[davidthefat]

Originally Posted by kamocat

Well, one of the factors I'm trying to work with is cost. I want to get the most out of what I spend.
If I line my robot with SONAR, that's $250 for only two per side.
If I use IR, it's still $120 for the same thing (though lower range, non-linear, and unknown view angle)
The camera has a view angle of +-15 degrees.

Please show me a diagram that demonstrates that 8 SONAR or 8 IR (plus the camera) are all I need to find a game piece anywhere around the 'bot. Feel free to demonstrate why they're the best solution.

I think you are over spending here, I was going to put 2 or 3 IR sensors on a servo, so it sweeps side to side, the sonar would be the general guideline and there only will be 1 on a servo that goes 360 degrees, if it detects something, the irs and camera turn that way to check up on it... Not sure if its the fastest, but that is a pretty cheap way to do it