Re: My comments on shooters
 

This is a good post, as I assume each of the issues stated will be encountered during the season. As a robot with a shooting mechanism, we have been extra careful to look at all states of the robot and ensure that we have mitigated any risk of inadvertent firing. We are implementing safety interlocks (pinning the rig) to prevent firing as well as a "loaded" sign and lastly training of the crew. The one thing that we identified is that the most risk is when the robot is switching states i.e. in process of loading, since it is doing it without user interaction. We've implemented a pneumatic safeguard that slowly vents the pneumatic at the end of the match to transition the robot back to a safe state in this case.

The other thing that I see this year is that physical interaction with the robot is not allowed. I think the GDC realized the risk of the interaction of students with the robot and eliminated it. I would expect that since there have been numerous posts of past injuries this will continue to be the case in years to come.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

nope. We decided that designing a shooter that could hold the ball well when we wanted it, but throw it well when we wanted it was far too complicated for our machining capabilities. Plus I didn't want to be the team that knocks out the Wildhats mascot with an "accidental" trackball launch :)

Re: My comments on shooters
 

Interesting....we built ours without ever powering up the milling machine...we used the bandsaw, hacksaw, drill press, some cordless drills, the Rotex round punch, and the rivet guns, plus a lot of files to round off the corners. And almost all our metal stock came from Ace hardware, except the sheet aluminum.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

I agree with squirrel. This is interesting. A lot of the catapults I've seen can be made fairly easily with hardware store supplies and some not-so-complex tools and machines.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

Ours involved the use of an Oxy-Acetylene torch for bending the 1" aluminum stock. I dont think any portions of it (except our pulleys) ever hit the lathe, or our mill.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

One thing I think we might see is driver station overhead protection, similar to 2005. With all the shooting/bouncing of balls, there's a good chance one will enter the driver stations and take out a few objects/people. :)

Re: My comments on shooters
 

I hope it's on before Championships and held on with more than zip ties, then (remembering '05). If you see one coming over, DUCK! (Unless you're Shane:D)

Re: My comments on shooters
 

We dont have a bandsaw, or a punch, and no machining mentors, only a smart dad that can come by once a week, our main mentor is programing only.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

There seems to be a lot of discussion going on about the safety issues of an errant trackball being shot out of the field. I am more concerned about the damage flying trackballs will cause on the field. Yes, we are supposed to build our machines to “take a licking and keep on ticking” but given the weight constraints we are given, many parts on many robots are not exactly bulletproof. I predict that flying 8 lb trackballs will do some substantial damage to many robots this year and GP or not, feelings are going to get hurt and tempers are going to flare. Think about those arms/lifts/etc up there 10 feet in the air getting hammered by a flying 8 lb 40” ball. I foresee some broken arms/lifts and totally tipped over bots from flying trackballs. I can just imagine the reaction the first time a team has their arm/lift/etc. way up in the air and their alliance PARTNER fires their super-duper trackball trebuchet and nocks over their arm/lift/etc. partner and/or destroys their arm/lift/etc and blocks the whole lane thus incurring a pile of penalties for damage, impeding, etc. and then not only loosing the match but ruining their alliance partners robot. Don’t get me wrong, I love the shooter designs I am seeing, I just wish FIRST had put some sort of limit on the shooter velocity as in 2006.

Re: My comments on shooters
 

I guess "far too complicated for our machining capabilities" is a relative statement!

But I still don't think that there is anything special about either a shooter or arm type robot that precludes any team from building either one, if they can figure out the easy way to do it. The designing is the tough part.