Vacuum grippers are really good picking up objects that have a readily oriented flat surface, and for spherical objects. The biggest challenges you will face with this year's game pieces are orienting the suction cup to get a seal, sealing, and achieving sufficient holding force not to drop them. The holding force is proportional to two things:
- The pressure differential between the environment (atmosphere) and inside the suction cup
- The area inside the suction cup.
This years game pieces do not lend themselves well to large suction cup area, so you will have to rely on high vacuum. You can't achieve much delta P with a shop vac (we have tried). An ejector type vacuum generator (works off air pressure from the pneumatic system) will generate relatively high vacuum,. but only if you have a tight seal. We were successful in 2008 with a shop vac arrangement because we had a huge area to work with. We were less successful last year because the available area was too small. (that's why we abandoned the vacuum after Peachtree)
I am not saying don't try it! please do, and I hope you are successful. I just want you to be aware of the challenges and available options. If you have any questions (vendors, how-to etc), PM me and I will try to answer.