Pnumatic bumper

[DjScribbles]

The line of questioning seems a bit silly to me, I assume your new or simply not conveying your idea well, because "bashing" another robot typically would be taken as intent to damage, and if you don't intend to do damage (where you are coming back towards the realm of legality), what you are describing would be similar to using your frame and bumpers.

Even an appendage wrapped in bumper material is still very likely to cause damage if it isn't hitting something else covered in bumper material (and rigid), since you want it to have enough power to push robots.

In general, just about the only thing that will reliably push a robot's drivetrain, is another robot's drivetrain, building an appendage to do that doesn't make sense because you can just use the robot itself for that.

[Ryan_Todd]

My team has debated the merits of extendable "bumpers" on several occasions, but we've always ended up deciding that it wouldn't be worth the trouble. Here's a few of the conclusions that we reached.

In order to make such a device fit the current rules, it would have to:

• Start the match retracted within the frame perimeter (because it cannot technically be a bumper if it is articulated in any way)
• Remain within the same height zone that bumpers fit into, so as to avoid being misconstrued as a device intended to contact an opponent outside the bumper zone
• Be constructed from a material which is simultaneously smooth enough to avoid damaging other robots, whilst also being strong enough to withstand multiple, severe impacts

Within these restrictions, my team liked the idea of a 1/4-inch thick sheet of polycarb (or 1/8" thick aluminum, or 3/32" thick steel...), bent into the same shape as the outside edge of a bumper, and with extra bracing as necessary to ensure rigidity. We debated the merits of over-the-bumper deployment versus going through a gap in the bumpers, but ended up dismissing the idea before we came to a conclusion on that one.

[FrankJ]

My first thought was where the pneumatic bumper attaches to the CRIO is not that strong. You don't want to be bashing other robots with it.

In terms of moving other robots. Your drive train has to be strong enough to hold the reaction force. If so you can just use your existing bumpers & drive train to push the other bots around. Oh wait some teams already to that.

Thinking outside the box is a good thing. Just realize that a lot of times there is a good reason the idea is not in the box to begin with.