Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Autonomous Modes by importance

1. Drive Forward enough to move robot and game piece into Auto Zone, back up from game piece
2. Each Robot Place a Yellow Tote on landmark at T=5, T=8, and T=11
3. Each robot place a container in the auto zone, other designated robot drive back and use vision tracking to stack yellow totes and place in auto zone

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Grey totes are worth 2 points, so moving some grey totes around in autonomous is not a good use of time. Most teams should be able to at least get their robots to just drive forward into the auto zone; this is not much different than the minimal auto points from last year.

What makes this challenge really interesting is the stacking. If one robot moves a crate to the autozone, how does another robot find it, and then orient itself the correct way to place the next tote on top of it? The vision target is on one side, but the crate may have been placed down at an angle. Plus we need to avoid hitting each other. My team plans to write a few different programs and then decide which one to run at match time. (You can quickly ftp in to change a config file; the new RoboRio can re-deploy code without rebooting so it only takes 10-15 seconds to upload a change)

I really wish they gave some points for two crates stacked in autonomous. But it's all or nothing. Either all 3 are stacked for 20 points, or they just count as being moved into the zone for 8 points. That's a huge difference.

Is stacking three totes going to be like catching last year? It's theoretically possible, but no one actually does it during a match.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

I think it will be much more like a 3-ball auto from last year. It is theoretically possible, but you will be able to count on your fingers the teams that can do it well consistently.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

You have ≥ 254 fingers?!? :ahh:

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

If one of your alliance members during competition does not have a autonomous, what would be your plan of action?

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Either use a robot that can score a full set of game pieces, or push them with another robot so that you get the robot set at minimum.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

What if a team didn't want to end in the Auto zone?

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Then they would be doing it wrong.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

That depends. I can imagine good reasons not to end in the auto zone that could potentially net your alliance greater than 4 points in the long run.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Quickly write the code to move them into the auto-zone, test it, then use it?

It is maybe a maximum of 6 lines in C++/Java, not sure about LabView.

The alternative is to just get an alliance member to push them into the auto-zone.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Unless that entails that robot grabbing all 4 midfield bins, they should end in the auto zone.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Our programming team is being taught how to program at a general level for all three languages that teams can use to program their bot. We will have some easy to implement software written readily available should a team need an autonomous before a match. We have a large enough programming squad that should we be given enough time, we could assist teams on the practice day if need be so that everyone that we possibly can help can benefit from our work.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

Even grabbing just one or two recycling containers has enough scoring potential to be worth not ending in the auto-zone.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

I dunno man 20 points seems trivial in this game. Maybe at lower levels but I have enough faith in the students who participate in FRC that we are going to see some pretty interesting openings.

I should clarify that unless you go for all auto points then this years opening game seems kinda like filler.

Re: Making sure EVERY Team can do Auto
 

If you are gonna grab 2, why arent you programming to bring them into the auto zone?