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Unread 14-09-2008, 08:30
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Re: [FTC]: Thoughts on new FTC game?

Quote:
Originally Posted by AHSEagles View Post
Can our team build one, and know how to match the same dynamics/weight characteristics of theirs? No. Can we afford to buy a FIRST-supplied one? No. So that leaves us with hockey pucks to play around with. Woowee.
You've got some options here:
a) Link up with any other FTC teams in the area and go in on field components together.
b) FIRST will put out drawings for the field; for Quad Quandary, the field elements beyond the barrier ran a couple hundred dollars. You can probably get away with a partial field if it's just your team. I'm not saying it'll be free, but it shouldn't run you a bajillion-million dollars.
c) You've got the drawings for the field (or should get them soon). From there, you can figure out where your arm needs to be. If you don't know the forces required on some official field element, there's always Q&A.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rocketperson44 View Post
Not so much bad, as could be a lot better. Just dosen't feel unique enough. The racks make the acquisition of the puck shape kind of a non-challenge, as a bin approach is as easy or easier than individual object manipulation.
I'd advise you to look up some of the FRC robots from 2004; ComBBAT and the FemBots come to mind. They used large hoppers to hold all of the balls that dropped from above that year, and both were a little clunky at getting them back out.

Quote:
As I said in the other thread, the "capture and trap all of your opponent's gamepieces" strategy seems a bit too easy compared to scoring. I'm not a big fan of one central scoring structure, as it allows one robot to effectively defend the whole thing.
I'm going to make a bold prediction here: against competent opponents, no alliance is going to be able to trap every single opposing puck. The racks are just too far apart for any team to be able to hit them all. At most, I'm predicting that an alliance could trap two racks, one per robot.

I'm not sold on the defense options you lay out. You've got 18" robots going around a cylinder that's 24" inches diameter and thus 75" circumference--over six feet around. I'm not sure how fast you can get a new-kit robot to go, but I'm betting you'd want a second robot to achieve ideal coverage. Hope you've got all the pucks you're gonna score by then, because I'm willing to bet that the other alliances will be glad to take that time to whisk away your pucks.
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William "Billfred" Leverette - Gamecock/Jessica Boucher victim/Marketing & Sales Specialist at AndyMark

2004-2006: FRC 1293 (D5 Robotics) - Student, Mentor, Coach
2007-2009: FRC 1618 (Capital Robotics) - Mentor, Coach
2009-2013: FRC 2815 (Los Pollos Locos) - Mentor, Coach - Palmetto '09, Peachtree '11, Palmetto '11, Palmetto '12
2010: FRC 1398 (Keenan Robo-Raiders) - Mentor - Palmetto '10
2014-2016: FRC 4901 (Garnet Squadron) - Co-Founder and Head Bot Coach - Orlando '14, SCRIW '16
2017-: FRC 5402 (Iron Kings) - Mentor

93 events (more than will fit in a ChiefDelphi signature), 13 seasons, over 60,000 miles, and still on a mission from Bob.

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