December 19, 2024

First Semester in the Books

The Center for Discovery and Design at La Salle College Preparatory continues to buzz with creativity and achievement. From exciting developments in our Science of Innovation and Design course to outstanding accomplishments by our robotics teams and advanced engineering projects in Science of Engineering and Architecture, November has been a month of exploration and progress. Here’s an update on the incredible work being done by our students as they hone their engineering skills and push the boundaries of innovation.

The La Salle Robotics Teams—Red Lancers and Blue Lancers—have been hard at work refining their strategies and designs for the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). November brought exciting news as the Blue Lancers retained their 1st place ranking after their third meet in their local League C2, composed of 18 competitive teams. They have their final local competition near the close of the semester on December 14th. However, they also have their sights toward the Inter-League Tournament in February, where they will face teams from across Southern California and compete to progress to the next stage in the competition.

While formal rankings for the greater region are not formally published, glimpses into other competitions and their scores suggest that the Lancers are in a strong position within the SoCal league. However, the teams know there is always room to improve. Both Lancer teams are currently revamping their hardware with ambitious upgrades to tackle the challenges ahead. These enhancements include:

  • Scoring Piece Mechanisms: Adding gripping systems instead of intake wheels handle game pieces with dexterity, which is required for some of the more advanced scoring methods.

  • Pull-Up Capability: Designing their robots to execute a pull-up for additional points in the endgame.

  • Autonomous Navigation: Enhancing their robots’ ability to autonomously perceive and navigate the arena using sensors such as cameras, distance sensors, color sensors.

The students’ commitment to iterative design and strategic problem-solving is inspiring, and we can’t wait to see their progress in the coming months.

Science of Innovation and Design: Diving Into the Engineering Design Process

In the Science of Innovation and Design course, students have taken a significant step forward by embarking on their first major design project. After weeks of foundational learning in equipment training, computer-aided design (CAD), and understanding the engineering design process, they’re now applying their skills to a real-world challenge.

The task? Pressing a button. More specifically, designing a cantilever rotational-to-linear motion device powered by a motor to strike a point with as much force as the given motor allows using gears. This deceptively simple-sounding project incorporates complex engineering principles, including:

  • Mechanical Advantage with Gears: Understanding how to use gears to amplify force/torque or speed.

  • Structural analysis: Did this device have to be mounted onto a floating beam? Probably not. However, this constraint lets students apply equations of stress, strain, and deformation to quantitatively estimate failure and the ideal geometry of the design — this is known as mechanics-based design.

  • Prototyping and Iteration: Creating and refining physical prototypes to improve functionality.

  • Part Integration: Learning how to select and integrate components from external sources within computer-aided design.

This project is a hands-on exercise in critical thinking, creativity, and teamwork, and we’re excited to share updates as students progress through the brainstorming, prototyping, and testing phases.

Science of Engineering and Architecture: Mastering Solid Mechanics

In the Science of Engineering and Architecture course, students are culminating their semester-long introductory studies in solid mechanics with an exciting lab experience. This hands-on lab introduces students to the engineering quantities of stress and strain, which form the foundation of structural analysis.

Using a load-testing apparatus, students measure how sample materials deform under various forces. They gather data on the relationship between the applied force and the resulting shape change. Armed with this data, students plot their findings using NumPy and Matplotlib, two powerful Python-based data processing and visualization tools introduced in class.

This exercise serves as students’ first step into engineering analysis, as they:

  • Understand Material Properties: Learn how different materials respond to stress and strain.

  • Engineering Analysis: Calculate and analyze data to derive meaningful conclusions.

  • Data Processing and Visualization: Explore the intersection of programming and engineering with software tools within Python.

This lab not only reinforces their understanding of solid mechanics but also introduces them to the analytical tools engineers use in the real world, bridging the gap between theory and application.As we look to the end of the semester, the Center for Discovery and Design continues to thrive as a hub of innovation and exploration. With robotics teams sharpening their skills for February’s Inter-League Tournament, Science of Innovation and Design students diving into their first engineering project, and Science of Engineering and Architecture students taking their first steps into engineering analysis, the future is bright for La Salle’s young engineers!


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La Salle College Preparatory was founded in 1956. Today, we are the only truly diverse and co-educational Catholic high school in Pasadena.