[Anupam Goli]

Originally Posted by LH Machinist

Back to the original point of this thread, at what point does it become unacceptable? I have read both sides of this issue and I propose an easy solution. During elimination matches...only students may touch the robot and mentors may get no closer than 5 feet away. This rule would virtually eliminate the design/build conflict, since maintainability will rely strictly with the students. If they didn't design/build it...it would almost be impossible for them to repair it.

You're going to find yourself by yourself if you're in support of that. What would happen if a student couldn't diagnose what was wrong? What if the repair involves work that students aren't trained to do (Welding, etc.)? It's not black and white, and you can't just place a blanket rule like that. Everyone will suffer from a rule like this. Shunning your mentors means you are getting rid of your most valuable resources.