Are ramp blocker bots working?
 

After watching some web casts over the past few weeks I have
yet to see a robot block the top. I see many teams with arms
that look to me were designed to do this. Why do you thing this
strategy is not working or am i wrong.If this is or was your teams strategy how has it worked for you?

jim schaddelee
team 107 Metal Flow holland Christain

In all of the matches that I have seen any robot that was specifically designed to block the top of the ramp didn't work out to well. Either another team was able to push them off or they had an equipment malfunction of some sort. Their were a select few who had a good drive train and were able to push people around.

That's 'cause we haven't competed yet... hehe. We have a ramp-blocker, but we'll have to see how it works in competition.

I've been to St.Louis, watched the Chesapeak webcast, and watched all the video's from other regionals I can find, and from what I've seen KOH bots simply are not working. I've probably watched 2 or 3 hundred games and have yet to see a KOH bot work properly.

However, I do expect to see some veterans like 111 and 71 to have some incredible KOH bots that work nearly every time.

Re: Are ramp blocker bots working?
 

After watching last weeks event and then today's Cheaspeake one. I think I only saw one KOH bot and he had problems too.

Lets see what we 3 brings :)

45 technokats blocker seemd to work in theory. but never quite worked perfectly in competiton, atleast not that i saw. powerful teams pushed their wings and the kats spun. like i told my team, suuction cups are not ment fot lateral force and are pretty easily pushed by a 130 pound bot. i am curious to see how truck town and that folded up green kickstand thing (soory i dont remeber the name, swampthing maybe?) do at their comps.

I think our design should have pretty different results from a standard 30 x 36 bot with wings, in that it's got wheels all the way down the length of it. So you can't get leverage on the ends of it, and its wedged all the way to. I can't wait to see how it does.
I've been waiting to see if anyone else tried this type of frame. But it really was a design for flipping, so you could say it's shape is an accident, heh.

I've heard a few funny stories about a certain KOH hill bot at a UTC regional whos name starts with a C end with and N and has a Larkso in the middle.(SNL) But if you think about it, nothing is really doing what its supposed to this year. Few stackers stack and few rammpdoms rampdom it seems that everyone is just pushing and shoving.

where do you go to watch the webcasts ??

What I am hearing KOH is not working?
Then my next question is why, and what would it take to make it work? This is what I think for what thats worth.

First I think you have to be the team to knock the stack over.I think that this is important because it mean your robot is fast.By fast I mean you can get to the top in less than 4 seconds .

Second I think the robot must have a way to block 85% of the top and lock down. Lock down to me means beatty beast unmovable. This should be done in 5 to 7 seconds.


Third I think you need a partner who can drive up the ramp and be patient.I think you could even leave your opponents stacks and still win.

I can,t wait to see if there is a robot out there that can do this.
Please let me know if this is your teams bot :yikes:

There is no reason to knock down the opponent's stack if you are a KOTH bot. You get 25 points from the top, and the most they can have with the 8 human player bins is 16. And assuming you get to the ramp first to be able to control it, the bins will hopefully go to your side. Then leaving your opponent's stacks well actually help you more than knocking them down, it gives you more QPs. They can't win if you control the ramp and they only have the 8 human player bins.

ramp blocker robots
 

If u seen all the ramp bockers now wait till Great Lakes. You haven't seen any thing yet. Watch out for the Huskie Brigade. I heared they were good but still in the secret. I don't even know what the robot looks like. But i heared it's a very good ramp blocker. And if you think the 65 in my name means i am from team 65 your mistaken. That is the only number left for the name i piced. Well unless i wanted it to be a real long name.

on juggalo65
 

ok so i lied. i am on team 65. but u wont get another peep out of me. so HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D :D :D

you could have done your 65 joke in only one post . . . .

anyway, I was at Stl and I don't think I saw a single KOH bot work.

Many teams tried to use suction cups alone for traction (45) but I think the whole point of a suction cup is to stick it down, then pull up on it. If you have a really good cup it can probably take around 100 lbs of force before it comes off, so If you pull up with that much you no longer have 130 lbs of normal force, but 230. Making your wheels much much harder to slip, so if you lock those down or have an uber drive train you are immobile. using the suction cup as a traction device does not work, use it to increase your normal force. I wonder if some teams still have time to use that advice? probably not unless they've already implemented it. Which I bet some teams have.

I saw one KOH bot with giant wings with sticky stuff on the bottom, the idea being to unfold and put weight only on that, but the only time I saw them in action the never managed to get out of the alley. I was kinda sad.

229, one of the only "true" rampdoms I saw at the UTC Regional, worked really well during the matches in which they moved. I can only imagine what they will be like with fully functional gearboxes.