Competition jobs
 

what are the different jobs that each team must have somebody for at the competitions?

Re: Competition jobs
 

Safety captain, driver, human player, drive coach, mechanical fixer-upper people. I forgot to mention a mentor or two!

Re: Competition jobs
 

is there a runner that can go into the field area and the pit

Re: Competition jobs
 

Well, after each match you can bring your robot back so there isn't really a need for one. During a match, noone is allowed to so I think the answer is no.

Re: Competition jobs
 

A "team captain" and "adult mentor" to sign certain paperwork for inspection, loaner parts, etc.

Re: Competition jobs
 

no like when you are waiting to go on to the field and a bolt is lose or you lost a nut for a bolt

Re: Competition jobs
 

Yes, people from the pits are allowed to wait with the drive team in queuing.

Re: Competition jobs
 

If you are in the que, yes. If during qualification matches and you are already on the field, no. If you are in the elims, you can call one 6 minute time-out but I wouldn't waste that on a loose bolt but if there is something wrong that could affect the outcome of the match, it would be worth it.

Re: Competition jobs
 

Typical roles for a team at competition are:

There may be some overlap between these first three groups depending on team size
Drive Team - 2 drivers, coach (may be a mentor) and human player
Judge Ambassadors - someone should be in your pit at all times to talk to judges
Pit Crew - personnel to work on the robot between matches
Safety Captain - Likely one of the people in the above three groups because this person should be in the pits most of the time

Scouts/strategists - Watch matches and collect data on competing robots

A "runner" would normally be a member of the Drive Team or Pit Crew, this isn't really a frequent enough occurrence at regionals to need a separate person.

Re: Competition jobs
 

Our cart has a tool chest on it for that reason. Basically any tool we could conceivable need to use for a problem that could be fixed within 10 minutes is in the tool chest so that way it goes to the field with us just in case we need them. I try to get a picture up if I can find one!

Re: Competition jobs
 

Driver Team with backups
Chairmans Presenting Team
Safety Captain
Strategists with a team of scouts
Battery Boy/Girl
Pit Boss who makes sure there is always someone in the pit to talk to judges
Ambassadors
Spirit People in the stands

Re: Competition jobs
 

Sometimes. I would recommend that the drive team have basic mechanical abilities to do those quick little fixes. Some regionals do allow people in queue, but many do not, because they would not have drive team badges (which queuers often check for.)

Re: Competition jobs
 

whats a battery boy/girl and what do they do

Re: Competition jobs
 

If the robot's battery is not charged, the robot is useless. Whoever is in charge of batteries needs to make sure that they are charged/charging/not used if they're not ready.

Re: Competition jobs
 

go it is there anybody else that should be in the pit and/or other team jobs

Re: Competition jobs
 

They would make sure the robot has a fresh battery, and record (assuming you label your batteries) which battery was used when. They also make sure the batteries make it back to the charger after being pulled from the robot.

Re: Competition jobs
 

You also should always have someone in the pit who knows the code and the control system very well.

Most other "jobs" depend on your team - do you have a mascot costume that needs to be worn? We have people whose job it is to go around and pass out buttons, as well. Another useful thing would be to assign one person (probably a parent or mentor) who makes sure that everyone is staying healthy by drinking enough water and eating meals. Speaking of meals, there needs to be someone to coordinate them (taking orders and money, placing the order, etc - figure out if your venue offers pre-ordered lunches and when the deadline is for them).

Re: Competition jobs
 

Press pass! I'm usually used by my team as a runner if we're in queue. As well, I know electronics so during Elims I'm like a free pass in :)

Re: Competition jobs
 

NEMO (non-engineering mentor organization) has a paper in the resource section "Jobs at the Competitions."

http://www.firstnemo.org/resources.htm

It is an older paper, and we would welcome any suggestions for updating!

Re: Competition jobs
 

If you don't have a toolbox on your cart, have a runner. You'll probably regret it at least once this season if you don't. Do not make this person part of your drive team (because they run away). They can wait with your team in most cases, they just can't do it inside the arena. Most queue setups are at least relatively convenient about this, and the driver can always come over to grab something. This applies right up through quarterfinals.

In semifinals, you'll still have some wait time between matches without timeouts--even in finals it's around 2min. You can bring your pit in, however, so you don't need a runner. Most venues allow 2-4 extra people in to help.

You can also have a media person. Most venues nowadays allow 1 person from each team in the current match to come in and take photos/video.

Re: Competition jobs
 

Our pit team had a checklist of items to deal with before/after each match. The list was subdivided among the pit kids so each time, they did the exact same thing. Things like replace battery, reset minibot deployment, tighten troublesome set screws, check tension on guy wires, change bumpers, etc. One time someone reset the deployment minibot 'on' switch pull string differently than the working mode, and it failed on the field. Consistency and repeatability is very important. And whenever we found an oversight, it was added to the checklist.

Some of us even wanted to post the checklist on the robot itself, so it could be rechecked in the queue.

This is the first year we had this, and this was our breakout year, being picked by alliance #2 and coming in second.

Re: Competition jobs
 

The only people that should be in the pit are, your drive team,scouts(sometimes if they need to talk to the drive team) your pit crew(the people who know the robot inside and out), and any one needed to talk to judges. Most of the time your scouts will just be walking around looking at other robots.

Re: Competition jobs
 

We have 2 pit scouts and the rest of the scouts are scouting the matches. It gets annoying when there are 20 people trying to pack into a 10' square area and you can't get any work done on the robot. We have one memebr assigned as pit boss. His job is to run the pit and make sure it keeps clear. If scouts need a break, they can WALK around the pits but not hang around doing nothing.