Construct3D 2017

Starting in the Spring of 2015, York College embarked on two separate NASA funded robotic initiatives, the Robotic Mining Competition and the NASA Swarmathon Competition at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. As the recipient of two NASA funded grants, an interdisciplinary team of students and staff go head-to-head against the best engineering institutions in the country. Exploring and pushing the boundaries of robotic mining technology and programming destined for Lunar and Martian soils. 3D Printed Designs and Rapid Prototyping techniques combined with C.O.T.S (Commercial Off the Shelf Technology) derived from our research will potentially be assimilated and incorporated into mining platforms key to the future colonization of the Moon and Mars.

Initially placing 35th out of an initial group of 150, this presentation will explore the design, creation, and development of the the "non-engineering" York Astrobotics rapid development program. Using photos, video, and demos of the digital fabrication technology employed, this presentation will discover how an interdisciplinary non-engineering team from Queens NY was able to quickly compete with some of the best student engineers in the nation.