Training New Drivers

[Tyler_Kaplan]

Hello, so my question to the CD community is this: how does your team go about training and selecting new drivers? In the before last year, there was no official driver selection process, it was just the senior members, or whoever worked on the robot the most. Then last year after going to a seminar hosted by team 701, we switched this up and had driver tryouts. I just set up a small obstacle course in our lab, and everyone gave it a couple tries. Whoever had the best times was the driver. This was a step in the right direction, but I'd really like to know what I can do this year to make it even better, thanks!

[who716]

What's has worked for our team in the past is trying all the drivers out at a competition. Either a week zero scrimmage or a offseason event. And then which ever drive operator Combination looks the best on the field under pressure should be the choice for ether years competition.

[dmaciel10123]

I know there are teams that set up different "strings" of drive teams, based on skill level. Often the second and/or third string will be younger, and will be trained by driving at off season competitions. This year, our team has taken a list of people who are interested in positions on drive team, and we'll be training them and then giving them control at an off season event. It's good to give everyone that wants to try it a little bit of training beforehand because sometimes that's all they need to be able to show their full potential. The Air Force doesn't just toss people into jets and pick the best ones, they teach them how to fly first.

[BriteBacon]

Other than having them run through an obstacle course or a practice match we like to have a rules test to see who knows the rules the best. If the driver doesn't know the rules you are going to have a bad time.

[jijiglobe]

We set up 'strings' or rankings during the off season through watching our members practice and seeing who looks the most promising. Then we put our drivers to the test on the field at an off season event. It's important to remember that someone who is super good at driving around obstacles in the lab can freak out and lose their cool on the field. Remember the most important thing is that your driver knows ALL the rules. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that only 100 teams in all of FIRST do this. Read them, reread them, rereread them. Drivers should be able to tell you what the most common fouls are and how much each one is worth. In short the driver has to be good at driving, good under pressure, and willing to put a bunch of meticulous work in. Good communication helps too.

[Kevin Ray]

This year, for the first time, we have a dedicated driving mentor. A former student who is now an engineer for our sponsor (perfect FIRST paradigm) recognized that the driver was almost as important as the robot in a competition--though others might argue that the driver is more important. Anyway, he volunteered to set up a driving selection/training program which began in early fall. The team constructed a "robust" driver training robot complete with a full sized car battery for endurance. He developed a rubric for measuring various driver attributes and set up a training area in which any member of the team who made the initial cut would then have a great deal of practice time to see who had the best overall skillset.
The training was very intensive, even going so far as to create artificial stress in an attempt to see how drivers might respond under game conditions. The results were positive. We were able to empirically measure various attributes of each of the drivers and were very happy with the results. Unfortunately for us, however, the top three drivers are seniors and we'll have to select a new driver next year.
Another positive aspect of this selection method removes the argument, "I worked harder than he did and I deserve it more", or, "I'm a better driver and he was selected because of...". After each round of testing results are posted and everyone knows that the facts don't lie, it's not subjective anymore.

[brennonbrimhall]

Our process looks something like this:

1. Offseasons: With the exception of IRI, we have students who are motivated and have expressed interest in driving, drive coaching, or human playering (is human playering a word?) operate the robot, as long as they attend one of our robot operation and driving training sessions (where we go over controls and SOPs). This lets these students get enough training to feel comfortable with driving prior evaluation. One of our mentors works on a rotation schedule to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to be in all of the positions that they want while working with a variety of other students.
   
2. Rules Test: All prospective drive team members (driver, operator, coach, and human player) must take a multiple-choice rules test developed by our drive team mentor.
   
3. Drive Coach Essay: Drive coaches also are given a few essay questions that present different scenarios, and ask how the candidate would respond.
   
4. Tryouts: Drive coaches come up with drills, and coach permutations of operators, drivers, and human players through them. Not only does this help evaluate everyone individually, but this allows our drive coach mentor to see how people work together -- the whole is more than simply the sum of the parts.

One of the things we tend do differently from other teams is that we select our drivers during the build season. This is a large factor into why offseason events are so critical for us in getting drivers to have experience. Other teams often select the drive team before offseason events, and stick with this static combination for the following game/season.

