Quote:
Originally Posted by BrendanB
I wholeheartedly agree.
This is a robotics competition which means there are large moving objects, power tools, pinch points, heavy lifting, etc which means by being involved in the program or being present in the pits you are exposing yourself to risks. While I agree that the pits should be a safe environment they should also be an environment that still allows teams to operate as a team which occasionally does require testing. Yes some testing can be done on the practice field however teams do not get sufficient access to practice space at events nor are they suitable for quick testing when something breaks or you need to tweak something and quickly test it before getting to your match.
Always exercise caution, talk to the team, and consult the safety advisers if you need be. I don't think a once size fits all approach works in these situations.
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There are practice fields for you to fully test your drive. Placing safeguards (like blocks) for the robot to sit on while testing in the pits is an easy way to prevent avoidable and HIGH risk accidents. What can you not test with the robot on the blocks? Do the wheels run? Does the robot turn appropriately? Do encoders work? Can the arm lift?
My teams tests all of these things with the robot lifted off the ground. There is inherit risk in this industrial sport, of course. But our tools have safeguards.
I don't get the counterargument against the very simple and effective safeguard of some wooden blocks. I especially don't understand it after I saw my own father run over by 120 lb robot and when I see small children like my 3 year old niece visiting the pit. There is no reason not put these safeguards in place.