[Joe Ross]

Originally Posted by Gregor

This rule is non-existent. We purchased wheels (which satisfy an aspect of the design for us), of course we can use them.

While it's not a rule, it is in the manual. See section 1.5 of the game manual.

One of the purposes of the FRC is to provide Team members with the experience of conceiving, designing, and constructing their solution to the annual competition challenge. We want each student to have the experience of creating a new system each year. As the Team considers the creation of their machine, this aspect of the program should be kept in mind. Solutions that merely bolt together a minimum number of externally-designed COTS subsystems may not offer the students the opportunity to understand the “why” or “how” of an item’s design. Likewise, solutions that are merely minor modifications of a design utilized for a previous competition does not offer the current students complete insight into the full design process. Purchasing optimization and design re-use are both important concepts; however, Teams must be cautious not to over-utilize them to the point that the student’s experience is compromised.

This intent is clearly met when a Team obtains a Mechanism or COTS items that was designed for non-FIRST purposes, and then modifies or alters it to provide functionality for the robot. For example, if a Team obtains a gearbox from a power drill and modifies it to use on the robot, they gain insight into the design of the original gearbox purpose, learn to characterize the performance of the original design, and implement the engineering design process to create their customized application for the gearbox.

However, COTS items that have been specifically designed as a solution to part of the FRC challenge may or may not fit within the FRC intent, and must be carefully considered. If the item provides general functionality that can be utilized in any of several possible configurations or applications, then it is acceptable (as the Teams will still have to design their particular application of the item). However, COTS items that provide a complete solution for a major robot function (e.g. a complete manipulator assembly, pre-built pneumatics circuit, or full mobility system) that require no effort other than just bolting it on to the robot are against the intent of the competition and will not be permitted.

In my mind, the car-jack is not a pre-built solution. You must still add some method for grabbing the pyramid. You must also add a method to motorize it. I think it's the same as the gearbox in the second paragraph.