[Holtzman]

I don't know how this got blown so far our or proportion. This season, our FVC team decided not to post detailed pictures of our robot. We feel we have a very unique design, and are very proud of it. The nature of the FVC allows teams lots of time to upgrade designs, and even emulate others. We understand this and are supportive of the rules as they are written. We hope teams will be inspired by what we’ve done, and use this inspiration to strive for an even higher level of excellence. That being said, we don't want to give away our competitive advantage.

There are a great number of FRC teams who do not post pictures of their robots until after build season. We will be more than happy to post pictures of our robot after FVC build season... sometime after April 13th.

FRC 1114 has always been very proud to share our designs. This off season, we've given drawings of our FRC drive train to 8 teams. Our helpful spirit extends to the vex realm, where we've mentored one team, and helped many others. Any team who came up to us in the pits was welcomed with open arms, and granted the full tour of the robot. They were free to take whatever pictures they wanted. That being said, we are not going to go out of our way to post pictures to make it easy for everyone to replicate the creative elements of our FVC robot.

I believe very strongly that the design process is as much important an aspect of FIRST as any other. If two teams work together in a collaborative effort, that’s one thing, but blatantly copying another teams design is another thing entirely. By doing so you’re missing out on the value of design process. The teams who came to our pits and talked to us about our robot were able to gain a glimpse into our design process. They learned about the mistakes we made, the obstacles we faced, and various iterations of our design. A team who just mimics what they see in a picture, loses out on the on a good chunk of the design process.

In school life, there are specific rules about academic dishonesty. We all do our own assignments so that we actually learn something from them, rather than just copying someone elses. Teams should go through the design process, from conception, to final implementation because this is the way we learn. I believe this is the reason that 1114 has improved so much over the last few years. We have always looked to the success of the powerhouses for inspiration. Look for ideas, concepts, possibilities, but put in the work yourself. Build prototypes, and proof of concept models.

So what am I really trying to say in this very long winded post? 1114 still won't be releasing photos of our robot. If you need help or advice with design, build, or programming, send me or any of the other 1114 members a PM. We’d be glad to help you out. Just don’t expect us to steal all your fun and give you all the answers.

Good luck to all teams. FVC1114 looks forward to seeing you in Atlanta!