[Moriarty]

After seeing many of the Robot POV videos posted on the forum, an idea comes to mind. Imagine an event where the robots on the field all had network cameras that were connected to the AV system. Teams at regional's with their AXIS Camera or GoPro could opt in to having robot POV as part of the field camera coverage.

Watching the many webcasts has shown large differences in the quality and number of cameras. Some events had single viewpoints from midway in the audience with low visibility. Some had cameras by the feeder station (very nice). But imagine a match that could show a robot shooting frisbees or blocking another robot from the point of view of the robot in real time on the big screen while the match happened! Robotics has the unique possibility of having camera angles not seen often in spectator events. The kit of parts in previous years even came with a network camera (AXIS).

Now, the specifics of such a setup are where I am not as clear. I don't have much experience with A/V, but I suspect that with some work this kind of setup could be plausible.

However, another issue I see is the restrictions on wireless communication on the field. With the newer bandwidth limits and the restriction of non-FCS Wifi on the field, it might not be possible without approval from FIRST but it could be more plausible for an off-season event. Perhaps if camera data was transferred through a different router via Ad-hoc? I am not as clear as I should be on the Wifi rules. I would love some more insight on the idea from more experienced parties. Thoughts?