Steel At Work

Steel At Work
Participation Information
US 1994-1997 Events	1996
Team Information
Team Members	Jean-Denis LeFeuvre
Sponsors	Cybernetix Framatome Institut Superiur d'Electronique de Paris
From	Paris, France
Robot Statistics
Weight	73kg
Drive	Large DC Motors
Weapons	Front Wedge
Statistics correct as of its most recent show/competition appearance, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Steel At Work was a French heavyweight robot which competed in the 1996 US Robot Wars competition. Built by Jean-Denis LeFeuvre, it was the only robot of its scale to represent this country in any Robot Wars event.

Steel At Work competed in both the Heavyweight Face-Off tournament - losing to DooMore in the second round - and an 'England vs France' Grudge Match against future Series 1 stock robot WYSIWYG. The latter was among the battles highlighted in the American Robot Wars 1996 and American Robot Wars Final 1996 VHS releases; Steel At Work also lost after becoming immobilised early on.

Jean-Denis LeFeuvre had previously competed in the 1995 UK Open Competition with Frog at Risk.

Design

Steel At Work with its builder, Jean-Denis LeFeuvre

Steel At Work was a large, bulky box-shaped robot with two-wheel drive and a series of 'ramming surfaces' at both the front and rear. The 'surfaces' included wedge shapes of differing sizes, and lower lips on each corner. An unpainted metal finish was augmented with stickers of three of Steel At Works's primary sponsors: Cybernetix, Framatome and the Institut Superiur d'Electronique de Paris.

Internally, Steel At Work employed two large DC drive motors, chain reduction gearing, and a homemade, yet 'very complex' electrical system. While designed for speed and pushing power, its electronics often proved unreliable, contributing to both of its losses throughout the 1996 competition.

Robot History

1996 US Championship

Steel At Work primarily competed in the 1996 Heavyweight Face-Off championship, initially benefiting from a bye to progress automatically from the first round.

In the second round, it fought DooMore. Steel At Work was the first to move, during a tentative start where both competitors headed towards the center. Initially slaloming towards the lower mousetrap, it proceeded to shuttle back and forth between the space in front of the hazard. However, a direct collision with the mousetrap appeared to immobilise Steel At Work entirely. DooMore closed in and punched its spike through Steel At Work's shell, before Steel At Work was rammed against the other side of the mousetrap by Scott LaValley's machine. Steel At Work lost the battle by knockout and eliminated from the Heavyweight Face-Off.

Steel At Work also took part in an 'England vs France' Grudge Match, representing its home country against British featherweight WYSIWYG. The battle - announced by Michael Meehan as a 'continuation of the Hundred Years' War' - was intended to settle which of the two machines would succeed.

"The English robot hadn't travelled all this way to be denied taking on the French robot, Steel At Work."

— Paul Vallis' entire commentary on the 'England vs France' Grudge Match

Steel At Work is immobilised by WYSIWYG's ram

Despite its size and weight advantage, Steel At Work quickly encountered problems as the faster WYSIWYG approached and drove around it. Spinning in circles, and still suffering from technical issues, it was immobilised by a ram from Eric Dickinson's machine. One of Steel At Work's sponsor decals was forced loose by another ram from WYSIWYG, before it was declared to have 'lost control' and been defeated.

Results

Wins/Losses

• Wins: 0
• Losses: 2

NOTE: Steel At Work's Round 1 bye is not included in the Wins tally.

External Links

• Steel At Work on the official US Robot Wars website (archived 2 May 1997)