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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 1/18/2000 7:17 PM MST


In Reply to: Re: Consider the following... posted by Elaine Anselm on 1/18/2000 2:41 PM MST:



Okay, now that Zen Master Elaine has weighed in, I feel free to open up the floodgates.

If ZME is so boiled up as to openly state that a rule is 'a really bad rule,' then I think the burden of proof has shifted to FIRST to actually defend this rule if they intend to have it honored by gracious professionals everywhere.

With that as backdrop, I think we need to all start proposing an exit strategy for FIRST.

We know what they want.
1) They want us to STOP designing & improving our robots when the beasties are in the box.
2) They want us to be able to fix problems at the competition as they come up.
3) They want us to be able to have our robots work if they break.

The question is how to allow #2 & #3 without opening up the Pandora's box of disavowing #1.

They made a proposal, all is fair at the competition, and nothing is allowed, not even spare parts, from when the robot is in the box until the competition.

We have all basically said that this is all well and good for #1 & #2, but it shoots #3 right in the heart.

So...

I propose the following rule. If you have something better, do tell:

The rules are just as FIRST has proposed them with the following exception.

Teams may make identical parts (same material, same pivots, same geometry, etc.) while the robot is in the box and any location they see fit. These 'identical parts' must be identical to the parts on the robot that is in the box (this allows for instance a team to make a spare part that includes a design improvement made at a regional).

Just as FIRST has proposed, all improvements made to the robot must be made on site at the competition (improvements to the spare parts may be made as well, but they must be made on site at the competition as with all robot improvements).

Finally, at check in, all teams must submit a signed document swearing on their gracious professionalism that all robot building ceased after the ship date/time, that only identical robot parts were fabricated during the interim, and that all robot improvements, if any, must be made on site at the competition using only a) parts made before the shipping date/time, 2) identical parts made in the interim, 3) raw materials brought to the competition, and 4) parts from the robot.

Well... have at it. Tear it apart. Let's get all the kinks out and make a sound proposal to FIRST that we all can live with.

Joe J.