Quote:
Originally Posted by BJC
The basic reason I can see them doing this is for enforability. It's already difficult to determine if the robot will fit within the 54" cylinder when on flat ground. Robots breaking the cylinder when transitioning between levels while climbing (especially unintentional) is basically impossible for the refrees to be certain of. In close matches no one wants the deciding call to be made by a ref who from 15 feet away may have seen a robot momentarily break an invisible cylinder...
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This.
It's certainly possible, but very difficult, under the old rule to examine a robot and tell the refs "if the plane of the robots bumpers tilts more than 15 degrees while climbing and this appendage is fully extended, then it's illegal." Telling them that, however, and judging that on the field is a whole different story. Visually telling how long an appendage is extended is difficult, telling a precise angle is even more difficult. Combine the two in a moving environment, and it's an impossible task for the refs.
The result? You would have two camps of teams. Those that paid very close attention to this rule and how it affects their robot while in different orientations while climbing, and those who didn't. You'd see both groups of teams climbing the pyramids, and no penalties called other than obvious, egregious violations of the rule. And one group, the group that's really upset right now, would be really upset that they spent so much time and effort complying with the rule, when a "simpler" design they decided was illegal is actually allowed.
It's a catch-22 - either way the GDC went with this would make teams upset. Personally, I think the decision to update the rule to make it more enforceable is the right way to go. I might moan and complain if it forced my team to change our design, but it would still be the right way to go.
What's the point of a rule if its impossible to be enforced on the field?