[dtengineering]

I can appreciate your pain. The rule book is quite complex, and, as rookies, you probably are only now getting involved in the CD community. There was a big discussion of the rule here several weeks ago. Even as a five year veteran team we missed the significance of this rule (namely a 38" robot is going to have a VERY hard time grasping a 40" ball without going outside the cylinder) until we discussed it with other teams. We ditched our lifter design in week 2 and went for a launcher instead.

I'm glad you've got it worked out so that you can compete. Just getting a robot in a shipping crate and through tech inspection is a massive accomplishment in your first year. After that it gets easier as you get to know the rules better, see a bunch of other solutions, and become part of a very supportive robotics community.

Other common rookie challenges involve meeting the weight and size limitations (mostly the weight limit) and keeping all the wiring and electrical connections within the detailed (but fairly easy to understand) rules in section 8 of the manual.

Good luck!

Jason