The Build Season Calendar
Build season is six weeks. With our meeting schedule (weekdays 3 to 6 PM, Saturdays 9 AM to 4 PM, no Sundays), that comes out to roughly 22 hours per week and about 130 total hours from game reveal to competition-ready robot.
Everything runs in parallel
The biggest scheduling mistake is treating build season as a sequence where you design first, then build, then program, then drive. Competitive teams don't do this. All three tracks run at the same time, overlapping and feeding into each other from the beginning.
Mechanical (prototyping, CAD, fabrication, assembly)
Day 1
Prototype results, design reviews
Software (drivetrain code, auto, mechanism control, tuning)
Day 1
Hardware to test on
Driver practice (driving, operator training, cycle time optimization)
As soon as the drivetrain moves
A driveable robot
If software has nothing to test on until week 4, you've already lost weeks of tuning and autonomous development. If drivers don't touch the robot until week 6, you're going to competition unpracticed. Both of these are avoidable with the right schedule.
Week by week
Kickoff, strategy, prototyping
Saturday (Kickoff):
Watch the game reveal and read the manual
Begin game analysis (scoring breakdown, RPs, auto, endgame)
Start prototyping that same day, even if it's cardboard and zip ties
Drivetrain decision should be made by end of kickoff day
Rest of the week (Mon to Fri, 3 to 6 PM):
Actively prototype primary mechanisms, running multiple concepts in parallel if you have enough people
Software begins writing drivetrain code and auto framework
Start building the drivetrain, with the goal of having a rolling chassis by the end of the week
Lock the robot concept by Friday: what it does, what archetype each mechanism is, and a rough spatial layout
Checkpoint:
Concept lock, CAD, drivetrain handoff
The drivetrain should be driveable by now. Hand it off to software for drivetrain tuning and auto development, and hand it to drivers for basic driving practice. Driving a bare drivetrain with no mechanisms is significantly better than drivers not practicing at all.
Finish prototyping. Any mechanism that hasn't been validated should either get tested this week or get cut and simplified.
Main CAD effort begins, with mechanisms going into detailed design.
Order long-lead parts like swerve modules, structural stock, SendCutSend orders, and any specialized hardware. Anything with more than a few days of shipping needs to be ordered now.
Checkpoint:
Fabrication begins, software on mechanisms
Design reviews happen as subsystems are completed in CAD (see the Design Reviews page)
Start fabricating mechanism parts as designs are reviewed and approved
Electrical layout finalized with the electrical team, including bellypan placement, component layout, and wire routing
Software should be testing mechanism control code on prototype setups or benchtop rigs rather than waiting for the full robot
Driver practice continues on the drivetrain, and timed drills should start if the field is set up
Checkpoint:
Assembly and integration
This is where subsystems start going onto the robot. Primary mechanisms get assembled and mounted, software gets access to actual mechanisms and begins tuning, and bumpers should be built.
Integration problems will show up here, which is expected. Things that worked independently will find new ways to conflict once they're bolted to the same frame, so leave buffer time for troubleshooting.
Secondary mechanisms get assembled if time and weight allow.
Checkpoint:
Full robot, tuning, driver practice ramps up
The full robot should be assembled and functional by now, with all mechanisms and wiring complete.
Software focus shifts to tuning, running autonomous routines on the full robot, and refining operator controls. Driver practice becomes a priority rather than a "when we have time" activity. Run simulated matches, time your cycles, and identify bottlenecks (whether that's a driving issue, a mechanism speed issue, or a software issue).
Additionally, start making spare parts for anything that broke during testing.
Checkpoint:
Practice, practice, practice
This week belongs to the drive team and programmers. Mechanical should be in a support role, which means fixing things that break during practice, making final adjustments, and building more spares.
Run full simulated matches, including the complete match flow from starting configuration through auto, teleop, and endgame
Practice pit cycles so the team knows what to do between matches at competition
Fix issues found during practice and tune auto routines
Pack pit supplies, tools, spare parts, batteries, and chargers
Checkpoint:
Top teams aim for 40 or more hours of drive time before their first event. With our schedule that's hard to hit, but every hour counts. Never sacrifice practice time to add a feature.
Reference
The alpha bot approach
This is something top teams like 254 have done: take last year's drivetrain (or parts of an old robot), bolt quick prototype mechanisms onto it, and get a "functional enough" robot running in the first week or two. It won't be competition-legal or pretty, but it gives software and drivers something to work with immediately while the real robot is being designed and built.
Even a scaled-down version of this helps. Last year's robot with a prototype intake zip-tied to it is better than having software and drivers wait weeks for the competition robot to be assembled.
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