“Just have fun. Make sure to make bonds with the people on your team, when you’re in competitions like this, you’re troubleshooting it all together.”
-Avika Prasad, Advancing Science Technology and Art, Team Inspiration
RoboSub 2024 Team Stories – Advancing Science Technology and Art, Team Inspiration
From Christine Newell
Communications Coordinator, RoboNation
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA – We are excited to continue our RoboSub 2024 Interview Series this week by featuring Avika Prasad, a member of Advancing Science, Technology, and Art’s (Team Inspiration) software team. She joined RoboNation to discuss both her personal journey and her team’s journey to RoboSub 2024. Team Inspiration has been competing with RoboNation since 2019. This diverse team has members ranging from middle school to university, demonstrating the power of collaborating across various levels of education. Advancing Science, Technology, and Art also participates in RoboBoat and the Maritime RobotX Challenge. The team earned 5th place in the Autonomy Challenge during the RoboSub 2024 Competition. Learn more about the competition results here.
Interview
Name: Avika Prasad
Team Name: Advancing Science Technology and Art | Team Inspiration | San Diego, California, USA
Q: What sparked your interest in robotics?
A: “I started doing robotics [in general] almost two years ago. My cousin…was part of Team Inspiration, so through her I was able to join [the team]. I started out with First Tech Challenge (FTC) [with] land robots; and as I progressed in FTC, I showed a lot of interest in the software aspect…My coach allowed me to join RoboSub which has a lot of software [and] since then, this whole summer has been committed to RoboSub and it’s been really fun!”
Q: What role do you play on your team?
A: “This is my first year doing RoboSub, so a lot of it is learning what they’re [with] the software. I also work on the CV, I train models,…the computer vision, [and] I also worked on our team video.”
Q: What goals do you have with RoboSub and your education?
A: “To become stronger in software and start to understand the electrical and mechanical aspect…how everything connects. So, if I do come back next year, I’m just stronger at RoboSub.” “For the future, I’m interested in software. I want to go into computer science…learning as much as I can on coding and algorithms. [I am] aiming high, the schools [I have] in mind are UC Berkley and MIT. ”
Q: Did you experience any obstacles during your RoboSub journey and what lessons did you learn from them?
A: “One time we were testing the software, and we were running it but there was no change, there was this thing I forgot to get pull and now I guess I remember to get pull [sic]. Which is a small thing like that.”
RoboNation here. We know not everyone works with software, but we love what Avika is talking about. When working on a team, it’s common to use a version control system to manage updates to the code. “Pulling” refers to downloading the most recent changes that other team members have made to the codebase.
In this case, the software wasn’t behaving as expected because Avika was testing an outdated version of the code. Once she remembered to “pull” the latest changes, she learned the importance of regularly syncing with the team’s updates. She mentions that while it’s a “small thing,” it still had an impact on their workflow. It’s a great reminder that attention to detail and communication during teamwork is vital.
Q: What advice would you give to students who are new to RoboSub?
A: “I would say when you’re in a robotics team, definitely dive into what you’re more interested about. I feel like just learning about that is a great experience. Just have fun. Make sure to make bonds with the people on your team, when you’re in competitions like this, you’re troubleshooting it all together.”
We appreciate your time with us Avika. We wish you all the best next year, and hope to see you next summer!
Team Website: https://team-inspiration.squarespace.com
Instagram: ftc11128inspiration
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/team-inspiration
