robotmilestone
Our First Robot: Hercules Mark I
Team 23333•
Every team has to start somewhere, and for us, that somewhere was Hercules Mark I (MKI). Though it never competed, it taught us invaluable lessons.
The Beginning
We joined the FTC program late in the 2024-2025 season, which meant we couldn't register for regionals. But that didn't stop us from building our first robot!
Key Features
MKI featured several innovative designs:
- Simple 'pitching slides' for robust vertical movement
- Differential wrist for multidirectional sorting
- Mecanum drivetrain for omnidirectional movement
Lessons Learned
Building MKI taught us about CAD, fabrication, wiring, and programming. Most importantly, it taught us to work as a team.
“The first robot is never perfect, but it's always memorable.”
The lessons from MKI directly influenced the design of Cithaeronian, making it much more competitive.
