[Al Skierkiewicz]

There appeared to be problems with radio interference in Chicago at the MMR. Motorola did bring out a spectrum analyzer and we were able to trace some of the problems and did find some signals in band that were not modems. We were able to work with Innovation First reps and found no real threat to competition links from outside interference. Although some signals were close to modem frequencies, the modems seemed to be stable. We continued to monitor periodically throughout the comptetition and only found problems with teams who were drawing large currents and pulling the battery down below operating voltage for the modem and/or robot controller. It was noted however, that during inspection, teams were told to power up without tether to check operation of the light and it was found that some teams were still using radios in the pits to check operations. There should not be any problems with that but it is not 100% safe. (Some other team might unknowingly take control of your robot) Always use the tether when in the pits to prevent accidents and keep the competition going for all involved.
Good Luck All