Ramps

[Sperkowsky]

Hello so we have all seen the various ramps teams have come up with to deal with the tote chute. I have been designing one for my team and Ive come up with a few designs.

1. Passive design made with wood and polycarbonate.

2.non passive design with a window motor that raises and lowers the angle of the ramp in order to compensate for more then one tote at a time.

The non passive one is obviously better but would require a tether. My question is would the passive one require a tether too or would it just have to fit in transport configuration. Also does the ramp count towards total weight of the robot.

IF it does count towards the weight I would probably make a fully bent poly design.

[rich2202]

Under what theory would the ramp not have to meet the robot rules?

[Sperkowsky]

Originally Posted by rich2202

Under what theory would the ramp not have to meet the robot rules?

well thats why I asked I wasnt sure.

[rich2202]

Originally Posted by Sperkowsky

well thats why I asked I wasnt sure.

Then the question you may want to ask is: Is there a way to make a ramp that is excluded from any or all of the robot rules?

[Sean Raia]

I don't believe so.
I'd love to see some sort of "anchor" used in addition to the ramp, tethered to the robot and the ramp, which allows the tether pivot to be centered in a more convenient location.

Don't know if that's truly beneficial, but it seems it would be. I'm pretty sure Alfred does this in addition to his main feature.

[Andrew Schreiber]

Originally Posted by Sperkowsky

Hello so we have all seen the various ramps teams have come up with to deal with the tote chute. I have been designing one for my team and Ive come up with a few designs.

1. Passive design made with wood and polycarbonate.

2.non passive design with a window motor that raises and lowers the angle of the ramp in order to compensate for more then one tote at a time.

The non passive one is obviously better but would require a tether. My question is would the passive one require a tether too or would it just have to fit in transport configuration. Also does the ramp count towards total weight of the robot.

IF it does count towards the weight I would probably make a fully bent poly design.

Is it a robot part? Then it counts towards weight.

Is it a robot part? Then you can't intentionally detach it (it needs to be tethered)

[Sperkowsky]

Originally Posted by Andrew Schreiber

Is it a robot part? Then it counts towards weight.

Is it a robot part? Then you can't intentionally detach it (it needs to be tethered)

Ok so I would make a bent lexan ramp the real question is what counts as a tether. Can We just use really think fishing line or if it needs to be visible high gauge red or black wire

[Andrew Schreiber]

Originally Posted by Sperkowsky

Ok so I would make a bent lexan ramp the real question is what counts as a tether. Can We just use really think fishing line or if it needs to be visible high gauge red or black wire

Are there rules in the rulebook governing what is a tether?

Do these rules specify that it need be visible? Or that it need be anything?

I'll save you some looking, there's no rules specifically governing tethers. But there are rules regarding robot construction. Follow those.

[Sperkowsky]

Originally Posted by Andrew Schreiber

Are there rules in the rulebook governing what is a tether?

Do these rules specify that it need be visible? Or that it need be anything?

I'll save you some looking, there's no rules specifically governing tethers. But there are rules regarding robot construction. Follow those.

alright.... The reason why I asked was because I know some teams robot(forget which team) was deemed illegal due to lack of visibility.

[Christopher149]

Originally Posted by Sperkowsky

alright.... The reason why I asked was because I know some teams robot(forget which team) was deemed illegal due to lack of visibility.

I think you're thinking of 148, and the visibility issue was (I believe) a thin black suspended cable between waist-high and head-high. A tether on the floor should be fine IMO if it isn't attached to the floor and isn't a trip hazard.

[IronicDeadBird]

Originally Posted by Christopher149

I think you're thinking of 148, and the visibility issue was (I believe) a thin black suspended cable between waist-high and head-high. A tether on the floor should be fine IMO if it isn't attached to the floor and isn't a trip hazard.

Be mindful of how your tether interacts with the field and other robots though

[Mr V]

To be on the safe side I'd recommend using Mason's line, a strong string that is usually available in high visibility pink or yellow at your local hardware store.

[BeardyMentor]

Originally Posted by IronicDeadBird

Be mindful of how your tether interacts with the field and other robots though

Yes, this. Just because a fishing line is legal, does not mean you should use it. I would suggest some thing stiff enough and thick enough that it can be driven over without getting caught in rollers on mecanum or omni wheels and is unlikely to be caught by belts or chains. Oh and clearly visible against the carpet. Nothing makes you unpopular like disabling alliance partners by getting your tether stuck in their drive train

[CaityDawh]

Check out Team Driven 1730's robot. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9ceoJls16s It has a ramp and is a rear-loader. It uses the Human-Player Station. It can make stacks of 6 with container and noodle very fast. The ramp is made entirely out of lexan.

[dkavanagh]

We were at the Toronto East Regional yesterday and decided we also needed a tethered ramp. We decided to cut a grey tote and it worked out exceptionally well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vdb_uN4r8_Q

That is in the practice field. In competition, if we lined up with the end of the ramp, we could sit still and feed an internal stacker our robot employs. We're stacking at the speed of the human feed station! Once we sorted out some robot issues, our day turned out pretty well.

We used a braided nylon line for our tether. So far, no issues with it getting caught in the wheels.

David