Assist System explained

[TheOtherGuy]

The simplest way to explain the assist rule is to literally use their definition:

ASSIST: an event worth bonus points that occurs when a unique ALLIANCE ROBOT POSSESSES the ALLIANCE’S BALL in a unique ZONE (i.e. red, white, or blue ZONE) during a CYCLE.

In order to have one assist, you need one robot to posses the ball in one unique zone. To have two assists, you need two unique robots possessing the ball in two unique zones. For three assists, three unique robots possessing the ball in three unique zones.

[Bob Steele]

Originally Posted by cbudrecki

my big assist question:

Robot 1 in Red passes to Robot 2 in white. Robot 2, still in white, then passes back to Robot 1, now in blue. Robot 1 has no possession while in white. Would this count for the 3 assist rule?

No because robot 3 never possessed the ball in a unique zone.
simple as that.
You cannot get a triple assist without ALL of the robots possessing in unique zones.

[engunneer]

I saw elsewhere another way to think of the word assist that makes easy sense. You are assistingthe ball to be scored. Betw een one and three robots can assist the ball in it's goal of being scored. One assist is needed in each zone.

It is also important to remember that you need to be completely is a zone to get credit for the possession. It is possible for all three robots to posses the ball on zone borders and still only get no assist bonus.

[bduddy]

Originally Posted by pilum40

Ok...a question from my students yesterday still "sticks in my craw"....

"If we're playing for max points in combination and assists, how are individual teams ranked for finals at the regional?" My question is how many refs will be needed to work three different teams, three areas, marking assists, calculating points in the hot zones as they come up hot, etc.? I'm just an AP teacher but I see a lot of Swiss Cheese holes and massaging of the rules. But...that's just one prole's opinion.

Assists are tracked per alliance, not per team. You get all assist points scored by your alliance in each game.

[bobbyball]

It is my understanding that in order to get the 30 assist points, the unique zone pairs has to be a diagonal across the field. Please tell me if I'm wrong no one is perfect, and every one makes mistakes. I want this rule clarified.

[GaryVoshol]

Originally Posted by bobbyball

It is my understanding that in order to get the 30 assist points, the unique zone pairs has to be a diagonal across the field. Please tell me if I'm wrong no one is perfect, and every one makes mistakes. I want this rule clarified.

I have seen no such requirement.

Perhaps people are confused by the discussion of "rows" and "columns" for assists. These are on the display that's above the driver station. The rows are the color zones, the columns are the individual robots. Someone (I presume referees) will mark that "Robot 1 has possession in the White Zone". This will transfer to the display above the drivers, and then FMS will compile all the inputs to determine how many assists (unique zone/robot combinations) happened.

[lcoreyl]

Originally Posted by Qbot2640

Please correct me if I am wrong as this is the core of my confusion:
This would not constitute the 3 assist, because robot 1 initiated the first assist and is thus no longer eligible for additional assist participation (no longer "unique robot/zone pair")

Robot 1 would still be "eligible" (1 could then pass to 3 in blue and you have 3 assists). You are still thinking like sports assist where the actual pass matters.
you can score the 3 assists without any alliance members intentionally "passing" at all:
the human player retrieves the ball from the pedestal. they are excitedly running around to the guardrail and trip and the ball rolls into the blue zone. robot 1 drives over and picks up the ball in the blue zone. a defender crashes into robot 1 and the ball comes loose and rolls to the white zone where robot 2 possesses the ball. The defender crashes into robot 2 and the ball comes loose again and rolls to the red zone where robot 3 possesses the ball by herding into the low goal. 31 points. no passes.

Read Bob Steele's post again; POSSESSION IS THE KEY WORD! the definition of assist never says anything about passing.

I have to admit that when watching the kickoff video and then reading the rules I was still confused. After talking it through with a few people the idea of thinking only of possession and not passing made things more clear.

[Bill_B]

I don't know how carefully this will be watched by the referees, but possession in a zone is technically limited to the definition of being in a zone. A robot straddling the line between zones is not *in* either zone. Unless it travels so that it no longer touches one zone or the other, possession has not happened for that robot.