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Pine-Richland High School Places 4th in Nation in F1 Technology Challenge
Team Torque from Pine-Richland High School in Gibsonia, PA, under the leadership of Brandt Hutzel, the school’s Technology Education Department Chair, were excited to advance from 2nd place in the state to place 4th in the nation in the Formula 1 (F1) Technology Challenge in Schools Program National Championships held in Dallas, TX, June 21 – 25, 2006.
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Thrill Ride - Quakertown Community H.S. students design a wild ride with 3ds Max
Last year technology ed teacher, Don Mease, from Quakertown Community
High Schooll, took his students on a wild ride. He required them
each to design a thrill ride similar to those at amusement parks.
The ride did not have to be a coaster but it did have to be animated
using Autodesk 3ds Max. Students then created an avi file of their
completed
animations.
Read more
"McKeesport Area Technology Center Students Place
in National First Robotics Championships."
Technology Instructor, Mike Dischner's students used Autodesk Inventor in the creation of their FIRST robot. The First Robotics competition has lead his students to a much higher level of interest in using Inventor.
Read more
Samples of students work using Autodesk
Solutions:
New Jersey Institute of Technology, School
of Architecture Imaging Laboratory, Newark, New Jersey.
Forest Hills High School, Sidman PA.
High Tech High School
"Pine-Richland High School Places 4th in Nation in F1 Technology Challenge"
Team Torque from Pine-Richland High School in Gibsonia, PA, under the leadership of Brandt Hutzel, the school’s Technology Education Department Chair, were excited to advance from 2nd place in the state to place 4th in the nation in the Formula 1 (F1) Technology Challenge in Schools Program National Championships held in Dallas, TX, June 21 – 25, 2006. The program gives students the opportunity to design, analyze, make, test, and race their own F1 cars. The Technology Student Association (TSA) in cooperation with Autodesk, Denford, and Pitsco, sponsored the challenge.
Twenty-nine middle and high school teams composed of no more than six members each designed, analyzed, made, and tested their F1 racecars. Judging was based on safety, aerodynamics, engineering, aesthetics, quality and manufacture, race time, and presentation. Students also created a portfolio and gave an oral presentation of their work to a panel of judges.
According to Brandt Hutzel, the TSA Region 1 Coordinator, Team Torque students in his F1 Technology Challenge in Schools program, that have not had any previous CAD experience, easily created 3-D models using Autodesk Inventor. “Autodesk Inventor has increased the level of interest of my students in engineering and technologically related career fields,” said Hutzel. Pine-Richland High School purchases Inventor through its local reseller, Synergis Technologies, as part of a software and curriculum package known as the Autodesk Design Academy (ADA). ADA is a comprehensive pre-engineering and pre-architecture curriculum program bringing relevancy to science, technology, engineering and math principles.
Western PA Team Goes
to Nationals in FIRST Robotics Competition
Team 291 - CIA (Creativity In Action) was a first place winner
at the FIRST Robotics Philadelphia Regionals on April 1st and will
be going to Atlanta for the Nationals at the end of April. Team
291 is from the Erie School District (Erie Central H.S. & Northwest
PA Collegiate Academy - both Synergis customers who use the Autodesk
Design Academy) and Villa Maria Academy in Erie.
FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology)
is a multinational non-profit organization that aspires to transform
culture, making science, math, engineering, and technology as cool
for kids as sports are today. FIRST was founded in 1989 by Dean
Kamen, inventor of the Segway Human Transporter. The FIRST Robotics
Competition challenges teams of students and their mentors from
industry to solve a common problem in a six-week timeframe using
a standard "kit of parts" and a common set of rules.
Teams build robots from the parts and enter them in a series of
competitions designed by Dean Kamen, Woodie Flowers, and a committee
of engineers and other professionals. The competitions are
high-tech spectator sporting events that require lots of brainstorming,
teamwork, dedicated mentoring, project timelines, and deadlines.
In Philadelphia Team 291 won 10 out of 11 qualifying matches and
ended up ranked third out of 46 teams. In the finals the
team played extraordinarily good defense as an alliance. According
to GE Mentor Michael Hayes, “There are not words to express
how great it was to see our achievements match our efforts. Everyone
did their job, everyone stayed focused, everyone, even those who
couldn't make the trip with us, won this trophy together.” Team
291 also won the GM Industrial Design Award bringing their total
to five trophies for the year in addition to the six they have
won in the seven previous years. “The learning and
growth that is realized by these students is amazing. The opportunity
to work with accomplished engineers and adults is rewarding for everyone involved,” said
Allan Thayer. “Everyone is excited about these students’ accomplishments.”
Team 291 formed in 1999 and consisted of students from two Erie
schools – Erie Central High School and Villa Maria Academy. After
several years, the team had dwindled down to a handful of students
and a few dedicated mentors from GE Transportation - Rail. In
order to preserve the team, interested participants gave a presentation
to the district superintendent to promote awareness of the program. Northwest
Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy - one of the schools in the district -
showed up in force with almost two dozen students, two teachers,
and enough enthusiasm to fill a battleship.
This year Team 291 is made up of students from several schools:
two from Villa Maria Academy, two from Central High School, and
19 from Collegiate Academy. Most of the students have taken
Introduction to AutoCAD using AutoCAD 2006. Students are
required to create a 60-second animation with Autodesk Viz for
the competition. They can also submit detailed CAD drawings
of their design that are created in Autodesk Inventor. Teacher
mentors are Peter Read and Allan Thayer. Industry mentors
from GE Transportation System include Michael Hayes, Katy Park,
Joyce Gerry, Ken Rosenquest, Kevin Miceli, Rich Resinger, Robert
Armbruster, and Bradley Jones.
For more info, visit the team website at http://www.team291.org/.
Thrill Ride - Quakertown Community H.S. students design
a wild ride with 3ds Max
Last year technology ed teacher, Don Mease, from Quakertown Community
High Schooll, took his students on a wild ride. He required them
each to design a thrill ride similar to those at amusement parks.
The ride did not have to be a coaster but it did have to be animated
using Autodesk 3ds Max. Students then created an avi file of their
completed
animations.
Mease also offered a competition for the best project. Every student
had to design the ride but they didn't all have to enter the competition.
He was surprised at the enthusiasm created by this assignment.
A total of thirty some students entered the competition. He had
all his classes evaluate the entries and narrow the field to seven
files. He then had his tech people look at the thrill rides to
determine the winner who received a copy of 3ds Max software. The
project was so popular that he is doing it again with his classes
this year.
Hold on! When you click the links below, you will be taken on
a Thrill Ride!
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 Video
A - 4.52MB
Video
D - 54.04MB
Video
M - 91.93MB
Video
O - 38.08MB
Video
P - 125.15MB
Video
Q - 29.09MB
Video
V - 8.05MB |
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Note: High speed
internet connection is required to view student videos. If
you are unable to view a video online, right-click the video
link and select "Save as Target" to your local computer. |
"McKeesport Area Technology Center Students Place
in National First Robotics Championships."
Technology Instructor, Mike Dischner's students used Autodesk
Inventor in the creation of their FIRST robot. The First Robotics
competition has lead his students to a much higher level of interest
in using Inventor.
 |
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| Team 1708 |
Charlie the Robot |
Team 1708 is represented by the students from McKeesport Area
High School and Technology Center, Instructor Mike Dischner, and
Charles (a robot named after Charles Darwin). Team 1708 placed
23rd out of 85 teams in the 2005 FIRST Robotics Competition in
Atlanta, GA on April 21, 2005. For
more info
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