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Concept Development (Brainstorming)

Brainstorming is the beginning of the creation of your robot. Once you have defined your strategy, you are ready to start figuring out how you will create your robot.

This is one of the few times your entire team both should and realistically can be heavily involved in the process of brainstorming. Here is a numerical list of how my teams have done brainstorming (and it has worked extremely well for us):

  1. Gather your entire team together
  2. Watch the game animation and review the basic rules and the game strategy you have already decided on. Go over the ordered list.
  3. For each item on the list, repeat the following steps:
Steps
  1. Go over the rules and details of that particular mission/challenge
  2. Give each teammate a stack of 3x5 notecards and a pen (not pencil)
  3. Have everyone go off into seperate areas on their own
  4. Each teammate writes down as many ideas as they can think of for that particular mission/challenge. Do not work ahead or behind, stay on this particular mission. Each idea should have its own note card
  5. Come back together and sort through the ideas on the notecards. Many of them will either be the same or mostly the same.
  6. Sort the cards into stacks of similar ideas
  7. Discuss the ideas with your team. This is a good opportunity for your mentors and experienced members to provide guidance.
  8. Widdle down the ideas, find the most seemingly simple and effective ideas.
  9. Discuss and combine ideas until everyone has a clear idea of what they want to do.

Never discount or immediately reject an idea that was submitted in sincerity

Once you are finished with brainstorming, move on to the Prototyping & CAD phase.