Quote:
Originally Posted by JesseK
but wheels off the ground wouldn't solve anything for these two teams. These two hypothetical teams appear to have very little safety culture to begin with, and it starts with the adults being involved in the things that could hurt the kids or other teams.
For example ...
Lack of basic integration between hardware and software to ensure basic functionality works as-designed - Why is the team eager to test auto if they haven't performed even the basic tests for 'disable drive'?
Unchecked electrical modifications by a rookie student - really, teams do this? That's more likely to cause a robot to go up in smoke than it is to cause a runaway robot. That's also a massive liability for the adults on that rookie student's team. It doesn't mean the adult does the work or even directly oversees it - rather, the adult checks the system before power is put to it. This two-party check (not 'glance') system is SOP for any maintained industrial electrical system before power is turned on. The two teams have to consciously agree that the system is safe.
Testing a moving auto on the floor in the pits is a HUGE no-no. You're absolutely right - this should be off the floor - yet most teams with a safety culture already do this. Most teams with a safety culture also understand the futility of in-pit on-floor auto testing since the floor isn't the same as the carpeted field.
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On the initial point, the thread is about robots driving in the pit. If we try to have any broader of a discussion this won't yield any result. All of FRC safety is to big for one thread.
"Lack of basic integration between hardware and software to ensure basic functionality works as-designed" and "Unchecked electrical modifications by a rookie student - really, teams do this?" Yes I'm pretty sure it has/will happen. You do realize this is FRC right?
In fact very early in our 2014 build this (variation on elc scenario) happened with a couple of our rookies. Just as the drive base was done I instructed them to use their own knowledge and reading skills to figure out how to wire it. The point was to not have me/mentors hover over them when we don't need to and let them learn from any mistakes. So after they were done we placed the drive base on blocks, place the battery in, check main breaker, plug in battery, and flip main breaker. And the robot goes nowhere as the left side drive spins in mid air. I knew it would happen but I was sill able to let them see it and understand how that kind of mistake would affect them in less controlled environments. If we were at a competition at that knowledge level they wouldn't have looked at a victor 888 so long as I was around or even alive.
My elc scenario example assumes 1. lack of a more experienced person to check 2. competition stress and fatigue 3. added stress of a critical failure 4. an immediate time crunch. 5. no blocks. So yes I can see how something similar can happen.
Edit: Just as I post this and go to the top of the page I see this in the spotlight section: I always say find what works best for your team, for your given situation. Why should we rely on someone else to tell me what will work best for our situation? - JVN
So I'll take that as a sign to quit arguing.