Quote:
Originally Posted by FrankJ
R8
If the in LRIs view the robot is unsafe, it is in violation of R8. This is not new. Not unheard of or even infrequent that robots have been modified to meet this rule. Even even when at other competitions. the robot met this rule.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jon Stratis
And Tristan - isn't it nice to know how a rule as vague and all encompassing as R08 is going to be handled before you actually get to the venue?
The LRI here could have just kept quiet until the event, then walked around telling teams they needed to rig something at the event, and there would have been no room for complaining. Instead, a pro-active approach to the issue is raising complaints here.
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I agree that foreknowledge of the interpretation of R8 is definitely a good thing, as is the opportunity for discussion here.
I just want to be clear that if the policy is
strictly an R8 interpretation (the preamble to the policy references R8 along with other things), that it is only being applied in situations where R8 has force. The robot rules offer no fair and practical way to mandate compliance until (full or partial) inspection or gameplay occurs,
1 and as a result, the robot rules are inherently ineffective at regulating pit and queue safety.
If the intention is instead to promote safety at all times, then the policy should be enacted under the event's authority to make the competition safe for the public.
2 But this removes the option of applying the penalties specified in robot rules.
From the explanations provided here by the staff of that event, I think it's (properly) intended as the latter, but being confused with the former because R8 was mentioned in the preamble to the policy. Except in the most exigent circumstances, I think FIRST and most participants expect that events will not interfere with the competition formula laid out in the game manual—and that's why the invocation of R8 was problematic. And that's why I'd like a clear statement one way or the other.
1 For example, it's foolishness to believe that a robot taken apart for maintenance should at all times comply with the robot rules.
2 For example, events can make rules like "no smoking" or "no walking under the bleachers", but these are distinct from the competition rules in the game manual.