We also strive to have a student drive coach. There has been a lot of discussion* regarding whether it's best to have a student drive coach (as the rules allow a mentor to fill this role too). While I have no idea what the best choice would be for your team, it's the happy medium our team has come to.

*Relevant threads and blogs:

• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=121551
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=105371
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=93881
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=91144
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=77390
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=67426
• http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=45367
• http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprogr...-field-coaches

[Rangel]

On our team for as long as I've been with the team, tryouts happen typically after the practice bot is complete. First people are tested with an obstacle course run where everyone is watching. Typically this is where people crack under the pressure of being watched and judged by everyone on the team. From there, members trying usually practice doing various roles in the game such as how many balls scored in 2 minutes. Everyone who is trying out has to try out for driver and operator so everyone switches up and typically the best combination is who becomes part of the drive team. The real pressure is also judged at the local scrimmage event Duel in the Desert. Here it's not so much about how good people are but how they react to pressure of everyone watching and other robots on the field. Typically tryouts last 1-3 weeks since we want to make sure we have the best drive team possible. For example, we've had people on the team that are awesome right off the bat but then never really get much better and people that start out below average but develop to the point where they surpass everyone else. Tryouts also happen every year so just because someone was driver one year, doesn't mean they will keep it the next year. Human player tryouts are basically the same thing except they are able to practice more due to not being reliant on the robot being available. This year for example, our human player had probably 2000 in-bounds to a red x on the floor. Even when the human player role isn't as critical like in 2010, we always have them prepared at the same intensity because although they may not always be able to win the alliance the game, they can sometimes cause losses due to not performing their role correctly.

[bigbeezy]

Like others, we give a rules test. But this year we extended it to the entire team. We wanted to make sure that the entire team knew the rules inside and out. We then had a secondary Driver Rules test which was more specific toward the drive team. Very very few multiple choice answers were given, this way you could tell who was actually guessing or just mixed up a number. The Driver Test portion also include situational questions so that the mentors can get a better feel of how the student thinks.

There were a couple problems with this. 1) Grading 2 multipage tests that weren't multiple choice was extremely time consuming (esp. during build season) and 2) There was no time limit for the situational questions. A student could come up with a good strategy but you have no way of know if that took 5 seconds or 5 minutes to formulate. I have heard of teams doing a sort of interview where situations are presented and they explain what they would do or draws on a white board. I think we are going to give this a try next year.

As far as try-outs with driving. We allow any student to try driving during off season events. We also hold a few fun driver practices in the shop during the fall where we've set up obstacle courses and run time trials. I plan to improve these so they are more structured for this summer/fall. In my mind, ideally we would select a drive team following our week 0 event. However depending on the state of the robot that's sometimes easier said than done.

Some things I look for in a drive team:
Must know rules
Communication
Smooth control (Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast)
Knowledgeable in how the robot works (don't expect to know every nut and bolt but should know what does what)
Communication
No Tunnel Vision (should be able to see the field, not just the robot)
Short Memory (needs to learn from mistakes and move on)
Communication

A couple students asked me last year if particular drive sessions were official "try-outs" or just "practice," the way I see it anytime you are behind the glass you are being graded. But that doesn't mean you can't mess around and have fun...

[hrench]

I just want to say most people aren't able to put themselves 'in' the vehicle the first time they drive and i think that's the most important training they can get.

Many kids play video games, but even with them, there isn't a third-person point of view to watch from.

So what I'm saying is you need drive time. Start with a radio controlled car because it's much cheaper to crash than the 'bot. But run it for hours. Drive patterns. Race each other or a clock. Drive obstacles. If you want to be a driver, you need to have your brain in the robot. It doesn't happen automatically.

You can move on to R/c planes or Quads and those will sharpen your skills, but before you can successfully drive the robot and win, you'll need many many hours of third person driving.

Only go to the robot once you've mastered the part about thinking as if you're in the vehicle.

