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Originally Posted by Whippet
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The ROBOT must have a FRAME PERIMETER, contained within the BUMPER ZONE, that is comprised of fixed, non-articulated structural elements of the ROBOT. Minor protrusions no greater than 1⁄4 in. such as bolt heads, fastener ends, and rivets are not considered part of the FRAME PERIMETER.
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I would't consider a string to be structural element. However, if they put something like churro tube on it at the corners, it would probably be rigid enough to be considered structural. |
R2 apparently differs from the definition given in the glossary. The manual should probably be edited to provide a more consistent definition of the Frame Perimeter.
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FRAME PERIMETER: the polygon defined by the outer-most set of exterior vertices on the ROBOT (without
the BUMPERS attached) that are within the BUMPER ZONE. To determine the FRAME PERIMETER, wrap a
piece of string around the ROBOT at the level of the BUMPER ZONE - the string describes this polygon.
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Also, I wouldn't put it past some students to find a way to use structural string (it can be done, see: suspension bridges). That'd really tie the robot together.
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Originally Posted by Gregor
Would your grandmother, or a reasonably astute observer define a string as supporting your bumper? This rule exists for a very good reason.
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As far as this observer goes, it depends what part of the manual you quote for them. Glossary or R2? Because using the glossary to determine that the string is the Frame Perimeter, any observer can see that the string obeys the 3 stipulations of R26. If you look at R2, then you get a whole bunch of other questions. Just how thick of a string are we talking about here? Does the string provide structure to
any part of the robot (since the determination of an item being structural in R2 is independent of supporting the bumpers. The string doesn't need to support your bumpers to be your Frame Perimeter).
The rule exists so you don't wreck your bumpers in a collision. However, there are many ways to wreck more than just your bumpers in a match. Why are bumpers special? This year, if a team's bumpers break they are disabled for the match (G20). If something like your drivetrain or scoring mechanism breaks during a match, you may not be disabled, but it's close to it.
It is absolutely possible to make bumpers that will withstand the collisions in a match without following these rules. Why not let teams try? I fully support maintaining a set of guidelines similar to the current rules, but I'd like to see people get a bit creative with more parts of their robot. One of my favorite things to see is a team with bumpers that provide structure for their robot, rather than the other way around, using the bumpers to offload some weight from the robot.