was born out of the company’s desire to educate consumers about the technological advancements and automation used in modern agriculture.
“Land O’ Lakes is always looking for ways to encourage the next generation to consider a career in agriculture,” said Olson. “With the first weekend in April being a big deal in the college sports world, we wanted to find a way to celebrate the amazing achievements of STEM college students, as well.”
Still, Wisconsin Robotics President, Nick Ackerman, says the team was a little surprised to see a robotics competition come out of a company better known for its line of butter spreads.
“It was interesting to see a competition coming from Land O’ Lakes, but it was really cool to see what their mission was: elevating and engineering robotics,” says Ackerman, who heads up the student organization at UW-Madison’s College of Engineering and has been a member since his freshman year. “It’s something we really care about and want to help spread the word of.”
Besides conducting outreach to get others excited about the growing field of robotics, Ackerman says the Wisconsin Robotics team typically competes in one competition every school year. Robotics competitions are less about winning, he says, and more about exploring the possibilities of using robots in the real world.
Previous award-winning designs from the Wisconsin Robotics team have included robotic “tour guides,” interactive bots, and competition rovers that can collect land samples, navigate tough terrain, or service equipment.
For Land O’ Lakes, who taps into universities like UW-Madison to recruit talent, this latest competition is a way to challenge to misconceptions about agriculture.
“We hope to help people understand just how technologically advanced modern agriculture really is,” says Olson. “Technology in all forms — from predictive modeling to robotics to artificial intelligence — is critical to helping us and the agriculture industry achieve our goal of feeding a growing world population, with fewer resources, in a sustainable way. And, of course, have some hoops-shooting fun along the way.”
The Wisconsin Robotics team has been hard at work constructing its champion robot since December, a feat the organizations says involved a lot of trial-and-error in software and mechanical design.
Ackerman says the team was rooted on finding the best and easiest way for the operator to make a basket. After studying how a basketball moves through the air to the hoop, the team was eventually able to create a computer algorithm to mimic successful shooting technique.
“The main concept behind it was projectile motion,” Ackerman explains. “The biggest thing we ran into was figuring out the ways for [the robot] to have the autonomous freedom to shoot from anywhere, and having a basketball run through that system.”
The robot’s shooting mechanism itself utilizes a turret system, adds Ackerman. Nearly all of the hardware components were sourced from AndyMark Inc., a mechanical and electrical parts supplier and sponsor of the “Bot Shot” event, and constructed on the UW-Madison campus.
The competition begins this month with a virtual qualifying round when each team's robot will need to complete a series of basketball skills. Judges will select four finalists who will travel to Minneapolis for the championship event. Ackerman says his team is hoping to make it to the finals in April — but he remains curious to see what the other schools have come up with. It’s all part of the fun of competition.
“With any competition, our goal is to win,” says Ackerman. “I think beyond that, it’s about creating a successful system that we can feel happy with. We think it’s the best we’ve done, and it does everything we set out to do. I’ll still consider that a successful even if we don’t win.”
Other participating schools include the University of Florida, Iowa State University, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Purdue University, South Dakota State University and North Carolina A&T.
