FRC Blog - KOP Drive System Opt Out

[cgmv123]

http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprogr...System-Opt-Out

Please see the update below on the Kit of Parts Drive System Option from the Kit of Parts team:

The 2016 Kickoff Kit will again include a drive base kit, kind of. As we’ve done in recent history, Veteran teams can choose to receive a Product Donation Voucher (PDV) from AndyMark instead of the KOP Drive System at Kickoff. Rookie teams will automatically receive the KOP Drive System.

The PDV will again be worth $450 and can be used on AndyMark parts. To accommodate orders and lead times, the option to opt out of the KOP Drive System for the PDV will be available ONLY from 12:00 pm (noon) Eastern Time on Thursday (tomorrow!), 10/1, to 12:00 pm (noon) Eastern Time on Friday, 10/16. During that time, the option to receive the PDV in place of the KOP Drive System will be found in the “What’s New” section on the right side bar of the TIMS main screen.

"What's New" in TIMS

NOTE: If teams do not choose to opt out of the KOP Drive System in favor of the PDV by 10/16, they will be assigned the ‘default’ option of receiving the KOP Drive System as part of their Kickoff Kit.

To help you make your decision, we can give you some general information about this year’s KOP Drive System.

• The drive base is similar to the AM14U2 from 2015, but some minor changes have been made to address feedback from teams (for example, belts are included for long, wide, and square configurations).
• Features are designed such that they enable a team to execute basic elements of game play.
• Design is such that the drive base can be assembled and driving by a small team with limited resource within two days.

We recognize that we are asking you to choose to receive or not receive a partially defined product, which can lead to frustration. Our goal is to give you as much information as possible without revealing details about the game. For example, the limited ground clearance on last year’s KOP Drive System implied that the 2015 field would be relatively flat, while a drive base with significant ground clearance would imply some type of obstacle on the field that robots would likely have to traverse. If we revealed details such as ground clearance, we would be giving away too much of the game.

Here are the 2016 KOP Drive Sytem profile drawings of the cross-section of each of the three pieces: the end sheet, the outside sheet, and the inside sheet.

[BBray_T1296]

The 2016 Kickoff Kit will again include a drive base kit, kind of.

Kind of!?!


don't say it!

[Ari423]

Originally Posted by BBray_T1296

Kind of!?!


don't say it!

Can you drive in the water? (there I said it)

Or maybe it's a flying game and the KOP chassis is a helicopter. There's a reason they don't show us the KOP chassis in advance!

[BBray_T1296]

Originally Posted by Ari423

Can you drive in the water? (there I said it)

Or maybe it's a flying game and the KOP chassis is a helicopter. There's a reason they don't show us the KOP chassis in advance!

Maybe the robots will sit on rails/overhead track

[EDesbiens]

Or maybe it's just a special kind of wheel (think lunacy)...

[Whippet]

Originally Posted by BBray_T1296

Kind of!?!


don't say it!

1 CIM 2K16 CONFIRMED!

[EDesbiens]

Originally Posted by Whippet

1 CIM 2K16 CONFIRMED!

More like NO MOTOR YEAR 2K16 CONFIRMED!

[Ari423]

Originally Posted by EDesbiens

More like NO MOTOR YEAR 2K16 CONFIRMED!

All robot movements must be powered by internal combustion engines!

Can you imagine building a small internal combustion engine for every motor on your robot? The robot would weigh 1000 lbs. Sounds like torture.

[EDesbiens]

Originally Posted by Ari423

All robot movements must be powered by internal combustion engines!

Can you imagine building a small internal combustion engine for every motor on your robot? The robot would weigh 1000 lbs. Sounds like torture.

I was more thinking that all movements must be powered by springs or gravity...

[rsisk]

I certainly appreciate the flexibility we have with the KOP. The KOP team and FIRST have done a great job evolving the kit over the last few years.

That said, we are opting out of the KOP drive train for the first time as we are completing our first off-season custom drive train and expect good results from it.

[Aren Siekmeier]

• Features are designed such that they enable a team to execute basic elements of game play.

Does the design need to be different somehow? The rail profiles look the same as last year, particularly the same low clearance, so I don't expect any substantial terrain...

[jwfoss]

Originally Posted by Aren Siekmeier

Does the design need to be different somehow? The rail profiles look the same as last year, particularly the same low clearance, so I don't expect any substantial terrain...

Note that the AM14U2 was designed to use more than one diameter wheel, and while it was supplied with 4" wheels last year, it may be supplied with a different diameter (6" or even 8") for 2016.

[avanboekel]

For comparison, here's the profile drawings for the AM14U2. I don't see any differences.

http://www.usfirst.org/sites/default...Comparison.pdf

[Maxwellfire]

Originally Posted by BBray_T1296

Kind of!?!


don't say it!

My thought exactly!

[Electronica1]

Originally Posted by BBray_T1296

Kind of!?!

I am pretty sure he is referring to the fact that for the teams that opt out of the KOP drive system, their 2016 kickoff kit won't contain a drive base kit.

That or it is time to find a large dihydrogen monoxide tank.