[zinthorne]

I was one of the drivers this past season for my team. We had a drive team mentor who quizzed us on all the rules, and ran time trials and drive tests. Example: one test was see who could score the most cycles by themselves in 2 minutes and 20 seconds. The driver could decide how they wanted to drive, whether they would truss or not, and what not.
We were also given many scenarios and asked what we would do.
Coming from a students perspective, and having been a driver here is some advice I would give:
-Drive time makes a huge difference, so give each perspective driver to do whatever he/she wants with the robot for a set amount of time. Make no rules for them, and let them get accustomed to the robot. (During this time, see how much they improve, because it will show a general relation to how quickly they will improve in a competition)
-Look to see who drives the robot on the edge of the line, going as close as they can to being out of control, but still having control. If a driver drives the robot at top speed and as hard as they can in practice, then they will do it in a competition. If the driver does not drive the robot to its full extent in practice, then they will not drive the robot to its full extent in competition, which may lose a match.
-All drivers should know every mechanism on the robot nad know what they can do when which each individual part. Many times I see drivers not use all the mechanisms on their robot which causes them to not do as well.

[Samwaldo]

I personally have been our Driver 1 (Chassis) for 3 seasons and 4 years of off seasons. My first year trying out there were many requirements before you could try out. Such as knowledge of rules and plenty of hours put into the season. Then tryouts were done as pairs (Driver 1 + 2).Driving was based on 50% talent and 50% communication.

Our Adult coach believed that drivers skill can be taught through practice. Its alot harder to teach communcication and how to work together as drivers.

I Eventually won and ever since have had a different driver 2 every year, but continue to be the best driver we have. Driver 2 is based a bit more on team dedication and how well they work with Driver 1.

Coach (student) is decided by communication skills, how well they understand game, and how they work with drive team. A new qualification is how well they keep calm in match. Human player used to be on skill level. It has now become 40% skill, 60% dedication

This year due to district format, we wanted to get more people on the field so we switched driver 2, between districts. And then put our best in at NE Champs.

Off season is another thing! Due to my experience as driver, Im usually coach and then anybody that has driven the robot in the shop or at a demonstration, is dedicated to the team, and knows the rules can drive. We usually have 6-10 people rotate. We believe that getting kids on the field and putting a smile on their face is better than winning an offseason event which is why we let anyone drive. Also its sometimes funny to watch some people!

[debbiemusselman]

We did things a little differently this year than we did last year since we "finished" building sooner than we have in the past. Last year we didn't really have anyone that was interested in being on drive team so I was kind of forced onto the drive team because our coach thought I would be able to deal with the pressure and also be able to go out there and do what needs to be done as the operator and the same can be said for our driver. Throughout the entire season, we did not have a set human player but switched back and forth between a few people at each competition that we went to.

This year was a lot different. We actually had a working drive train and semi-working mechanisms by ~week 4 or 5 so we had some time to actually let people drive the robot around. We had everyone that wanted to be a part of the drive team write their name on a list of what position they want to be on the drive team and then we went through all of the different permutations of everyone to see who worked well together and who was able to work through the theoretical pressures of competitions. They would run through 2 minute cycles and the final score would be recorded along with how well they communicated with each other. After a round or two of running through the different permutations, the list was narrowed down to 2 people for both driver and operator.

Our mentors then sat down and looked over the data and talked about who worked well together and who didn’t. We then had to wait until our next meeting to find out what was going to happen next. As it turned out, the mentors decided who our drive team was going to be and made the other two the back-up drive team. They made sure that each of us understood why the drive team that was picked was picked and made sure that everyone was okay with the final decision.

[M. Lillis]

The one thing is that the whole drive team (drivers, human player, coach, etc) need to be best friends. You will be spending a good chunk of time around these people in tight situations, so everyone has to work well together. Also, if one driver has comments about what the other driver/human player did in that last match (for example), then they should only talk with the drive coach about it. Let the drive coach deal with any problems amongst the drive team members, it keeps everyone calm.

[Keegbot]

Our driver is normally the driver for all of their years that they participate in FRC. This is because we believe the driver continues to improve and gain experience as the years progress. The last driver tryout was my freshman year, and the previous driver came back from college during winter break/the start of the build season and held tryouts along with the coach/captains. While this has worked out fairly well for our team, we want to start teaching more students to drive so that the people trying out for the driving job are not learning on the spot.