The objective of the 2025 ASEE Robotics Competition, held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, was to build an autonomous robot that can successfully score hockey goals with 5 pucks initially placed in specific locations on the play field.

We decided to use a whacking system resembling a hockey stick design because it was a reliable, simple, and accurate mechanism. With the robot's maneuverability in mind, we tested different designs to find the optimal position and weight for this system. The shooting mechanism triggers when it detects the black hash mark across the goal. On the way to the next puck, the robot resets the whacking arm to the upright position to get ready for the next puck. To optimize our time, we decided to make two small robots each doing half the work and one stationary robot to shoot the center puck.

In addition, we used custom Raspberry Pi Pico PCBs with the RP2040 microcontroller. For line following, we implemented a PID controller with an 8-sensor IR array. Our three-robot system (two mobile, one stationary under the ramp) used three microcontrollers to complete the task faster. Each robot handled its assigned puck, working together efficiently to finish the course.

To shoot the center puck, we used a stationary third robot under the ramp with a custom spring-powered launcher, similar to a pinball shooter, triggered by a servo. Initially, we considered a mousetrap release but switched to the compact spring design to keep the ramp shallow and easy to drive off. Startup was synchronized by turning off two white LEDs, signaling Moses and Elijah to begin.

With hard work and collaborations, we successfully produced robots with elegant design and reliable performace. We won the fist place in the internaitonal competiton in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.