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Posted by Joe Johnson.   [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]


Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.

Posted on 8/7/99 7:26 PM MST



Not to be speading rumors or anything, but I would like some feedback from teams out there.

At this point this is all just some wild discussions going on around the coffee machine. But still, we would like to know what people are thinking.

Suppose some folks were crazy enough to host a 'FIRST in one week' type competition around Thankgiving time (plus or minus a couple weeks) in the Detroit Metro Area.

Suppose further that these same folks were also crazy enough to invite all FIRST teams to participate if they wished (in addition some 20 or so local highschools that currently don't have FIRST teams).

How many of you folks out there in the online FIRST community would make the trek to Detroit to pariticipate?

For the sake of this discussion let's suppose that there was a $200 registation fee and 'FIRST in one week' is defined as:

1) Radio controlled machines (but with fixed, standardized, non-programmable controller stations, transmitters, and receivers -- image the controllers from 95-96 with a standardized driver station with say 2 joysticks on the right and a bank of switches on the left -- what motors turned on on the robot side depended on which motors were wired to which outputs)

2) 2'X2'X2' Robots

3) 'Bolt together', no precision machining construction (Welding: NO! Dremels, drill presses, bandsaws, files, etc.: YES! Lathe, Mills, Wire EDM machines, etc.: NO)

4) Enough stuff in the kit to make functioning machines given the above (6-8 motors with a number of modular power trasmission devices, perhaps a some appropriate pneumatic devices)

5) Web-based kickoff 10 days prior to competition

6) Web-based discussion forum for discussion/rules clarifications

7) Kit arrives 7 days before competition -- 1 week to design/build/test your robot

8) Competition 1 day event (Saturday from dawn to dusk essential)

So...

If we build it, how many teams will come??? Are you in?

Joe J.

P.S. If we had so many teams that we had to stretch it to a Friday-Saturday event, would that change your answer?