How to Use the Mechanical Track
Telemark started as a programming curriculum. This track covers the robot's structure, mechanisms, power transmission, and fabrication.
You can start this track before finishing the software track, and you can write code before finishing this one. The tracks cover the same robot from different roles. Each group should understand enough of the other's work to discuss requirements and diagnose problems together.
Who each module is for
| If your role is | Start with |
|---|---|
| New member, no assignment yet | Modules 0 through 2 |
| Notebook or documentation lead | Modules 0, 1, and 10 |
| Drivetrain builder | Modules 3, 4, 6, and 7 |
| Mechanism designer | Modules 5, 6, and 8 |
| Electrical lead | Modules 4 and 9 |
| Fabrication or shop lead | Modules 2, 3, 11 |
| Design lead or captain | All of them, in order |
Full role-based sequences with time estimates and checkpoints are in Mechanical Paths and Time Estimates.
What is different about this track
The software track includes a simulator where you can run Java on a virtual robot. Mechanical behavior is harder to model in one tool, so this track uses focused calculators. Each calculator uses measurements from your design to check a specific decision.
Use the gear ratio, arm torque, drivetrain, and wire gauge calculators while you design, before you cut a part. They cover the same calculations you would otherwise work through by hand.
Use measured inputs whenever you can. Weigh the arm, measure the distance from the pivot to the payload, and check the stall torque for the exact motor you ordered. If you estimate an input, treat the result as an estimate too.
How to work through a module
- Read the module overview to see what it covers and why.
- Work the four lessons in order. Each one ends with fill-in-the-blank practice.
- Use the calculators with your own robot's numbers, not just the defaults.
- Take the mastery quiz. It combines conceptual questions with a design review exercise.
- Write what you learned into your engineering notebook while it is still fresh.
Every official rule, SDK, and vendor source is collected in Official FTC Documentation.
This track teaches engineering practice. It does not replace the rules. Before any design decision that touches legality, sizing, or the control system, read the current season's official documents.
- FIRST Tech Challenge game manuals: FIRST Tech Challenge Game and Season Info
- REV control system documentation: REV DUO Control System
A warning about copying
Studying a proven mechanism from another team can save time. Before copying it, work out what problem it solved, why each important part has its shape, and whether your game element and constraints are the same. You will need that understanding when you tune or repair it.
This track should give your team a practical place to start when the robot doesn't behave as expected.
Stuck on this lesson?
Ask about anything on this page. It can see which lesson you have open and which part you are reading.