Hopper?

[MrForbes]

I guess gravity is a secret?

We're working on our design that uses a rather tall collecting/storage system, which delivers balls to a slanted hopper. The intake of the shooter is at the bottom of the hopper. The hopper can hold 3 balls. We decided we need the hopper to hold the balls so they can be fed to the shooter on demand, rather than as they pop out of the collector. We plan to use a pneumatic cylinder to push the next ball in line up into the shooter.

[SuzyQ.42]

We decided to forego the hopper because it occupies a lot of space, and is unnecessary because of the 3 ball rule. However, I supported a small hopper because, if you had one, you could have alliance partners with effective long-range shooters feed you balls.

[Hawiian Cadder]

Max robot height is 60 inches, and the balls are less than 10 inches in diameter. I don't think there is any reason for a full height robot to have a designated hopper.

[MrForbes]

It's not a matter of being able to fit the balls in...it's a matter of being able to store them, while being able to collect and shoot balls independently of the storage system. At least that's why we figured it's necessary.

If you're clever, you can probably figure out a good way to store balls another way...

[JaredSanMiguel]

It seems that a full height robot is not even necessary in the game due to a lot of rules regarding defending and distance between you and opposing robots. 3 balls being collected at an angle doesn't even need to be taller than 36". And with all the rocking and tipping that may occur when crossing the ramp or bump, a shorter robot may be better.

[Chris is me]

We can hold slightly more than three balls this year, to allow for space in between the balls between shots. Don't see any reason to be able to hold more than that this year.